No. 11 Virginia Tech softball turned in two polar opposite performances on Friday, splitting a doubleheader against Pitt to drop its first ACC series of the season.
The Hokies (37-7, 15-3) owned a 17-game winning streak before a 7-6 loss to the Panthers (17-27, 6-15 ACC) on Thursday. And after the three-game set, they lost their first conference series since losing two of three to Syracuse nearly a year ago.
Tech entered the weekend tied for first in the conference standings with Florida State. Pitt was tied with NC State for 13th.
The set marked Pitt’s first ever series win over a ranked opponent.
“We talk about responses to adversity constantly. This was the first weekend we got punched in the nose,” Virginia Tech head coach Pete D’Amour told Tech Sideline. “We’re having a good year, and were playing really well prior to this weekend. We can go one of two ways right now: keep getting better or let this weekend define us. I’ve seen this team enough that we’ll fight through this and continue to improve.”
Game 1: Virginia Tech 21, Pitt 0
Yes, that’s a football score. No, it’s not a typo.
The Hokies hit a program-record 11 home runs — also not a typo. The 11 bombs set an ACC record and were the second-most ever hit in NCAA history.
Here are the home runs, in chronological order: right fielder Cori McMillan in the first inning, third baseman Jordan Lynch in the first, designated player Kylie Aldridge in the first, center fielder Bre Peck in the first, first baseman Michelle Chatfield in the second, catcher Zoe Yaeger in the third, second baseman Rachel Castine in the fourth, left fielder Trinity Martin in the fourth, McMillan again in the fourth, pinch hitter Nora Abromavage in the fifth, then McMillan yet again in the fifth.
McMillan earned her 21st, 22nd and 23rd home runs of the season, shattering her own single-season program record from a year ago.
Abromavage’s knock was the first of her career. The freshman entered Friday with just 12 career at-bats and three hits. The bomb was her first career extra-base hit.
Tech’s other offense came courtesy of Castine’s RBI single in the fifth inning and Aldridge’s RBI groundout in the fifth. Otherwise, 11 of its 18 knocks cleared the fence while the team combined for nine walks.
Emma Mazzarone started the game for the Hokies and lasted 2 ⅓ frames. She allowed just one hit in that span and struck out a batter. However, she walked six and failed to hit the strike zone through her time in the circle; of her 59 pitches, just 21 were strikes.
Cassie Grizzard relieved Mazzarone and compiled one of her best performances of the season. She limited the Panthers to one hit in 2 ⅔ frames, striking out four and walking none in the process.
Game 2: Pitt 6, Virginia Tech 3
For the second day in a row, Emma Lemley was not her usual dominant self.
The senior labored through 5 ⅔ innings and 123 pitches, but surrendered five runs — two in the first and three in the sixth.
Lemley walked the first two hitters of the first inning. Though she then induced two outs, a wild pitch advanced the two runners to second and third. Before a strikeout limited the damage, Pitt first baseman Kaitlyn Brannstrom hit a chopper to Castine at second base, who could not toss the ball to first base in time, scoring two.
Though the Hokies’ ace held her opponent hitless for the next four frames, her offense failed to score in the first five. Finally, Tech notched some runs in the sixth inning, when Chatfield blasted a three-run homer to center field. At that point, the Hokies held a one-run lead, six outs away from escaping Pennsylvania with a series win.
The wheels came off in the bottom of the inning, however. With one out, pinch hitter Shelby Frazier hit a sacrifice fly into center field, scoring pinch runner Alena Ball to tie the game. Third baseman Desirae Martinez then scored on a wild pitch to take the lead. For good measure, catcher KK Esparza tanked a 3-2 pitch over the center field fence for an insurance run. Second baseman Tieley Vaughn then doubled to left field two batters later for an extra score.
Similar to many of their other losses, the Hokies struggled with runners on base — both in putting runners in those situations and then executing them. They went 1-for-10 with runners on base, including a mere 1-for-4 with them in scoring position. They stranded three runners and were held to just five hits in the nightcap.
Kyra Pittman tossed the complete game for the Panthers and shut Tech down. In all seven frames, she allowed five hits and three runs — two of which were earned. Though she only notched one strikeout, she pitched to contact and walked no batters.
The losses this weekend were certainly a setback for a team which entered the weekend riding the longest active winning streak in the country. Pitt is a team fighting to qualify for the upcoming ACC Tournament while Virginia Tech is fighting to win it. The defeats will not help its case to earn a high seed in the NCAA Tournament, though there is enough season left to rebound.
Next up for the Hokies is a trip to Berkeley, California, for their first conference series on the West Coast. Then Florida State comes to town to conclude the regular season.