Emma Lemley returned to her typical form in a 9-0 win for No. 14 Virginia Tech softball over Cal on Saturday.
Lemley controlled the game from the first pitch to the last; she struck out 10 batters and walked three across a shutout effort — the first time a pitcher held Cal scoreless this season. She surrendered just three hits and held the Golden Bears to just 2-for-11 with runners on base, including 0-for-5 with them in scoring position.
The win was Lemley’s fourth 10-plus strikeout effort of the season, and her first since she punched out 12 against Penn State on March 1.
The senior labored through two starts against Pitt a week ago — both games the Hokies (39-7, 17-3 ACC) lost. In 8 ⅔ innings across both contests, she surrendered 12 hits and 11 runs — all earned — while walking seven and striking out 11. In that stretch, she gave up four home runs. The losses marked Tech’s first conference series defeat of the season.
Still, Lemley has been dominant all season. She entered Saturday’s content with a 15-4 record and 2.39 earned run average. And the veteran’s outing in Berkeley was her 16th win of the season and 14th complete game in 29 appearances.
The Forest, Va., native typically starts the first game of each series, though Sophie Kleiman spent most of the game in the circle. Hokies head coach Pete D’Amour said the switch was to give the Golden Bears (31-18, 7-13) a different look than they likely anticipated.
Offensively, the Hokies jumped on Cal from the start on Saturday. Right fielder Cori McMillan blasted her second leadoff home run in as many days, providing Tech with a run before it recorded an out.
T1 | Wasted no time. ANOTHER LEADOFF HOMER FOR @corimcmillan_ ‼️
Virginia Tech 1, Cal 0#Hokies? pic.twitter.com/6UcVXMZS1p— Virginia Tech Softball (@HokiesSoftball) April 26, 2025
The blast was McMillan’s 25th of the season, elongating her program record and national lead.
First baseman Michelle Chatfield then homered the following inning, marking her third in two days and fourth in three games. She has 15 bombs this season — second on the team to only McMillan.
Tech didn’t simply score via the long ball. In the fourth, third baseman Jordan Lynch singled up the middle to bring around McMillan and Chatfield. In the sixth, the Hokies notched two more runs from a fielding error that brought around Lynch and a pickoff to score left fielder Lyla Blackwell, which built a seven-run advantage. The seventh brought two more runs courtesy of walks from designated player Kylie Aldridge and Bre Peck.
The Hokies accrued 12 hits and seven walks, meaning 25 of their 34 total at bats came with runners on base. Over the afternoon, they hit 7-for-25 with runners on, including 4-for-17 with them in scoring position. Crucially, six of their seven leadoff hitters notched hits — including McMillan’s homer in the first.
The Golden Bears cycled between three arms in the circle: Anna Reimers, Annabel Teperson and Ashanti McDade. Reimers picked up the loss through her three innings of work, in which she allowed seven hits and five runs. Teperson tossed the following two frames and surrendered two hits and one run. McDade then gave up three hits and three runs in the final two innings of cleanup work.
A week ago, the Hokies were staring down a dangerous path to slip out of the top-16 and squandering an opportunity to host an NCAA Tournament regional. They dropped two of three games to Pitt — though they entered that weekend winners of 17 straight — and dropped in the subsequent rankings.
But with two wins over Cal under their belt, they are on the way to strengthening their case for the NCAA Tournament selection committee to be a top-16 seed, though plenty of season remains.
The third game of Tech’s first-ever conference West Coast swing will take place on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET. In that contest, the Hokies could notch their fifth ACC sweep of the 2025 campaign.
Box Score: No. 14 Virginia Tech 9, Cal 0