Getting no-hit was not the ideal senior day outcome for No. 15 Virginia Tech softball, but the team wasn’t too depressed after its 8-0 six-inning loss to No. 9 Florida State.
The Seminoles (44-7, 18-2 ACC) are a very good team, one which Virginia Tech head coach Pete D’Amour called “World Series-caliber.” Still, despite the outcomes of the past two days, he said the two squads are not far apart.
“My message to the hitters after the game was we can still hit,” D’Amour said. “We’re hitting .330 and [98] home runs. It’s not like we forgot how to hit. We just have to get back to how we play. It’s the team that gets hot at the end that makes a run.”
Florida State starter Jazzy Francik cruised through six frames and made the Hokies (39-10, 17-6) not look like the dominant offense they are. The freshman tossed just 76 pitches and struck out only three batters while walking another three. She relied on her defense to obtain most of the 18 outs — and it worked.
Francik totaled 21 no-hitters during her time at Melbourne High School — including seven as a senior — and finished her high school career with a 0.40 earned run average. She added to her tally on Saturday.
She realized she was riding a no-hitter in the fourth inning, when the Hokies flipped the order.
“I was trying to not look at the scoreboard and not keep that in my mind,” Francik said. “Once we got two outs [in the sixth], it was like, ‘Oh, maybe I can actually do this.’ Obviously, they’re such a great offense and every batter was tough. So I was just like, ‘Take a deep breath and trust the defense.’”
Saturday’s game marked the first time Tech was no-hit since March 9, 2018, against Syracuse. It was the Seminoles’ first complete no-hit bid since Kathryn Sandercock threw one in the 2023 Tallahassee Regional against South Carolina. The game also marked Florida State’s first no-hitter against a ranked opponent in program history, as well as the first by a true freshman since 2012.
Catcher Zoe Yaeger, right fielder Cori McMillan and left fielder Trinity Martin obtained Tech’s three walks.
“I think we were all trying to do a little too much at once,” said McMillan, who went 4-for-4 with two home runs the day before. “I think we let their lead get to us a little bit, and I think we all tried to swing and hit eight-run home runs to tie it.”
Emma Lemley spent most of the game in the circle for Virginia Tech and did not compile her best stat line of the season. She surrendered nine hits and eight runs while striking out three and walking four. The senior allowed two home runs and two more RBI doubles, which built an insurmountable lead for Florida State.
“Not our best [game], definitely not our worst,” Lemley said. “They’re a really good team, really good hitting team, and they sat on the pitches that they wanted.”
Lemley hunkered down in the fourth and fifth frames, making the necessary adjustments to hold the Seminoles scoreless. It took 11 frames across two games to put up a zero, but Lemley made it happen.
“I think at that point I really started throwing different pitches and trying to mix it up a bit,” she said. “... We probably could have started throwing different stuff a little bit earlier, but it is what it is. They hit a little bit of everything.”
Tech will finish third in the conference standings behind Florida State and No. 16 Clemson. To D’Amour, the regular season finale is giving the Hokies a gauge of how they can improve.
“Athletically, I think we’re with them. There are just a couple improvements we have to make,” he said. “The thing when you play against Florida State is it’s not big time changes. If you’re down by 10 percent, they’ll make you pay. It’s just trying to get that 10 percent back.”
After the game, Virginia Tech recognized its five seniors: Lemley, McMillan, Martin, center fielder Bre Peck and second baseman Rachel Castine. Two of them — Lemley and McMillan — were selected in Saturday night’s Athletes Unlimited Softball League Draft, which the Hokies watched in the Lane Stadium lounge with their families. Lemley went No. 3 to the Blaze and McMillan went No. 4 to the Bandits.
“I’m excited to know that there’s something after college, that once my eligibility runs out, that’s not the end of softball,” McMillan said.
In the meantime, the college season is not over. The Hokies will play their regular season finale against Florida State on Sunday at 4 p.m. ET, then travel north to the ACC Tournament at Boston College later in the week.
Box Score: No. 9 Florida State 8, No. 15 Virginia Tech 0 (6 innings)