If this story sounds similar to one you read earlier this season, that’s because it is. Virginia Tech softball defeated another SEC opponent on the road, plus a mid-major potential NCAA Tournament foe on the same day.
The No. 12 Hokies came from behind in the nightcap against the home team, propelled by strong situational hitting. Bree Carrico took the circle in relief and held her opponent in check.
Those exact scenarios played out against then-No. 14 South Carolina and then-No. 12 Georgia earlier this season. That does not make Friday’s result — a 15-4 run-rule win over USC Upstate and a 9-5 victory against Auburn — any less impressive.
The Hokies (13-2) are 5-0 against SEC opponents this season.
“What a relentless game,” Virginia Tech head coach Pete D’Amour told Tech Sideline. “Bree has been throwing well all year. … We just needed to hold them, and that’s what we did.”
Game 1: Virginia Tech 15, USC Upstate 4 (5 innings)
Tech notched five runs in the first inning, surrendered three in the second — initially scored as four — and then put up another 10 to end the game in run-rule fashion.
Hokies first baseman Michelle Chatfield slammed a 3-1 pitch over the fence in left-center field. Later in the inning, once left fielder Nora Abromavage and catcher Zoe Yaeger got on base, third baseman Jordan Lynch knocked a blast of her own. Second baseman Gaby Mizelle doubled around center fielder Addison Foster for a 5-0 lead before Hokies pitcher Sophie Kleiman stepped into the circle.
The Spartans’ (13-4) only consequential damage came in the bottom of the frame, when they cut the deficit. Left fielder Laila Landrum hit a two-RBI double, then center fielder Taliyah Thomas scored Landrum with a double of her own. Officials initially said USC Upstate scored four runs in the frame, then they revised the final score hours later.
Then, Mizelle smacked a two-run homer in the third for a 7-3 lead. An onslaught of runs followed.
The fifth inning brought eight runs for Tech. Designated player Kylie Aldridge’s double scored Mizelle and shortstop Annika Rohs. Yaeger singled in Aldridge and Chatfield. Lynch doubled to plate pinch runner Sara McNelly. Finally, second baseman Rachel Castine’s three-run blast made the score 15-3.
Spartans catcher Laney Jennings ran to first base on a dropped third strike, allowing third baseman Alyssa Davenport to score on a throwing error. But the score was 15-4 at that point, which it remained for the rest of the run-rule win.
Kleiman tossed the first four innings for the Hokies. During that stretch, she surrendered four hits, three runs and two walks while she struck out four batters. Of her 62 pitches, 38 were strikes.
Addyson Fisher obtained the last three outs, during which she allowed an unearned run and struck out two batters while walking one.
Tech tagged USC Upstate arm Anna Dickinson for 10 runs across 4 ⅓ frames of work. She relieved starter Chloe Poteete, who nabbed just one out and gave up the first five runs of the game.
Game 2: Virginia Tech 9, Auburn 5
The game went back and forth. Tigers center fielder Ma'Nia Womack slammed a homer over the right-field fence to go ahead by two in the second inning. Auburn maintained its advantage for several innings, until Castine hit an RBI single in the fourth and Yaeger’s fielder’s choice allowed Chatfield to cross home plate, tying the game.
Auburn catcher Ava Ratliff sent a moonshot over the left-field fence, scoring herself and two others, to transition a 3-2 Tech lead into a 5-3 Auburn advantage. Slowly, though, the Hokies clawed back.
Rohs doubled around Mizelle to flip the order and make the score 5-4. Chatfield roped a single up the middle to convert Rohs and tie the game. Yaeger nicked a clutch single down the left-field line for a 6-5 lead. Then, Abromavage blasted a homer almost as far as Ratliff’s blast for another two runs. For good measure, Yaeger drew a bases-loaded walk to make the score 9-5.
Virginia Tech hit 6-for-12 with two outs. Combine that with an 8-for-22 clip with runners on base — including 7-of-17 with them in scoring position — and that marked another impressive offensive performance on the road against an SEC opponent. Auburn (14-4), on the contrary, went 2-for-9 with two outs, 3-for-16 with runners on base and 1-for-9 with someone in scoring position.
“There’s no secret to two-out hitting,” D’Amour said. “We feel like if we have good at-bats, it doesn’t matter how many outs there are.”
Carrico earned her fourth win of the season across 5 ⅓ innings of work. She surrendered five hits, three runs and two walks, while she struck out nine batters. Carrico relieved Avery Layton, who saw the Tigers through their batting order once and gave up two runs and four hits.
“Avery gave us a good start and Bree held them at bay,” D’Amour said.
On the other hand, Auburn spread the game across three arms: Ella Harrison, SJ Geurin and Charley Butler. Harrison lasted the first 5 ⅔ frames and allowed 11 hits and five earned runs. The other two pitchers tossed the final 1 ⅓ innings, combining to give up the game’s final two runs.
Virginia Tech will face Troy on Saturday at noon ET, then rematch Auburn soon after. The Trojans (12-5) lost twice to the Tigers this weekend by one and six runs, respectively, and sustained a run-rule loss to USC Upstate.