The No. 12 Hokies head to Massachusetts this weekend to face Boston College.
This will be the home opener for the Eagles (10-20, 2-4 ACC), who have played 12 games on the road (3-9) and 18 at neutral sites (7-11). Meanwhile, Virginia Tech is 28-4 overall, 4-2 in the conference and boasts a 10-3 away record.
The Hokies will look to continue their dominance over the Eagles, having won the last 13 meetings — including seven by run rule — and holding a 45-8 series lead. The last Boston College win over Virginia Tech came during the 2015 season.
All three games are scheduled to be shown on ACC Network Extra, though inclement weather could alter things. The schedule already changed — it’s now a doubleheader on Friday and a single game on Saturday — but could adjust again depending on Mother Nature.
• Game 1: Friday, March 27, 3 p.m. ET
• Game 2: Friday, March 27, 45 minutes after Game 1
• Game 3: Saturday, March 28, 3 p.m. ET
Beth Krysiak is in her first year as the Eagles’ head coach. She came to BC after two impressive years at Saint Francis, where she guided the Red Flash to consecutive Northeast Conference titles and NCAA Tournament appearances.
Boston College, picked last in the ACC preseason poll, handed North Carolina its first loss of the season on March 1. It won 10-2, though the Tar Heels won the series by taking the first two games (10-9 and 5-4).
A similar outcome occurred in Pittsburgh last weekend when the Panthers took the first game (9-8) and third game (12-9). The Eagles’ lone victory came on Saturday when they prevailed 6-3.
Meanwhile, the Hokies are on a six-game winning streak, sweeping a doubleheader against Longwood and a series against NC State that included two run-rule wins.
The Virginia Tech offense is clicking and is ranked in the top 10 nationally in batting average (.369, 10th), slugging percentage (.649, 10th), hits (331, 5th) and doubles per game (2.09, 5th).
Meanwhile, Boston College has a team batting average of .291 and averages 4.8 runs per game.
Four of its top five hitters are either freshmen or sophomores, led by catcher Abby Ptak, who is hitting .423, and first baseman Emma Knight, who leads the Eagles in home runs with eight. Freshman Kae DePerio has been hitting leadoff recently and has a batting average of .368 and an on-base percentage of .449.
Virginia Tech’s pitchers had some outstanding performances last week, with both Emma Mazzarone and Bree Carrico earning weekly recognition.
Mazzarone was named ACC Co-Pitcher of the Week after throwing 11 innings without giving up an earned run and striking out 17. Meanwhile, Carrico earned National Freshman of the Week honors from D1Softball and was the ACC Freshman of the Week after recording three wins while pitching 11 scoreless innings. She allowed just a single hit while striking out 16.
On the other side, Boston College is 14th in the ACC in ERA (4.77) and batting average (.307) and last in strikeouts (107). Freshman Emily Van Cleef and junior Kelly Colleran lead the Eagles in starts with nine each.
Here is a comparison of the two pitching staffs:
Defensively, Boston College has committed twice as many errors as Virginia Tech (42 to 21). In terms of fielding percentage, the Eagles are at .950, which ranks last in the ACC, while the Hokies’ mark of .974 is second.
Statistically, Tech has an advantage in almost every statistical category. However, the forecasted cold weather could serve as an equalizer if the Hokies aren’t focused.
Here is the tale of the tape:
