VT_AD

I remember the high school coach here didn't know any school records or how many strikeouts my kid had even though she was on pace to get close to 1,000 (until Covid it)! I don't know, it just rubs me the wrong way. My kid never posted anything I guess is why it bothers me.

I get posting your stats if you're getting recruited, but she's already committed, and every college softball player has amazing high school stats. I don't know, just feels unnecessary to me.

Lost series to UVA, VT, Clemson, and FSU. They did win against the NE ACC teams.

Turns Miami (OH) into a home run juggernaut as top homerun hitting team in the country and then takes the Ohio State job and does the same there. Pretty clear there is something with their hitting programs.

She looks very, very athletic and has a very powerful swing. Now I will say that earning a gold medal doesn't always mean a lot as a pitcher from UVa's staff won one for Team USA at the Pan Am Games. Usually the team is just so much better than the competition. It's a great experience but I wouldn't put a lot into that most of the time. I will say that Gaby is impressive regardless.

4 years and multiple pitching coaches and it's hard to believe that there's no consistency. She seemed like she had one last year off and on. She was devastating when it was on! I feel like college coaches sometimes get set in their ways or are too proud to use a pitch that's 12-14 MPH slower than full speed? My daughter pitched before college (no where as good as your kid!) and was on the same travel team as Emma and Millie Thompson from Clemson and was recruited to pitch at some schools including where she went. After 2 years of not pitching they brought in a new pitching coach who asked her to throw some and what her best pitch was. She showed him (this guy was the University of Washington pitching coach when they had Gabby Plain) and he told her it was an A+ pitch, even though she hadn't pitched in basically 3 years - then he said, "A change-up though isn't a real pitch". I wonder if that's the mentality of these macho pitching coaches who just want to use velocity and sprinkle in other movement pitches? ** Edited by VT_AD at 5/17/2025, 10:51:48 AM

it was out of town and not the nicest place. I lived in West Knoxville for 3 years and it wasn't in that area. I think it was going toward the airport maybe.

for regionals at the same time I’ll say there some issue with hotels. We were around 30 minutes away from the field which wasn’t bad. Gave us time to explore the area some.

Felt the same about Emma Ritter the last couple years.

We had a northern team coach talking to our travel coach years ago and she said she'd take every single player on the team right now, but she knows none of them want to play north of Virginia - and she was right. The team had 17 D1 kids on it. ** Edited by VT_AD at 5/6/2025, 10:59:50 AM

I agree that I thought there'd be a little drop off but they look as strong as ever! I am always hesitant about recruits until the fall. I remember all the hubbub about Maci Masters and her high school numbers and people thought she'd be the next Alo for instance. Everyone is a star at some point if they are going to a P4 team. I will say though that overall Pete's track record is pretty good. I just went through his past 5-6 recruiting classes and he's hitting on probably better than 60% which is not bad. That McManus girl's videos I've seen look impressive! Side note: after writing this I found Maci Masters at WKU where she's flourishing batting .328 with 12 HR's!! So, Pete can find 'em, it's just hard to break into our lineup right now! ** Edited by VT_AD at 4/16/2025, 1:41:43 PM ** Edited by VT_AD at 4/16/2025, 1:46:43 PM

One of my points down the page was that we've got to do better at as a conference vs. the SEC if we want to continue to advance in the NCAA's. While I get frustrated with them getting everyone in and hosting almost all regionals it seems, given the below info, I can see why especially in comparison to the ACC: ACC is 14-36 vs. SEC to date VT: 2-3 FSU 3-2 Clem 2-5 Duke 3-6 UVA 1-4 Stan 1-0 UNC 0-3 GT 1-3 Cal 0-0 UL 0-1 ND 1-2 BC 0-2 NCSt 0-1 Pitt 0-2 SU 0-2 Here are the teams we've played and their record vs. the ACC. Note that we haven't played OU, Arkansas, or Texas. LSU 2-0, Bama 1-2, UK 6-4, Mizzou 1-3, TAM 3-0, UF 3-2, Ole Miss 1-0, Aub 4-1, UGA 3-1, USC 7-1, UTenn 3-0, MissSt 2-0. Just putting this here for discussion purposes.

VT loses Emma, Bre, and Cori after this year. Sometimes coaches look at their rosters and realize they cannot continue at the same level once certain players leave (see Brooks leaving after Kitley graduated and Amoore considering the pros) so their stock is at an all-time high. Yes, there's a lot of talent on the roster but these 3 are going to be difficult to ever replace. If there was a year someone could swoop in this next one might be it. Being able to double or even triple your salary with better facilities in a talent-rich area is really hard to turn down. ** Edited by VT_AD at 4/15/2025, 4:35:47 PM

I think you're thinking of UVa who beat UCLA. Liberty went 2-3 in the tournament beating, Charlotte and 'bama, losing to Auburn, Missouri, and Wichita State.

which is ridiculous given the product.

I'm looking big picture. Since 2021 in the NCAA's, we've lost to UCLA twice, Georgia, and Florida. Teams that had top-shelf pitching. I'm just saying we've got to find a way to break through that. SEC teams see more of that than we do. If you're going to pull single game results that's an exercise in futility, UVa beat UCLA but lost to San Diego State. Oklahoma lost to Missouri, and VT lost to Villanova - means nothing in the big scheme. I'm saying that in a series we've got to do better with elite pitching.

and hack attack machines do as well. It's just not the same when you see it coming from Pickens. She's 6'1" and doesn't do the men's league hop and seeing it for 2-3 days isn't the same. Believe me. My point is, we just don't see enough elite pitching consistently in the ACC which I think handicaps us and other ACC teams too.

Redshirting in NCAA softball can occur for medical or academic reasons. Medical redshirt rules: The injury or illness must be season-ending. The injury must occur in the first half of the season. The athlete must not have competed in more than 30% of the season’s competitions. Documentation from a qualified medical professional is required.

This year there doesn't seem to be a clear superior team as has been the case the past decade or so. If VT can get hot their pitching can keep them in games and their offense will put up runs. The one thing I worry about is some of this elite type pitching other teams see regularly are our Achilles heel. You saw it this year with LSU and to some extent at Alabama. We just don't see enough of it in the ACC regrettably while a lot of the SEC teams have it. Take Tennessee for example, we just don't see someone throwing 75 regularly and you just can't simulate it.

but she's just not reliable. The problem is she's the best they have. The coach has done a good job masking this with a pitch by committee approach and just hoping someone can get them through the lineup once, maybe twice at max.

Texas A&M, 2 vs USCe, and Auburn slip away too. So that's 6 games that they were either tied or in the lead in the last inning they could've/should've won. Not the side you want to be on. It definitely shows a trend. Their pitching gets very tight in these situations, and they just can't get over that hump I talk about with them. Having an elite-type pitcher makes a huge difference in being 6-7 in tight games vs. 13-0.

This type of thing, plus the other fundraisers you all contribute to, is amazing. I cannot imagine the program I was involved in doing anything like this or getting near the response. What you all do is incredible and not normal! It's the Hokie-way though, so I'm not surprised. I cannot express how impressive this is. The grassroots support from mostly non-parents is something to be proud of.

If you do that, the other coach can just correct it. So, it makes no sense to do that. If the batter strikes out then they won't appeal it, if they walk or get a hit, that's when you challenge it. Doing it at any other times makes no sense. It's not up to the umps to manage the scorebooks or lineup cards.

Let's face it, the season is quite a grind for all of these teams. The Hokies will likely be pushing 60 games when it's all said and done. I know my experience being in the NCAA's as a parent for the first time last year was that I was mentally exhausted, so I cannot imagine the things these girls push through plus school and their personal lives at their age! I noticed that our team (UVa at the time) seemed drained when it came to facing Tennessee and Pickens on that final day, but you could tell UT was much fresher as they had been there before and knew what it took to grind out wins. It's kind of like when someone says you have to run a mile and then you get there and you're told, "Oh there's another mile to go." That mentally gets to you if you're not expecting it. Our Hokies are now becoming old hands at this and their experience will pay dividends as their minds and bodies recognize that the season is more than the regular season. They're gonna need that grit and fight as it is survival of not only the most talented but the fittest both mentally and physically. ** Edited by VT_AD at 4/6/2025, 9:08:46 AM

SEC teams are always ranked high (some rightfully so) or just because of the name, which in turn increases their SOS and they all play each other so just by playing their conference games their SOS is always high. It’s no wonder every team always gets into the NCAA’s.

That seems a little high, but we will see, as it doesn't say who. 9 bids would be nice. Hosts by conference: SEC: 9 ACC: 5 Big 12: 1 Big Ten: 1 Bids by conference: SEC: 15 ACC: 9 Big 12: 6 Big Ten: 6 American 2 All Other Conference: 1

That's gotta sting just a little more! Seeing her that much you'd think they'd have adjusted a little better over the years, but it seems they actually got worse or she got better! ** Edited by VT_AD at 4/3/2025, 9:15:06 AM