The Hokies were playing Notre Dame in the final game of a three game series. The Hokies had won two games on Saturday by comfortable margins of 9-1 and 9-3 but Sunday’s game was much different. Entering the bottom of the 5th, the Irish led 4-2 and looked poised to seize back the softball momentum that they had historically held in this series with the Hokies. Prior to this the 2024 games, Notre Dame led the all-time contests 31-9, including winning 20 of the last 23 games. So it would be understandable if Hokie Nation was thinking “here we go again” as the teams entered the bottom of the fifth. But a 2-run double from Addy Greene and a 2-run single from Cam ***an put the Hokies back in from 6-4, but Hokies Nation was still a bit nervous. This was exactly the type of game that Notre Dame had stolen in the past. With the bases loaded and two out, Coach D’Amour summoned senior Maija Louko to pinch hit, a decision that cause some to shake their heads. After all, Louko had had only seven career at bats – and only one hit and had never driven in a single run. But Maija was always the model teammate, "always smiling, does what she’s supposed to do, and works hard," said D'Amour. "She sets the standard for our team in those three regards." But what a pressure situation - bases loaded, two out, Hokies clinging to a slim lead. But no problem for Maija. After working the count to 2-1, Louko blasted the ball deep over the center field fence for a grand slam that not only sent Tech Softball Park into a frenzy, but especially her teammates, several of whom admitted postgame that they shed a few tears at the time. I completely lost it on my twitter video that described the play, but it is one of my fondest memories of VT softball. Thank you, Maija, for give us one of those special moments.