Hokie Softball Rebounds in Athens with Twin 9-3 Wins Over #12 Georgia

Inconsistency on both the mound and the offense contributed to Virginia Tech’s 2-2 outing last week in Charlotte. Looking to put that behind them, the Hokies traveled to Athens, Georgia to play four games in the Georgia Classic. Coach Pete D’Amour fills the early part of the schedule with SEC teams in hostile environments to help prepare the team for both ACC conference play as well as the NCAA Regionals. Virginia Tech showed what it is truly capable of after dominating the field, including twin 9-3 wins against the 12th ranked Georgia Bulldogs.

GAME ONE - VIRGINIA TECH  7,  SETON HALL  2

After a shaky outing last week against Michigan State, Sophie Kleiman took the mound looking to rebound against Seton Hall.  She pitched four strong scoreless innings, only giving up three walks while striking out one. She didn’t throw a single wild pitch nor hit a batter. In fact, she threw 59% of her pitchers for strikes (43-of-73). Other than the walks, it was a clean performance for Kleiman

After a relatively quiet first inning, Virginia Tech’s bats came to life in support of Kleiman. Third baseman Jordan Lynch greeted Seton Hall pitcher Sami Wakely with a home run to right field for her second of the year. 

In the next inning, Seton Hall committed two errors that allowed another Hokie run. Left fielder Nora Abromavage drew a walk and attempted to steal second. The throw from the catcher Lea Kosinski sailed wide, and the second baseman’s throw to third to get Abromavage was off, allowing Nora to score. After three innings, the Hokies led 3-0.

Tech’s offense, benefitting from more gifts from Seton Hall, heated up in the fourth inning. Lyla Blackwell reached on an error, and both shortstop Annika Rohs and first baseman Michelle Chatfield drew walks to load the bases. Designated player Kylie Aldridge sent a sacrifice fly to center field that brought home Blackwell. Catcher Zoey Yaeger followed that with a single to score both Rohs and Chatfield.  Though all three runs were unearned due to the error, Tech held a 5-0 lead through four innings.

Tech freshman pitcher Addyson Fisher relieved Kleiman in the fifth and pitched the final three innings. She gave up four hits and two runs, only one of which was earned. Fisher also struck out three while only walking two.  She gave up a sacrifice that scored a Pirate run in the fifth and a single in the seventh that gave Seton Hall its two runs.

The Hokies had struck earlier in the top of the seventh inning when a double by Lynch scored pinchrunner MJ Abernathy, and a single by Sarah McNelly plated Lynch. The final 7-2 score gave Sophie Kleiman her second win of the season.

GAME TWO - VIRGINIA TECH  10, UTAH STATE 3

Freshman Avery Layton started for Virginia Tech in the second game of the day against Utah State. She got off to a rough start. After walking the lead-off batter Grace Koening, Layton gave up a home run to center field by designated player Grace Matej. Utah State had a quick two run lead.

Layton settled down and actually cruised through the next four innings until Utah State’s Grace Matej hit her second homer of the day off Layton. The Hokies brought in Bree Carrico, who pitched the final 2.2 innings. Carrico did not give up a hit, struck out two, and only walked one batter.

Meanwhile, the Hokie offense responded nicely. First baseman Michelle Chatfield drew a lead off walk in the bottom of the first. Left fielder Kylie Aldridge sent a full-count double to center field that brought home Chatfield and closed the gap to 2-1. Designated player Emma Mazzarone hit a solo home run, her second of the year, to right field in the second inning that tied the game.

Tech took command of the game scoring eight runs over the next two innings. With runners at second and third in third, shortstop Annika Rohs hit a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Addison Foster and allowed Gaby Mizelle to advance to third base. After Michelle Chatfield and Kylie Aldridge reached to load the bases, Zoey Yaeger greeted a full count pitch with a double to right field that brought in all three base runners. The four runs in the inning gave Tech a 6-2 lead.

Gaby Mizelle drove in two runs with a triple in the fourth inning. Two batters later, pinch hitter Haley Luginbill doubled to right field, plating Mizelle and allowing pinch runner Sarah McNelly to advance to third.  Yaeger then drove in her fourth RBI of the game with a sacrifice to right field that allowed McNelly to score Tech’s tenth run. 

Avery Layton got the 10-3 win to go 2-0 on the season.

GAME THREE - VIRGINIA TECH  9, GEORGIA  3

Emma Mazzarone dominates Georgia with 9Ks. Offense brings the heat 

With the preliminary games behind them, it was time to get to the main event - two games between national powerhouses.

Georgia sent Dustin Howard to the plate to face Tech’s offense in game 1, but the Hokie bats struck quickly. Designated player Kylie Aldrige worked a full count into a walk with one out. Catcher Zoey Yaeger delivered a 3-2 count line drive to center field that Georgia’s Delaney Sullivan laid out to rob Yaeger of potential extra bases.

Left fielder Nora Abromavage stepped to the plate with two outs and golfed a 1-2 count low pitch over the center field wall for her fourth home run of the season that gave Virginia Tech the early 2-0 lead.

Tech’s lefty ace Emma Mazzarone was shaky in the bottom of the first. Her pitches tended to sail high, went wide left, or dove too low and inside. She walked the first batter she faced, and a wild pitch to the next batter allowed the base runner to advance to second. Mazzatone gave up another walk to put two on. After getting two outs on a fly out to Abromavage and a bouncer back to Mazzarone, Georgia designated player Tyler Ellison drove a 2-2 single to center field that tied the game up 2-2.

The Hokies struck right back in the top of the second. Right fielder Gaby Mizelle led off the inning with a walk.  In what was becoming a theme, second baseman Rachel Castine worked yet another 3-2 count for a walk to put two on with no outs. After shortstop Annika Rohs failed to get down a bunt, she sent a soft liner to the outfield for Georgia’s first out.

A wild pitch by Howard to first baseman Michelle Chatfield allowed both runners to move up. Chatfield then sent a liner that went off the glove of the second baseman scoring Mizelle and putting runners on the corners. With the Hokies up 3-2, Tech seemed to hurt itself by being too aggressive. With Aldridge up, the ball got away from the Georgia catcher. Castine tried to score from third, but good bounce allowed the catcher to tag Castine for the second out. Never fear, Aldridge drove a liner to left-center to bring in Chatfield for Tech’s fourth run.

After a shaky start to the second in which the first two batters reached the corners with no outs and the third hitter had worked a 3-1 count, Mazzarone turned into super woman. She began to consistently get her breaking ball over for strikes and repeatedly got batters out with check swing third strikes.

In addition, her infield defense went to work. The game action between the second and sixth innings read like a roll call of defensive plays by the infield:

• Ball bounces in front of Yaeger who gets the out at first.
• Bouncer to Castine who goes to the first for the out.
• Lynch scoops throws batter out at first.
• Weak hit to Mazzarone who gets the out at first.
• Grounder to Castine who goes to second to get the lead-off runner
• Hot grounder to Castine to first for the out.
• Floating one hopper to Castine who throws to first for the out.
• Lynch scoops up a grounder and throws a bullet to get the out at first

Mazzarone gave up three hits total over the first six innings, struck out seven, and shut down seven straight batters at one point. Georgia did tack on a late home run in the seventh inning, but Mazzarone pitched a complete game in which she gave up only four hits, three runs, and only three walks. She was masterful, striking out a total of nine hitters despite throwing 144 pitches.

Meanwhile, the Hokie offense had her back. In the third inning, Lynch scorched a single past the third base bag and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Center fielder Addison Foster used her speed to beat out a high infield bouncer that put the runners at the corners. Freshman phenom Gaby Mizelle muscled a sacrifice fly to right field that allowed Lynch to tag up for a 5-2 Hokie lead.

Tech poured it on the fourth. After Rohs led off the inning with a single and Chatfield walked, Aldridge sent a deep ball to the right field wall that brought in Rohs. Two batters later, Abromavage smoked a grounder past the shortstop to score Chatfield from second. After a Lynch single loaded the bases, a wild pitch by Georgia and a sacrified fly by Foster scored two more runs. Eight hitters, four hits, and four runs came across in that fourth inning that put the game out of reach for Georgia. Even with that home run in the seventh inning, Virginia Tech won 9-3 for its first win over Georgia by more than one score.

GAME FOUR - VIRGINIA TECH  9, GEORGIA  3

Bree Carrico Shuts Down the Bulldogs While the Offense Experiences Deja Vu

With the tournament simulating a NCAA regional, Virginia Tech played no. 12 Georgia again the next day to close out the weekend.

Their second matchup was a game of two innings for both teams.

Freshman Avery Layton got her second start of the weekend and immediately ran into trouble again in the bottom of the first inning. After striking out the lead off batter, Layton walked Georgia’s center fielder Delani Sullivan on a 3-1 count. Sullivan stole second without a throw, and then third batter left fielder Jaydyn Goodwin also walked on a 3-1 count.  Layton could not get the Georgia batters to bite on her rise ball and threw too many low pitches for balls. The back-to-back walks came back to bite the Hokies when catcher Sarah Gordon doubled to left-center, scoring Sulivan and putting runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out.  Layon was able to get the final two outs and limit the damage to that one run.

Georgia threatened again in the second inning after a lead off single deep into the shortstop hole and yet another walk put two runners on with no outs. Fortunately, Layton was able to wriggle out of trouble with a strikeout, a fielder’s choice out at second base, and then a flyout to center field.

Layton’s luck ran out in the third. She gave up a leadoff single to Goodwin who beat the throw from Rachel Castine at second. Gordon then sent a 2-0 offering over the center field wall to drive in her third RBI and stake Georgia to a 3-0 lead.  After Layton walked the third batter she faced, Coach D’Amour made the change on the mound to stop the bleeding.  Layton’s line for the game: 2 innings pitched, four hits, three runs, two strikeouts, and the four walks that hurt.

In came Bree Carrico, who completely changed the complexion of the game. She inherited the runner at first down three runs with no outs. Unfazed, she immediately attacked the Bulldog lineup and retired the next three batters, striking out two. That performance was a harbinger of what was to come.

Carrico extinguished any hope Georgia had the rest of the game. She pitched the remaining five innings; giving up only one hit, a walk, and no runs; and struck out six. Cariico faced 17 total batters, two above the minimum. Only four batters were able to get the ball out of the infield as Carrico completely dominated the no. 12 ranked Bulldogs.

In turn, the Virginia Tech offense also did its damage in only two innings. After a relatively quiet first three innings against Georgia starter Brandi Roeiling, it was as if Carrico’s gutsy performance ignited the Tech bats. In the top of the fourth inning, left fielder Nora Abromavage knocked a one-out single to the shallow part of the outfield. Third basemen Jordan Lynch then smoked a double to the left-center gap that brought Abromavage around from first. The Hokies had drawn within 3-1.

Center fielder Addison Foster slammed her second home run of the season over the center-right wall to knot the score at 3-3.

Rachel Castine came up with two outs and hammered a line shot straight past the pitcher for a single. After shortstop Annika Rohs was hit by a Roeiling pitch to put runners at first and second, first baseman Michelle Chatfield singled home Lily Pallante, running for Castine. Designated player Kylie Aldrige joined the party by dumping a fly ball between short and right field that scored Rohs. Just like that, the Hokies had roared back to take a 5-3 lead.

Tech was not done. Abromavage led off the next inning with a solo shot over the center field fence - her fifth of the year.

Lynch lined a grounder that got through the middle. Foster then sent an opposite field hit to left that put runners on the corners with no outs.  Gaby Mizzele grounded out to first that allowed Lynch to come home for a 7-3 lead.  After a wild pitch moved Foster to third and Castine worked a walk, Rohs and Aldridge delivered singles through the right side to plate Foster and Castine, respectively.

Two explosive innings that turned a three run deficit into a 9-3 lead was all that the Hokies needed to defeat no. 12 Georgia a second time this weekend.  Bree Carrico’s performance earned her third win of the year and dropped her ERA to 0.77.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES

The weekend represents one of the best offensive performances of the young season, especially since two of the games were against the 12th ranked Georgia Bulldogs. While Sophie Kleiman and the younger pitchers found their footing, Emma Mazzarone and Bree Carrico had statement performances against Georgia.

Jordan Lynch - Lynch went 9-for-14 over the weekend, raising her batting average from .419 to .489. She also hit two doubles,  pounded her second home run of the season, and drove in 3 RBI.

Nora Abromavage - Abromavage had three walks and four hits, including two home runs that raised her team-leading total to five. She also added four RBI to her team leading 19 total.

Kylie Aldridge - Aldridge went 6-for-11, raising her average to .400. She hit two doubles and drove in six RBI.

Zoey Yaeger -  Yaeger “only” had one double and two walks, but she drove in six RBI with timely hits.

Addison Foster - Foster continues to be an important transfer addition from Stetson University. She went 6-for-11 over the weekend, raising her average from .314 to .370. Foster also hit her second home run of the season and drove in three RBI.

Gaby Mizelle - The freshman Mizelle walked once, hit a double and triple, and drove in four RBI.

Emma Mazzarone - Mazzarone found her form over the weekend.. Facing the 12th ranked Georgia’s vaunted SEC lineup, she pitched a complete 7-inning gem. Mazzarone only gave up four hits and three runs. Even more importantly, she showed great control, only walking three batters, did not hit a batter, and only threw two wild pitches. She is not 3-1 on the season with a 1.96 ERA.

Bree Carrico -  The second-year Carrico came in twice during the weekend class and immediately put out fires. She pitched 8.2 innings without allowing a single run. She only allowed one hit and four walks, while striking out eleven. Carrico is now 3-0 on the season with an ERA of 0.77. She has only given up two home runs on the season through 25 innings of work.

WHAT IS NEXT?

The Hokies are now 11-2 on the season and moved up in the national rankings: 

• D1 Softball ranks Virginia Tech at #12
• Softball America has the Hokies at #11
• NFCA/GOROUT ranks Virginia Tech at #11
• ESPN/USA SV ranks the Hokies at #12

Tech travels next to Auburn for two games against Auburn and USC-Upstate and one game against Troy. Both Auburn and USC-Upstate were NCAA regional teams last year. The games start on Friday, with the first game at 2:00 pm EST.