No. 20 Virginia Tech Softball Goes Undefeated in the Georgia Classic

Virginia Tech (11-2) finished the Georgia Classic in Athens with a flawless 4-0 record in its third weekend of the season.

Game 1

The Hokies got their weekend started with a game against Seton Hall, with Sophie Klieman starting in the circle.

Jordan Lynch got the scoring started with a home run to right field to open up the second inning. Lynch finished the game with two hits, two RBIs, and a walk in three at bats against the Pirates.

In the following innings, Nora Abromavage added a run off of throwing errors from Seton Hall’s defense. Kylie Aldridge would knock a sacrifice fly to bring in a run, and right after, Zoe Yaeger tallied a two-RBI single to give the Hokies a 5-0 lead in the fourth inning.

Addison Fisher came in for Sophie Klieman in the fifth. Klieman allowed three hits and three walks in four scoreless innings. The Pirates were able to bring in their first run off of Fisher from a ground out.

In the final inning the Hokies added two more runs with an RBI double from Lynch and an RBI single by Sara McNelly, giving Virginia Tech a 7-2 win after Seton Hall tallied an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh.

Game 2

Next on the docket was Utah State, where Avery Layton got the start for the Hokies.

The Aggies started the game with a bang from Grace Matej, who smoked a two-run home run, but the Hokies quickly cut into the lead with an Aldridge RBI double to make it a 2-1 game.

Virginia Tech wouldn’t let up in the following innings, as Emma Mazzarone tied up the game with a solo shot to right center field. In the third, the Hokies took the lead with a three-run inning, giving Tech a 6-2 lead, thanks to a sacrifice fly by Annika Rohs and a two-RBI double by Yaeger.

The Hokies did one better in the fourth with a four-spot starting with Gaby Mizzelle knocking a two-RBI triple. Hailey Luginbill followed it up with an RBI double, and Yaeger brought one more in on a sacrifice fly, making it a 10-2 lead for Virginia Tech.

Utah State’s Matej added another home run against Layton. Bree Caricco was inserted to close out a 10-3 win for Virginia Tech.

Game 3

In game three, Virginia Tech faced No. 12 Georgia in its third-ranked matchup against an SEC team through 12 games to this point.

Action got started early with an Abromavage two-run home run to give Virginia Tech an early 2-0 lead. Georgia quickly answered back in the bottom of the first with a two-RBI single off of Hokies starting pitcher, Emma Mazzarone, to tie the game back up.

The Hokies later took the wind out of the Bulldogs’ sails, though, putting up seven more runs in the next three innings. In the second inning, Mizelle scored on an error, and Aldridge knocked an RBI double. In the following inning, Gaby Mizelle brought in another run off a sacrifice fly to make it a 4-2 lead.

At the top of the fourth, Georgia made a change at pitcher, bringing in Ada Little for Destin Howard. Virginia Tech did not mind the switch and got started with an RBI single from Aldridge and Abromavage to add two more runs. Lyla Blackwell then came in and surrendered a run off of a wild pitch. Addyson Foster hit a sacrifice fly to bring in one more run to make it a 9-2 game.

The Hokies went scoreless in the final three innings. Mazzarone pitched the full seven innings, but not before allowing one more run from a Gabi Novickas solo shot. Ultimately, Virginia Tech walked away with a 9-3 win.

Game 4

For the final game of the Georgia Classic, the Hokies were had another bout with the Bulldogs. Freshman Avery Layton got her second start of the weekend.

Georgia struck first, as Sarah Gordon knocked in an early RBI double. Gordon then added a two-run home run in the bottom of the third to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 lead to start. Bree Carrico was later inserted in for Layton.

That lead didn’t last long, as the Hokies raised the Bulldogs two with a five-run top of the fourth. Jordan Lynch got the scoring started with an RBI double and was then brought home by an Addyson Foster home run to tie the game at three apiece. Virginia Tech got two more runs from Michelle Chatfield and Aldridge, who each tallied an RBI single.

Nora Abromavage opened up the fifth inning with a home run to center field. Lynch scored on a Mizelle groundout, followed by Rohs, who registered an RBI single. Virginia Tech plated one more run from an RBI single from Aldridge as Rachel Castine scored and Anikka Rohs got caught at home, making it a 9-3 lead.

Caricco shut down the Bulldogs after coming in for Layton, allowing the Hokies to put up nine unanswered runs to make it another 9-3 win against No. 12 Georgia.

Virginia Tech’s offense was put back on display after some offensive hiccups at the Queen City Classic. The Hokies are now 11-2 overall and 4-0 against ranked SEC teams.

Next up for the Hokies is a trip to Auburn for the Jane B. Moore Memorial. Virginia Tech is set to play USC Upstate, Troy, and Auburn.