Virginia Opens 2024 With Five Games At Carolina Classic

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia softball team (0-0) opens the 2024 season this weekend with five games at the Carolina Classic hosted by South Carolina. All five games will be played at the Carolina Softball Stadium.

CAROLINA CLASSIC SCHEDULE
Friday
10 a.m. vs. UNCG
12:30 p.m. vs. Jacksonville State

Saturday
10 a.m. vs. UNCG
3 p.m. vs. No. 23 South Carolina on SEC Network +

Sunday
12:30 p.m. vs. No. 23 South Carolina on SEC Network +

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
All five games of the tournament have live stats, while only the games against host South Carolina will be streamed on SEC Network + which is available through the ESPN app and at WatchESPN.com. Fans can also get updates by following @UVASoftball on X.

QUICK HITS

• Virginia opens its 45th season when the Cavaliers take the field against UNCG on Friday.
• The Cavaliers are 26-18 in season-opening games and look to make it back-to-back season-opening wins with a victory against UNCG on Friday morning.
• Virginia is coming off an eighth-place finish in the ACC last season and looking to build off a 30-win season in 2023 – the program’s first 30-win season since 2010.
• The Hoos return a pair of NFCA All-Region players from a year ago as RHP Eden Bigham and infielder Jade Hylton both were recognized by the organization.
• Hylton was also named to the TUCCI/NFCA Top 25 Freshman list last season, while she and Bigham both earned postseason honors from the ACC.
• Hylton was featured as one of the top middle infielders in the nation in the preseason as she was ranked the No. 13 middle infielder nationally by D1 Softball.
• Virginia continued to put a solid defense on the field last year, posting a .971 fielding percentage as a team which was the second highest fielding percentage in program history and was the third highest in the ACC a year ago.
• The Hoos stole 98 bases last season which tied for third most in a single season at UVA and was third in the ACC.
• Virginia hit 49 home runs a year ago which was the fifth most in a season for the Hoos.
• The Cavaliers welcome the No. 22 recruiting class to Grounds for this season with five players ranked in the top 100 by Extra Inning Softball.

THE SERIES WITH UNCG

• Virginia and UNCG have faced off 29 times with the Hoos leading the series 20-9.
• The teams met last season in Greensboro with Virginia taking a 6-2 victory over the Spartans.
• This is the eighth straight meeting that has come on the road for the Hoos or at a neutral site.

THE SERIES WITH JACKSONVILLE STATE

• The meeting on Friday will be the second-ever meeting between the Cavaliers and Jacksonville State.
• Jacksonville State won the only other meeting between the teams in the 2015 season.
• The Gamecocks took that meeting 6-2 at the Citrus Classic in Orlando, Florida.

THE SERIES WITH SOUTH CAROLINA

• Virginia and South Carolina have met 35 times with the Gamecocks leading the series 30-5.
• The teams last met in the 2022 season at the Carolina Classic with USC rallying for a 3-2 victory.
• Virginia last won in the 1994 season when the Hoos took both games of a two-game set with the Gamecocks.
• The 2022 meeting was the first between the teams since a 2003 doubleheader.

UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS

• Virginia continues to play on the road next weekend at the Eason Bama Bash hosted by Alabama.
• The Cavaliers will face No. 12 Alabama, Southern Indiana and St. Thomas (MN) in the weekend tournament.