Hoos Open Home Schedule With Rawlings Classic Friday

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia softball team (6-4) opens up the home portion of the schedule this weekend when the Cavaliers host the Rawlings Classic at Palmer Park. Virginia begins play on Friday (Feb. 23) as the Hoos will face Delaware (5-4) at 3:30 p.m. and Lehigh (2-5) at 6 p.m.

RAWLINGS CLASSIC SCHEDULE
Friday, February 23
10:00am: Delaware vs. Iowa State
12:30pm: Lehigh vs. Iowa State
3:30pm: Delaware vs. Virginia
6:00pm: Lehigh vs. Virginia

Saturday, February 24
10:00am: Iowa State vs. Delaware
12:30pm: Lehigh vs. Virginia
3:30pm: Iowa State vs. Virginia
6:00pm: Lehigh vs. Delaware

Sunday, February 25
10:00am: Iowa State vs. Lehigh
1:00 p.m.: Delaware vs. Virginia

PARKING ADVISORY FOR SATURDAY
With men’s basketball hosting North Carolina at 4 p.m. on Saturday, fans coming to softball are encouraged to park at the Emmett-Ivy Garage and a shuttle will be available from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
Live stats will be provided for all games while Virginia’s games will be streamed on ACCNX through the ESPN app and at ESPN.com. Links to the live stats and streams are available at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official account on X (@UVASoftball).

QUICK HITS

• The Cavaliers will play at home for the first time this season when the Hoos host the Rawlings Classic at Palmer Park featuring Delaware, Iowa State and Lehigh.
• Virginia went on the road last weekend to compete at the Easton Bama Bash and defeated USI twice and St. Thomas, while dropping a pair of tight contests with No. 11 Alabama.
• The Cavaliers have now gone on the road and faced a pair of nationally-ranked SEC teams on their home fields through the first two weekends of play.
• After stealing 98 bases a year ago, the Hoos have picked up where they left off last season and are second in the ACC and 20th nationally in stolen bases this season with 21 steals.
• Kelly Ayer leads the squad going 6-for-6 this season while Jade Hylton is 5-for-5. The duo lead the team last year with 22 steals each to tie for seventh most in a season at UVA.
• Madi Harris delivered in the circle last weekend tallying a pair of wins and currently ranks atop the ACC and third nationally in fewest hits allowed per 7 IP (2.03 hits per 7 IP).
• Jade Hylton hit a pair of home runs in the win over St. Thomas – including an inside-the-park home run – for her first multiple-home run game of her collegiate career.
• Hylton’s inside-the-park home run against the Tommies was the first for the Cavaliers since Abigail Barber did it against Hampton in the 2019 season.
• Virginia continues to play solid defense after turning in the top two fielding percentages in program history the last two seasons. The .984 fielding percentage is second in the ACC and ranks 15th nationally heading into the weekend.
• 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 Hoos have eight home runs so far this season through 10 games played.

THE SERIES WITH DELAWARE

• Virginia and Delaware have a short history with four games played between the teams
• The Cavaliers lead the overall series 3-1 and have won three straight in the series
• The squads first met in the 1981 season in Annapolis, Md., and last met in the 2000 season

THE SERIES WITH IOWA STATE

• Virginia and Iowa State have met nine times with the Cyclones leading the series 5-4
• The teams last met in the 1999 season with Iowa State taking a pair of games played at Florida State
• The series began with a doubleheader in 1986 with the Cyclones taking both games that season
• Virginia then won four of the next five games played between the teams until that 1999 meeting

THE SERIES WITH LEHIGH
• This is the first-ever meeting between the Cavaliers and the Mountain Hawks