Virginia Falls At No. 15 Virginia Tech

BLACKSBURG, Va. – A big second inning proved to be too much on Tuesday (April 23) as Virginia (30-16) fell at No. 15 Virginia Tech (36-9-1) by a score of 6-1 in a Smithfield Commonwealth Clash matchup.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Virginia Tech scored in the second with runners reaching on back-to-back singles with one out. A groundout to first moved them both into scoring position before Annika Rose singled to right to drive them home. Two more singles took the lead out to 4-0 in favor of the Hokies.

Bella Cabral got the Cavaliers on the board in the third inning with a solo shot to left center.

Virginia Tech answered with solo home runs in the bottom of the third and fourth to take the lead out to 6-1 in favor of the home team.

Eden Bigham (13-7) took the loss, allowing the four runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts in 1.2 innings of work.

Emma Lemley (11-4) picked up the win as she allowed the one run on four hits with a walk and eight strikeouts in the complete-game effort.

NOTES ON THE GAME

• Bella Cabral’s home run in the third inning was her sixth home run of the season.
• The Cavaliers used three pitchers on the night with Courtney Layne and Madi Harris also seeing action.

FROM HEAD COACH JOANNA HARDIN
“I thought our at bats were much more disciplined (than the first meeting) and we made Lemley work a little more for the win with 116 pitches tonight. That was positive to see along with quality contact. They’re a tough offense and we kept them at bay with some great plays on defense. Bella Cabral had the home run and we had some hard-hit balls on the screws that they made plays on. We’ll rest up and go into an important weekend for us at Georgia Tech.”

THE SMITHFIELD COMMONWEALTH CLASH

• With the win, the Hokies picked up .5 a point in the Commonwealth Clash Standings.
• Virginia has already clinched the Commonwealth Clash and leads the Hokies 12-7.

UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS
Virginia returns to action on the road this weekend, closing out ACC play with a three-game series at Georgia Tech. Game one is set to begin at 6 p.m. on Friday. Game two will be at 3 p.m. on Saturday and the finale is set for noon on Sunday.