No. 25 Virginia Shuts Out No. 8 FSU In Series Opener

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Junior pitchers Courtney Layne and Eden Bigham combined to hold the Seminoles to two hits on the night and Jade Hylton hit a two-run home run as No. 25 Virginia (27-10, 8-5 ACC) shut out No. 8 Florida State (34-6, 9-1 ACC) by a score of 2-0 on Friday (April 4).

HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a pitcher’s duel from the start with Layne retiring nine of the 11 batters she faced and allowing only one walk and allowing a one-out double in the third inning before passing the ball to Bigham to start the fourth. Bigham retired the first two batters faced before surrendering a single that would be the last hit allowed by the Hoos in the game.

Virginia broke the stalemate in the fifth inning, putting together a two-out rally. Kailyn Jones drove a triple to the gap in left center to flip the lineup and bring Jade Hylton to the plate. Hylton jumped on the first pitch, driving it deep to left center for the 2-0 lead.

Bigham and the Hoos immediately put up a zero in the bottom of the fifth as she and the Hoos would allow only two baserunners the rest of the game – one on a walk and one on a hit batter. Holding the 2-0 lead heading into the seventh, Bigham struck out the first two batters in the inning and coaxed a foul out to end the game.

Bigham (10-5) picked up the win, working the final 4.0 innings in relief, allowing the one hit with a walk and six strikeouts. Layne turned in a strong start, allowing the one hit with a walk and two strikeouts in the start.

Annabelle Widra (8-2) took the loss in relief for FSU, allowing the two runs on two hits with a strikeout in 2.1 innings of work. She was one of four FSU pitchers on the night.

NOTING THE HOOS
• Jade Hylton’s home run in the fifth inning was her 10th of the season to move her into the team lead.
• Hylton has now homered in three straight games for the Cavaliers and it’s the second time this season a UVA player has homered in three straight games (Macee Eaton 3/14-15 vs. Boston College).
• Kailyn Jones’ triple in the fifth inning was her team-leading sixth triple of the season.
• Head Coach Joanna Hardin picked up her 200th win at the helm of the Cavalier program with the win at FSU.

FROM HEAD COACH JOANNA HARDIN
“I saw complete conviction from the circle tonight and that set the tone. Courtney Layne started us off with nine quality outs and was so good. Eden Bigham then slammed the door. She shook off a few pitches and we knew she was calling her own game. When she’s calling her own game she has a deep-seated belief in what she’s doing. We chipped away, made some adjustments against a really unique bullpen that can diversify what you see. Jade came up with the big fly and when the bottom of our lineup is getting on to set the table for the top of our lineup, we can do special things. Now we have to go back to work and get ready to play again tomorrow.”

UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS
Virginia and Florida State continue the series with game two at 1 p.m. on Saturday (April 5).