CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 13 Virginia softball team (27-3) returns home to kick off a week of action with a contest against Liberty (14-15) at Palmer Park on Wednesday (March 25). First pitch is set for 8 p.m. and admission is free to the public.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
The contest is set for broadcast on ACC Network and will be streamed at ESPN.com and through the ESPN app. Live stats are also available at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official account on X (@UVASoftball).
NOTING THE HOOS
- Virginia enters the week coming off a series win at Syracuse in which the Cavaliers swept a doubleheader on Saturday before Sunday’s series finale was canceled due to inclement weather in the area
- Eden Bigham threw a complete game for the second straight outing, both in ACC play, as she held Syracuse to one run on one hit in game one and also threw a one-run complete game against Georgia Tech
- Macee Eaton leads UVA at the plate, hitting .485 with a team-leading 45 RBI through 30 games played
- Eaton’s 45 RBI this season ranks 10th on the single season list and the junior holds two spots on that list after setting the single-season record a year ago with 63 RBI in 2025
- Bella Cabral (10) and Eaton (9) are both top five in the ACC in home runs entering the midweek matchup
- As a squad, Virginia is fourth in the ACC in home runs (45) and scoring (7.30 runs/game) and fifth in RBI (201)
- The UVA pitching staff has also been locked in this season, ranking third in the ACC in ERA (2.70) while ranking second in the league in fewest hits allowed/7.0 IP (5.39) and tops in strikeout to walk ratio (2.68)
- Courtney Layne is second in the ACC in ERA (1.59), WHIP (0.92) and leads the ACC in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.86) - she is top 30 nationally in all three categories entering the week
- The Cavaliers come in at No. 25 in the latest RPI released by the NCAA and the Hoos are 9-3 against teams ranked in the top 50 of the RPI entering the week with a Wednesday matchup against Liberty
- Virginia is ranked in all four of the national polls, topping out at No. 12 in the latest Softball America rankings, No. 13 in the NFCA coaches poll, No. 17 in D1Softball and No. 18 in the USASoftball/ESPN.com poll
- Five Hoos are in the Softball America position rankings, Bella Cabral (No. 5 at 3B), Jade Hylton (No. 7 at SS), Macee Eaton (No. 8 at 1B) and pitchers Courtney Layne (No. 16) and Eden Bigham (No. 19)
THE SERIES WITH LIBERTY - Virginia leads the all-time series with Liberty 50-32 and leads 29-12 in games played in Charlottesville
- The Cavaliers claimed the last meeting 5-3 in Charlottesville as the two teams split the 2025 series