No. 16 Virginia Opens ACC Play With 7-3 Win At North CarolinaNo. 16 Virginia Opens ACC Play With 7-3 Win At North Carolina
Jamie Holt/Virginia Athletics

No. 16 Virginia Opens ACC Play With 7-3 Win At North Carolina

Box Score

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The No. 16 Virginia softball team (21-1, 1-0 ACC) opened ACC play with a victory, rallying down the stretch for a 7-3 win at North Carolina (18-2, 2-2 ACC) on Friday night (March 6) at Anderson Stadium.

Due to expected inclement weather on Sunday, the teams will now play a doubleheader on Saturday (March 7) starting at 3 p.m.

HOW IT HAPPENED
North Carolina scored in the first inning with a single up the middle from Emily Legette to score Sanaa Thompson from second. Thompson reached with a leadoff single and moved to second on a sac bunt.

Kelsey Hackett evened things up with one swing of the bat, delivering a solo shot to left field in the second inning. The Tar Heels answered with a two-run home run in the bottom of the second and the score sat at 3-1 after two complete.


Bella Cabral delivered in back-to-back innings to vault the Hoos in front, hitting a solo home run in the fourth before adding a three-RBI double in the fifth.


Virginia added two more runs in the sixth with a two-RBI single slipped through the right side by Kassidy Hudson, scoring Kamyria Woody-Giggetts and Jaiden Griffith to put the Hoos up 7-3.

Courtney Layne (8-0) picked up the win in relief, working 5.1 scoreless innings in relief with six strikeouts and scattering three hits.

Kendall Frost (7-1) took the loss, allowing five runs on three hits with four walks and one strikeout in relief. She entered to start the fifth and worked 1.1 innings.

NOTING THE HOOS

  • Kelsey Hackett’s home run in the second inning was her fourth of the season. Hackett went 3-for-4 on the night.
  • Bella Cabral continued her hot streak, adding her ninth home run of the season and delivering four RBI on her 2-for-4 night.
  • Courtney Layne’s 5.1 innings in relief was the second longest relief outing for the left-handed pitcher.

    FROM HEAD COACH JOANNA HARDIN
    “We played a super gritty game tonight. We responded well after giving up the home run in the second inning. We stuck with our at bats and that was great to see. Courtney Layne put up a bunch of zeros and gave the offense time to string hits together. Timely hitting is the key, and Kass Hudson and Bella Cabral came up with timely hits with runners in scoring position. One of our goals for the weekend was to execute in high-leverage situations. We know Carolina is extremely competitive, has a great lineup and a great team. It will be important to execute and play clean defense when the game feels heightened. We did a good job of that tonight.”

    UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS
    Virginia and North Carolina conclude the weekend series with a doubleheader on Saturday (March 7). First pitch for game one is set for 3 p.m. with game two set for 5:30 p.m. Expected inclement weather in the area on Sunday drove the change to a doubleheader.
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