CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 18 Virginia softball team (33-8, 10-7 ACC) heads back out on the road in conference play this weekend with a three-game series at Clemson (27-17, 9-9 ACC). The series kicks off on Friday (April 17) with first pitch set for 6 p.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
All three games of the weekend series will be streamed on ACCNX through ESPN.com and the ESPN app. Live stats are also provided and linked at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official account on X (@UVASoftball).
NOTING THE HOOS
- Virginia enters the weekend having won four-of-six ACC series and is coming off back-to-back series against nationally-ranked opponents in No. 23 Duke and No. 11 Virginia Tech
- The Cavaliers are ranked in three of the polls, leading off at No. 18 in the NFCA Coaches poll and also holding positions in D1Softball (23) and the ESPN/USA Softball (23) rankings
- With the 4-3 win over No. 11 Virginia Tech in the series opener, the Hoos improved to 7-1 in one-run games
- Virginia comes in at No. 24 in the RPI having played 16 games against the RPI top 50 and are 17-8 vs. the top 100 - this weekend’s game against Clemson gives UVA three more games against a top-30 RPI opponent
- Included in the top 50 opponents are a split in a pair of neutral-site games against RPI No. 1 Arkansas
- Jade Hylton claimed another top spot in the UVA record book last weekend when she claimed the record for career runs scored at UVA with 179 and passed the mark of 178 set by Heather Field (2001-04)
- Macee Eaton has etched her name into the record book twice already with her 5 RBI so far this season ranking 3rd in the UVA single-season list after setting the single-season mark with 63 RBI a year ago
- Eaton - who leads the team at the plate with a .459 average and ranks sixth in the ACC - is also climbing the UVA career record books with 134 RBI (6th) and with 38 multiple-RBI games (4th)
- The pitching staff continues to deliver for the Hoos, ranking second in the league in ERA (2.73) and leading the league in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.35), WHIP (1.24) and ranks second in hits allowed per 7.0 innings (5.58)
- Courtney Layne leads the ACC in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.89), second in WHIP (1.02), and ranks third in ERA (2.17), while four Virginia pitchers rank in the top 11 in the ACC in fewest hits allowed per 7.0 inning
- Freshman Jaiden Griffith ranks third in the ACC for toughest batter to strike out heading into the weekend
THE SERIES WITH CLEMSON
- Virginia and Clemson have met 15 times with the Tigers leading the young series 13-2
- The teams last met in the 2025 ACC Tournament quarterfinal with Clemson taking a 7-4 victory at Boston College
- The Cavaliers won the last series 2-1 in Charlottesville in 2024, taking the first and third games of the matchup
- This weekend’s series is the third between the teams played at Clemson and first since the 2023 season
ON DECK FOR THE HOOS
Virginia returns home for four games next week, including a midweek with JMU and a weekend series with NC State to close out ACC play. The series with the Wolfpack will be Alumni Weekend with players from the program’s history returning to Palmer Park. Sunday will be Senior Day with the Hoos recognizing five seniors for their contributions to the program.