BRIGHTON, Mass. – Clinching the ACC Coastal Division for the first time in school history, the No. 24/23 Virginia Tech softball team won its second straight run-rule game versus Boston College, winning 11-2 in five innings on Saturday at the Harrington Athletics Village.
In the process, the Hokies (42-8, 19-4 ACC) tied the school record for most ACC wins in a season with 19, set by the 2014 team, and most ACC series wins with seven, set by the 2007 team.
With the win over the Eagles (16-31, 4-16), Tech now owns a top-two seed in the ACC Championship, which will be played on the campus of Florida State (44-8, 15-5) in Tallahassee, Florida.
The Hokies got it done at the plate, racking up 14 hits, their most since March 23 at Pitt, where they had 14 as well. Catcher Mackenzie Lawter led the charge, turning in a team-high three hits to tie a career high, which she has done three times this spring, while second baseman Maddi Banks had a team-best three RBIs, thanks to a three-run home run to center field.
Pitcher Carrie Eberle (23-5) pitched all five innings, fanning five batters and just allowing one run on 95 pitches. Tech, for the second straight game, forced BC to use three pitchers, knocking out the starter in the first inning once again.
QUOTING TECH HEAD COACH PETE D'AMOUR
On the team getting 14 hits and the key to their success at the plate:
"The team did a good job of swinging at strikes, but I feel like there wasn't any key rhyme or reason," Tech coach Pete D'Amour said. "We didn't have very good at-bats yesterday I think, so today we stuck to pitches that we could hit hard. I thought it was sticking with our approach today and it showed."
On clinching the Coastal Division with the win:
"Honestly, I'm ready for tomorrow," D'Amour said. "I think about those things when the season is over. We got a big game tomorrow. The Coastal is a big deal and so is winning the regular season ACC. So, that's what is on our mind right now, get through tomorrow and then we will talk about it."
HOW IT HAPPENED
An offensive explosion was how the game got started, with the Hokies scoring seven runs in the top of the first inning. First baseman Jayme Bailey singled up the middle to get the party started before a four-pitch walk to outfielder Darby Trull.
Back-to-back singles by outfielder Emma Strouth and third baseman Kelsey Bennett brought the game to 2-0, with Bennett getting two RBIs. Designated player Meredith Slaw was hit by a pitch and Lawter roped a single to left, stretching the lead to four runs.
In a 0-1 count, Banks, who primarily is a slap hitter, sat back and ripped a three-run homer to center for her first home run since March 16, giving Tech a 7-0 lead.
Eberle, in the bottom half, went to work and made the Eagles go three up, three down with a strikeout and two groundouts. But the Eagles would get a run on the board in the bottom of the second, scoring on a bases-loaded walk.
The top of the third saw a sacrifice fly by shortstop Caitlyn Nolan and a two-run double by Strouth, tacking on to Tech's lead to make it 10-1. The Hokies would add one more run in the top of the fifth, getting an RBI single to left from pinch hitter Kinsey Johnson.
In the bottom half, the Eagles got consecutive singles to get two on, no outs. Then a groundout and walk followed, loading the bases with one down. But Eberle would induce a ground ball to third base and Bennett would touch third for the force and fire it to first for the game-ending double play.
NOTES
- Outfiedler Cana Davis came in off the bench and tallied two hits, marking her first multi-hit outing this year. Pinch hitter Lauren Duff also came in and got a hit, while pinch hitter Sierra Walton drew a walk.
- The Hokies have scored in double digits in 14 games this year and have run-ruled their opponent 17 times. Defensively, the double play marked their 14th of the season.
- Tech once again scored in the first inning and moves to 27-2 when it does so.
- Trull improves her hitting streak to seven games, while Bailey now owns an eight-game reached base streak.
- With outfielder Al Velazquez scoring, she is tied with Strouth and Lauren Gaskill for the second-most runs in program history with 47. The school record is 49 runs scored by Carmen Farmer in 2002.
UP NEXT
- Tech will close out its ACC slate on Sunday, playing at 10 a.m. ET. The game will be Boston College's Senior Day and the contest will not be streamed.
Gallery: (4/27/2019) 2019 SOFTBALL at BOSTON COLLEGE SATURDAY
