BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Junior Emma Ritter put together a strong outing at the plate Sunday, hitting two homers to help lead the No. 12 Virginia Tech Hokies over the No. 13 Duke Blue Devils 13-8.
Sophomore Emma Lemley (17-3) got the win for Virginia Tech (27-8, 9-3). The right-hander went seven innings, giving up eight runs, allowing no walks and striking out seven.
Ritter went 2-for-2 at the plate, supplementing her two home runs with four RBI. Senior Jayme Bailey added to Ritter's power-hitting performance by going 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBI. Sophomore Rachel Castine also helped out for the Hokies, going 1-for-2 with a home run, a walk and an RBI. That is Castine's first home run of the season
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trailing 5-0, the Hokies first put runs on the board in the third inning. Virginia Tech hit three home runs in the inning on the way to scoring five runs to tied up the game
The game remained tied until the fifth inning, when the Hokies got going again on offense. Virginia Tech pushed across three runs in the frame, capitalizing on a Duke error, which brought the Hokies lead to 8-5.
Duke narrowed Virginia Tech's lead to 8-7 before the Hokies stretched the advantage to 13-7 in the sixth inning. The Hokies bats heated up in the inning, scoring five runs, including a three-run home run off the bat of Ritter. Duke put one run on the scoreboard before the game was over, but Virginia Tech still took the 13-8 win to close out the series.
GAME NOTES
» The Hokies got two home runs off the bat of Ritter.
» Lemley struck out seven Blue Devils hitters.
» The Hokies power output was led by Ritter, who compiled two extra base hits in the ballgame.
» Ritter drove in four runs for Virginia Tech.
» Virginia Tech went 4-for-7 (.571) with runners in scoring position.
» The Hokies drew five walks from Duke pitching.
The Hokies are back in action on Tuesday, hosting Longwood in a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m.
Gallery: (4-2-2023) SB: Duke Game 3