After throwing her second straight perfect game in Baton Rouge this past Saturday, Virginia Tech pitcher Emma Lemley entered rarified air in Hokies’ sports history. In accomplishing this improbable achievement, Lemley recorded just the eighth and ninth perfect games in school history; the latter even came against a ranked opponent in No. 21 Northwestern. The Forest, Virginia native joins an exclusive shortlist of players to ever record a perfect game, and is just the third Hokie to throw multiple perfect games in their career.
Lemley’s all-time performances are just the latest in Virginia Tech’s storied history of great pitching. Six Hokies have thrown perfect games, and combined Virginia Tech’s pitchers have tossed 53 no-hitters all-time. History speaks for itself as pitching dominance has become the norm in Blacksburg. Many of Virginia Tech’s greatest teams have been led by a shutdown pitcher in the circle. In fact, since the program’s inception in 1996, in each season in which a Virginia Tech pitcher recorded one or more perfect games, the Hokies have won 36 or more games and gone on postseason runs. Although it is yet to be seen whether Lemley’s 2025 Hokies squad will join this list, her impact on the diamond can be compared to other Hokie greats throughout the program’s history.
Angela Tincher
The most accomplished pitcher– and among the most decorated athletes– in Virginia Tech history, Angela Tincher’s utterly dominant career from 2005 to 2008 grabbed national headlines and rewrote record books. Tincher leads Virginia Tech all-time in no-hitters (14), earned run average (0.78), strikeouts (2,149), most strikeouts per 7 innings (13.5), lowest opponent batting average (.116), wins (123), saves (11), complete games (124), and shutouts (54) among other categories. She also became the second pitcher in program history to throw multiple perfect games.
Tincher’s greatest moment, however, came in March 2008 during an exhibition game against Team USA in which she threw a no-hitter, snapping the American national team’s years-long winning streak against non-Olympic competition in what is widely regarded as the greatest upset in softball history.
Keely Rochard
The Williamsburg, Virginia native stamped her name into the record books by winning early and often, concluding her career in 2022 by leading her team to a 46-10 record and an NCAA Super Regional for the first time in program history. Virginia Tech’s leader in winning percentage (.802) Rochard had an edge that hadn’t been seen in Blacksburg since Angela Tincher.
These two share space in leaderboards across numerous statistical categories. Rochard is second behind Tincher all-time in no-hitters (9), strikeouts (1,120), most strikeouts per 7 innings (9.8), lowest opponent batting average (.170), wins (97), and saves (9).
Ashlee Dobbe
Ashlee Dobbe played during the earliest years of the program’s history and blazed a path for players like Tincher and Rochard to follow. During her time in Blacksburg, Dobbe racked up 8 no-hitters– third most in program history– and 2 perfect games. She’s second all-time in earned run average (1.36), complete games (111), and shutouts (47); third in strikeouts (926), wins (93), and lowest opponent batting average (.173); fourth in strikeouts per 7 innings (7.5); and fifth in winning percentage (.694),