Going into the 2026 season, the big question surrounding the Virginia Tech softball team was how they were going to replace the production lost at the plate, in the field, and in the circle. The Hokies lost a ton of talent from a team that just missed hosting an NCAA Regional and fell short of Alabama for a spot in the Super Regionals.
The early portion of the schedule was tough for Virginia Tech this season, and it gave them a chance to put together a nice early-season résumé for the NCAA Tournament in March. If they were going to survive an SEC gauntlet that included two games each against South Carolina, Georgia, and Auburn, then that would be making a statement early.
When the dust settled on Sunday morning in Auburn, Alabama, that's exactly what happened.
Virginia Tech sens early-season statement with sweep at Auburn
The Hokeis moved up to No. 12 in the country heading into their five-game set this weekend in Auburn. The Hokies won two games each over South Carolina and Georgia on the road in the first two weeks. Splitting the two games with Auburn would have made for a very good early-season résumé. They did one better; they swept the Tigers.
Virginia Tech improved to 16-2 on the season by winning all five games at Auburn over the weekend. Not only did they sweep the Tigers in both games by scores of 9-5 and 6-2, but they also beat USC Upstate twice and Troy once. That's taking care of business against teams you should.
It's just three weeks into the season, but it would be hard to find a team that has put together an early résumé to be a Top 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament in May. Yes, there are still a lot of games left to be played, including a full ACC schedule and ACC Tournament, but if this early-season doesn't open some eyes around the country, then I don't know what will. This is a dream start for coach Pete D'Amour and his team.