Heading to Pittsburgh for a three-game weekend series against the Panthers, the Virginia Tech softball team was looking to extend its 17-game winning streak. One quick look at the standings saw the hosts begin the series on Thursday night out of an ACC Tournament spot and sitting at 4-14 in conference play. The Hokies came in at 14-1, tied with Florida State.
Throw the records out.
On Thursday night, Pittsburgh walked-off Virginia Tech, 7-6, in nine innings and then, after being smoked, 21-0, in the first of two games on Friday, the Panthers picked up a head-scratching series win after rallying for a 6-3 win over the 11th-ranked visitors.
Sure, you can talk about the 21-0 blasting the Hokies put on in Game 2 on Friday afternoon, but the bigger issue other than that win was the struggles that Emma Lemley had in the circle on Thursday and Friday. One look at her line in Game 3 on Friday night makes you scratch your head. in 5.2 innings, she gave up six hits, five earned runs, walking four and fanning seven.
She was up and down the whole game, but after surrendering two first-inning runs with some control problems, she kept her team in the game and allowed her teammates to take a 3-2 lead in the top of the sixth on a Michelle Chatfield three-run home run. However, Lemley gave it back in the bottom of the inning with Sophie Kleiman with a four-spot in the Panthers' win.
That was hammered!🔨
— Virginia Tech Softball (@HokiesSoftball) April 18, 2025
Michelle Chatfield hits a three-run home run to take the lead!!
T6 l Hokies 3, Panthers 2#Hokies🥎 pic.twitter.com/9UItkBtAf8
Earlier in the day on Friday, the Hokies hit 11 home runs in a 21-0 rout. Yes, you read that right, 11 dingers. Cori McMillan hit three home runs, which broke her single-season home run record with her 22nd, while Chatfield, Zoe Yaeger, Jordan Lynch, Kylie Aldridge, Bre Peck, Rachel Castine, Trinity Martin, and Nora Abromavage each had one.
Virginia Tech will be off until a cross-country trip next weekend to California, and now it is not guaranteed to host the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament right now after this bad weekend in the Steel City. They must take of business against the Golden Bears, win the series the following weekend against FSU before the ACC Tournament at Boston College to have a shot.