Virginia Softball Wins First ACC Series Against Boston College
ACC softball has been on the rise in terms of competitiveness over the past few years, and so has Joanna Hardin’s team when it comes to both competitiveness and record. Conference play will be a great opportunity to see how UVA’s progress stacks up against other ACC foes.
First up was Boston College, and Virginia was able to take care of business, recovering after losing the series opener to take games 2 and 3 and claim victory in the first ACC series of the season.
“Winning the first series at home is big. It's important," said UVA head coach Joanna Hardin after Sunday's game. "Just developing that pride of playing in front of our fans at home.”
Friday 3/1 - Boston College 1, Virginia 0
The first matchup of the series was the definition of a pitcher’s duel, with Virginia’s Eden Bigham and Boston College’s Abby Dunning only allowing two hits, and combining for 15 strikeouts (Bigham had eight and Dunning had seven).
Eden Bigham entered the matchup as the reigning ACC Pitcher of the Week and ranked second in the country in strikeouts per 7.0 innings pitched. Allowing one run on one hit is a great outing and frequently enough to earn the victory, but allowing a leadoff walk, sacrifice bunt, and RBI single was enough to be on the losing end of the game for Bigham.
Virginia had a runner on third with one out in the first inning and couldn’t capitalize, and then the Hoos weren’t able to get close to scoring other than that. Bella Cabral had the lone hit while also having two nice plays at second base.
Saturday 3/2 - Virginia 8, Boston College 2
Virginia put together an astonishing eight-run fourth inning that was more than enough to secure the game two victory, despite the defense making four errors and allowing two unearned runs. A walk and two singles plus a fielding error in the outfield helped Boston College take a 1-0 lead. In the third inning, Virginia had three errors (one fielding and two throwing), allowing Boston College several free bases. Julia Cuozzo came in to pitch and stranded runners on second and third, limiting the damage to one run in an inning that could have been far worse.
Virginia tried to get the offense going in the early innings, but the fourth inning was where all of the magic happened. Bella Cabral led things off with a double, and then M.C. Eaton drove her in with an RBI single. After an infield single and two walks (including one with the bases loaded), the score was tied at two. Next, Kailyn Jones reached on a fielding error, Leah Boggs poked a single into shallow left field, Sarah Coon reached on a fielder’s choice, Jade Hylton hit a sac fly, Bella Cabral came up again and had an RBI groundout, and pinch hitter Lauren VanAssche had an RBI single. The five hits and several more hard hit balls forced Boston College’s defense to make plays, and Virginia took advantage when the Eagles couldn’t execute.
Mikayla Houge retired every batter she faced as she closed out the final three innings of the game to secure the game two victory.
Sunday 3/3 - Virginia 1, Boston College 0
Eden Bigham came up just short against Boston College’s Abby Dunning on Friday night, losing a 1-0 game when both pitchers threw complete games. This time, Bigham outlasted Dunning, pitching a complete-game shutout with six strikeouts, while Dunning had a scoreless game going until Virginia got a run in the sixth inning off of her.
When asked about how her team responded after losing game one, Bigham answered, “It lit a fire under us to come out today and really compete. They don't get to come out and beat us twice on our own field.”
Boston College had a runner in scoring position in the second inning, but Bigham didn’t flinch. An error allowed the Eagles to get a leadoff runner on second in the top of the sixth, but Bigham held strong once again, getting three flyouts to center field.
On the other hand, Virginia didn’t have a runner in scoring position until the bottom of the sixth inning after Leah Boggs singled and Sarah Coon was hit by a pitch. Jade Hylton was the hero for the Cavaliers as she singled into left center field, driving in the lone run of the game. Abby Dunning prevented further damage with two strikeouts.
Boston College threatened with an infield single and sacrifice bunt, putting the tying run in scoring position. However, after a flyout for the second out, Eden Bigham fittingly secured her complete game win with a pop up that she caught just outside of the circle.
When Coach Hardin was asked about the performance of her pitcher, she was filled with compliments:
“She's becoming the ace that we knew she could be. She's tough as nails. She's competitive. I think she's given herself some freedom to be her most competitive self. She's added to her toolkit, which has made her extremely impactful, so much more effective. She can go longer, she can change speeds, and she's working both sides of the plate. I'm really really proud of her.”
Pitching two complete games with only one total run allowed certainly adds to her resume that already has a Pitcher of the Week award. Virginia will benefit immensely this season if Bigham can keep up this production.
Looking ahead, the 13-5 Cavaliers will play a game at Longwood on Tuesday and then travel to face North Carolina in a weekend series in Chapel Hill.
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