'I Was Due': Virginia Tech's Annika Rohs Drills Second Collegiate Dinger

BLACKSBURG, Va. — On February 7, 2025, Virginia Tech shortstop Annika Rohs drilled her first career home run.

It was in a 12-0 run-rule victory over Fordham that sparked an eventual eight-game winning streak to start the season. At the top of the third with a 7-0 lead, Rohs took two balls before launching the third pitch over the left-field wall for a solo shot.

It took a while for dinger No. 2 to come.

But it came. In Saturday's 10-5 victory over Clemson, Rohs went yard. Four hundred and twenty-one days after her first collegiate jack, Rohs stepped up to the plate with the Hokies up 5-2.

Like her last yard-leaving blast, Rohs' at-bat came with the bases empty. But there was one thing different: This one was at home. And it came on the first pitch. Rohs sent the 0-0 first-pitch dropball from Clemson starter Sierra Maness into the left-center tree just off Beamer Way. Rounding the bases, Rohs slowed down before hitting the second-base bag and cracked a smile.

First home run of the season for Anni 👏

Today’s play of the game brought to you by @CarilionClinic #Hokies pic.twitter.com/YQiXPT3XVT
— Virginia Tech Softball (@HokiesSoftball) April 5, 2026

High-fiving the third-base coach as she came to home plate, the shortstop hugged center fielder Addison Foster. Crossing home plate, Rohs plated the second homer of her collegiate career, as well as her 15th extra-base hit.

"I was just thinking, be on time first pitch, and I saw it go up," Rohs said. "I was due. So, it felt good, and I was just excited. It was nice to see how excited my teammates were."

Rohs finished the day having gone 2-for-3 against Clemson. Her first two at-bats were against Clemson starter Sierra Maness, while her third, a single to left field that plated right fielder Gaby Mizelle, was against the Tigers' Macey Cintron. In the first game of the series, Maness pitched the full seven frames. Rohs went 0-for-1 against the right-hander that day.

"I think we were more disciplined," Rohs said of the improvement from game one to game three. "I think in game one, we might have given her the pitches that she wanted us to swing at more. With our discipline that we came in game three, I think it really paid off."

The 5-foot-6 junior from Lovettsville, Virginia, has thrived by way of her defensive prowess. In 2024, she posted a .959 fielding percentage. Last year, her total increased to a .966 clip, featuring 50 putouts and 65 assists.

This year, however, Rohs has reached a new level at the dish. Through 38 games, the junior is hitting at a career-high .308 batting average. Rohs has also improved her slugging percentage by .149 (.274 in 2025 to .423 in 2026) and her on-base rate by .124 (.303 in 2025 to .427 in 2026).

Rohs is also one run shy of tying her career-high in runs (24) and has already tied her career-high in RBI (nine).

"She's having a good year offensively, and we never talk home runs with her," said Virginia Tech head coach Pete D'Amour. "So, I'm glad she got one."

Rohs has remained a steady presence in the infield, with her fielding percentage sitting at .935 38 games into the season.

Junior arm Emma Mazzarone spotlighted Rohs' effort and her degree improvement from her freshman year to her sophomore campaign to now.

"Anni just worked so hard," Mazzarone said. "And we all just like to sit back and watch her progressively get better from freshman year, especially this year. So we're all super proud of her, super happy for it, and it's just good to see your teammates keep succeeding."

Since Rohs is now hitting at a .308 clip, that means that all nine of Virginia Tech's routine starters are hitting at a .300-plus rate.

"If I was a pitcher, I wouldn't want to pitch against that lineup that deep," said Rohs, who bats in the nine-hole spot. "I think you know when we need it, the bottom of the lineup really rolls over when we need it, and I think it has helped us in games where we need to hit one-through-nine."

Virginia Tech's season continues on Tuesday, March 7, when the Hokies travel to Radford, Virginia, to play the Highlanders. After that, the team is off to Charlottesville, Virginia, to contest No. 17 Virginia in a three-game series that starts on Friday, April 10. The Cavaliers were swept by Duke over the weekend.

"I think we just need to keep bringing everything we have to practice that we have the past few months now into the season," Rohs said. "Just not stepping off the gas, no matter who we're playing. Just going with that same mindset that we're going to bring everything we have."