Virginia Tech Softball Splits Saturday Games In Georgia Classic

By: Sam Mostow | VT SMA '26
Emma Lemley and Virginia Tech split Saturday’s games in Athens, Ga. (Virginia Tech athletics)

After upsetting No. 3 Georgia on Friday, No. 21 Virginia Tech softball fell short in its second game against the Bulldogs on Saturday, 7-5, and shut out Dartmouth, 7-0.

Game 1: No. 3 Georgia 7, Hokies 5

With the Hokies (11-3-1) and Bulldogs (11-1) tied at four in the fifth inning, Georgia catcher Lyndi Rae Davis hit a home run deep into right-center field, scoring three and building a lead that Tech could not come back from.

Down three in the bottom of the seventh, Tech had two outs and a runner on second. It loaded the bases — on an Addy Greene double that scored Kylie Aldridge from first, a Cameron Fagan walk and a Cori McMillan single — but ultimately fell short when Bre Peck flew out.

“We were one swing away from winning the game and that’s all you can ask for,” Virginia Tech head coach Pete D’Amour said.

Hokies freshman pitcher Emma Mazzarone tossed the first 3 ⅔ innings, allowing Georgia’s first four runs. Against a top-three lineup, Mazzarone settled down after allowing a leadoff home run to first baseman Emily Digby. From there, she sat down the next six batters.

In her most meaningful innings against a strong team, Mazzarone held her own. She allowed five hits and four runs, striking out four batters while walking none. Most of her blemishes were limited to home runs — although she allowed three. Through her first seven collegiate appearances, she has a 3-0 record and a 2.03 earned run average.

Lyndsey Grein relieved Mazzarone with a runner on second base in the fourth but quickly induced the third out. Grein allowed Davis’s go-ahead homer while striking out four batters with a walk.

Offensively, Tech took advantage of small ball, scoring four of its runs on base hits or sacrifices. Emma Ritter’s third inning solo home run didn’t hurt, though.

“I have a ton of respect for the way Virginia Tech plays,” Georgia head coach Tony Baldwin said. “They are as good of an offensive team as we will see all season. They can really swing it. They have a good plan, so I thought our pitchers did a good job of just hanging in there.”

Game 2: Hokies 6, Dartmouth 0

The Hokies’ bats stayed hot in their second game on Saturday, hitting two home runs while holding Dartmouth (0-3) to just two hits.

McMillan knocked a two-run shot in the top of the first, opening an early lead. In the third, Ritter hit a two-run homer of her own, her second bomb of the day. She has four runs through 15 games, tied for third-most on the team.

Starting pitcher Emma Lemley dominated the first six innings, striking out nine batters. Most importantly for the Hokies, she did not walk any batters, making her start on Saturday her first this season without allowing a free pass.

Cassie Grizzard threw the last inning in a three up, three-down effort — striking out two in the process.

Big Green pitchers Rachel McCarroll and Jensin Hall split seven innings of work. The two of them combined to allow six runs on eight hits.

Virginia Tech has a rematch with Radford in its last game at the Georgia Classic on Sunday morning at 10 a.m. ET.

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3 Responses You are logged in as Test

  1. That homerun by UGA was a back breaker. I believe the count was 3-2. One pitch, three runs. Then Peck had a chance but couldn’t get it done. 8 times out of 10 she comes through with a hit.

  2. Emma L started the first game against UGA and they got to see her for 4 innings. Emma M is a lefty and would be a different look for UGA. Plan B was to bring in Grein in relief. Sometimes even the best of plans fail.

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