Softball Clinches ACC Tournament Berth In Saturday Split

Saturday, April 26

Syracuse, NY

1 pm

Syracuse University

23-23, 11-11

Virginia Tech

31-19, 18-8

Virginia Tech

Syracuse

Softball Clinches ACC Tournament Berth In Saturday Split

4/26/2014 6:59:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Sophomore Danielle Chitkowski delivers the walk-off, two-run double in game one to lift the Orange past Virginia Tech

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Down to its final strike in game one, Syracuse walked off a winner against RV/RV Virginia Tech, 5-4, in eight innings to clinch a berth in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. The teams ended up splitting the doubleheader as SU dropped the second game.

Trailing 3-1 going into the sixth inning, Syracuse scored twice and eventually sent the game into extras. Virginia Tech would go on top with a run in the eighth, but a walk-off, two-run double by sophomore Danielle Chitkowski sent the Orange home with a win. In the second game, the Hokies jumped out to a 2-0 lead and never looked back, rolling to a 10-0 victory to salvage a split. The teams will play a rubber match for the series on Sunday, April 27 at 12 p.m.

Seniors Shirley Daniels and Jasmine Watson each recorded two hits and scored one run apiece in the opener, with Watson also driving in a run. Sophomore Corinne Ozanne hit a homer, matching her career-high with 11 home runs in a season and has hit six in the last 10 games.

Freshman Sydney O'Hara (15-11) went the distance for the 14th time this season, pitching a season-high eight innings and striking out seven batters while allowing four runs on six hits.

With one out in the eighth, Watson walked and junior Julie Wambold was hit by a pitch to put the tying run on second and winning run on first. Virginia Tech pitcher Maggie Tyler (14-8) struck out the next batter and was one strike away from ending the contest when Chitkowski provided the game-winner for the Orange, plating pinch runner senior Alexis Partyka and Wambold on a 3-2 count.

The teams exchanged solo shots in the first inning with the frame ending in a 1-1 tie. Lauren Gaskill teed off on the first pitch of the game to give the Hokies an early 1-0 lead. With two outs in the bottom half of the inning, Ozanne matched Gaskill's efforts with a homer the opposite way to right to even the score.

Virginia Tech pushed another run across in the second on a suicide squeeze by Michelle Prong. With one out, Amanda Ake walked and Bailey Liddle doubled to put a pair of runners in scoring position. Two pitches later, Ake took off as Prong laid down the bunt to bring the run in and make it 2-1.

Neither club was able to get much going after the opening innings with the score remaining the same until the sixth inning when the Hokies extended their lead to 3-1 on a blast off the bat of Katey Smith to lead off the frame.

Syracuse responded with two runs in the home half of the sixth to even the score at 3-3. Daniels, who made a fantastic diving catch just an inning earlier, led off the frame with a double. A wild pitch moved Daniels to third and with two outs Watson drove her in on a single to right center. Wambold followed with a double to the same part of the park as Watson came all the way around for the tying score. She originally held up at third, but the throw in from Ake bounced off the umpire and allowed Watson to scoot in.

In the seventh, Daniels made quite possible the play of the year – coming in on a sinking liner to make a diving catch. She then stood up and had the awareness to double off the runner at second and end the inning.

The Hokies scored the go-ahead run in the eighth on a two-out single by Ake to regain the lead at 4-3. Smith had a single to left with one out and Logan Spawn walked to get Smith into scoring position.

SU wasn't as fortunate in the second game, as Virginia Tech's top four batters in the lineup combined to go 9-for-14 with two home runs, all 10 runs batted in and six runs scored. Vanesa Gonzalez was a perfect 3-for-3 with a homer, two doubles and five RBIs. Syracuse was able to keep it close, only trailing 3-0 heading into the fifth, but seven runs over the final two innings ended the game after six frames.

Ozanne and Daniels were the only Orange women to record hits. It was Ozanne's 50th base knock of the season, becoming just the 15th player in program history to reach that mark. Watson and Wambold each reached base twice, both walking and being hit by a pitch. Freshman Christina Clermont (5-6) took the loss after giving up five runs in four innings.

Virginia Tech jumped all over Syracuse's pitching right from the start in game two. Back-to-back doubles allowed Gonzalez to trade places with Kylie McGoldrick and put the Hokies on the scoreboard. Smith then singled to center and all of a sudden it was 2-0 in favor of the visitors.

Syracuse looked to answer in the bottom half of the inning as Daniels led off the game with a single and consecutive walks loaded the bases, but Kelly Heinz (18-11) induced a grounder to get out of the jam. She wouldn't surrender another hit until one down in the final inning and retired 13 of the next 15 batters.

A solo shot to lead off the third by Gaskill widened the score to 3-0, but SU stayed within striking distance throughout the next two innings.

It wasn't until the fifth when Virginia Tech began to open the game when Gonzalez hit a two-run blast to make it 5-0. After three walks loaded the bases to begin the sixth, Gaskill grounded out to plate another run. Another walk loaded the bases for Gonzalez, who smashed her second double of the contest to up the score to 8-0 and put the game out of reach. Smith followed with a single through the right side to bring home to more runs for the final score of 10-0.