Orange Ousted In ACC Championship Quarterfinals

Thursday, May 8

College Park, MD

7:30 pm

Syracuse University

24-25

Virginia Tech

35-20

Syracuse

Virginia Tech

5/8/2014 11:30:00 PM | Softball

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COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The Syracuse softball season came to a close on Thursday, May 8 as the sixth-seeded Orange fell 10-4 to third-seeded Virginia Tech in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship held at Maryland Softball Stadium.

Syracuse (24-25) wouldn't go down without a fight, as it's done all season long. After falling into a 2-0 hole, the Orange cut its deficit to 5-4 in the top of the sixth before five runs came across to score for the Hokies (35-20) and break the game open.

Sophomore Danielle Chitkowski had a pair of run-scoring doubles, finishing 2-for-3 on the night. In four games against Virginia Tech this season, Chitkowski went 6-for-11 (.545) with five doubles and five runs batted in.

Sophomore Corinne Ozanne also posted a multi-hit game, going 2-for-3 with a solo shot. It was Ozanne's 12th homer of the year, a new career-high after crushing 11 as a freshman in 2013. She also upped her batting average to .351, which ranks eighth in a single-season at SU. Junior Julie Wambold went 1-for-3 and hit her sixth home run of the season. Seniors Jasmine Watson and Shirley Daniels each closed out illustrious careers in a Syracuse uniform with one hit apiece.

Just hours after being named to the All-ACC First Team, freshman Sydney O'Hara took the loss in the circle, yielding five runs (four earned) on four hits in four innings. Sophomore Jocelyn Cater made her first appearance of the season and in an Orange uniform, giving up three runs on one hit in 1.2 innings.

Virginia Tech struck first with two runs in the bottom of the third to open the scoring. Three pitches into the inning, Michelle Prong went deep to center to give the Hokies a 1-0 lead. Lauren Gaskill followed with a walk, but was gunned out by Watson attempting to steal second. At the time, that proved to be crucial as Kylie McGoldrick tripled on the next play, which would have scored Gaskill. McGoldrick eventually came in to score on a sacrifice fly by Vanessa Gonzalez to make it 2-0.

Syracuse responded with two runs of its own just a half inning later to even the score. With two outs and two strikes, Wambold hit an opposite field home run to put the Orange on the scoreboard. After O'Hara drew a full-count walk, Chitkowski, the hero in the first game between the two teams this season, doubled in O'Hara all the way from first to tie it up.

In the home part of the fourth, the Hokies regained the lead for good and added two more in the fifth to extend their advantage to 5-2. Dani Anderson led off the inning with a single to left, moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on an error that came off the bat of Logan Spaw. A stolen base put the runner in scoring position, but Wambold caught a screaming liner and doubled off the pinch runner at second to end the frame.

The Hokies loaded the bases in the fifth with no outs, but only brought home two runs as the Orange kept the score close. With one out and the bases full, Katey Smith drew a walk that scored one and kept the bases loaded. Anderson followed with a sacrifice fly to up the score to 5-2.

SU rallied again in the top of the sixth, climbing to within one at 5-4. Ozanne led off the frame with a blast to right center on the first pitch she saw to cut the deficit to two. Watson made it back-to-back hits with a single and went to second on a ground out. Following another out, Chitkowski was back at it again, this time doubling up the middle to plate pinch runner Alexis Partyka and bring the Orange within a single run.

In the sixth though, Virginia Tech added an insurance run on an RBI single by Gaskill to make it 6-4, before a grand slam from Smith with two outs put the game out of reach and gave the Hokies a 10-4 win.