BLACKSBURG, Va. - The Clemson Tigers defeated No. 11/12 Virginia Tech, 4-2, in the series opener on Thursday evening inside the Tech Softball Park. The win marked Clemson’s sixth ranked win of the season and pushed the Tigers’ record to 25-14 (7-6 ACC), while the Hokies dropped to 31-5 (7-3 ACC).
Junior Sierra Maness notched her 15th win in the circle behind her 11th complete-game performance. She faced 31 batters and struck out one en route to the win.
Offensively, freshman Sarah Breaux notched three-RBIs behind her second home run of the year. Sophomore Taylor Pipkins supplied Clemson’s additional RBI, while Marian Collins, Corri Hicks and Kennedy Ariail all scored for the Tigers.
The Tigers struck first in the top of the second inning after getting on a roll with two outs. Collins beat out a throw by the Hokies pitcher for a single and advanced to second after Hicks drew a seven-pitch walk. Breaux stepped to the plate demolished the first strike she saw out of left field for a three-run homer. It was Breaux’s second home run of the year, both of which were multi-run shots.
The Hokies got two runs back in the bottom of the inning after three singles and a fielder’s choice brought runners home, but Clemson maintained the 3-2 advantage.
Clemson added an additional run in the top of the fourth after Collins and Hicks drew back-to-back walks with one out. After a popup, Pipkins stepped to the plate with two outs and drove the first pitch of her at bat through the left side for an RBI single to plate Arial, who was running for Collins, to make it 4-2.
Virginia Tech looked to answer in the bottom of the fourth after getting runners on second and third with only one out, but Clemson’s defense stepped up as Mac Pavese fielded a grounder at first for the second out that kept runners at their respective bases. Jamison Brockenbrough followed it with a diving catch in shallow left center to end the inning and preserve Clemson’s advantage.
The Hokies put in the effort to even things in the bottom of the seventh after a double put a runner on with only one out, but Maness forced a 10-pitch ground out for the second out and a fly out to Ava Wilson in right field to secure the 4-2 victory for the Tigers.
Up Next
The Tigers continue their series against the Hokies on Friday, April 3. First pitch for game two is scheduled for 6 p.m. on ACCNX.