Two-thirds of the way through March, ACC play just recently begun for the Virginia softball team. After two series against Boston College and North Carolina, the Cavaliers hold a 15-8 overall record and 3-3 record in conference play. Let’s take a close look at those two series and UVA’s start to the season before the Hoos welcome Syracuse to town this weekend.
Boston College Series
The Hoos started ACC play by hosting Boston College for a three-game weekend series at the beginning of March. Game one was an absolute pitchers’ duel. Abby Dunning took the mound for the Eagles. The junior pitched all 7 innings, allowing just 1 hit and 1 walk with 7 strikeouts in the process. Virginia’s Eden Bigham was equally as impressive. Bigham also pitched a complete game, going 7 innings while allowing 1 hit and 2 walks with 8 strikeouts. Despite both teams struggling at the plate, Boston College scored the game’s only run in the second inning off a single from second baseman Emma Jackson.
In game two, the Cavaliers went with a more pitch-by-committee approach. Virginia used four different pitchers en route to a 8-2 win. Julia Cuozzo picked up the win for UVA, going 1.1 innings with 2 strikeouts. Senior Savanah Henley was also strong out of the bullpen, pitching 2.1 innings while striking out five of 11 batters faced. Offensively, eight different Virginia batters picked up an RBI. Virginia compiled the offense into one inning, scoring all 8 runs in the fourth. First baseman Macee Eaton and catcher Leah Boggs both had multi-hit games for the Hoos.
For game three, Bigham and Dunning took the mound once again for another pitching battle. This time, it was Bigham coming out on top in a 1-0 victory. Dunning still pitched a great game, going 6 innings and only allowing 1 run on 4 hits. She also had 7 strikeouts. On the other side, Bigham dominated, pitching another 7 innings. In the two games against BC, Bigham pitched 14 innings, allowed 5 hits, 1 earned run, and 3 walks with 14 strikeouts. Virginia shortstop Jade Hylton had 2 hits off of Dunning, the second of which came in the sixth inning and drove in the game-winning run. Bella Cabral picked up another hit, making her the only Hoo to have a hit in each of the three games against BC.
North Carolina Series
Virginia traveled to Chapel Hill for the second ACC series of the season. North Carolina certainly presented more of a test for the Cavaliers, but coach Joanna Hardin’s team came ready to play for game one. Bigham again took the mound for Virginia, continuing her dominance with another complete-game outing. In what was her third straight complete game, Bigham allowed just 3 hits and 3 walks. She logged 6 strikeouts and did not allow a single UNC run. Virginia totaled 10 hits as a team, more than any of the BC games. Hylton and Cabral both had 2 hits, with Hylton driving in a run and Cabral posting 2 RBI. Boggs also had a good game at the plate, registering 3 hits and 2 runs. The Cavaliers hoped to build on the 3-0 victory heading into the weekend.
After rain brought a doubleheader to the table for Sunday, the Cavaliers got out to a 1-0 lead in game two after a sacrifice fly from Cabral in the third inning. UNC wasted little time, responding with 2 runs in the fourth and 2 runs in the fifth to take a 4-1 lead. Virginia was unable to score again as UNC’s Kenna Raye Dark threw a dominant compete game. The sophomore didn’t pick up a single strikeout against Virginia, but she allowed no walks and just 3 hits. Virginia pitchers combined for 10 strikeouts and no walks, but timely hitting from the Heels in the fourth and fifth innings was enough to take the win.
It all came down to game three on Sunday to determine the series. Bigham took the mound for Virginia as she typically does on Sunday starts. North Carolina also relied on its ace, Britton Rogers. The Georgia-transfer entered the game with a 7-0 record and 3.24 ERA across nine appearances. The Cavaliers held onto a 1-0 lead after the first inning thanks to an RBI single from Eaton. It didn’t seem to rattle Rogers. She pitched 6.1 innings against UVA with 8 strikeouts, 7 walks, 2 hits, and 1 earned run. The 7 walks certainly jumped out as a warning flag, but Rogers did a good job of not letting Virginia turn those walks into runs. On the other side, Bigham did not have as strong of a game compared to the previous three outings. Bigham pitched just 3.2 innings, allowed 3 earned runs, and 6 walks in the process. Virginia fell 6-1 in game three and lost the series.
What’s Next?
As ACC play continues, two offensive players to keep an eye out for are Hylton and Cabral. Hylton had a strong 2023 season as a freshman, and is already building on it early in 2024. Across the first 23 games, the shortstop is batting .343 with a .397 on-base percentage. She also has 5 home runs and 17 RBI. Her fellow middle infielder, Cabral, is also getting off to a good start. Despite being just a freshman, Cabral is hitting .268. What is especially promising about Cabral is that 13 of her 19 hits this season have come in the past 10 games, suggesting the youngster is really starting to adjust to Division I softball. Additionally, Cabral held onto a seven-game hit streak at one point.
In terms of pitching, Bigham has served as the primary starter, making 8 starts across 11 appearances this season. She currently holds a 6-4 record with a 2.06 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .127 off Bigham. Senior Maddison Harris has made 4 starts across 10 appearances for the Hoos. In 22.2 innings pitched, Harris is 4-0 with a 0.31 ERA. She also has 34 strikeouts to go along with just 4 walks.
Ultimately, the Hoos need more offense at the plate to reverse recent results. Against Power 5 competition thus far, Virginia has two losses to South Carolina (6-1, 7-1), two losses to Alabama (3-1, 3-2), two losses to UNC (4-1, 6-1), and a single loss to both Boston College (1-0) and Maryland (2-1). In those eight losses, the offense scored 1 run or less in all but one, the 3-2 setback against Bama on Feb. 17. The Hoos’ wins against Power 5 teams, on the other hand, came against Iowa State (1-0), Boston College (8-2, 1-0), and UNC (3-0). In those games, UVA scored more than 1 run only twice as well and the ISU contest went to 9 innings.
That means the Hoos have not scored multiple runs against Power 5 competition in just nine of 12 games. Simply put, there needs to be more offense to support the pitching and defense.
Syracuse makes the trip to Charlottesville this weekend. The Orange are 12-9 on the season and 0-3 in ACC play after getting swept by Duke this past weekend. With only 10 teams making the ACC Tournament at the end of the year, this could prove to be a crucial early season matchup.
