Softball Sweeps Virginia Tech Doubleheader

Friday, April 14

Blacksburg, VA

4 p.m.

University of Louisville

23-13, 0

Virginia Tech

16-25, 0

Louisville

Virginia Tech

April 14, 2017 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Louisville 13 - Virginia Tech 6 (PDF)Louisville 6 - Virginia Tech 0 (PDF)

Cards win 13-7 and 6-0 to secure the series

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Jenna Jordan had five hits and four RBIs on the day to help lead the University of Louisville softball team to a doubleheader sweep of Virginia Tech Friday. The Cards won the series opener 13-7 and took game two 6-0. Due to rain in the forecast, the series finale will be played Saturday at 10:30 a.m.

Louisville 13 – Virginia Tech 6
In game one of the doubleheader, Jordan went 4-for-4 with two RBIs, junior Nicole Pufahl scored three runs and senior Maryssa Becker drove in three to help the Cardinals beat the Hokies 13-6.

Megan Hensley (6-6) got the win after a strong performance in 5.1 innings of relief. The sophomore surrendered two earned runs on five hits and struck out two while helping her cause with a run, an RBI and a 3-for-5 performance at the plate.

The Cards jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first inning after capitalizing on two hits, three errors and a wild pitch. Senior Jordan McNary reached on an error and moved to third on a hit by junior Nicole Pufahl to place to runners on for Maryssa Becker whose fly ball to deep left field glanced off of the glove of Virginia Tech's Vanessa Gonzelez. Becker later crossed the plate on a wild pitch.

Virginia Tech countered with four runs to take a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the second. Hannah Jones delivered a two-out single , Taylor Clark was hit by a pitch and Olivia Lattin's RBI hit put the Hokies on the scoreboard. An error sent Clark and Lattin home to even the score at 3-3. Davenport's RBI hit gave Virginia Tech a 4-3 lead.

Louisville answered with a six-spot in the fourth. Senior Morgan Meyer singled and took second on freshman Caitlin Ferguson's sacrifice bunt. Senior Jordan McNary's infield hit placed runners on the corners for Pufahl's RBI double which tied the game and sent McNary to third. Becker's squeeze bunt saw McNary safe at the plate to put the Cards on top 5-4. Pufahl scored when senior Tiarra Sanabria reached on an error. Another miscue on Hensley's fielder's choice Jordan's single loaded the bases for a two-run double by junior Jamie Soles. Back-to-back walks to Meyer and Ferguson brought the score to 9-4.

Virginia Tech kept its offense going with a run in the home half of the fourth when Breanna Davenport led off with a hit and Emma Strouth followed with a triple to make it a 9-5 game.

The Cards got the run back in the fifth after Becker singled, moved to third on Henley's double and came home on Jordan's base hit to push the lead to 10-5.

The Hokies put their final run on the board in the fifth when Clark was hit by a pitch and eventually scored on Davenport's RBI hit.

The seventh inning brought three more insurance runs for Louisville. Hits by Pufahl and Becker and a fielder's choice by junior Ashley Nikolao led to Hensley's two-run single and an RBI hit by Jordan to bring the final score to 13-6.

The Cards belted out 15 hits in the game, one short of a season high. Pufahl went 3-for-5 and Becker went 2-for-4 with two runs.

Taylor Barnes (4-9) took the loss after allowing nine runs, two earned, on eight hits in 3.2 innings. Davenport's 5-for-5, two RBI performance led the Hokies at the plate.

"We started off a little rocky, but Megan Hensley came in and took over the game for us and kept us in the game," said UofL head coach Sandy Pearsall. "It wasn't a great first game, but the second game, I thought Maryssa Becker came out and threw very well. We played tremendous defense –especially in the second game. Offensively we did some wonderful things and we executed when we needed to."

Louisville 6 – Virginia Tech 0
Becker (18-8) scattered six hits and struck out four en route to her fourth complete game shutout of the season while Pufahl and Jordan tallied two RBIs to help the Cards clinch the series with a 6-0 win.

For the second time in Friday's doubleheader, the Cardinals took a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Pufahl reached on a fielder's choice and moved to third on a single by Becker. Hensley's base hit plated Pufahl and Jordan drove a double to right field to send Becker and Hensley home.

Pufahl's two-run homer in the third increased the lead to 5-0. McNary beat the throw on an infield single to start the inning and Pufahl launched her team-best seventh homer of the season over the fence in left centerfield.

The offense continued with another Louisville run in the sixth. Soles led off the frame with a hit and used a sac bunt by Alison Szydlowski's sacrifice bunt and a wild pitch to move to third before crossing the plate on Ferguson's groundout.

Virginia Tech's best chance to score came in the fifth inning when Carolina Schoenewald and Lattin delivered back-to-back hits and a sac bunt by Vanessa Gonzalez moved both runners into scoring position with one out for Davenport who sent a fly ball to shallow centerfield. Pufahl made the catch and rifled a throw to Jordan who tagged Schoenewald out at the plate for an inning-ending double play.

Carrie Eberle (7-7) took the loss, allowing six earned runs on 10 hits in seven innings. Six different players accounted for Virginia Tech's hits.

The Cards held a 10-6 advantage in hits with McNary and Soles contributing two hits each.