The softball team suffered its third straight loss at the hands of No. 24 Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon as the Hokies defeated N.C. State 2-0 at the Dail Softball Stadium.
The Wolfpack was swept in Dail Softball Stadium for the first time in the stadium’s short history, as Tech also won both games of Friday’s doubleheader.
State managed to score just one run during the weekend as Virginia Tech’s dominant pitching rotation helped the Hokies improve to 23-9 overall and 5-1 in ACC play. The three-loss weekend dropped the Pack to 16-16 overall and 2-4 in the conference.
Tech’s Angela Tincher was the winning pitcher of all three games, pitching her 12th career no-hitter in the first game of the twin-bill before picking up her 99th win in the second game. She recorded 17 strikeouts en route to her 100th career victory as State struggled to make contact at the plate on Saturday.
“We took a lot of good cuts today,” freshman catcher Alyssa Allbritten said. “We were there. We were just under it a lot.”
Tincher (15-4), a senior, is fifth all-time in NCAA history with 1,752 strikeouts.
“She’s one of the top pitchers in the country,” State coach Lisa Navas said. “She never pitches a kid the same way. The catcher calls a 3-2 and she throws it up and in, and the next time she throws it out and away.”
Sophomore Lindsay Campana (9-12) took the loss on Saturday for the Pack despite giving up no earned runs.
Senior shortstop Shanna Smith misjudged a hot grounder to allow a runner aboard before a bunt single put runners on first and second in the third inning. Kelsey Hoffman’s shot into deep center brought home the only runs of the game, and Tech held on for the shutout victory.
Campana lamented that the team’s errors hurt, but she added that it only added to the team’s resolve to get better.
“I have complete confidence in my defense,” Campana said. “Shanna will look at me and just say, ‘Give me another one; give me another one.’ We have so much fight as a team, and once we all plugged our heads in, we did a good job fighting and making adjustments.”
Smith redeemed herself, leaping high for a snow-cone grab to prevent a base hit later in the game. Smith was also in on a double play, as State’s defense kept the team in the game until the final out. The outfield put on a highlight-reel display, making several diving catches and igniting the home crowd of nearly 400.
The Pack had runners on second and third with no outs in the bottom of the seventh, threatening to send the game into extra innings, but Tincher struck out the next three batters to seal the victory for the visitors.
The three home losses are major statistical setbacks for State as it looks to return to the NCAA Tournament, but the players said they are undeterred by the results, insisting it will make them better.
“We’ve seen some good pitching, and we’ll continue to see it,” Campana said. “We’re really hungry now, especially [since we were] beaten at home, but we’re coming back — we’re coming back with a vengeance for sure.”
