April 30, 2011
Hokies fall to Terrapins twice on the diamond
Tech will try to get one win on Senior Day
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Maryland (35-14) 0011010392
Virginia Tech (35-17) 0010001281
  • Tech Softball Park
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Maryland (36-14) 0210000371
Virginia Tech (35-18) 0010001262
  • Tech Softball Park - 463

BLACKSBURG – The Virginia Tech softball team dropped a pair of games to the University of Maryland Saturday afternoon at Tech Softball Park, falling 3-2 and 3-2.

In the first game, Maryland scored in the third inning on a single, but Tech tied it up in the bottom half of the inning when Ashton Ward scored on a passed ball. The Terrapins added a run in the fourth inning and one more in the sixth inning to make it 3-1, but the Hokies rallied to make it interesting.

In the seventh inning, Kristen Froehlich led off with a double and then Betty Rose drew a walk. After a fly out, pinch hitter Marra Hvozdovic singled to left field to load the bases and then Bkaye Smith singled up the middle with two outs to drive in Froehlich and make it 3-2. But after a pitching change, Maryland pitcher Kendra Knight struck out Ward on three pitches to end the game.

At the plate, the Hokies had eight hits, but left 14 runners on base. Courtney Liddle, Froehlich and Smith each had two hits while Rose and Hvozdovic each had one.

In the circle, Kenzie Roark (L, 16-8) went 3.1 innings, allowing two runs on four hits with three walks and two strikeouts. Jasmin Harrell pitched the final 3.2 innings, allowing a run on five hits with four strikeouts.

In game two, Maryland again jumped on Roark early on, scoring a pair of runs in the second inning to take a quick 2-0 lead. The Terrapins tacked on a run in the third when Kathy McLaughlin singled to score Marisha Branson, who doubled earlier in the inning.

In the third inning, the Hokies got their first hits of the game, using back-to-back singles from Dani Anderson and Liddle to drive in Ward. The Hokies again made things interesting in the seventh inning, but again couldn’t get the timely hit to tie or win it. Smith led off with a triple and scored when Kerry Hickey was called for an illegal pitch. With one out and Tech’s three best home run threats coming up, Liddle struck out on a pitch and Froehlich fouled out to left field to end it with Tech on the short end of the stick once again by one run.

Roark (L, 16-9) was tagged with her loss of the day after allowing three runs on seven hits with three walks and five strikeouts in six-plus innings. Harrell got the final three outs, striking out one.

The Hokies had six hits in the game, two apiece from Smith and Anderson and one from both Liddle and Rose.

After leaving 14 runners on in the first game, the Hokies again struggled to get the big hit when they needed it, stranding eight more in the second game for a total of 22 in the doubleheader.

Tech (35-18, 9-11 ACC) and Maryland (36-14, 10-5 ACC) will wrap up the series on Sunday with a single game at 1 o’clock. The five seniors - Ward, Roark, Cruz, Richelle McGarva and Alicia Field - will be honored before the game.

For updates on Virginia Tech softball, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Softball).

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