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Links: Tournament Central // Game Notes

Friday: Noon vs. Morehead State (Live Stats) // 2 p.m. vs. Ohio State (Live Stats)

Saturday: 3 p.m. vs. USC-Upstat (Live Stats) // 5 p.m. vs. Ohio State (Live Stats)

Sunday: 11 a.m. vs. Ohio (Live Stats)

BLACKSBURG - The Virginia Tech softball team continues tournament play this weekend at the Spartan Classic hosted by USC-Upstate and Furman in South Carolina, beginning Friday through Sunday.

The Hokies (1-8) open the tournament with a doubleheader on Friday at noon versus Morehead State (5-2) followed by Ohio State (5-3) at Furman’s Pepsi Stadium. Saturday at Cyrill Stadium, Tech will face tournament host USC-Upstate (7-1) at 3 p.m. with Ohio State to follow immediately. The Hokies will close out the tournament on Sunday morning with an 11 a.m. game against Ohio (3-1) at USC-Upstate’s Cyrill Stadium.

Prior to the Spartan Classic, the Hokies competed in back-to-back tournaments in the Sunshine State against three top-25 opponents. Tech began the 2016 season with a 6-3 win over USF in the first game of the five-team tournament. Since then, the Hokies have faced top-25 teams six times, four of those against teams who competed in the 2015 WCWS.

Tech showed promise despite the early losses, with two Hokies on the ACC’s single-game highs list. Maggie Tyler’s 10 strikeouts versus South Carolina put her in the top spot with pitchers from NC State and Florida State. Freshman Caitlyn Nolan places on two single game lists: walks (3) and assists (8) both against No. 2 Michigan on Feb. 20.

In Tech’s most recent game against No. 2 Michigan, both Breanna Davenport and Chelsea Whitcomb recorded two hits for the second time this season.

Freshman Olivia Lattin made her first appearance in the circle last weekend, tossing 5.1 innings against No. 2 Michigan. Lattin gave up a single earned run, throwing two strikeouts against 21 batters. Collectively, the Hokies’ pitching staff has thrown 34 strikeouts this season with Maggie Tyler leading with 18. Chelsea Whitcomb threw Tech’s lone win against USF on Feb. 12 with Tyler coming in for the final two outs, earning the save.

Through this season, five Hokies have accounted for six homeruns. Whitcomb, Breanna Davenport, Jessie Mehr, and Vanessa Gonzalez all slugged homers against Illinois State on Feb. 13. The home run by Gonzalez was already the second of the season when she led off on Feb. 12 with her first. Most recently, Elizabeth Birle sent a homerun beyond the centerfield fence against No. 2 Michigan on Feb. 21.

Versus the Opponents:

This will be the first meeting between Virginia Tech and Morehead State on Friday at noon. The Hokies are 9-3 against teams from the Ohio Valley Conference.

Virginia Tech and Ohio State split the series with an even 2-2 all-time record. The Hokies will face the Buckeyes for the first time since 2007 on Friday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 11 a.m. The teams have alternated wins since first meeting in 2004 with OSU winning the most recent matchup, 2-1 on May 19, 2007.

Virginia Tech and USC-Upstate will meet for the second time on Saturday at 3 p.m. with the Spartans winning the only prior meeting 8-1 in 2014. The Hokies are 13-9 against Atlantic Sun teams.

Virginia Tech leads the series against Ohio, 4-3, winning the most recent matuch 3-2 in 2011. The Hokies and Bobcats will face for the eighth time in the programs’ history on Satuday at 5 p.m.

Up Next:

Tech holds its home opener on Wednesday, March 2 against Radford at Tech Softball Park. First pitch is slated for 5 p.m.

For updates on Virginia Tech softball, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_Softball