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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The 14th-ranked Lady Vols softball team fell to third-ranked Virginia Tech, 5-2, Wednesday night at Sherri Lee Parker Stadium.
Junior outfielder Kiki Milloy recorded her 120th hit and stole the 70th base in her career in a performance that included two hits, one RBI and one stolen base.
Graduate transfer Erin Edmoundson and junior Ashley Rogers combined for 11 strikeouts, with Edmoundson fanning five batters and Rogers striking out six. Edmoundson suffered the loss and is now 17-5 on the year.
UT’s 11 strikeouts Wednesday night tied a season-high.
Virginia Tech (33-6, 15-2 ACC) wasted no time getting on the board as sophomore Emma Ritter reached second base on a fielding error and was brought home on a single by Meredith Slaw. Freshman Bree Peck hit a two-run home run over the wall in left-center to give the Hokies an early 3-0 lead after the first inning.
Tennessee (30-13, 11-6 SEC) narrowed the Hokie lead in the bottom of the third, thanks to a leadoff single by Milloy. She advanced to second with her 24th stolen base of the year. Sophomore infielder Zaida Puni singled to third and Milloy scored to cut the gap to a 3-1 deficit.
In the bottom of the fourth, sophomore Rylie West belted a leadoff single to right field and then advanced to second on an error by right fielder Morgan Overaitis. Milloy recorded her second hit of the night, smoking a two-out double to right field where West scored, shrinking the Hokie lead to one run at 3-2.
Rogers replaced Edmoundson in the top of the fifth inning when Virginia Tech had runners on first and third. Rogers stepped up by striking out Peck and outfielder Darby Trull in consecutive at-bats to get out of the jam.
Virginia Tech extended their lead in the top of the sixth as Kelsey Bennett drew a walk and was followed by Jayme Bailey. Bailey hit a two-run home run to left, stretching the Hokies’ lead out to 5-2.
VT’s Emma Lemley got the start in the circle and picked up her 13th win of the year after tossing four innings, striking out four and allowing two runs on six hits. Keely Rochard came on in relief and threw three scoreless innings, tallying five strikeouts and earning her fifth save of the season.
UP NEXT: UT will welcome East Carolina and UNC Greensboro to Knoxville this weekend for its second home tournament of the season, dubbed the Lady Vol Challenge. The Lady Vols will play a doubleheader against the Pirates and Spartans on Saturday at 1:30 and 4:00 p.m., respectively, before closing out the event Sunday at 1 p.m. against ECU.
-UT Athletics
