Virginia Tech softball earns No. 1 seed in ACC Championship

For the second time in program history, Hokies are top seed in tournament

BLACKSBURG, Va. – For the second time in program history and the first time since 2007, Virginia Tech softball earned a No. 1 seed in the ACC tournament. The Hokies get a first round bye and start action on Thursday.

"It's rewarding for the type of year that we had. A No.1 seed means that you were consistent the whole year. So it's a big deal," said Hokies head softball coach Pete D'Amour.

"To be able to go down to Tallahassee and get kind of a day of rest and especially to scout too, the other team. So you get a day of rest to go down and kind of relax for a second before you get ready to go," said senior shortstop Caitlyn Nolan.

Virginia Tech barely squeaked into the conference tournament last year as the tenth and last seed in. But this season the Hokies are 45-8, ranked 24th in the country, and only have four losses in ACC play.

"It means a lot. I really feel like we had the talent from the beginning. We just had that little extra we needed really, we weren't prepared as much and  now I feel extremely prepared and I have really supportive teammates and it's been a big turnaround for us and that's really all we needed," said sophomore outfielder Darby Trull.

Along with tough pitching, the Hokies are batting .341, the seventh best team batting average in the country.

"I think the drills and everything that they've had us do all year really makes us feel comfortable in the box," said Trull.

"We know what pitches we want to swing at. We know what the pitcher can throw. So it's not kind of playing a guessing game, you kind of know what you're going to do," added Nolan.

The Hokies rise to the top comes at the heels of the hiring of D'Amour at the end of last season. In just his first year, the players have bought in, the culture has changed and the wins keep coming.

"It's almost like a dream. You have to pinch yourself when you wake up.  Hopefully we can keep it rolling," he said.

No. 8 seed NC State will play No. 9 Syracuse on Wednesday. Virginia Tech will get the winner Thursday in the conference quarterfinal.