Syracuse needed one win in its last three games to secure a berth in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament, but the series started off in the worst way possible.

On Saturday, Virginia Tech’s Lauren Gaskill sent the very first pitch of the three-game set into the netting beyond the right-field fence.

But after two strong outings from Sydney O’Hara and extra-inning heroics from Danielle Chitkowski, the Orange (24-24, 12-12 ACC) took two games from Virginia Tech (32-20, 19-9), securing an ACC tournament berth in the program’s first season in the league.

Syracuse split with the ACC’s second-best team on Saturday at SU Softball Stadium, winning 5-4 in eight innings before losing 10-0 after the mercy rule was enforced after six. Then on Sunday’s Senior Day, the Orange won the rubber match by a score of 7-3.

For the Syracuse players, securing a berth in the ACC tournament in the team’s first season in the league is a statement to the conference that they too can compete with the best.

“People didn’t think we would be able to,” Chitkowski said. “First time in there, it’s a good feeling to show teams that we can compete in a better conference.”

In the first game, the Hokies took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the sixth, but Syracuse was able to equalize after back-to-back opposite-field hits from Jasmine Watson and Julie Wambold.

The game went into extra innings after a scoreless seventh, and Virginia Tech jumped in front courtesy of a RBI single off the bat of Amanda Ake.

Down one in the bottom of the eighth, Chitkowski took a two-out, full-count pitch to the fence in right-center field, scoring Wambold from second and pinch runner Alexis Partyka from first.

The walk-off guaranteed the Orange postseason play and sent the team flooding off the bench to maul Chitkowski.

“Really, I was just thinking get the ball in play,” Chitkowski said. “Once it got through, I wasn’t even paying attention to me running, just everyone else scoring, but it was a good feeling.”

On Sunday, the Orange came out all guns blazing, putting six runs on the board in the bottom of the third. Watson blasted a grand slam just inside the right-field foul pole and gave O’Hara all the run support she would need.

Despite only striking out one, O’Hara went through the first 4 2/3 without allowing a hit. Through the rain on Saturday and cold on Sunday, the freshman earned wins 15 and 16, shutting down the Hokies’ potent offense.

“They’re all great hitters, but I just had to be really careful and hit the corners,” O’Hara said. “The pitching has to be on point, and the pitching just has to trust the defense.”

Virginia Tech hit one home run each in the fifth and sixth to narrow the deficit to 6-3, but O’Hara was able to work out of a jam to close out the win in the season’s final game.

For SU head coach Leigh Ross, the feat of making the conference tournament in the team’s first season in the ACC shows just how far this young team has come since the beginning of the season.

“Especially with the team that we have, we’re so young,” Ross said. “We’ve had so many obstacles and things that we’ve really had to overcome.”

Although the win got the Orange to .500 overall and in conference, taking two games from the ACC’s second-best team signified much more than that for Ross heading into the conference tournament.

“As a coach, it’s kind of what you always preach, the chemistry part,” Ross said. “We’re getting the experience part, so now it’s a combination.

“We’re starting a new season in two weeks.”

 

Published on April 27, 2014 at 6:54 pm

Contact Matt: mcschnei@syr.edu | @matt_schneidman