Syracuse pitching struggles continue in doubleheader sweep by Virginia Tech
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Kaia Oliver threw 21 pitches in game one as a starter. Nineteen of them were balls, two were strikes, and two were wild pitches. Oliver surrendered four runs and pitched just 0.1 of an inning before being replaced following a career-low of one out.
Oliver allowed Virginia Tech’s fastest player, Kelsey Brown, to walk on just five pitches. Brown then stole second and remained in the game despite being hit on her left leg on Maxine Barnes’ throw home. In the same at-bat, Oliver threw her first wild pitch, allowing Brown to take over third before walking Cameron Fagan on the very next pitch on four straight balls.
After Fagan stole second and Cana Davis hit a flyout to center, Oliver gave up her third walk of the inning, loading up the bases. Brown easily trotted home after another wild pitch, and just an at-bat later, two more runners scored on a fielder’s choice to Syracuse’s Gabby Teran, whose throw to the plate was misread by Maxine Barnes. With the Hokies up 3-0, Oliver was replaced and Jolie Gustave came in while Syracuse still needed two more outs in the top of the first inning.
“I would rather balls go over the fence than us just putting people on for free,” head coach Shannon Doepking said. “To start a game like that, it’s brutal defensively to stand there and hang out, waiting for the big blow to happen.”
Syracuse’s (19-19, 11-16 Atlantic Coast) pitching struggles continued as it dropped Saturday’s doubleheader to Virginia Tech (31-12, 22-11) 11-1 and 3-0. The Orange brought in four different pitchers over the two games, allowing a combined 15 hits and four home runs.
Gustave closed out the first inning, allowing just one inherited runner to score. She pitched through the second inning without allowing a run, but two leadoff singles in the third ignited a three-run home run by Alexa Milius to extend Virginia Tech’s lead to 7-0.
Much like Oliver, Gustave started nearly every at-bat with a walk, throwing just one leadoff strike in her first 10 batters faced. Gustave’s first out of the inning was a questionable called strike three on a full count that was outside the strike zone. But that confidence was short-lived after she surrendered a double and another single.
Doepking replaced Gustave with Miranda Hearn, who was set to make her second appearance this season, still searching for her first out. With Alexa Romero and Lindsey Hendrix reserved for the second game of the doubleheader, Doepking believed that Hearn was the right pitcher to face the Orange’s large deficit.
Despite giving up an inherited run and the Orange’s second 3-run home run of the game, Hearn pitched two 1-2-3 innings consisting of a strikeout and easy fielding outs that gave Doepking plenty of optimism toward the senior’s skill set on the mound.
“It was awesome to see the outing that she had,” Doepking said. “It’s nice to see, especially as a senior and a kid that’s done a lot for this program as far as (sticking it) out when she hasn’t gotten many innings.”
Romero rebounded on Saturday to her usual consistency that she’s maintained all season. In Saturday’s second game, Romero managed a complete game after pitching just three innings — her second-shortest start of the season — in Friday’s series opener.
Known for her power, Romero relied on generating a lot of movement on her pitches and using that to her advantage as she got behind in the count. Romero’s first two strikeouts of the game came in the top of the first inning, throwing out Fagan and Jayme Bailey on a full count and a 2-2 count, respectively. Romero caught both of them swinging on high, rising pitches, which resulted in two of her next three strikeouts.
But Romero sent two hard pitches down the middle of the strike zone, leading to the two Hokies’ home runs that accounted for 2/3 of their run total in game two.
“I think that she threw a great game,” Doepking said. “When (Romero) puts a ball that barely goes over the fence, I put that more on my outfield.”
But for Romero, who gave up just six hits and one walk in game two, the offensive help she needed was absent. On Saturday, Syracuse put up just four hits on Keely Rochard, whose eight strikeouts tore up the Orange’s batters, giving them no chance in her third win of the series. After SU nearly recorded no hits for a second time, Doepking acknowledged the Hokies’ pitching power.
“It’s tough to face a pitcher like that and struggle as much as we have in both of these games,” Doepking said. “If we had any answers for (Rochard), you would’ve seen something today.”
