Pitt Returns Home to Host Virginia

PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh softball team will host Virginia in a three-game series this weekend at Vartabedian Field in the Petersen Sports Complex.

THE SCHEDULE

The Panthers [23-16-1, 11-6 ACC] will begin the series with the Cavaliers [12-32, 3-15 ACC] Friday, April 20 at 5 p.m. Pitt and Virginia will continue competition Saturday, April 21 with a single game at 1 p.m., before closing out the weekend Sunday April 22 at 12 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW

All games will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra through WatchESPN.
Live stats will be available for all games.
Fans can also follow @Pitt_SB on Twitter for live in-game updates.

LAST TIME OUT

In a midweek contest, Pitt earned a 6-4 victory against Kent State, despite a late comeback attempt by the Golden Flashes, which saw the home team post a pinch-hit grand slam in the bottom of the sixth to cut the Panthers lead to 6-4.
Senior pitcher Kayla Harris, who started the game, earned her 10^th win of the season after tossing 5.2 innings, giving up just two hits and no runs, while striking out four.
At the plate, the Panthers produced eight hits from six different players. Junior Olivia Gray led the team, reaching base in all four of her appearances, earning a single, double and two walks. Gray also scored two of Pitt's runs. Senior McKayla Taylor went 2-for-4 from the batter's box with three RBIs thanks to a three-run homer in the fourth inning.

THE SERIES

Pitt and Virginia will meet for the first time since 2016, with the Cavaliers owning a 7-6 edge.
The last time the two teams faced each other was in 2016, where the Panthers came away victorious in just one of the three meetings. Pitt won game two of the series, 11-3, in six innings.
At home, Pitt is 6-2 all-time against Virginia.

SCOUTING VIRGINIA

Virginia holds a 12-32 overall record and a 3-15 mark in ACC play, which sits them last in the conference.
The Cavaliers are coming off a midweek loss to Georgetown after falling 15-7 in five innings.
A pair of pitchers leads Virginia, including junior Lacy Smith, who is 5-3 with a 5.36 ERA in 31 appearances and junior Erika Osherow, who is 6-15 with a 5.79 ERA in 38 appearances.
At the plate, senior Allison Davis leads Virginia as she is hitting over .357 on the season with 10 doubles, one triple and nine home runs. Davis has an on base percentage of .426, best on the team. She also leads the Cavaliers in RBIs with 36.

DOUBLE OR NOTHING

Pitt's defense ranks first in the ACC with 0.68 double plays per game, good for third overall in the nation. The Panthers have turned 27 double plays this season.

GOING YARD

With 1.05 home runs per game, the Panthers sit 24^th in the nation this week in the category. In the ACC, the squad holds the second spot. Pitt has blasted 42 long balls in 40 games.
Pitt has seen 11 different players hit a home run, including a team-leading 13 bombs by senior Giorgiana Zeremenko, who ranks 20^th in the nation in home runs, while also ranking 22^nd in the nation in home runs per game (0.33). Both lead the ACC.
Zeremenko became the all-time leader in the category at the B1G/ACC Challenge, notching her 35^th career home run. She was the leading home run hitter for Pitt the past two seasons, including 2016, when she set the single-season record with 17. Zeremenko is just four home runs away from tying her own record and five away from breaking it, as her 13 home runs in 2018 sit fifth overall in program history in a single season. She now has 44 in her career.

MYERS MAKING MOVES IN ACC PLAY

Seeing substantial playing time for the first time in her career, junior Taylor Myers has proved to be an asset both at the plate and in the outfield for the Panthers.
In conference play, Myers ranks third on the team with a .311 batting average. In 45 at-bats, she has produced 14 hits while adding three doubles and one long ball. The junior has also racked up six RBIs and seven runs. Myers has also been hit with a team-leading four pitches.
Defensively, she has seen her time in the outfield increase, playing all three positions. She owns 25 putouts in ACC play.
Overall, Myers is batting .247 with 20 hits and eight RBIs, while boasting 47 putouts, one assist and one error in the field to make for a .980 fielding percentage.

THE ZEREMENKO ZONE

Senior Giorgiana Zeremenko has been on a wrath at the plate in 2018 for the Panthers.
On the season, the Canonsburg, Pa., native is leading the team in multiple categories including average (.342), hits (41), doubles (10), home runs (13), slugging percentage (.750) and walks (21).
She boasts 12 multi-hit games, five multi-RBI games and has reached base in her last six games.
In conference play, Zeremenko has been unstoppable, tallying 19 hits in 47 at-bats for a .404 average. She has recorded four doubles and six home runs in 17 games, while producing 11 RBIs and 10 runs scored. Zeremenko has reached base in over 54 percent of her appearances.
She ranks 20^th in the nation in home runs, while also ranking 22^nd in the nation in home runs per game (0.33). Both lead the ACC.
With a team-leading 13 home runs, Zeremenko is just four away from tying her own single-season record of 17 long balls and five away from breaking it, as her 2018 total sits fifth overall in program history in a single season. She now has 44 in her career.
After cranking a home run to right center in her first at-bat against Duke, Zeremenko was intentionally walked four times in Pitt's doubleheader against the Blue Devils March 31. In the three game series, she finished 2-for-6 with five walks, two runs, one home run and one RBI.

TAYLOR AT THE PLATE

In her final season with the Panthers, senior McKayla Taylor continues her dominance at the plate.
Taylor has reached base in 20 out of the past 22 games and is hitting .261 on the season with 31 hits, 30 runs scored and 17 RBIs.
At Kent State, Taylor recorded two hits, including a three-run long ball. Her two hits propelled her into the top five of the record book in hits, as the senior now boasts 177 in her career. She is just three away from overthrowing Ashley Amistade in third place, who had 179 in her career from 2008-2011.
Against NC State, Taylor recorded her 128^th RBI, setting a new program record as she passed Holly Stevens, who set the record with 127 from 2010-13. The senior now has 137 in her career, making her third on the list for career RBI's all time at Pitt.
Her record-breaking weekend saw her record six hits in 11 at-bats to hit .545 against the Wolfpack. The senior put up four RBIs and scored twice. Two of Taylor's hits were for extra bases as he blasted a three-run homer and an RBI-double in game two. On the weekend, she finished with a .909 slugging percentage and a .583 on-base percentage.
She was perfect in game two of the NC State series, reaching base in all four appearances at the plate. She went 3-for-3 with a homer, double and was hit by a pitch. Taylor also posted a team-leading four RBIs. She continued her dominance in game three, producing three singles in her first three at-bats. Defensively, Taylor finished the weekend at third perfectly with 13 assists and three putouts.

FRESHMAN STANDOUT

After starting the season out in the bottom of the batting order, freshman Hunter Levesque worked her way into the top half of the order after picking up her game.
Levesque ranks third on the team with a .290 batting average to go along with 29 hits, 18 runs scored and three home runs.
The freshman reached base in nine straight games during a span from March 8 to March 23.

SOLAK SHOWING OFF

Junior Alexis Solak has proven to be one of the Panthers most consistent hitters at the plate.
The junior boasts nine games in which she has recorded multiple hits and has reached base in 14 of the last 19 games.
Solak is currently hitting .273 and ranks third on the team with 35 hits.
Against Georgia Tech, Solak went 5-for-10 to hit .500 on the weekend with three extra-base hits.
From Feb. 10 to Feb. 24, Solak reached the base paths in 10 straight games.

HARRIS' LAST HURRAH

Senior pitcher Kayla Harris looks to finish out her career in the circle for the Panthers on a high note.
Harris is currently 10-1 on the season and 6-0 in ACC play. Harris is just one win away from tying Laura Belardinelli (49) for second place in career wins. She currently boasts 48 career victories.
In 22 total appearances, 17 of which she started, Harris has tossed eight complete games, including five shutouts. In 96.2 innings pitched, Harris has struck out 37, while giving up just 18 walks.
In conference play, Harris boasts a 2.19 ERA after eight appearances and has held her opponents to a .248 average.
While facing No. 13/9 Florida State, the senior posted a complete game shutout after the Panthers earned a 1-0 extra-innings win. Pitt's victory snapped the Seminoles 36-game conference win streak, which was the fifth-longest streak in NCAA history. Harris' outstanding effort later earned her ACC Pitcher of the Week honors.
Against Virginia Tech, she tossed a complete-game shutout, giving up just four hits to the Hokies, while holding them scoreless. While facing 26 batters, she allowed just one walk.

DOMINANT DAWSON

Junior pitcher Sarah Dawson has been dominant in the circle for Pitt so far in 2018.
Dawson is currently 11-11 on the season. In a team leading 111.2 innings pitched, she has struck out 58 batters and owns a 2.70 ERA.
In a phenomenal outing against Georgia Tech, Dawson earned the start in game one, where she finished with a complete-game win after surrendering just three hits and two runs while striking out a career-high tying seven batters. The junior retired 12 consecutive Yellow Jacket batters to open the game, adding five strikeouts through the first four frames. On the weekend, Dawson gave up just six hits and five runs in 12.1 innings pitched, striking out 10 batters, while walking just two.
In a win over Coastal Carolina, Dawson pitched a complete game and struck out a career-high seven batters.
At the B1G/ACC Challenge, the junior gave up just five earned runs in 13.1 innings pitched, while striking out 11 total batters. Four of those earned runs came in the opening game of the weekend, leaving Dawson almost perfect after that.
Against Illinois Feb. 18, Dawson started the game and pitched all but one frame in the five-inning game, as she and Brittany Knight combined to toss the team's first shutout victory, 9-0. Dawson struck out five on the day and walked just one batter against the Illini.

LOCAL LEADER

Local product Olivia Gray, who hails from Washington, Pa., just south of Pittsburgh and attended Trinity High School, has grown to become one of Pitt's top players.
Gray, who started all of 2017 at third base and the beginning of the 2018 slate, has since become the starting shortstop. She boasts a .307 career average with 119 hits.
This season, Gray is hitting .312 with 39 hits. She leads the team with 13 multi-hit games.
Against the Hokies, Gray went 4-for-6 at the plate with three RBIs and a walk. She posted a .625 on base percentage and slugged .667. In the opening game of the series, Gray was perfect, going 3-for-3. She tallied every RBI for the Panthers to lead Pitt to a win. In game two, she reached base twice, producing a single and a walk. Defensively Gray completed five putouts.
Gray hit .353 in the team's opening weekend tournament boasting a team-leading six hits, including one triple and four runs scored.

UP NEXT

Pitt will take a break from ACC Play to host Marshall, Saturday April 28 in a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.

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Pitt Returns Home to Host Virginia

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sarah Dawson

Olivia Gray

Kayla Harris

Brittany Knight

Hunter Levesque

Taylor Myers

Alexis Solak

McKayla Taylor

Giorgiana Zeremenko

Pitt Returns Home to Host Virginia

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sarah Dawson

Olivia Gray

Kayla Harris

Brittany Knight

Hunter Levesque

Taylor Myers

Alexis Solak

McKayla Taylor

Giorgiana Zeremenko

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