ACC Tournament Quarterfinals : FSU softball takes on Virginia

No. 3 FSU softball (49-5, 19-5 ACC) will take on No. 6 Virginia (27-23, 13-11 ACC) in the ACC Tournament Quarterfinals Thursday night.

The Noles swept them in their three-game series in early April, outscoring them 25-2. The Cavaliers bring a .255 batting average, with 38 home runs, 69 doubles, and five triples.

They have an on-base percentage of .339 and strike out 17 percent of their at-bats. Virginia pitchers bring a 3.73 ERA, with opposing batters hitting .267 with 208 strikeouts and 126 walks in 328.2 innings. They have allowed 35 home runs.

Defensively, Virginia had 35 errors for a .975 fielding percentage. FSU softball has five batters hitting over .300.

They hit .293 with 62 home runs, 76 doubles, and 10 triples. They have an on-base percentage of .386 and strike out 15.9 percent of their at-bats. FSU pitchers bring a 1.90 ERA, with opposing batters hitting .195 with 347 strikeouts and 102 walks in 376 innings.

They have allowed 35 home runs. Defensively, FSU had 27 errors for a .983 fielding percentage.

Keys To Victory

FSU pitchers dominated Virginia batters, with 16 strikeouts and only two walks in the three game series. They’ll need more of that Thursday night, with FSU batters pounding out 30 hits, five home runs, nine doubles, and two triples.

FSU batters only struckout six times and walked 17. They also put pressure on Virginia with six stolen bases, and forced Virginia to make six errors. Virginia isn’t a great hitting team, but they do a decent job of putting the ball in play.

FSU defense will need to make the plays they usually make. It’s a game FSU should win if the come to play like they have all season. The early season schedule of FSU softball playing in the ESPN Elite Invitational Tournament should be helpful. The Noles are 6-0 on neutral fields with five of those wins against top 25 teams.

The game will take place in Pittsburgh at 7 p.m. ET and air on the ACC Network. The winner of this game will take on the winner of the No. 2 Duke vs. No. 7 Georgia Tech game Friday at 3:30 p.m. ET.