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ON THE DIAMOND
The Virginia Tech softball team travels to Greenville, North Carolina, for a tournament hosted by East Carolina University. Due to the chilly forecast, the schedule has already been altered. Friday’s games have been cancelled, so the Hokies now open at 11 a.m. against Seton Hall and then take on the host Pirates at 4 p.m. On Sunday, Tech plays Seton Hall at 10 a.m., and then ECU again at 3 p.m.

FACILITY AND TICKET INFO
All of the games this weekend will take place at the ECU Softball Stadium. For directions, click here. Admission is $6 per person, per day.

Here’s the tournament site.

IN THE TARHEEL STATE
Virginia Tech has played 102 games in North Carolina since its inception as a varsity sport in 1996 and the Hokies sport a 66-36 all-time record in the Tar Heel State.

THE WEEKEND FORECAST
Here’s the early weekend forecast for Greenville, North Carolina. Be sure to follow Virginia Tech softball on Twitter (@VT_Softball) for any potential schedule changes this weekend due to the weather.

YEAR NO. 20
Scot Thomas is in his 20th season at the helm of the maroon and orange. He enters this weekend with a record of 698-453. In his career, he has led the Hokies to a berth in the Women’s College World Series (2008), two ACC titles (2007, 2008), seven NCAA bids (2005-2008, 2012-2014), eight conference championship games and a win over the U.S. National Team (2008) and the Dutch National Team (2012).

RECORDS WATCH
Heas coach Scot Thomas is quickly approaching a coaching milestone as he sits just two wins away from No. 700 … Senior Lauren Gaskill (145) needs seven runs scored to break the school record of 151 set by Bronwyn Blair (1998-2001) … Kylie McGoldrick set a new school record for career hit by pitch last weekend, moving past Courtney Liddle, and now has been hit 28 times in her career.

BOMBS AWAY
The Hokies have broken out the big sticks in a big way to start the season, blasting 13 home runs in 10 games. Kelsey Mericka leads the way with five home runs while three players - Breanna Davenport, Vanessa Gonzalez and Kylie McGoldrick all have two. Elizabeth Birle, Lauren Gaskill and Michelle Prong each have one.

SCOUTING EAST CAROLINA
ECU is 5-4 on the young season after dropping three games last weekend at home. All nine games have been played at home. Casey Alcorn leads the way at the plate, hitting .346 with two home runs and eight RBIs. Ali Ramirez is batting .333 with a team-high 11 RBIs and Abby Wynne is hitting .320 with three stolen bases.

Three pitchers have seen most of the work. Sarah Christian is 2-2 with a 1.84 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 19.0 innings pitched. Ashley Cruise is 2-0 with a 2.67 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 21.0 innings and Caroline Umphlett is 1-2 with a 7.64 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 18.1 innings pitched.

The Hokies and Pirates have met 12 previous times with the Hokies leading 7-5. The two last met in 2009 in Greenville, splitting a pair of games. The Hokies won the first game 6-0, but lost the second contest 4-0. No team has more than a two-game winning streak against the other in the series.

ECU’s 2015 stats
ECU’s 2015 roster

SCOUTING SETON HALL
Seton Hall started off the season at 5-0 with 14 home runs, but went 0-5 last weekend with just two home runs. Whitney Jones leads the team with a .407 average and five doubles while Sara Haefeli is hitting .355 with five home runs. Lauren Fischer is 2-2 with a 2.25 ERA and nine strikeouts in 28.0 innings. Danielle DeStaso is 2-1 with a 4.20 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 20.0 innings.

Tech is just 4-4 all-time against the Pirates as the two teams played for four seasons in the Big East together. The two last met in 2004 in Blacksburg, splitting a conference doubleheader. The Hokies and Pirates are scheduled to meet twice this weekend.

SHU’s 2015 stats
SHU’s 2015 roster

PRESEASON ACC POLL
The ACC coaches voted the Hokies fourth in the 2015 Preseason Coaches’ Poll, released in early February. Florida State is the preseason favorite, according to the coaches, followed by Notre Dame, NC State, Tech, Louisville, North Carolina, Syracuse, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Pitt and Virginia.

The ACC is an 11-team league with the addition of Louisville coming in for Maryland. Notre Dame, Pitt and Syracuse joined the conference last year. Only the top eight teams in the league standings will make the conference tournament at Virginia Tech in May.

TECH SOFTBALL PARK
Tech Softball Park, home of Virginia Tech softball since 1998, has been a tough place for opposing teams to play over the years. Nearly 800 permanent seats have been added, along with lights, two more press boxes, a video board and a new sound system, making the facility a fine one for the Hokies to play. Currently, the capacity is 1,024 for games. Over the years, Tech has posted a 204-85 record at home.

UP NEXT
Tech is scheduled to play at Radford on Wednesday in a single game at 3 p.m., although weather could force a change. Next weekend, the Hokies will head back to North Carolina to open up ACC play. Tech will take on the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, playing the doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m. and the single game on Sunday at 1 p.m.

RANDOM STATS AND NOTES
Career Grand Slams (active)
K. Mericka vs. Wagner, 2/24/12
L. Gaskill vs. Liberty, 5/1/12
K. McGoldrick vs. Long Beach St., 3/7/13
K. Smith vs. Syracuse, 5/8/14

Career Walk-Off Home Runs (active)
Katey Smith vs. Ball State, 2/18/14 - solo home run in B7 to win 5-4
Elizabeth Birle vs. North Carolina, 3/1/14 - solo home run in B7 to win 4-3

Career Games Started - by position (active)
L. Gaskill: 191 total - 122 CF; 69 SS
K. McGoldrick: 182 total - 182 2B
L. Spaw: 120 total - 120 DP
B. Liddle: 104 total - 75 1B; 20 P; 5 DP; 4 RF
K. Mericka: 97 total - 83 3B; 9 C; 5 DP
K. Smith: 70 total - 65 C; 4 DP, 1 1B
V. Gonzalez: 67 total - 65 LF, 2 CF
K. Heinz: 54 total - 54 P
M. Tyler: 42 total - 42 P
M. Prong: 28 total - 16 RF; 10 DP; 1 3B; 1 LF
E. Birle: 27 total - 14 1B; 13 DP
B. Davenport: 10 total - 8 CF, 2 LF
M. Aiken: 5 total - 2 P, 1 DP, 1 3B
K. Ota: 4 total - 3 LF; 1 DP
C. Schoenewald: 2 total - 2 RF

Hokies by States (21)
Virginia: 7
New Jersey: 3
California: 2
Florida: 2
Pennsylvania: 2
Georgia: 1
Michigan: 1
Missouri: 1
New York: 1
North Carolina: 1

Hokies by Class (21)
Seniors: 5 (1 redshirt)
Juniors: 5 (2 redshirt)
Sophomores: 3
Freshmen: 8

Walk-Off Home Runs in Program History (14)
Bronwyn Blair vs. Charlotte, 3/25/98 - two-run home run in B8 to win 8-6
Tiffany Hurt vs. Radford, 2/21/01 - two-run home run in B7 to win 2-0
Amy Voorhees vs. Connecticut, 3/31/01 - solo home run in B10 to win 3-2
Megan Evans vs. Seton Hall, 5/5/02 - solo home run in B9 to win 1-0
Megan Evans vs. Virginia, 4/27/04 - grand slam in B8 to win 6-3
Stephanie Savre vs. Georgia Tech, 4/23/05 - grand slam in B7 to win 9-5
Caroline Stolle vs. Winthrop, 5/5/05 - solo home in B7 to win 2-1
Stephanie Savre vs. Radford, 3/1/06 - two-run home run in B9 to win 3-2
Beth Walker vs. North Carolina, 4/26/08 - three-run home run in B10 to win 5-2
Misty Hall vs. Louisville, 5/16/08 (NCAA Regionals) - solo home run in B7 to win 1-0
Jessica Everhart vs. Appalachian State, 2/21/09 - three-run home run in B8 to win 5-4
Misty Hall vs. Florida State, 4/17/10 - solo home run in B7 to win 5-4
Marra Hvozdovic vs. Western Michigan, 3/8/09 - solo home run in B7 to win 1-0
Betty Rose vs. Cornell, 3/20/12 - grand slam in B7 to win 8-4
Katey Smith vs. Ball State, 2/18/14 - solo home run in B7 to win 5-4
Elizabeth Birle vs. North Carolina, 3/1/14 - solo home run in B7 to win 4-3

Pinch-Hit Home Runs (8)
April Ellenberger vs. LaSalle, 4/29/00 - three-run home run
Heather Todd vs. St. Bonaventure, 5/7/00 - two-run home run
Beth Walker vs. Minnesota, 2/25/06 - two-run home run
Beth Walker at Radford, 2/28/07 - two-run home run
Stephanie Kujawa at Virginia, 4/15/11 - two-run home run
Jessica McNamara at Radford, 4/23/13 - solo home run
Jessica McNamara at UNC Greensboro, 2/18/14 - two-run home run
Michelle Prong at Coastal Carolina, 2/7/15 - two-run home run

Tech’s official record book, which includes game, season and career records, along with all of the no-hitters and perfect games in program history, can be found here.

For updates on Virginia Tech softball, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_Softball