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ATLANTA, GEORGIA — There is just one thing on the mind as spring fully takes hold in Atlanta, and that is how best to go do all the fun things in the city, but not get swamped by everyone in it. If you’ve figured it out, as always, let me know. In the meantime, on a weekend with a strange dearth of sports in Midtown, let us know get down to the details.
Softball
Overall: 25-11 | Last Week: 2-2
Polls: RV - 31 (Coaches) | RV - 36 (USA Softball)
RPI: 33
Kennesaw State - [W] 5-2: Tech got the week started off right by knocking off Kennesaw State at home, taking care of business against what the older-school Tech fans might recognize as the school Tricia Awald won ASUN Rookie of the Year at her freshman year. Overall, it was a fairly pedestrian game, with KSU notching the first run, but Tech was able to quickly answer back to put themselves ahead for good. The Jackets called on Blake Neleman to come on in relief, and she finished the solid Chandler Dennis start with two innings of scoreless relief.
Notre Dame - [W] 9-8: For everything that the Kennesaw State could be described as “mundane,” the opposite was true of the Notre Dame series. Tech headed on the road to a chilly South Bend and played three heartrending games, which could have just as easily gone for a sweep for either team. In the first game, Tech got off to an early lead, which they ceded in due time right back to their hosts with a five run third inning. The Irish tacked on a few more runs, but Tech made things interesting in the top of the seventh with four runs, the ultimate winning run coming on a squeeze bunt, which is, by all means, a tremendously play.
Notre Dame - [L] 13-12 (9): Tech cobbled together an eclectic pitching rotation on Saturday, sending five to the circle to try to put together a win after fighting back from an early 5-2 deficit with a monstrous seven run fourth inning. Tech tacked on another two in the top of the fifth, but Notre Dame split six runs across two frames to send the game to extras. Though Tech was able to scratch a run across in the ninth, they ultimately came up short, as Notre Dame tagged them for two in the bottom of the frame.
Notre Dame - [L] 15-13 (8): In the rubber match, Tech came out scorchingly hot at the plate, putting a big crooked number on the scoreboard with a six run first inning.
Tech gave three back in the bottom of the frame, and the two teams traded five run spots in the second to yield an 11-8 score after just two innings. This, if you could tell, was a long game. As the game wore on, Notre Dame scratched off one run at a time, though an Emma Kauf solo shot to deep right center field in the top of the seventh seemed to give them the edge. They yielded one more in the seventh, and despite yet another late run, fell on a massive home run that ended the game in favor of the home team.
Men’s Tennis
Overall: 8-9 | Last Week: 0-2
Rankings - ITA: 53
Honestly, it was a disappointing weekend for the men’s tennis team, with the obvious massive caveat that they were playing a pair of pretty tremendous teams on the road. We can skirt around the 7-0 sweep on Sunday at the hand of North Carolina, but they fared a bit better on Friday in Durham. Tech took an early lead over Duke, winning the doubles point thanks to wins from Andres Martin/Marcus McDaniel and Pablo Schlecher/Brandon McKinney. Schelcher immediately turned around to post a great two set victory, but that was not enough to carry Tech to a win, as Duke rattled off four straight points of their own to take the match.
Women’s Tennis
Overall: 12-6 | Last Week: 1-1
Rankings - ITA: 28
Much like we declined to discuss the men and their match against North Carolina, we will extend the same courtesy to the women and their match in Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate. Much better, though, were the results from the Clemson match over the weekend. Tech shook off the previous match with a healthy 5-2 win coming off of a doubles point win and a steady start in the singles. In the doubles, the first two courts took care of business the fastest, with Carol Lee/Kate Sharabura and Ava Hrastar/Kylie Bilchev netting wins, but play ceased with Tech also winning on the third court, as well. Gia Cohen added another point quickly with a win on the sixth court, followed by Bilchev and Jain helped put Tech over the top.
Track and Field
It was an abruptly short weekend for Tech, given the inclement weather in Gainesville. Cameron O’Neal was just off a program record in the long jump on Friday, while Olivia Moore turned in the top podium finish among the women in the pole vault.
In the Club House:
Tech Men’s Lacrosse hosted two games this weekend, with #25 Florida State visiting on Saturday, while Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate was renewed for another year on Sunday, another top 25 matchup. In the first game, Florida State jumped out to a very early lead, with the end of the first quarter seeing the visitors ahead 5-2. However, in an absolutely dominant stretch that lasted to the far side of halftime, Tech scored 7 straight goals to give themselves a lead they would never relinquish, ultimately going on to win 15-9. The story was somewhat reversed on Sunday, with Tech rocketing out to a 5-0 lead, before giving their guests the entire lot back, plus another. Another massive run for Tech, this time an 8 goal stretch, put them once again up for good, locking up what would become a 15-8 win.
This Week:
Baseball:
4/5 - USC Upstate
4/8-10 - Florida State
Softball:
4/5 - Troy
4/8-10 - at Boston College
Golf:
Ongoing through 4/5 - Calusa Cup (Naples, FL)
Women’s Tennis:
4/8 - at Duke
4/10 - at North Carolina
Men’s Tennis:
4/8 - at North Carolina State
4/10 - at Wake Forest
Volleyball:
4/9 - KIVA Sports Tournament - Exhibition (Louisville, KY)