The Hokie Hurlers: An In-Depth Look at Virginia Tech's Pitching Situation

By Colby Talley

Staff Writer

February 10, 2022

BLACKSBURG — The signs began to show in Game Three of the Super Regional against UCLA.

Keely Rochard was at the end of her rope.

Virginia Tech’s star pitcher wasn’t the same one from a week ago when she struck out 27 batters in 19 innings during the Tempe Regional. She had started each one of the Hokies’ last 15 games, including all seven during the postseason leading up to the winner-take-all contest.

Her pitches missed their usual zip. Her riseballs were coming out lower and lower.

Eventually, Bruins outfielder Maya Brady found one low enough to crush over the centerfield wall, putting her team up 6-0 in the fifth inning and effectively ending VT’s chances at a Women’s College World Series bid.

It was the straw that broke the camel's back. Hokies head coach Pete D’Amour had no choice but to pull his veteran ace out of the circle. For the team, the writing was on the wall: The season was over.

What Keely Rochard accomplished during the 2021 season was nothing short of exemplary. She ranked second in the nation with 338 strikeouts, third with 29 wins and tied for third with 13 shutouts.

While her stats are nothing to scoff at, there’s a clear reason why Rochard was able to climb to such heights: her usage.

When all was said and done for the 2021 season, Rochard had pitched 244 total innings. For context, UCLA pitchers Rachel Garcia and Megan Faraimo, the two best pitchers in one of the nation’s most highly-touted programs, only pitched about 134 innings apiece.

Furthermore, Alabama pitcher Montana Fouts, whose 349 strikeouts beat Rochard out for the nation’s title, pitched 33 fewer innings.

Looking at the immense workload Rochard took on compared to other star pitchers and how it affected the Hokies’ performance down the stretch, the solution seems clear: Rochard can’t do everything. She needs some help.

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It’s no secret that depth tends to be the mark of a true contender. For example, in the aforementioned Super Regional against UCLA where Garcia gave up four runs in just four innings of work to lose Game One, the Bruins turned to Faraimo, who pitched a shutout in game two to keep their season alive.

Additionally, Fouts had her Crimson Tide teammate Lexi Kilfoyl to fall back on. Kilfoyl pitched 104 innings in 2021 and complemented Fouts’ 1.61 ERA with a 1.62 ERA of her own.

It’s no coincidence that UCLA and Alabama both had excellent pitching depth in 2021 and both ended up in the Women’s College World Series. Rochard needs arms behind her that can carry the load when she needs a break.

Luckily for the Hokies, they may not have to look far.

Enter the Virginia Tech bullpen. We’ll call them the “Hokie Hurlers,” a fitting nickname for a group of pitchers that has the talent and potential to make this 2022 team a true threat on the national scene.

It consists of four other pitchers: Ivy Rosenberry, Mackenzie Osborne, Molly Jacobson and Emma Lemley.

The first thing to note about this group is that three are from Virginia with Lemley and Osborne hailing from towns near the New River Valley. And it’s due to D’Amour’s insistence on prioritizing in-state recruiting.

“He said he likes to recruit girls from Virginia,” Rosenberry said while recalling a comment D’Amour made during her recruitment in an interview with 3304 Sports in the offseason. “Why recruit a girl from California when there is so much talent in the state?”

The lone outlier in this trend is Jacobson who herself is from Waukee, Iowa. In fact, the long distance she traveled from home served as one of Jacobson’s biggest challenges for her first full season in 2021.

“It was a big transition,” Jacobson said. “I was leaving my family, my boyfriend, my friends, everybody.”

In particular, one mystery with Jacobson is her seldom usage. In her two seasons, Jacobson has only pitched four total innings. Three of those innings came in relief appearances during the shortened 2020 season and the other one came in her lone appearance last season in a game against Longwood where she pitched one clean inning. She wouldn’t see the circle for the remainder of the season.

“I don’t go into anything mad or upset that I’m not playing,” Jacobson said. “You just keep working everyday and when you get your opportunity you just prove to them that you can do this.”

Meanwhile, Rosenberry and Osborne were the two most frequently used behind Rochard. The two combined to pitch 93.2 innings in 2021. Considering that both pitchers were also freshmen last year, they certainly had their fair share of challenges when it came to transitioning to the college game.

Osborne was quick to point out the increased complications with time management as it pertained to balancing school work with game preparation.

“We didn’t really learn how to study going from high school to college,” Osborne said, “you’re on your own.It’s about making sure you’re staying on top of softball, school and weights.”

Additionally, Osborne and Rosenberry both had a bit to say about the jump in competition from high school to Division I.

“You’re playing the best, you came here for a reason,” Osborne said. “You’re outworking people for a spot, it’s not like high school where it’s just given to you because you’re the best at that level”

Rosenberry cited one point during last season where the team played two three-game series against Clemson and Florida State in a four day span as an eye-opening experience for her and the other freshmen on the team.

“We were so mentally exhausted,” Rosenberry said. “Physically we were there and ready to go, but if you took any kind of break during the game, the other team takes advantage of it so you just have to stay so focused [all the time].”

Finally, we come to the staff’s latest acquisition: Emma Lemley, the youngest of the Hokies’ youthful talent.

If Lemley’s tenure at Jefferson Forest High School is any indication, she has the potential to be special. Lemley posted a 0.80 ERA in four years as a starter, averaged two strikeouts per inning and boasts a list of awards and first-team listings.

While Lemley’s talent in the circle is reassuring, it’s her potential at the plate that makes her even more interesting. In addition to her excellent pitching numbers, Lemley is a two-way player as she hit .408 in high school.

Two-way players like Valerie Cagle from Clemson and the aforementioned Rachel Garcia are more than intriguing, they’re a big boost for any team with the hopes of competing. Whether D’Amour uses her solely as a pitcher — she’s listed as one the roster — a hitter or both, the potential for Lemley appears to be off the charts.

When asked about what unique trait she brings to the pitching staff, Lemley spoke about how she always tries to remain positive while working through tiring weight training and bullpen sessions.

“It would be really easy to just be like, ‘I don’t want to be here today,” Lemley said. “I try to take every opportunity in the bullpen to learn something new or improve my pitching.”

When asked what she anticipates will be her biggest challenge transitioning to college softball, Lemley also cited her uptick in school work, especially considering she’s an engineering major.

“My last year and a half has just been softball, softball, softball,” Lemley said. “I didn’t really have to try in school because a lot of my teachers just made it easy for us, but this year it’s definitely not.”

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Now, one question remains: What evidence suggests this group will improve in 2022.

Well, just look back at Rochard’s freshmen year.

Rochard’s 2018 season, which also happened to be the first season for D’Amour, was strikingly similar to the freshmen campaigns of both Rosenberry and Osborne. See for yourself:

• Rochard in 2018: 3.03 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 69.1 IP

• Osborne in 2021: 2.76 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 45.2 IP

• Rosenberry in 2021: 3.06 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 48.0 IP

After her decent freshman season, Rochard returned in 2019 as a whole new pitcher as her ERA dropped to 1.81, her WHIP improved to 0.85 and she did it all while pitching nearly 100 more innings than she had the previous year.

If Osborne and Rosenberry are on the same trajectory as Rochard, the potential for the two could be off the charts. The senior’s development set a precedent for D’Amour’s staff – one that could lead to talent to flow through Blacksburg year after year.

If the expectation is a Women’s College World Series berth, they’ll need pitchers like Osborne and Rosenberry to step up and turn a corner in their development.

Last year was Tech’s come up. Now, it’s time for a coming out party.

The expectation isn’t lost on Osborne, and she knows that.

“We’re all set on that one goal: We want to make it to the World Series. We want to win.”