🥎 Undefeated top 4⃣ in this week's @USATODAY DI Top 2⃣5⃣ Coaches Poll!🔗https://t.co/Zi5ciKgClY pic.twitter.com/eJ75sMkvTb— NFCA (@NFCAorg) February 22, 2022
This team is awesome. Find a game near you and come out and support.
https://hokiesports.com/sports/softball/schedule/2022
For those of you in Florida come join us at UCF in April.
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That is a hell of a list to be in the middle of.
And, yes, I am aware I ended the sentence with a preposition.
"... of which to be in the middle" would just sound pretentious. You're good.
When people ask 'if you were Mr Sports God, how would you influence VT for the better'. outside of putting Michael Vick on the 2007 or 2010 team, it would be putting Angela Tinscher in the rotation of a team like the one we have this year.
This current team might already have what it takes to go on a legit run, but she was an all-time great. Its a crime she never had the opportunity to rep the US in the Olympics.
Agreed
There's a very strong case to be made that she's the greatest athlete VT has ever had.
Football and basketball will always have more attention, but for my money she's the VT athlete GOAT
Yep, I was lucky enough to be on campus during her college career and got to see most of her games in person. There was an expectation that she would throw a no hitter (or maybe even a perfect game) every time she took the field. I remember how surprising it was whenever she gave up a hit...just one hit, lol! She was unbelievably good! On top of that, she was an absolutely wonderful person.
I mean she won the softball equivalent of the Heisman Trophy and no hit the best softball team on the planet (which scored 58 runs in 9 games during the Olympics shortly thereafter) while she pitched for us.
Its a crime that softball was dropped from the Olympics after that 2008 season. At the same time, its a bit fitting that US Softball has yet to win gold, having lost to Japan in both Olympic gold medal finals, since they intentionally left Tinscher off their 2008 roster.
Why was she left off? Was it because the older players felt threatened by her or something?
2-3 of the other greatest pitchers of all time were on the team. Unfortunate timing for Tincher.
Exactly. The 2008 USA Softball team had Jennie Finch, Monica Abbott and Cat Osterman; arguably the greatest pitching rotation in softball history. They even cut legendary softball pitcher Lisa Fernandez before the games. That team was absolutely loaded, and it's shocking that they didn't win the gold medal.
My belief is that, if softball remained an Olympic sport beyond 2008 and the national team didn't effectively fizzle out, Tinscher would currently be viewed as one of the greatest softball pitchers of all time, with her possibly being the replacement of Jennie Finch in the 2012 roster (who retired in 2010).
She no hit arguably the greatest lineup softball has ever seen, and the international sport died right at the moment she would have made a name for herself.
Here's what I've always been curious about...did Tincher ever receive an opportunity to play for Team USA again? I know that softball was dropped as an Olympic sport, but they still held the Women's Softball World Cup every two years. It's nowhere near as prestigious as the Olympics but they did hold World Cups in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018 with the USA claiming three golds and two silvers; there were some pretty big names on those rosters. It looks like Tincher played professionally from 2008-2009 before switching to coaching in 2010. I've always wondered if she ever received another invite from the national team or if she just decided not to pursue it anymore.
That I don't know. But I do remember that once softball was dropped from the Olympics, you rarely ever saw Team USA on tv anymore. There was (and still is) a pro league, but it only operated with 4 or 5 teams, and my guess is that there was probably more money to be made in college coaching than continuing as a player, especially if there wasn't the same kind of financial boost of playing for the national team as there was before it was dropped.
Its like Team USA baseball. It actually exists and does play outside of the Olympics and WBC with their HQ in Cary, NC. But its so low profile when it isn't filled with MLB stars that nobody really cares.
It had VT's Gavin Cross on it this year, so I kept up through his Instagram.
The doubleheader at Longwood in Farmville on March 22 is going to be the closest chance for a lot of folks in Virginia.
Go Hokies!
I'm going to take my twins (11 YO softball players themselves) to see the game next week at UNC Charlotte. Excited to see the Hokies in my backyard!
Heck yes! I have a 6 year old girl that I'm going to take (weather permitting) just for the fun of it. She may get bored but it'll be a nice father/daughter outing. At least softball games go fast.
So it's your fault uh? J/k my girls and I have been following them for years since they played a tournament at Coastal Carolina when we lived down there. Now they have seen them play 7-8 games in three cities in two states and going down to Orlando when they play UCF.
Well we ended up not going because they cancelled the second game of the doubleheader, which would have been at 6. 4:00 was tough with school/work.
Tough loss but thankfully it's a long season
Yep the team can bounce back but they have to keep these losses out. Same with womens basketball with their double digit loss to Diploma U in Lynchburg. Have to win these games.
Any CLT Hokies out here reppin the O&M?
Now at Number 6:
https://nfca.org/divnews/ncaa1/nfca-di-top-25-coaches-poll-3-1-22
Lady Hokies drop one to Charlotte 49ers. Keely was throwing heat but gave up 2 homers and the Hokie bats left too many on base. 2nd game was cancelled in the interest of time. First game had an injury time out, a pitching change, and an extended argument at 2nd base over a blown SB call.
Hokie fans had a good turnout, probably 60% Hokies, 40% 49ers.