This weekend may be only their third tournament of the season, but Virginia softball players already have something to hang their hats on.
Last Sunday, with a 4-3 come-from-behind win over Miami in extra innings, the Cavaliers won head coach Cheryl Sprangel's 700th career game. Sprangel currently ranks 19th in career victories among active Division I softball coaches.
"It is definitely a milestone for me to get to this point," Sprangel said. "The most amazing part of the game was the team was down by three runs going into the sixth. But the team knew what it meant to me, and they did what they had to do to get the win."
The Cavaliers will attempt to increase Sprangel's win total even further this weekend when they travel to Houston, Texas, to participate in the Cougar Classic. In the annual tournament, Virginia will play five games, including one against a Villanova team the Cavaliers defeated just a week ago.
"It's still only the third tournament of the season so I think we are still excited," sophomore infielder Sara Larquier said. "We are expecting to win all of our games but Villanova will be ready to come out and get us. If we can beat them and move on to our next competition, it will just show that we are ready to keep on rolling and getting more victories."
After beginning last season with a 5-4 record, the Cavaliers have jumped out to a much better start this year, going 7-2 through their first nine games. Early struggles with the bat have recently disappeared as Virginia has scored at least four runs in each of its last four games, all wins.
Last Sunday's game against Tennessee-Chattanooga was an especially impressive offensive performance. In what would become Sprangel's 701st victory, Virginia scored nine runs on 12 hits in only five innings.
Senior captain Hannah Owings performed especially well, as she scored a run every time she batted, including a home run smash, her third of the young season. But Owings will be the first to say that touting individual achievements will not be what helps the Cavaliers accomplish their lofty goals.
"We have a very interesting dynamic this year," Owings said. "We have a very quiet confidence about us. In the past, we have been a little more forthright. Our motto this year is 'stop talking about things you can do and get it done.'"
Virginia begins the Cougar Classic today with two games against Villanova and BYU. It will then take on Pittsburgh and Houston tomorrow, before finishing the weekend with a contest against Mississippi State Sunday morning.
Having something to be proud of is one thing. Being satisfied is quite another. The Cavaliers venture cross country this weekend attempting to prove that even with their coach's recent milestone, they still have more goals to reach. Picked to tie for second place in the preseason ACC poll, these early season tournaments should provide Virginia with the experience needed to claim the conference's top spot.
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