Seymour All-Freshman ACC
The ACC announced its 2018 baseball season honors today and among those recognized was Virginia Tech freshman pitcher Ian Seymour, who was one of 12 league players named to the ACC All-Freshman Team.
In his first season in Blacksburg, Seymour led the team with a 4.17 ERA in a team-high tying 13 starts. His 69.0 innings pitched was second on the team along with his three wins and 70 strikeouts. He also led the team in lowest opponents’ batting average, limiting the opposition to a .244 batting average.
Against ACC-only competition, the product of Westborough, Massachusetts, was just as productive, making a team-high tying 10 starts and leading the team with a 3.83 ERA and winning two games. He finished second on the team with 51.2 innings thrown and 50 strikeouts, while ACC opponents hit just .258 against him, a team best.
The 70 overall strikeouts are the most by a freshman since the team joined the ACC and were 12 shy of tying the school record held by Pat Pinkman, who struck out 82 in 88.1 innings back in 1998.
Tech women #17
Virginia Tech track and field women’s team remains at No. 17 in week eight of the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Top 25 Poll, announced on Monday.
The women moved up four spots two weeks ago in the poll, following Rachel Pocratsky, Eszter Bajnok and Emma Thor all winning gold medals in Coral Gables, Florida, at the ACC Outdoor Championships.
Last Thursday, the NCAA announced which student-athletes made the cut for the NCAA East and West Preliminary Rounds.
The top 48 individuals and 24 relays for each region will make the trek to Tampa, Florida (East) and Sacramento, California (West) this week in pursuit of making it to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Hokies earn ITA honors
Virginia Tech seniors Katherine Butler and Caroline Daxhelet have earned ITA Atlantic Region honors. Daxhelet was tabbed the Senior Player of the Year while Butler has been named the Most Improved Senior.
Daxhelet had a strong season for the Hokies, finishing the year with 18 wins overall including a pair over ranked opponents. In addition, Daxhelet had singles wins in matches against No. 4 Georgia Tech, No. 21 Florida State, No. 27 Syracuse, No. 41 Clemson and No. 50 Boston College. Her wins at court two helped the Hokies to knock off Florida State in the ACC Championships as Tech advanced to the quarterfinals for just the second time since the league expanded in 2012.
Butler claimed 18 wins on the season, a 77-percent increase over her junior campaign when she had four. She added wins in matches against No. 23 Virginia, No. 27 Syracuse and No. 41 Clemson, including the Hokies shutting out the Tigers. Butler was instrumental in scoring as the Hokies defeated then-ranked No. 39 Old Dominion 4-3.
Walker, Jackson Athlon All-ACC
Athlon Sports released its 2018 Preseason All-ACC Team on Wednesday, headlined by senior DL Ricky Walker and sophomore QB Josh Jackson.
In total, seven Tech players were named to the squad, including DB Mook Reynolds and P Oscar Bradburn, who were both second-team selections.
Three Virginia Tech players were represented on the third team: OL Yoshuah Nijman, CB Adonis Alexander and S Reggie Floyd.
Walker started 13 games for Tech a year ago, registering 41 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. He was named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week after scooping up a fumble and returning it for a 12-yard touchdown in a 59-7 win over North Carolina.
Jackson re-wrote Tech’s the freshman records for a quarterback in 2017. He started all 13 games for the Hokies, setting Virginia Tech freshmen records in TD passes (20), passing yards (2,991) and 200+ yard passing games (9).
He led all Power Five freshmen QBs with 2,991 passing yards, 236 completions and ranked second with 20 TD passes and a 59.6 completion percentage.
