Tag: Aminah Vega

Blue Devils softball lose first series of the year to Virginia on senior day

The Blue Devils lost back-to-back games for the first time in 2024 after a senior day sweep at the hands of Virginia on Saturday.

For the first time in 2024, the Blue Devils lost a series this weekend.

No. 3 Duke took the Friday game after a 12-inning marathon, an extra-inning walk-off on a bunt by Jada Baker. The series-opening win, powered by 12 scoreless innings in the circle from senior Jala Wright, moved Duke to 39-4 for the year. It was the Blue Devils’ 11th straight conference win, and Duke seemed to be operating at full power.

As the sun rose on Saturday, the final regular-season weekend games at Duke Softball Stadium awaited the Blue Devils. They faced the Cavaliers twice, first at 1 p.m. and again at 3:30 p.m., and lost both games by a single run.

Senior Claire Davidson, in the midst of maybe the greatest offensive season in program history, popped up a sacrifice fly in the third inning of the opening game to give Duke a 1-0 lead. Davidson already set the single-season RBI record during the midweek win over UNC Greensboro, and she finished the weekend with 59 RBIs for the season.

However, Virginia leadoff hitter Jade Hylton blasted a grand slam in the bottom of the fourth to shoot her squad ahead. The Blue Devils could only tack on two more runs in the fifth, more sacrifice flies from Kelly Torres and Davidson, but the final two frames passed in a scoreless draw for the Cavaliers to clinch the upset.

Davidson, Wright, Torres, Francesca Frelick, Lillie Walker, Gisele Tapia, and Sarah Goddard stared down redemption in the final weekend home game of their senior season.

Instead, the Cavaliers tacked on the first three runs of the game. Hylton homered again, raking in two more runs in the top of the third, before an RBI single from left fielder Kelsey Hackett gave UVA the 3-0 lead.

Wright came back into the circle in the middle of the sixth inning and did her part, striking out Virginia’s last five batters to keep the offensive challenge as small as possible.

Sophomore sensation Aminah Vega tripled in the bottom of the sixth, her 27th extra-base hit of the year, to bring home the first run. Two batters later, Tapia brought the second baseman home with a single into left field. All of a sudden, the Blue Devils were within one run of escaping with the series.

Instead, Virginia brought Madison Harris, who surrendered Friday’s fateful run, back into the circle. Harris retired her first batter to end the sixth and started the seventh with back-to-back outs, putting Duke’s back entirely against the wall.

D’Auna Jennings drew a walk to keep hopes alive, putting the tying run on base, but Torres flew out harmlessly to end the rally.

Duke, now 39-6 for the season, does play two more home games to close the regular season this coming week. Gardner-Webb comes to town on Tuesday before a Wednesday battle against Longwood. The Blue Devils end the year with a three-game road series against NC State.

Aminah Vega named NCAA Player of the Week after nine-RBI series against Virginia Tech

After three doubles, three home runs, and nine RBIs in a three-game sweep of Virginia Tech, Aminah Vega was named NCAA Player of the Week on Tuesday.

Duke infielder Aminah Vega racked up the accolades on Tuesday as she was named the NCAA Player of the Week for her efforts against Virginia Tech.

In a three-game sweep of the Hokies, Vega tallied seven hits in 10 at-bats, driving in nine runs. She laced three doubles and powered three home runs over the wall, giving the sophomore a slugging percentage of 1.900 for the weekend.

Vega’s biggest hero moments came in the series-deciding Friday victory. With the Blue Devils facing a four-run deficit after the top of the first, Vega hit a pair of two-run home runs to tie the game by the fifth inning, her first ever game with multiple home runs. She also doubled in the bottom of the seventh, putting the eventual winning run on third base.

The second-year infielder is now batting .414 on the season with 12 doubles and eight home runs. She’s now batted in multiple runs in 11 games, including each of her last four.

The announcement came hours after Vega was named ACC Player of the Week.

Duke infielder Aminah Vega named ACC Player of the Week

After she cranked out seven hits, three home runs, and nine RBIs in a three-game sweep of Virginia Tech, Aminah Vega took home ACC Player of the Week honors.

Duke infielder Aminah Vega took home ACC Player of the Week honors in what was surely one of the easiest decisions the conference will have all season.

The Blue Devils swept Virginia Tech, who previously hadn’t lost a conference game, in a three-game series. Vega finished the week with seven hits in just 10 at-bats, including a four-for-four performance in the middle game on Friday. She cranked out extra-base hits, too, knocking three home runs (including two on Friday) and three doubles to generate nine RBIs for the series.

The Friday effort was one of the most impressive of the season, not just because of the gaudy stats listed above but because of how essential they were to the win. Duke trailed 4-0 after the opening inning, but Vega powered two-run homers in the first and fifth innings to knot the game at four runs apiece.

With the game tied in the bottom of the seventh, she came to the plate with a runner on first and one out, and she doubled to give the Blue Devils two runners in scoring position. That set the stage for Kelly Torres’ walk-off single two batters later.

Vega, a sophomore, is batting .414 for the season, the second-highest mark on the team. Her 41 hits and 12 doubles are both the most on the Duke roster, and her eight home runs trail only Claire Davidson’s nine.

Duke softball sweeps Sunday doubleheader to finish off unbeaten weekend at home

The Blue Devils extended their win streak to 13 games after beating Villanova and Elon by 20 combined runs to finish the Duke Invitational unbeaten.

The Blue Devils finished the Duke Invitational with back-to-back wins on Sunday, first defeating Villanova 11-5 earlier in the afternoon before shutting out Elon for a 14-0 run.

The Wildcats, whom Duke beat on Friday to begin the weekend in Durham, actually got off to a decent start offensively. Each of Villanova’s first three batters reached base safely, including an RBI double from catcher Ally Jones to open the scoring.

With two outs in the second, Villanova chased Duke starter Sophie Garner-Mackinnon from the mound with a two-out homer from leadoff hitter Tess Cities.

Despite the three runs in the first two innings, though, the Wildcats still weren’t leading. The Blue Devils put up four runs in the bottom of the first, including a two-run shot of their own from junior Ana Gold.

The bomb was Gold’s sixth of the year and her third of the weekend, and she has a team-leading 22 RBIs through the Blue Devils’ first 14 games.

Senior Claire Davidson scored the third run almost single-handedly, singling and stealing second before racing all the way home after a fielding error.

The third inning and the top of the fourth passed without any runs, with Duke reliever Lillie Walker holding the line to keep the Blue Devils’ lead intact. No team has been able to hold the Duke offense down very long, however, and it scored multiple runs in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings to cement the final margins. Davidson and Aminah Vega added the final two runs with solo home runs at the buzzer, the final two hits of the game.

If you track the trend of “Duke scored seven runs in the final three innings of its first game,” the Blue Devils’ offensive performance against Elon won’t shock you in the slightest. Duke scored 14 runs in the first three innings against the Phoenix powered by a seven-run explosion in the first.

Three of the first four Blue Devils at the plate reached base after a single and two walks before Kelly Torres drew another walk for the game’s first run. Gisele Tapia and Francesca Frelick immediately followed that with back-to-back base hits, each bringing home two runs.

Frelick’s two-RBI single capped off one of the best weekends you’ll ever see on the diamond. Frelick entered the home tournament with one hit, a solo home run against Army, in her first 12 at-bats of the season. Over her four games in Durham this weekend, she went 6/9 at the plate with another home run and nine RBIs.

The real star of the Elon blowout win was shortstop Jada Baker, who ended every at-bat with a run on the board. First, she batted Frelick home in the first with a single into left field. In the next inning, she had runners on first and second and again laced a base hit into the outfield to bring home another run.

With two runners in scoring position in the third inning, Baker roped one up the middle to bring both Blue Devils around to score and end her three-hit, four-RBI day.

Those two runs were Duke’s last of a productive afternoon, and pitcher Dani Drogemuller never let the Phoenix off the mat offensively. The graduate student surrendered just four hits in her five-inning performance, striking out six batters in the shutout.

After a five-game weekend, Duke gets a full workweek off. They’ll take the diamond again on Friday against Syracuse, the start of a three-game weekend series.

Blue Devils softball remains a top-five team in the eyes of Softball America

After eight straight wins including multiple mercy-rule margins, the Blue Devils held on to the No. 5 spot in the Softball America rankings.

Duke softball remained a top-five team in the latest Softball America rankings released on Monday.

The Blue Devils have won eight straight games to reinforce the site’s preseason faith in them, now sitting at 8-1 on the year with four games decided by mercy rule in less than seven innings.

Oklahoma, who has won the past three national titles, remained No. 1 as the Sooners sit on every national ranking. Texas, Georgia, and Washington also came in above Duke in the rankings.

The rest of the Softball America top 10 includes LSU, Tennessee, Missouri, Clemson, and Stanford.

Duke played four games in the FIU Invitational over the weekend and swept them by a combined score of 26-1. The Blue Devils surrendered one run to Rutgers in the first game of the weekend before tossing three straight shutouts against FIU and Army.

Jala Wright, who was named ACC Pitcher of the Week after opening weekend, currently sports a 0.79 ERA through four appearances this season. She finished off a complete game one-hitter against Nebraska, and she has given up six hits against 19 strikeouts so far this season.

On the offensive side, junior Ana Gold leads the team with three home runs and 14 RBIs, the latter total matched by senior Claire Davidson and sophomore Aminah Vega.

Duke takes the field again in a home tournament this weekend, the Duke Invitational, beginning with a Friday game against Villanova.

Duke softball remains seventh in D1Softball rankings amid eight-game win streak

Despite eight straight wins in dominant fashion, the Blue Devils remained seventh in the D1Softball rankings released on Monday.

D1 Softball released its updated top 25 on Monday and Duke stayed put at seventh despite some scorching recent form.

The Blue Devils lost a defensive battle with consensus No. 1 Oklahoma in the season opener, but they have ripped off eight straight wins since. They scored 16 runs in five innings against Iowa State, 18 runs in five innings against North Dakota State, and allowed one run across four games over this past weekend in Miami.

Senior Claire Davidson, junior Ana Gold, and sophomore Aminah Vega share the team lead with 14 RBIs, powered by Gold’s team-leading three home runs.

Pitchers Sophie Garner-MacKinnon and Lillie Walker haven’t allowed an earned run in 16 combined innings, and Jala Wright has surrendered two in her 17.2 innings in the circle.

The Sooners still lead the D1Softball rankings with rival Texas close behind in second. Georgia, Washington, and Tennessee also made the top five, with LSU, the Blue Devils, Oklahoma State, Stanford, and Clemson rounding out the top 10.

Duke gets a chance at nine straight wins on Friday against Villanova, the start of the weekend’s Duke Invitational.

Duke softball completes doubleheader sweep against Army

Sophomore Aminah Vega went three-for-four at the plate and batted in three runs during Duke’s second win of the day on Saturday.

Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but Duke softball beat Army by a score of 8-0 on Saturday.

The second game of the doubleheader against the Black Knights ended the exact same way as the first one, with the Blue Devils cruising to an eight-run victory.

Junior Ana Gold got the game started with a solo home run in Duke’s second at-bat, her team-leading third of the season and the 32nd home run of her Blue Devils career.

Senior Kelly Torres doubled home another run in the first, but it was sophomore Aminah Vega who truly stole the show at the plate. After a groundout in the first inning, Vega notched her first RBI of the day with a single in the bottom of the third.

The second baseman kept the momentum rolling with another RBI in the following inning, this time a double that brought Claire Davidson around to score. Vega capped off the stellar game with a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth, a walk-off shot that gave the Blue Devils the eighth run they needed to invoke the mercy rule.

Vega’s three-RBI day tied her with Gold and Davidson for the team lead with 14 on the season, and the sophomore is also third on the team in batting average (.433) through the first nine games of the season.

Davidson got some impressive work in herself at the plate against the Black Knights, bringing two teammates home to score with a fourth-inning double that highlighted a two-for-two day at the plate (she was hit by a pitch in her second at-bat).

In the circle, Dani Drogemuller got all six innings of work for the Blue Devils, and with her form on Saturday, there was never any need to consider another option.

Drogemuller retired the first four batters she faced on Saturday, allowing a one-out double in the second inning, and then retired five of the next six batters she faced (one Black Knight reached on an error in the third).

A leadoff single for Army proved to be its last hit of the day as Drogemuller picked through the last three innings with ease. The Illinois native finished the six-inning game with two hits, a walk, and three strikeouts, and the Black Knights never came close to scoring a run.

After allowing three runs in 2.1 innings against Iowa State during the opening weekend, Drogemuller has been on an absolute heater. She’s pitched 11 innings across her last three outings, and she’s surrendered a combined four hits and three walks without a single run over that time frame.

With Vega’s solo shot in the sixth cementing victory, the Blue Devils improved to 8-1 on the young season. Duke plays its fifth and final game of the weekend on Sunday against FIU, whom the Blue Devils beat 6-0 on Friday.

Duke softball breezes past FIU for sixth straight win

In the second game of a Friday doubleheader, Duke scored six runs and held the Golden Panthers scoreless to extend their win streak.

The Duke softball team improved to 6-1 on its young season on Friday night with its second win of the day, a 6-0 win over Florida International.

After a ho-hum offensive display through the first six innings against Rutgers during the Blue Devils’ first game of the day, Duke’s bats took no time coming alive against the Golden Panthers.

Star leadoff hitter D’Auna Jennings singled in the opening at-bat. Ana Gold, who became the first Blue Devil to hit two grand slams in the same game on Wednesday against North Dakota State, tacked another RBI onto her season total with a double to plate Jennings before the first out.

Sophomore Aminah Vega doubled later in the inning to bring home Gold and give Duke its second run of the opening inning. Vega plated a second RBI in the fourth inning, a sacrifice fly, to increase her season total to 11, second on the team only to Gold’s 13.

The second inning went just as well, with shortstop Jada Baker lacing a double into left field to bring home Amiah Burgess. Jennings added to her excellent start with another single immediately after, and Baker scored after a wild throw on the ensuing defensive play.

After not tallying a hit in any of her four at-bats against Rutgers, Jennings finished the evening game with three hits in three plate appearances, scoring twice. It was her second perfect performance in Duke’s past three games as the sophomore went 2-2 during the NDSU victory.

The Blue Devils surged out to a 4-0 lead through two innings, and that proved to be more than enough run support for Cassidy Curd and Lillie Walker in the circle.

Curd delivered for the first three innings, allowing two hits but no runs while striking out five batters. Walker took over at the start of the fourth and made it the rest of the way home, also allowing two hits and striking out six batters herself in the tandem shutout.

The Golden Panthers never had more than four at-bats in any inning as the two Duke pitchers refused to let them gain any steam.

The Blue Devils tacked on two more insurance runs in the sixth inning, first an RBI single from senior Claire Davidson before Vega’s sacrifice fly.

Duke didn’t score in the final three innings, but with Curd and Walker’s efforts on the mound, it didn’t need to. The 6-0 margin held for the rest of the game to give the Blue Devils their sixth straight win.

The Duke softball team puts its lengthening win streak on the line again on Saturday morning against Army.