Freshman Taylor Smith threw a no-hitter to help the No. 23 Virginia Cavaliers secure an 8-0 win over NC State at Palmer Park on April 25. The victory allowed Virginia to clinch the weekend series against the Wolfpack.
The result is significant for the Cavaliers, who improved their record to 35-12 overall and 12-10 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The team has now won five of its eight conference series this season.
Virginia opened scoring in the first inning with a two-run home run by Bella Cabral, her twelfth of the season. In the third inning, Reagan Hickey drove in a run with a single before Alex Call hit her first collegiate grand slam, extending Virginia’s lead to seven runs. The game ended early when Hannah Weismer singled home Kelsey Hackett in the fifth inning due to run-rule regulations.
Smith struck out three and walked three during her no-hit performance, which marked her first collegiate no-hitter and was also the program’s first since Eden Bigham’s perfect game against Hofstra on March 1, 2025. “Taylor got us going there by wiggling out of that jam in the first inning, then settled in and got her groove. She was executing on both sides of the plate and was super competitive – that was the key. She wants the ball and wants to compete. It was great to see her building all year to culminate in that outing today. She had a great defense behind her and we feed off the circle,” Head Coach Joanna Hardin said.
Hardin also spoke about Virginia’s offensive approach: “On the offensive side we were attacking aggressively. Our goal was to score early and often. We took advantage of free passes and were able to push runs home. We’ve been in attack mode at the plate all weekend.”
Virginia will conclude its series against NC State at noon on Sunday, April 26, which will also serve as Senior Day for five graduating players.
