Clemson Falls to Duke 1-0 in ACC Softball Championship

It went down to the wire in the battle of the ACC new bloods, as Duke, who is only in its fourth season of softball, bested our Clemson Tigers, in just the second season. In a pitchers’ duel, the Tigers and Devils were knotted at 0-0 until the Devils were able to work runners into scoring position on second and third, and Kamryn Jackson brought in a run on a RBI groundout. The Tigers couldn’t find it on offense to overcome, and fell in a hard fought game.

Super star pitcher Valerie Cagle pitched as well as you could ask for a starter in a championship game. The freshman phenom went the full seven innings, allowing just one run on two hits and two walks.

Duke got five innings out of starter Shelby Walters before Peyton St. George took over to finish it off. Walter surrendered three hits, while St. George surrendered none in the combined shutout effort against the Tigers.

Selection Sunday for the NCAA Softball Tournament will take place Sunday May 16 at 9:00 PM on ESPN2. This week’s projections from D1 Softball have the Tigers as the 13th overall seed and hosting a regional in Tigertown, featuring Campbell, Auburn, and Villanova. For those interested, rival South Carolina is currently not a national seed, and is projected to be a three seed in the Tallahassee regional.