Over the next few weeks we'll count down the Top 10 moments in Virginia Tech sports in the 2010-11 sports season. Only one moment per sport is eligible for the countdown, otherwise this would just be seven or eight football moments and then it might as well have just been the football Top 10 and done in January. And since I was too lazy to do that and there isn't anything going on during the summer we're doing this. Hope you enjoy.

No. 8 - Women's Lacrosse Holds on for Upset
No. 9 - Men's Tennis Beats No. 20 Louisville
No. 10 - Softball Wins at Florida State

There wasn't a lot to celebrate from Virginia Tech's baseball season in 2011. Coming off its first NCAA tournament appearance in about a decade, the Hokies were without much of the talent that helped them win 40 games in 2010. While the Hokies failed to make the ACC tournament this past season, one bright spot was the break-out season for Andrew Rash. Or, as he's known on The Twitter, Mr. Utility.

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The Hokies headed into this weekend's series with #11 Florida State after winning four of their last five games. The Hokies looked like they were on the way to winning the weekend series on two separate occasions, but the Seminoles made life difficult for the Hokies.

Friday--Virginia Tech 2, Florida State 1
The Hokies started the weekend off on a good note with a win over the Seminoles. With two outs in the 3rd inning, Johnny Morales walked to bring Jake Atwell to the plate. Atwell slugged a triple to bring Morales in and later scored on a wild pitch. The two runs was enough to get Joe Mantiply the win as the lone run surrendered was off a bases loaded walk. The Seminoles shot themselves in the foot by leaving 11 men on base through the course of the game. Atwell came in to pitch the 9th inning and got the save for the Hokies.

Follow the jump for the rest of the weekend series.

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The UVA Cavaliers came to English Field to take on the Hokies and to say it wasn't pretty is an understatement. The Cavaliers outscored the Hokies 37-8 in the three game series and showed why they're the top team in college baseball.

It'd be too painful to go through each game run by run so today I'll switch things up a bit and just offer an overall summary of the games.

Virginia 18, Virginia Tech 3

Not a good start to the weekend for the Hokies as they gave up 18 runs on 16 hits. Tech actually started the game off with a 2-0 lead as Andrew Rash hit a 2-run homerun in the first inning. But Tech's lead was short lived as the Cavaliers struck for 5 runs in the third inning and chased Hokies' starting pitcher Joe Mantiply after just 2.2 IP. In the 4th inning, the Cavaliers knocked in 6 runs, 2 in the 5th inning and 4 in the 6th inning. UVA's Danny Hultzen pitched 6.0 innings to get the win and gave up only 2 runs on 4 hits.

The Cavaliers won with ease on Friday and set the tone for the weekend with the remaining two games after the jump.

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The Virginia Tech baseball team wrapped up a weekend series with Boston College with a win, but dropped the opening two games. On the season, Virginia Tech is 1-8 in the ACC and 14-12 overall. The Hokies have lost six of the eight ACC games by a total of 7 runs and it's strange to think that this team is so close to being 7-2 in the ACC. In fact, all four out-of-conference losses have come by a total of 6 runs and three of the four were one-run games.

Game 1, Friday--BC 5, VT 3

Joe Mantiply took the mound for the Hokies on Friday and gave up a two-run home run in the first inning to Boston College 3B Anthony Melchionda. Mantiply had walked Andrew Lawrence before giving up the homer to Melchionda. Melchionda singled in the third inning, bringing in Tom Bourdon.

In the bottom of the 8th, the Eagles would get the eventual game winning runs after Lawrence and Melchionda singled to start the inning. Matt Watson singled to bring in Lawrence and end the day for Mantiply. Garrett Smith's RBI fielder's choice brought Melchionda in for a 5-0 BC lead.

The Hokies got on the board finally in the 9th inning as Andrew Rash singled to bring in Ronnie Shaban, Tim Smalling scored on a RBI fielder's choice from Tyler Horan, and Zac MacAneney (pinch-running for Rash) scored on a single by Chad Morgan. The Hokies rally attempt fell short though as Jake Atwell flied out to left with runners on first and third.

Mantiply (2-4) was hit with all 5 BC earned runs and gave up all 11 hits. The Hokies were hit-less through 6.1 innings until Smalling singled in the 7th.

Follow the jump for the remaining two games.

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The Hokies open their home ACC schedule today as they welcome the North Carolina Tar Heels to English Field.

The Tar Heels are 14-3 and come into the weekend as the 15th ranked team in the USA TODAY/ESPN rankings. UNC's high powered offense is outscoring opponents 146-61 and is second in the ACC with runs scored per game at 8.11. To go with the high powered offense, the Tar Heels have one of the top pitching units in the ACC as well, allowing 3.58 runs per game,  and striking out close to 10 batters a game. The Tar Heels have a 5-2 record away from Chapel Hill.

As for Virginia Tech, the Hokies lost their ACC-opening series to the Miami Hurricanes on the road. The Hokies returned to English Field on Wednesday and walloped Hartford in a doubleheader by scores of 10-3 and 11-3. Like the longball? Go watch the Hokies, they lead the ACC in homeruns with 24, 7 courtesy of Andrew Rash.

This weekend's games are scheduled for the following start times:

Friday--5:30 PM
Saturday--2:00 PM                VT tote bags will be handed out to the first 500 fans.
Sunday--1:00 PM

Also, tonight is "Retro Friday" so if you want to see the Hokies rock their Houston Astros-esque striped uniforms, head to English Field.

Some Hokies and Heels to watch are after the jump.

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Virginia Tech and the rest of the ACC begins conference play today, with the Hokies starting their season in Miami for a three-game series against the Hurricanes. While the Hokies lost a lot of talent from last year's team that played in the NCAA Tournament, they have played well so far in non-conference play.

Tech has faced two teams that participated in last year's NCAA Tournament so far. In its third game of the season, it lost a heart-breaker to Coastal Carolina in controversial fashion. After a couple of questionable ball-strike calls, the Chanticleers' Tripp Martin hit a walk-off two-run homer off Jake Joyce to hand Tech its first loss of the year.

The other game against a tournament team from last year came in Tech's last game this past Tuesday against Florida Atlantic. The Hokies destroyed the Owls, 14-2, thanks to a strong pitching performance from Joe Parsons.

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Oh, hello again. I'm back with another post on VT baseball after taking off last weekend against Niagara while being sick. 

This weekend, the Hokies put their 7-2 record on the line and welcomed Bryant to English Field. Bryant, a private school in Smithfield, RI, came into the weekend series with a 3-3 record on the season. The Bulldogs opened the season by being swept by Oklahoma State, but followed that up with a sweep of Houston Baptist.

This weekend's games consisted of two doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday. Originally, I think it was set for a single game on Friday, doubleheader Saturday and a single game on Sunday. However, the rainy forecast forced a doubleheader both days.

Bryant 3, Virginia Tech 2

The first game of the series started at 3:00 PM on Friday to accommodate for a doubleheader. Joe Mantiply (pictured above) took the mound for the Hokies and struck out a pair in the first inning. To start the 2nd inning, Mantiply hit David Soltis (also pictured above), but Mantiply caught Soltis off guard and the Hokies got him out in a rundown. Jamie Skagerlind walked and Tim Norton singled to push him to third. Bryant catcher Mike DelPonte doubled to bring both Norton and Skagerlind in to give the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead. In the 3rd inning, Joseph Carcone walked and moved to second on a bunt. Kevin Brown singled to bring Carcone in and push the lead to 3-0. 

The Hokies were hitless through three full innings (snapping that with a single in the bottom of the 4th) and got their first run of the game in the fifth inning when Matt Blow doubled, bringing in Andrew Rash from first base. Tech got the second run of the game when Tim Smalling doubled at the start of the bottom of the 7th inning and Rash singled to bring in Smalling. Rash's single was the end of the Bryant pitcher Peter Kelich's night. 

In the 9th, with Ronnie Shaban on first, Rash grounded into a double play and ended the game, 3-2 Bryant. Mantiply actually pitched pretty well, going 8.0 innings, striking out 8, giving up 4 hits and walking 3. However, he didn't get nearly enough offensive support and the Hokies dropped the opening game of the series.

Follow the jump for the other three games from this weekend. 

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The Virginia Tech baseball team threw out the first pitch on the 2011 season this weekend at the Caravelle Resort Tournament in Conway, S.C. The Hokies are coming off a great season (40-22) in 2010 that included a trip to the NCAA Regionals. However, a number of the players from that team have left via graduation or the MLB draft. 

Virginia Tech 4--Indiana 2

The Hokies opened the season against the Hoosiers on Friday and earned a win for sophomore pitcher Joe Mantiply. Mantiply pitched 7 innings and gave up two earned runs, nine hits and struck out five. Mantiply escaped a first inning bases loaded jam without surrendering a run, but gave up a RBI single to Micah Johnson that plated Dustin DeMuth for the first run of the game. 

Virginia Tech 3B Johnny Morales singled to start 3rd inning and later advanced to second on a wild pitch. Second baseman Michael Seaborn got on base after a walk, setting up a first and second situation with one out. A single from 1B Ronnie Shaban brought Morales home for the first run scored by the Hokies of the 2011 season. Seaborn later scored on a wild pitch from Indiana pitcher Drew Leininger. 

Seaborn singled at the bottom of the fifth inning and LF Andrew Rash later homered to put the Hokies' lead to three runs. Indiana's Michael Basil, SS, scored on a single from Wes Wilson, C. Shaban pitched the 8th inning and Jake Joyce got the save for the Hokies, the two of them combining to hold the Hoosiers hitless late in the game. 

Follow the jump to see how the rest of the weekend played out for the team.

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