Syracuse defeats Georgia Tech 3-0 for 3rd ACC win
Syracuse defeated Georgia Tech 3-0 in its series finale on Saturday, picking up its third ACC win of the season. Leonardo Eriman | Asst. Video Editor
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Throughout 2025, Georgia Tech has been buoyed by ace Sophia Voyles. The senior entered Saturday having started 16 of GT’s 38 games on the season, posting a 2.17 earned run average and 100 strikeouts across 84.0 innings.
But outside of Voyles, the Yellow Jackets’ rotation doesn’t have many options. Sydnie Watts ranks second on the squad with 11 starts, but she sports a 5.34 ERA. And other than her, GT has filled the rest of its starts through a committee of bullpen options.
With Voyles having started Georgia Tech’s 11-5 win over Syracuse on Friday, it had to turn to Kinsey Norton in the circle for its series finale. And while the reliever has posted a 2.79 ERA for the Yellow Jackets, she hasn’t won a single start this season.
That didn’t change Saturday, as Syracuse (22-15, 3-12 Atlantic Coast) defeated Georgia Tech (24-15, 9-6 Atlantic Coast) 3-0 in its series finale. The win snapped SU’s four-game losing streak, with Madison Knight out-dueling Norton to notch her 12th complete game and second shutout.
The first inning was uneventful for both teams, as Knight and Norton shut their opposing bats down easily. Outside of a single into right from Georgia Tech third baseman Gracyn Tucker, neither team had a base runner in the frame.
It was more of the same for the Orange in the following inning. Taylor Posner led off the second by reaching on an error by Tucker, but Madelyn Lopez lined out to give Norton her first out. Then, Kelly Breen grounded into a slick double play by Tucker, who sent the ball around the horn to end the inning unscathed.
Georgia Tech’s momentum continued into the bottom of the second, with Addison Leschber and Alyssa Willer reaching on consecutive infield singles. Grace Connelly got out on a sacrifice bunt, but both runners advanced into scoring position, giving the Yellow Jackets a prime scoring opportunity with just one out on the board.
Knight then induced a fly out to Reese Hunter, though a subsequent walk to Emma Simon loaded the bases for Paige Vukadinovich. Heading into the contest, Vukadinovich carried a .366 average, ranking second on GT. Despite that, she couldn’t come through, as Knight forced a ground out to second to kill the rally.
Syracuse earned its first hit in the third, with Laila Morales-Alves breaking through with a single. But three consecutive outs prevented SU from scoring its first run.
Knight allowed a single from Eliana Gottlieb to start the third, and Tucker’s walk moved her into scoring position with zero outs. But Jayden Gailey lined into a double play to second, and a Leschber flyout preserved the tie.
It wasn’t until the fifth that the Orange finally broke through. Lopez led off by doubling into left center, and Breen moved her over to third with a sacrifice bunt. It seemed as if the Orange wouldn’t be able to capitalize after Morales-Alves flew out to left, bringing up Knight with two outs on the board.
Knight hasn’t had her strongest offensive season, as she carried a career-worst .191 batting average heading into the contest. But she has consistently come through when needed.
First, it was Feb. 27, when she blasted a home run over the left field fence to lift SU over Delaware. Then, it was March 15, when her seventh-inning home run gave SU its first ACC win over Duke. And in the fifth inning on Saturday, she drove a single into center field to plate Lopez, giving Syracuse the only run it needed to defeat the Yellow Jackets.
Georgia Tech had no answers for Knight in the circle, as she continued to generate weak contact to silence its bats. Across the fifth and sixth innings, GT didn’t reach base, and Knight notched her only strikeout of the game by getting Gailey to whiff.
Heading into the sixth, Norton got lifted from the game for Voyles, having given up the lead. But the Yellow Jackets’ ace couldn’t perform as well in relief. She gave up three extra-base hits in the frame, as Jadyn Burney, Posner and Lopez all doubled to add two more runs.
The seventh inning didn’t come without its difficulties, however. Connelly started the frame with a ground ball single into center, and she was immediately substituted for pinch runner Ella Edgmon. She advanced to second on a ground out by Caroline Patterson, and a two-out single by Vukadinovich pushed her one base away from home.
Though, Edgmon wouldn’t cross. Knight isn’t a strikeout pitcher, averaging less than one strikeout per inning across the season. But she doesn’t have to be. Knight used her arsenal to force Gottlieb into a weak groundout, securing her second shutout of the season.
