Emma Lemley

Personal: Lemley is the daughter of Virginia and Bryan Lemley and has one sister. Her uncle, Sean Jackson, played basketball at Princeton. She majored in sports media analytics at Virginia Tech and hopes to become a sports broadcaster. A three-sport athlete in high school, she also competed on the basketball and swimming teams. Lemley has two dogs named Alice and Ava. She credits her father as a person who has made a difference in her life, and models her game after Angela Tincher. One of her starstruck moments came when she met Amanda Scarborough before a game against Tennessee during her freshman year. In addition to basketball, volleyball, and swimming as a child, Lemley also played the violin and was a member of her school’s choir. Her proudest accomplishment is becoming a professional athlete. Outside of sports, she enjoys singing along with arts and crafts, and has a special interest in bugs.

International Experience: Lemley guided Team USA to the 2022 Canada Cup title. She fashioned a 0.00 earned run average with seven strikeouts over 3.0 innings.

College Experience: Lemley was a four-year letter winner at Virginia Tech and appeared in 140 career games from 2022 to 2025, including 98 starts. She compiled a 68-30 record with a 2.88 earned run average, along with 12 saves and 60 complete games. Lemley ranks third in Virginia Tech history with 849 strikeouts over 640.1 innings and is fifth on the school’s career win and shutout lists. A four-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection, Lemley earned First-Team honors as a freshman, Second-Team accolades as a sophomore and junior, and Third-Team recognition during her senior season. She also received four First-Team NFCA All-Mid-Atlantic Region honors. During her senior year, she posted an 18-8 record with a 2.65 ERA, tallying 196 strikeouts in 161.1 innings, 16 complete games, and four saves, ranking second on Virginia Tech’s single-season saves list. Lemley tied for second in school history with four no-hitters in 2025, including a five-inning no-hitter against Charleston on February 9, 2025, an 8-strikeout performance; a no-hitter in a 3-0 win over Northwestern on February 14, 2025; a five-strikeout no-hitter against Liberty on February 26, 2025; and a nine-strikeout no-hitter at Kentucky on March 12, 2025. She allowed just one hit in an NCAA Regional victory against Belmont on May 16, 2025. As a junior, Lemley made 32 appearances with 19 starts, recording nine complete games and a 13-5 record with a 2.64 ERA. She ranked third in the ACC with 158 strikeouts over 127.1 innings and secured her 50th collegiate win against San Diego State in the NCAA Tournament. In her sophomore season, Lemley appeared in 41 games, starting 32, and ranked third in NCAA Division I with 283 strikeouts across a team-high 212.2 innings. She led the ACC in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.02) while holding opponents to a .239 batting average. Highlights included a career-high 17 strikeouts against No. 10 Arizona on February 18, 2023, 15 strikeouts versus South Florida the following day, and seven strikeouts in an extra-inning victory over No. 9 Texas on February 24, 2023. She became the first pitcher since 2020 to earn three consecutive ACC Pitcher of the Week honors. Lemley helped lead Virginia Tech to victory over Boston University in the NCAA Athens Regional by allowing just one hit in a shutout. Lemley opened her college career in 2022 by appearing in 30 games with 23 starts. She posted a 2.12 ERA and held hitters to a .186 batting average. She was named the 2022 VaSID and ACC Freshman of the Year and was a Top 3 finalist for the NFCA National Freshman of the Year award. She finished the season with a 16-6 record and 212 strikeouts over 139 innings, including 12 complete games and three saves. Notable performances included striking out 16 batters in her college debut, a win over Wisconsin on February 11, 2022, and matching that total with 16 strikeouts against Syracuse on March 11, 2022. She threw her first career no-hitter against Longwood on March 22, 2022, striking out 13 batters, and clinched the ACC regular season title for Virginia Tech with a three-hit shutout against Boston College.