Spring Break Trips Starts at UCF Wilson/DeMarini Tournament
3/8/2017 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 8, 2017
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – At approximately the midway point of its pre-conference schedule, the Ohio State softball team heads south for Spring Break and will play 10 games over nine days in Florida. The trip begins this weekend at the UCF Tournament in Orlando, Fla., continues with two midweek games and then concludes at the USF Spring Fling in Tampa, Fla.
THE BASICS
Ohio State vs. No. 17 Georgia | Friday, March 10 | Noon
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Ohio State vs. Central Florida | Friday, March 10 | 5 p.m.
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Ohio State vs. Delaware State | Saturday, March 11 | 10 a.m.
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Ohio State vs. Mercer | Sunday, Match 12 | 11:30 a.m.
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SPRING HAS SPRUNG
Following its trip to UCF, Ohio State stays in the Sunshine State and takes on Stetson (Tuesday, March 14) and Bethune Cookman (Wednesday, March 15) before four games in Tampa, Fla. at the USF Spring Fling – vs. Army and Missouri on Friday, March 17 and No. 4 Auburn and North Dakota State on Saturday, March 18.
BUCKEYES IN A NUTSHELL
• Ohio State is 7-5 overall after splitting two games the weekend of Feb. 24-26 at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, Calif.
• Two starters – sophomore Lilli Piper and senior Anna Kirk – are batting over .400 thus far. Piper checks in with a .463 average and also leads the team with 13 RBI. Kirk, who saw her first action two weeks ago as the squads lead-off hitter, is batting .419 with a .513 on-base percentage and three home runs.
• Solidifying the top and middle of the lineup are senior Alex Bayne and sophomore Emily Clark. Bayne leads the team with six home runs to go along with her .325 average while Clark is batting .3-8 with three doubles, two home runs and 11 RBI.
• In the circle, the 1-2 punch of Shelby Hursh and Lena Springer have combined to go 7-2 with 60 strikeouts over 64 innings of work. Hursh is fourth in the Big Ten with a 1.21 ERA while Springer checks in with a 2.72 ERA.
• Ohio State ranks fifth in the Big Ten with a .301 average and fourth with a 2.57 team ERA.
• The Buckeyes have hit 18 home runs in the first 12 games, which ranks second in the conference, just one behind B1G leader Michigan State.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Georgia
2017 Record: 19-3
2016 Record | Postseason: 46-20, 12-2 SEC | Advanced to Women’s College World Series
Last Weekend: Won five games at the Bulldog Invitational
Top Hitter: Sydni Emanuel .479, 21 RBI, 19 runs scored, 11 stolen bases
Top Pitcher: Brittany Gray 12-1, 1.23 ERA, 68.1 IP, 63 Ks
Series History: Ohio State and Georgia last met in 2013 at the Bulldogs’ season-opening tournament. The Buckeyes split with then-No. 8 Georgia, winning 5-4 in eight innings. The team’s also met in the 2009 NCAA Super Regional.
Central Florida
2017 Record: 10-6
2016 Record | Postseason: 38-22, 12-4 AAC | NCAA Tournament; Gainesville Regional
Last Weekend: Defeated Providence (twice) and Florida Gulf Coast at the UCF Invitational
Top Hitter: Courtney Rotton .388, 10 RBI, three doubles, 11 runs scored
Top Pitcher: Alea White 6-4, 59.0 IP, 38 Ks
Series History: Ohio State and UCF have split four all-time meetings in a series that dates back to 2010.
Delaware State
2017 Record: 1-8
2016 Record: 30-18, 16-2 MEAC
Last Weekend: Went 1-4 at the Georgia Southern Tournament with a win over South Carolina State.
Top Hitter: Desiree Moreno .333, eight RBI, one home run, two runs scored
Top Pitcher: Jessica Shalongo 15.1 IP, 2.52 ERA, 10 Ks
Series History: First-ever meeting
Mercer
2017 Record: 11-11
2016 Record: 23-35, 4-14 SoCon
Last Weekend: Went 2-3 at the Disney D9 Citrus Classic with wins over Bryant and No. 12 James Madison
Top Hitter: Quirisa Mauga .344, 21 RBI, nine runs scored, eight doubles
Top Pitcher: Stella Preston 3-4, 46.2 IP, 3.90 ERA, .228 batting average against
Series History: First-ever meeting
WEEKEND REWIND
• At the Marry Nutter Classic two weeks ago, Piper and Kirk swung the hottest bats. Piper was eight-for-14 (.571) with two home runs, a double and a team-high six RBI. Kirk reached base safely in eight of 13 plate appearances with four runs scored and a home run.
• In a Saturday doubleheader sweep of St. John’s and LIU Brooklyn, Hursh and Springer combined to give up just one run over 14 innings with 17 strikeouts. Springer fanned a career high eight while Hursh notched her second shutout of the season, a 5-0 win over LIU Brooklyn.
• Lead off batters successfully reached base on 11 of 28 opportunities. More than half of those times (six) they came around to score.
• Eight of the 16 runs batted in came with two outs.
IN THE BIG TEN STATS
• Piper ranks fourth in the conference in batting average, third in slugging percentage and sixth in RBI.
• Bayne in the conference leader in home runs per game and also ranks fifth nationally in that category.
• Ohio State has two of the top five sluggers in the conference – Bayne (.825) and Bayne (.805).
• Hursh’s 1.21 ERA is fourth best in the league and her 6.9 strikeouts per game rank seventh. Springer isn’t far behind in eighth place with 6.4 Ks/game.
A TOUGH SLATE
The Buckeyes’ Spring Break trip is part of a 25-game stretch on the road to begin the season. During that stretch, they will have 13 games against programs that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament and nine opponents who were in the top 50 of the RPI last season.
THE LONG BALL
In 2015, Ohio State set a school record with 75 home runs and a .348 team batting average. Through 12 games, this year’s Buckeyes are ahead of the record-setting home run pace. The 2015 Buckeyes had 13 home runs through 12 games while this year’s squad has 18.
FOLLOW THE BUCKEYES
All 15 of Ohio State’s home games this year can be seen on either BuckeyeVision, BTN or BTN Plus. Additionally, select road games can also be seen on BTN Plus. For more information and to purchase a subscription, visit btn2go.com
STATISTACALLY SPEAKING
• In a 5-0 win over LIU Brooklyn, the top four hitters in Ohio State’s lineup – Kirk, Clark, Piper and Bayne – combined to go 10-for-15 with four RBI.
• In her last three starts, Springer has pitched 20.0 innings with a 2.10 ERA, 19 strikeouts and just a .157 batting average against.
• Piper has hit safely in four consecutive games, her longest streak of the year.
BUCKS GO PRO
Juniors Bailee Sturgeon and Taylor White will spend this summer as part of Ohio State’s Bucks Go Pro class. Comprised of a program-record 43 student-athletes representing 24 different Buckeye sports, the group will be interning within the Athletics Department and on campus throughout the summer. Sturgeon will work with the legal affairs office while White will be part of the fan experience team.
The softball program has had at least one representative in each Bucks Go Pro Class over the last four years: Maddy McIntyre and Melissa Rennie (2014), Alex Bayne (2015), Becca Gavin and Shelby Hursh (2016) and now Sturgeon and White (2017).
UNFORM WATCH
White jersey/white pants: 1-3
Dark gray jersey/dark gray pants: 4-1
White jersey/red pants: 2-1
