| PENN STATE at CHANTICLEER SHOWDOWN | | | 5-4-0 (0-0-0) |
| Saturday, Feb. 25 - Sunday, Feb. 26 | CCU Softball Stadium Conway, S.C. | |
|
|
Feb. 24, 2017
PENN STATE CONTINUES ROAD STRETCH AT CHATICLEER SHOWDOWN
The Penn State softball team will travel to Conway, South Carolina for a two-day tournament at Coastal Carolina Saturday, Feb. 25-Sunday, Feb. 26. The Nittany Lions will take on host Coastal Carolina Saturday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. and close out the day with a contest against Campbell starting at 7 p.m. The Blue and White will close out the short tournament Sunday, Feb. 26 with a 9 a.m. game against Cleveland State and an 11:30 a.m. contest against Morehead State.
SERIES HISTORY WITH WEEKEND OPPONENTS
Overall, Penn State carries the slight 5-4 advantage over its four opponents this weekend having faced Coastal Carolina and Campbell four times each and playing one game against Morehead State. The weekend game against Cleveland State will mark the first time the two teams have met on the field in the history of the programs. The Nittany Lions are 2-2 against Coastal Carolina with its last meeting coming in the 2006 season when the Blue and White earned a 4-2 eight-inning victory in Greenville N.C. Penn State and Campbell have also met four times with each team earning two victories. The Nittany Lions took the latest win but the two squads have not met up since the 1997 season. Finally, Penn State earned an 11-0 five-inning victory over Morehead State in 2010.
ZIEGLER'S BAT LIGHTS UP IN ATLANTA
Redshirt-junior Rebecca Ziegler had a breakout week at the dish for Penn State, hitting at a .467 clip with seven hits in 15 at-bats. The Tucson, Ariz. native has a four-game hitting streak and a three-game RBI streak, driving in one RBI in game one against Virginia Tech and game two against Georgia Tech. In her final game of the tournament, Ziegler went 3-for-4 at the dish with two doubles and her first career home run, while driving in five RBI for the Blue and White in its 7-1 victory. Finally, Ziegler had seven putouts in center field, while robbing one homer.
PITCHING REMAINS DOMINANT AT BIG TEN/ACC CHALLENGE
Senior Marlaina Laubach pitched 15-straight innings for Nittany Lions earning both wins on Saturday in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Laubach picked up the 1-0 win after going eight innings against Virginia Tech and giving up just five hits and striking out four. In her second outing of the day, Laubach went seven innings against Georgia Tech, giving up eight hits and three runs .
Sophomore Madison Seifert also had a good weekend in the circle for the Blue and White, earning two victories. The right-handed pitcher threw 14.0 innings, matching a career-high strikeouts at Georgia Tech in her first appearance of the weekend. Seifert gave up just three runs on the weekend for the Nittany Lions and has struck out 16 batters in 2017.
PENN STATE BATS FINDING A GROOVE
In its first appearance in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, Penn State outscored its opponents 19-6, giving up no more than three runs in any of its four games. The Nittany Lions posted back-to-back games with 10 hits while sweeping the weekend against Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.
SCOUTING REPORT ON COASTAL CAROLINA
The Chanticleers have kicked off their season with three-straight weekends at home, hosting three tournaments. Coastal Carolina carries a 7-3 record, having suffered losses to Alabama and UNCG. As a team, the Chanticleers are hitting at a .275 clip, while pitchers are keeping opponents to just a .211 batting average. Coastal has three players hitting .300 or better through its first 10 games with Timi Tooley hitting a team-high .444 with 12 hits and nine RBI. Also hitting well for the Chanticleer is Alexis Alvine, who has a .379 batting average with 11 hits and Kailey Mellen who is hitting .348 in the first 10 games of the season.
In the circle Taylor Rahach has been the go-to hurler, appearing in all 10 games with four starts and three complete games. Rahach carries a 1.54 ERA in 27.1 innings pitched, giving up six earned runs.
GLANCING AT THE CAMELS
Campbell is 6-5 overall on the season after winning its first three games of the season. Since its three-game win streak the Camels have struggled to get back into a streak losing five games, including two to Saint Francis. In its first 11 games, Campbell is hitting .290 and carries a .383 on-base percentage with Amber Schisler hitting a team-best .441 with 15 hits and 12 RBI. Rachel McCollum has also been a force at the dish, driving in 15 RBI on 15 hits for a .429 clip. Madison Herring has been unstopable on the basepath this season, swiping 12 bases on 12 attempts, while notching 10 hits and scoring 14 times.
Katie Baker and Holly Brooks have both made eight appearances for Campbell in the circle, carrying a 4.38 and a 3.77 ERA, respectively. Baker has tossed 30.1 innings, including one complete game, while Brooks has thrown 26.0 innings and one complete contest. Also seeing time in the circle are Megan Richards and Amber Schisler who have thrown a combined 18.1 innings.
A PEEK AT CLEVELAND STATE
The Vikings have struggled to start the 2017 season, picking up just one win over Canisus in the CSU Dome Tournament. This weekend's tournament will mark just the second time that Cleveland State has gone outside as it played in a dome tournament during opening weekend. The Vikings are hitting a mere .169 through their first eight games of the season with Sofia Johantgen leading all starters with a .238 batting average. Mel Woodard has driven in four RBI to lead Cleveland State on one triple and four hits. The Vikings are looking to find the right combination in the circle, having used six pitchers through eight games. Alicia Major has made a team-high five appearances with two starts, while Mackenzie Joecken has thrown a team-high 23.0 innings with a team-best 3.35 earned run average.
SCOUTING MOREHEAD STATE
Morehead State heads into week three with a 4-4 overall record, coming off a two-win weekend at the Lion Classic in Hammond, Louisiana. The Eagles are hitting .278 as a team and have a .435 slugging percentage. Allison Rager has had impressive at-bats to start the season, hitting .500 with 13 hits, including two doubles and scoring nine times. Also hitting well for Morehead State is Robyn Leighton, who has driven in a team-best 14 RBI on 10 hits, including four home runs, one triple and one double.
Chelsea McManaway has established herself as the ace in the circle, throwing a team-high 26.0 innings with a team-low 1.04 ERA in four appearances. McMananaway has tossed two shutouts this season and struck out 40 batters for the Eagles.
TRAVELING NITTANY LIONS
Penn State softball will hit the road for 35 of its 52 games, traveling a whopping 12,765 miles in the 2017 season. The Nittany Lions first travel to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. for the LSU Tournament before heading to Atlanta, Georgia for its first appearance in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The Blue and White close out the month of February in Conway, South Carolina for the Chanticleer Showdown and open the month of March at the Colorado State Classic. Penn State continues its five weeks of travel in Washington with a doubleheader against Seattle and two games in the Husky Classic. Following a short four-game home stint, the Nittany Lions go back on the road to Michigan and Pittsburgh and also make trips out to Michigan State, Nebraska and Maryland in the 2017 campaign.
ON DECK
Penn State begins its week-long spring break trip Friday, March 3 when it heads to Colorado State for a five-game tournament. The Nittany Lions will then move to Seattle, Washington for a mid-week game against the Redhawks and close out the week Friday, March 10 at the Husky Classic.
