Delaware Softball Heads To Hofstra For Three-Game Weekend Series With Pride
April 1, 2011
File Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell
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HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- The Blue Hen softball team heads to Long Island this weekend for a crucial three-game series with Hofstra. Delaware will take on the Pride in a doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday, with action on both days beginning at 12 noon at the HU Softball Stadium.
Delaware opened CAA play last weekend by winning two of three games at George Mason, and is currently tied for second place in the league standings with a 2-1 mark. After dropping a 1-0 decision in the first game on Saturday, the Blue Hens responded with a 2-0 victory in the nightcap and posted a 4-2 triumph during Sunday’s rubber match. Delaware, which is coming off a doubleheader split on Wednesday with Delaware State, enters this weekend’s action with a 10-21 overall record.
The Pride, which is 19-8 overall and has won 10 consecutive games, sits alone in first place in the CAA standings after sweeping a three-game series at Drexel last weekend. Hofstra swept Saturday’s twinbill from the Dragons, 3-1 and 6-3, before cruising to a 12-0 victory in Sunday’s series finale. The Pride has not lost a conference series since the Blue Hens took two of three from Hofstra during the final weekend of the 2006 season.
The Blue Hens are led offensively by freshman second baseman Michelle McKinnon (at right), who is hitting a team-high .329 with 26 hits and 12 RBI. Amanda Stacevicz, who currently has a five-game hitting streak and is 7 for 15 during that stretch, has increased her average to .311 with a team-leading 28 hits. UD leftfielder Jenny Richards has also been hot at the plate recently, as she is 10 for her last 23 and carries a seven-game hitting streak into this weekend’s action.
Stacevicz, who picked up the win during Wednesday’s 7-6 triumph over Delaware State, continues to pace UD in the circle with a 6-7 record and a 3.67 earned run average. Kathleen Conway, the current CAA Rookie of the Week, and Anne Marie Pagano each have recorded two wins for the Blue Hens.
The Blue Hen bats will face a stiff challenge this weekend, as four-time CAA Pitcher of the Week Olivia Galati enters the series with a 12-5 record and a 1.44 ERA. Erin Wade is the Hofstra’s other starter, posting a 7-3 mark with a 2.28 earned run average.
D.J. Slugh is hitting .444 to lead a balanced Pride attack, while Rachael Senatore is batting .333 on the season. Jess Hirschbuhl is hitting .329 with 20 RBI, while Tessa Ziemba is hitting .303 with a team-high 27 hits on the year.
Hofstra has won the last 10 meetings between the two schools dating back to 2006, outscoring the Blue Hens 65-9 in that stretch.
Following this weekend’s action Delaware returns home for a six-game homestand, beginning with a 3 p.m. single game against Saint Joseph’s on Wednesday, April 6.
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