Athens, W.Va. – The Concord University softball team starts a four-game road trip where it will face West Virginia State and Charleston in two Mountain East Conference doubleheaders.
Concord travels to Institute, West Virginia to play West Virginia State Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Lady Jackets Field. CU then hits the road to Charleston, West Virginia to play Charleston Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at UC Softball Field.
LIVE COVERAGE
Stats: The West Virginia State and Charleston Sports Information Departments will provide live in-game statistics of the doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday.
Video: Live streaming will also be available for both doubleheaders.
RECORDS
Concord is currently 7-21 overall and 0-8 against MEC teams.
West Virginia State has an overall record of 10-10 and is 7-1 against conference foes.
Charleston is 14-10 overall and 6-2 against MEC opponents.
BARRELING IT UP
Senior pitcher/outfielder
Laura Thompson currently leads the Mountain Lions in batting average (.395), slugging percentage (.605), on-base percentage (.467), doubles (six), and runs scored (22). She is also tied with senior catcher/utility player
Mikayah Pulliam for the team lead in home runs with two. Thompson is currently ranked ninth in the MEC in batting average and doubles. The Prince George, Virginia native is also fourth in the MEC in runs scored.
In the doubleheader against Emory & Henry Wednesday, Thompson batted 4-for-5 with a walk, two RBI, four runs scored, and one home run.
EMORY & HENRY RECAP
On Wednesday, Concord split its non-conference doubleheader with Emory & Henry. CU took the game one 3-1 before falling in the second game 8-5. In the two games, Concord recorded 18 hits, which is CU's third-highest hit total in a doubleheader this season.
In game one, the Mountain Lions plated two runs in the first inning. With Thompson on third and Stacy on second, a ground out allowed Thompson to score. Stacy scored on an RBI single from freshman shortstop/utility player
Courtney Raines to put CU up 2-0. Thompson extended the Mountain Lions lead by hitting a home run over the right field fence in the third inning to put CU up 3-1. Freshman pitcher/first baseman
Caitlyn Bauer earned the win, striking out seven batters and allowing three hits in a complete game effort.
Down 3-1 in the bottom of the third inning of game two, CU loaded the bases with three straight singles. The next batter, Stacy scored two runners on a single through the left side to tie the game at 3-3. L. Thompson scored to take a 4-3 lead on a fielder's choice hit by third baseman/outfielder
Sarah Thompson. Emory & Henry used a five-run seventh inning to complete the comeback over Concord.
Freshman pitcher/infielder
Rachael Koller was the losing pitcher in game two. Koller went the distance, striking out 10 batters. It is the 10
th time in the last three years that a Mountain Lion pitcher has struck out ten batters, and the second time Koller has done it this season. The first 10 strikeout game Koller pitched was in the 8-7 win against Coker in February.
WVSU/CHARLESTON SERIES RECAP
Earlier this season, Concord was edged in two close matchups against both Charleston and West Virginia State. Game two against Charleston was decided in 10 innings, where UC came out with a 3-2 victory. L. Thompson batted 4-for-4 with a walk in the game. Koller pitched all 10 innings, striking out four batters and allowing two earned runs.
In game two against West Virginia State, the Yellow Jackets held off CU 4-3. Down 4-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning, freshman second baseman/outfielder
Aubrey Matice walked and stole second base. L. Thompson tripled to score Matice to make it a two-run deficit. L. Thompson scored on an infield error to get within one run, but the comeback fell short.
THE FIELD AT A GLANCE
The Yellow Jackets have won seven of their last eight games. WVSU as a team is batting .273 with a slugging percentage of .419. Lindsey Phares is the team leader in batting average (.431) and doubles (11). Kasey Murphy leads WVSU in slugging percentage (.714), home runs (five), RBI (14), and runs scored (15). The Yellow Jackets have a team ERA of 5.56. Pitcher Autumn Thompson has a team-low ERA of 5.01, striking out 29 batters in 50.1 innings.
Charleston has won six of its last seven games. At the plate, the Golden Eagles are hitting .274 as a team. Utility player Hannah Rose is hitting a team-high of .420. Rose also leads UC in slugging percentage (.594), doubles (nine), and runs scored (22). In the circle, UC has a team ERA 3.53. Danielle Bauer has 3.24 ERA, striking out 90 batters and allowing 27 earned runs in 75 innings pitched. Not only does Bauer lead the Golden Eagles in strikeouts, but also leads the MEC as well.
