MAY 12, 2010
KING'S SOFTBALL SET TO FACE ALFRED IN OPENING ROUND OF NCAA TOURNAMENT
TOURNAMENT WEB SITE: http://bombers.ithaca.edu/sports/2010/4/27/SB_0427105345.aspx
ITHACA, NY – The King's College softball team will begin pursuit of its quest to earn a spot in the College World Series when the Lady Monarchs open up play against Alfred University at the NCAA Regional Championships beginning Thursday at Ithaca College. First-pitch is slated for 12:00 noon.
All tournament games will be available on LiveStats at the following link:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/ithaca/softball/index.htm
All games through Sunday will be radio broadcast over the Internet at the following link:
http://www.vicradio.org/
Tickets are set at $5 for daily general admission. Senior citizen's, students, and children under age-12 are $2 per-day
Fifth-seeded King's enters the event with a 22-16 record after winning a second straight Freedom Conference championship and the third in the past four years. The Lady Monarchs received an automatic berth into the national tournament after defeating Misericordia 6-5 in the Freedom title game on Saturday. King's is making its 10th trip to the Division III national tournament in the past 11 years.
Fourth-seeded Alfred, meanwhile, will be making its first-ever NCAA appearance after receiving an at-large bid into the tournament. The Saxons enter the regional event with a 34-6 mark after falling to Ithaca 12-5 in the championship game of the Empire 8 Conference Tournament.
Should the Lady Monarchs win their first-round pairing in the double-elimination event, they would meet the winner between the opening round matchup between top-seeded Cortland (38-6) and eighth-seeded Keuka (23-8). If King's falls to Alfred, the Lady Monarchs would meet the Cortland-Keuka loser Saturday at 9:00 a.m. in an elimination game
On the opposite side of the bracket, second-seeded host Ithaca (30-13) will play seventh-seeded Dickinson (19-17) while third-seeded Lebanon Valley (31-11) will square off with sixth-seeded New York Polytechnic (31-9).
King's paced by the senior combination of pitcher Lindsey Hoerner and shortstop Meaghan Galvin. Hoerner is 15-9 with a 2.81 earned run average and a career-high 148 strikeouts in 157 innings of work. As a designated player, she is batting .385 (40-104) with 21 runs scored, 11 doubles, two triples, four home runs, and 28 RBI. Galvin, King's starting leadoff hitter and shortstop, is batting .382 (50-131) with 34 runs, six doubles, one home run, and 21 RBI. Both player earned All-Freedom Conference honors while Hoerner was the league “Pitcher of the Year”.
Other key players include freshman outfielder Kaitlyn Siegfried, an All-Freedom selection who owns a .300 (36-120) average with five doubles, two home runs, and 24 RBI. Junior third-baseman Gretchen Tholen stands at .292 (35-120) with seven doubles, five triples, and 18 RBI. Senior first-baseman Katie Fry follows at .288 (30-104) with seven doubles and 22 RBI while senior catcher Christie Parfitt contributes with a .278 (27-97) mark with four doubles and 18 RBI.
Freshman pitcher Annie Erndl adds depth in the circle, posting a 7-7 record with 57 strikeouts in 92 innings. Fellow rookie Kayla Rutkoski is hitting .256 (20-78) with six doubles and 12 RBI while starting 29 of 34 games at second base. Sophomore outfielder Rachel Zinni has a .264 (14-53) average but enters the event on a hot streak, having batted .545 (6-11) over the past six games.
The Saxons are led by 2010 Empire 8 “Player of the Year” Nicole Hedrick who is batting .445 (61-137) with 43 runs scored, 12 doubles, nine home runs, and 30 RBI. Angela Netta follows at .415 (44-106) with three home runs and 20 RBI. Emily Fenton, who was selected as the Empire 8 “Rookie of the Year”, follows at .373 (41-110) with 14 doubles, four home runs, and 28 RBI. While Ashley Passaro stands at .345 (38-110) with seven doubles, three home runs, and 32 RBI.
The Alfred pitching staff is led by the standout combination of Chelsea Cary and Hedrick. Cary is 17-3 with a 1.12 earned run average, including 130 strikeouts in 125 innings. Hedrick is also 17-3 with a 1.47 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 129 innings. In all, the Saxons had six players earn Empire 8 first or second-team honors.
Participating Schools (#seed)
#1 Cortland (38-6)
#2 Ithaca (30-13)
#3 Lebanon Valley (31-11)
#4 Alfred (34-6)
#5 King's (22-16)
#6 Polytechnic (31-9)
#7 Dickinson (19-17)
#8 Keuka (23-8)
Tournament Schedule
Thursday, May 13
Game 1: #1 Cortland vs. #8 Keuka, 10 a.m.
Game 2: #4 Alfred vs. #5 King's, 12 p.m.
Game 3: #3 Lebanon Valley vs. #6 Polytechnic (N.Y.), 2 p.m.
Game 4: #2 Ithaca vs. #7 Dickinson, 4 p.m.
Friday, May 14
Game 5: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 10 a.m. (loser eliminated)
Game 6: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser, noon (loser eliminated)
Game 7: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 2 p.m.
Game 8: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 4 p.m.
Saturday, May 15
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 loser, 10 a.m. (loser eliminated)
Game 10: Game 5 winner vs. Game 8 loser, noon (loser eliminated)
Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 2 p.m.
Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 4 p.m.(loser eliminated)
Sunday, May 16
Game 13: Game 11 loser vs. Game 12 winner, noon (loser eliminated)
Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 13 winner, 2 p.m.
Monday, May 17
Game 15: Game 14 winner vs. Game 14 loser, noon (if necessary)
