MAY 6, 2016

KING'S SOFTBALL TEAM SET TO COMPETE IN FREEDOM CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS, START TIME MOVED TO 11am

WILKES-BARRE — The King's College softball team will compete in the 2016 MAC Freedom Conference Championship scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at the Wilkes University Ralston Athletic Complex. Saturday's start time has been moved to 11:00 a.m. to allow for further drying of the field after an early morning rain.

Tickets, as established by the MAC, are set at per-day prices of $6.00 for adults, $5 for seniors, and $3 for students. Tournament information can be found at the event webpage at the following link:
http://www.gowilkesu.com/sports/2016/4/26/2016-mac-freedom-softball-championships.aspx

A total of four games are scheduled to take place the first day of the double-elimination event. Fourth-seeded King's (22-16/8-6 Freedom) will face top-seeded Manhattanville College (34-2/13-1) in the tournament opener Friday at 11:00 a.m.  Second-seeded Misericordia University (26-12/11-3) will play third-seeded FDU-Florham (17-13/9-5) at 1:00 P.M.  At 3:00 p.m., the winners of the first two games will play before the losers of the first two games meet at 5:00 p.m. with the loser being eliminated. On Saturday, an 11:00 a.m., an elimination game will take place at 11:00 a.m., before the championship game is held at 1:00 p.m. If necessary, a deciding game will be held at 3:00 p.m.

Fans can follow all the games on LiveStats at the following link:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/wilkes/softball/

King's is led by sophomore outfielder Kelcie Senchak who posted a team-high .430 (40-93) batting average with six home runs, seven doubles, six triples, 25 RBI, and scored 40 runs.  Senchak also chipped in as a pitcher down the stretch earning a 2-2 record with a 3.76 earned run average with 27 strikeouts in 35 innings. Freshman outfielder Amber Saylor batted .403 (25-62) with two home runs, four doubles, 11 RBI, 20 runs scored. She also shared the team lead with 10 stolen bases in 11 attempts and drew 10 bases-on-balls, second-most on the squad.

Sophomore catcher Rachael DeTore follows at .355 (39-110) with three home runs, two triples, 11 doubles, 19 runs scored, and a team-high 32 RBI while sophomore outfielder Brianna DiMaggio stands at .329 (28-85) with two doubles, 11 RBI, and 20 runs scored.  Sophomore pitcher/second-baseman Samantha Bloom bats .326 (42-129) with four doubles, three triples,  20 RBI and scored 26 runs. As a pitcher, Bloom is 10-4 with a 3.72 earned run average with a team-high 72 strikeouts in 85 innings.

Freshman shortstop Lexi Wolk is hitting .322 (38-118) with four triples, two doubles, 14 RBI, and 26 runs scored while senior first-baseman Amy Kowalczyk contributes at .307 (27-88) with seven doubles, one triple, 2 RBI, scored 27 runs, and drew a team-high 12 bases-on-balls.  Sophomore Alizabeth Ellsworth has split time at third-base and as the team's designated player, finishing the regular-season with a .300 (27-90) batting average with four home runs, three doubles, one triple, 22 RBI, and scored 19 runs.  Joining Senchak and Bloom on King's pitching staff is senior Rachael Linso who is 8-10 with a 3.48 earned run average with 58 strikeouts in 104 innings.

Manhattanville, ranked 21st nationally in NCAA Division III, owns a whopping .407 team batting average and have smacked 60 home runs and 97 doubles. Freshman second-baseman Desiree Buboi tops the team with a .509 (59-116) with 12 home runs, 11 doubles, 43 RBI, and 49 runs scored. Freshman Aarin Hartenstein follows at .487 (55-113) with eight home runs, 21 doubles, 49 RBI, and 37 runs scored while junior Alicia Marino stands at .439 (47-107) with 10 home runs, 10 doubles,, 51 RBI, and 36 runs scored.  Freshman Sophia Chapelone is batting .437 (52-119) with six home runs, 13 doubles, 30 RBI, and 44 runs scored. The Valiant pitching staff is led by sophomore Freedom Conference "Pitcher of the Year" Alycia Feeney who is 18-2 with a 1.31 earned run average with 103 strikeouts in 123 innings. Freshman Julianna Orrico is 11-0 with a 2.53 ERA with 34 strikeouts in 72 innings.

Junior Melanie Quintanilla tops Misericordia with a .358 (44-123) batting average with five doubles, 20 RBI, and 33 runs scored. Senior Cailey Ware follows at .352 (31-88) with three doubles, 10 RBI, and 19 runs while senior Melissa Parker stands at .342 (39-114) with 10 home runs, five doubles, 40 RBI, and 28 runs scored. Freshman Abby Marzzacco contributes at .311 (33-106)  with 26 runs scored while senior Whitney Ellenberg chips in with a .306 (34-111) average with five home runs, seven doubles, 17 RBI, and 26 run scored. Leading the pitching staff is junior Bailee Schies who is 13-6 with a 1.80 earned run average with 65 strikeouts in 125 innings.

FDU is paced by senior Freedom Conference "Player of the Year" Nikki Caruso who leads the team with a .521 (49-94) batting average with nine home runs, eight doubles, 37 RBI, and 38 runs scored.  Senior Wynne McCann follows at .517 (45-87) with eight home runs, eight doubles, 35 RBI, and 18 runs scored while sophomore Taylor Torre stands at .430 (43-100) with 10 home runs, five doubles, 24 RBI, and 33 runs scored.  Senior Jackie Herrington bats  .370 (30-81) with two home runs, two doubles, 17 RBI, and 15 runs while sophomore Marlena Bevilaqua is hitting .369 (41-111) with  one home run, four doubles, 12 RBI, and 30 runs scored. Junior Paige Lillie contributes with a .348 (31-89) mark with six home runs, eight doubles, 24 RBI, and 25 runs scored. In the circle, senior Sydney Worek is 12-4 with a 3.30 earned run average with 118 strikeouts in 106 innings.

The winner of the Freedom Conference Tournament receives an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III National Tournament slated to begin next week at several regional sites.


TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Friday, May 6            
Game #1:         #1 Manhattanville vs. #4 King's, 11:00 a.m.
Game #2:          #2 Misericordia vs. #3 FDU-Florham, 1:00 p.m.
Game #3:          Winner Game #1 vs. Winner Game #2, 3:00 p.m.
Game #4:         Loser Game #1 vs. Loser Game #2, 5:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 7       
Game #5:          Loser Game #3 vs. Winner Game #4, 11:00 a.m.
Game #6:          Winner Game #3 vs. Winner Game #5, 1:00 p.m.
Game #7:          (If Necessary), 3:00 p.m.