Pirates Take On Houston In Semifinals
May 13, 2010 | Softball
May 13, 2010
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HOUSTON, Texas - After defeating Southern Miss 8-0 in five innings Thursday evening, the top-seeded East Carolina softball team (40-16) takes on host Houston Friday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. in the Conference USA Tournament semifinals. The No. 5 seed Cougars (31-23-1) beat UAB 3-0 Thursday night.
ECU Taking On The Cougars ...
Houston owns a 19-11 advantage in the all-time series with an 11-2 mark at home. The 19 losses represent the most the Pirates have suffered against any Conference USA squad. East Carolina, however, has won three of the past six games after dropping six straight and 10 of 11 to the Cougars.
Three weeks ago, ECU recorded its first victory in Houston since a 6-5 eight-inning win March 11, 2006. The Pirates took the opener 1-0 behind a first-inning RBI single from senior Christina Merrida. Despite solo home runs by seniors Kaui Tom and Vanessa Moreno and junior Sissy Jimenez, a three-RBI performance by Houston's Melissa Gregson led the Cougars to a 4-3 victory in game two. A three-hit, three- RBI effort by Reina Gaber led UH to a 4-2 Sunday win.
The 1-0 Win ...
After not recording a 1-0 victory since topping Boston College in eight innings Feb. 15, 2008, the Pirates have picked up a school-record seven such triumphs since April 14. Twice before, in 2005 and 2001, ECU recorded five 1-0 wins. East Carolina defeated N.C. State 1-0 in the opener April 14, UTEP in games one and three of the series April 17-18, Houston in the first contest April 24, Southern Miss in game two May 1, Elon in game one May 6 and Memphis in the series finale Sunday.
Picking Up The Pace ...
After beginning the season with 1-4 and 2-7 records, East Carolina found its groove. The Pirates enter the Conference USA Tournament semifinals with a 40-16 mark. Since returning from its spring-break trip through Hawai'i and California, ECU is 29-5.
Catch Us If You Can ...
When falling behind this season, opponents have had a very hard time coming back on the Pirates, and have not done so all year after the fourth inning. East Carolina has a 38-6 record when scoring first and is 32-0 when leading after four innings, 25-0 when ahead after five frames and 25-0 when leading after six.
Two-Out Magic ...
Of ECU's 235 runs this season, 98 have scored when there are two outs. That amounts to 41.7 percent of the team's total. In the past week, the Pirates have pushed across 19 runs with two down.
I'll Take The Fifth ...
For the second-straight season, East Carolina has enjoyed its highest-scoring inning in the fifth. This year, the Pirates have scored 44 runs in that frame. In 2009, ECU pushed across a teambest 39 runs in the fifth inning.
