Pirates End Bama Bash With North Dakota State
February 25, 2012 | Softball
Feb. 25, 2012
 vs.  |
| East Carolina Game 13: North Dakota State Sunday, Feb. 26 | 12:00 p.m. ET Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Rhoads Stadium) |
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GREENVILLE, N.C. - East Carolina (7-5) completes the Easton Bama Bash Sunday with a 12:00 p.m. contest against North Dakota State (8-6).
So far this weekend, the Pirates have defeated SIU Edwardsville twice and fallen to No. 2 Alabama twice. East Carolina topped the Cougars 6-5 in 10 innings Friday before recording a 3-1 triumph Saturday. Against the Crimson Tide, the Pirates fell 4-2 and 9-4.
Tracking The Bison
North Dakota State enters Sunday's contest with an 8-6 record. Friday, the Bison defeated SIU Edwardsville 3-0 and dropped a 9-4 decision to the host Crimson Tide. Saturday, NDSU fell again to Alabama, this time by a 3-2 score. The Bison then bounced back to top the Cougars 7-3. In 2011, NDSU went 30-27 overall and earned the program's third-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament by winning the Summit League Tournament.
So far this season, senior outfielder Taylor Mortensen and classmate Christina Borek have led the offense. Mortensen paces the squad with 13 hits and nine runs batted in while Borek has posted a.324 batting average and 12 hits.
Junior pitcher Whitney Johnson has a 6-3 record, 1.39 earned run average and 91 strikeouts in 60.1 innings pitched to lead the two-person staff. Freshman Krista Menke has gone 2-3 with a 3.86 ERA in 32.2 innings of work.
Recording Fewer Strikeouts
As a senior in 2011, pitcher Toni Paisley set the East Carolina single-season record for strikeouts in a campaign with 396. The year before, she tallied the second most whiffs with 356. Paisley and Faith Sutton combined to average 1.15 strikeouts an inning in 2011.
This year, freshmen hurlers Sarah Christian and Courtney Smith have totaled 26 strikeouts through 83.0 innings, or an average of 0.31 whiffs per frame.
... Means More Assists Required
As a result of more balls in play, East Carolina's infielders are racking up assists at a much higher rate. Through the first 12 contests, the Pirates have registered 137 assists, the second most in Conference USA, and an average of 11.4 helpers per contest. In all of 2011, ECU totaled 326 assists, or an average of 5.2 per tilt.
Individually, sophomore second baseman Kristi Oshiro began the weekend tied for the C-USA lead with 27 assists (3.4 apg) after recording 82 all of last season (1.3 apg). She is now up to 44 helpers in 2012 (3.7 apg).
ECU And NDSU Tale Of The Tape
| Category | East Carolina | North Dakota State |
| Batting Average | .242 | .241 |
| Hits | 75 | 83 |
| Runs Scored | 50 | 53 |
| Runs Batted In | 43 | 47 |
| On-Base Percentage | .330 | .342 |
| Stolen Bases | 29-33 | 10-11 |
| Earned Run Average | 3.29 | 2.26 |
| Earned Runs Allowed | 39 | 30 |
| Strikeouts | 26 | 103 |
| Walks | 26 | 46 |
Individual Comparisons
| Category | East Carolina Leader | North Dakota State Leader |
| Batting Average | Alex Fieldhouse (.353) | Christina Borek (.324) |
| On-Base Percentage | Alex Fieldhouse (.450) | Christina Borek (.479) |
| Hits | Alex Fieldhouse (12) | Taylor Mortensen (13) |
| Runs Batted In | Alex Fieldhouse (10) | Taylor Mortensen (9) and Amanda Grable (9) |
| Runs Scored | Kristi Oshiro (12) | Amanda Grable (7) and Jenina Ortega (7) |
