Pirates Host Longwood For Strikeout Cancer Event
April 17, 2012 | Softball
April 17, 2012
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| East Carolina Games 43-44: Longwood Wednesday, April 18 | 5:00 and 7:00 p.m. ET Greenville, N.C. (ECU Softball Stadium) |
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GREENVILLE, N.C. - Coming off a 7-6 win Sunday at then first-place Houston, East Carolina (17-25) takes a short break from Conference USA action Wednesday, hosting Longwood (26-21) for a 5:00 p.m. doubleheader. The games will serve as the Pirates' Pink And Purple Strikeout Cancer event, promoting cancer awareness. Fans who wear pink or purple in support of the cause will receive free admission while the Pirates will be wearing pink jerseys for the contests.
Last weekend at Houston, ECU lost twice Saturday, falling 13-5 and 6-2, but won 7-6 on Sunday. In the opener, the Cougars' Melissa Gregson drove in three runs and scored four while Jennifer Klinkert went three-for-three with a trio of RBI. Pirate sophomore Alex Fieldhouse tallied two hits and a pair of runs batted in to lead the offense. Houston took the second game with a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the seventh by Jaime Edwards. East Carolina sophomore Jasmine Robbins hit a two-run home run to account for the team's two runs. Sunday, Pirate sophomores Kristi Oshiro, Jill Jelnick and Chelsea Kaluhiokalani-Glackin each recorded two hits and senior Suzanne Riggs had two hits and a pair of RBI to back freshman pitcher Courtney Smith's first career Conference USA victory. Senior Priscilla Velasquez nailed down the win, throwing the last two innings to earn the initial save of her career.
The Pirates Against The Lancers
East Carolina owns a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series with Longwood. The Pirates suffered their first setback in the last meeting, a 3-0 loss May 8, 2011, in Farmville, Va. A day earlier, the Pirates topped Longwood 10-1.
Farmville, Va.
In its regular season finale, East Carolina dropped a 3-0 decision at Longwood Sunday afternoon. Nichole Simmons led off the bottom of the first with a home run and Brittany Matthews hit a two-run long ball in the bottom of the fifth while Briana Wells limited the Pirates to four singles. A year ago, East Carolina took the first game from the Lancers as Jelnick scored three runs and drove in two while Oshiro tallied two RBI and a pair of hits. Toni Paisley scattered five hits and fanned six in the complete-game victory. During the Sunday rematch, Nichole Simmons led off the bottom of the first with a home run and Brittany Matthews hit a two-run long ball in the bottom of the fifth. Longwood pitcher Briana Wells limited the Pirates to just four singles.
In the two previous meetings, ECU claimed a 7-0 triumph April 9, 2005, and a 5-1 victory March 5, 2006. During the initial contest, in Farmville, the Pirates tallied 10 hits to back Keli Harrell's two-hit, nine-strikeout shutout. Leading the way for the offense was Laurel Carlson, who collected three hits. Mandi Nichols and Leigh Savoy each registered two base knocks with one of Savoy's a home run. In 2006, ECU claimed the Hampton Inn Pirate Classic title by defeating the Lancers. Krista Jessup had two doubles and scored a pair of runs while Harrell struck out 10 and scattered six hits in the victory. Beth Nolan, Jessica Johnson and Paige Baggett each drove in a run for the Pirates.
At Home During The Week
For the first, and only, time this season, East Carolina will host a midweek doubleheader. The only nontournament or nonleague action for the Pirates at the ECU Softball Stadium this season was a single game with Hofstra on Monday, Feb. 20, a contest won by the hosts, 4-3.
Getting One On The Road
With a 7-6 victory at Houston on Sunday, East Carolina earned its first win on the road in league play this season (1-8). Overall, the Pirates are 4-13 in all 2012 away contests and 4-7 at a neutral site. On the other hand, ECU has gone 9-5 in home action, including a 4-2 mark in home league play.
Midweek Winners
So far this season, ECU has played six nonconference and nontournament midweek games. In those contests, the Pirates have posted a 4-2 mark, downing Hofstra, Cal State Fullerton and UNC Wilmington twice while falling to North Carolina and N.C. State.
In the last three-plus campaigns, the Pirates are 26-7 (.788 winning percentage) in weekday tilts excluding tournament or league contests. ECU has gone 12-3 (.800 winning percentage) in such home matchups.
Independent Thinking
Longwood, after seven years as a NCAA Division I Independent, is slated to join the Big South Conference on July 1. The Lancers are the only current independent program among the 283 NCAA Division I softball teams.
ECU And LU Tale Of The Tape
| Category | East Carolina | Longwood |
| Batting Average | .266 | .264 |
| Hits | 295 | 306 |
| Runs Scored | 192 | 205 |
| Runs Batted In | 157 | 182 |
| On-Base Percentage | .349 | .357 |
| Stolen Bases | 71-85 | 44-58 |
| Earned Run Average | 4.43 | 4.18 |
| Earned Runs Allowed | 172 | 175 |
| Strikeouts | 92 | 148 |
| Walks | 85 | 125 |
Individual Comparisons
| Category | East Carolina Leader | Longwood Leader |
| Batting Average | Suzanne Riggs (.327) | Megan Baltzell (.355) |
| On-Base Percentage | Suzanne Riggs (.452) | Megan Baltzell (.444) |
| Hits | Jill Jelnick (41) | Megan Baltzell (49) |
| Runs Batted In | Suzanne Riggs (27) | Megan Baltzell and Jordan Cox (30) |
| Runs Scored | Kristi Oshiro (31) | Megan Baltzell (41) |
