Gameday: East Carolina Hosts American Athletic Conference Foe UCF

Games 36-38: UCF
Series Schedule	Friday, March 31 \\\ 6:00 p.m. Saturday, April 1 \\\ 2:00 p.m. Sunday, April 2 \\\ Noon
Coverage	Live Stats \\\ Live Video
Location	Greenville, N.C. (ECU Softball Stadium)
Official Web Sites	East Carolina \| UCF
2017 Statistics	East Carolina \| UCF
Social Media	@ECUSoftball \| East Carolina Softball (Instagram) \| @ECUScoreboard (in-game updates) \| #ECUndaunted

GREENVILLE, N.C. – It's back to conference play for East Carolina this weekend as the Pirates host UCF for a three-game series at the ECU Softball Stadium. Weather pending, the set will open Friday at 6 p.m. EDT.

The Pirates lead the series 18-15 after the Knights won two of three in Orlando a season ago. ECU captured the series opener 2-1 before the nationally-ranked UCF side won the final two games 8-0 and 5-0. The win was the first over a ranked opponent in head coach Courtney Oliver's tenure.

East Carolina (17-18, 1-2 AAC) dropped both ends of a non-conference doubleheader Wednesday at UNCW by scores of 7-2 and 6-3. The Pirates nearly put together an epic comeback in the nightcap, trailing 6-0 entering the top of the seventh before having a chance to take the lead with the go-ahead run at the plate.

Senior outfielder Ali Ramirez is batting .329 to lead an ECU offense that is hitting .263 collectively. Junior infielder Meredith Burroughs also checks in above .300 at .320. The Pirates lead the AAC in slugging percentage (.456), runs scored (186), RBI (168), doubles (45), home runs (41), total bases (406) and walks drawn (132).

Individually, East Carolina boasts several players who lead the conference in various statistical categories – senior outfielder Kacie Oshiro (doubles/9), senior outfielder Ali Ramirez (hit by pitch/11), redshirt junior catcher Mycek (home runs/10, walks/24) and Burroughs (home runs/10, sacrifice flies/4).

About UCF
UCF (17-15, 1-2 AAC) picked up a 2-1 win over in-state opponent North Florida at home Wednesday after losing two of three to Houston in Orlando to begin AAC play. Cassady Brewer paces the offensive efforts with a .375 batting average to go along with five doubles, two home runs and 19 RBI. Alea White has put in the most time in the circle for the Knights, as she is 10-10 with a 3.62 earned run average and 57 strikeouts in 114.0 innings of work. As a team, UCF is batting .284 while the pitching staff boasts a 3.82 ERA.

RPI Check
ECU ranks 104 in the latest release of the NCAA RPI. UCF landed at 56 this week.

An Early Look at the AAC Standings
1. Tulsa (3-0)
2. Houston (2-1)
2. Memphis (2-1)
4. East Carolina (1-2)
4. UCF (1-2)
6. UConn (0-0)
7. USF (0-3)

Up Next
East Carolina wraps up a five-game homestand Wednesday afternoon hosting Radford for a doubleheader. Game one is set for 3 p.m. EDT.

Gameday: East Carolina Hosts American Athletic Conference Foe UCF

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Players Mentioned

Meredith Burroughs

Kacie Oshiro

Ali Ramirez

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