Gameday: Softball Hosts Houston In First AAC Series Of 2018

Games 31-33: Houston
Series Schedule	March 23 \\\ 6:00 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Watch (Free) March 24 \\\ 2:00 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Watch (Free) March 25 \\\ Noon \\\ Live Stats \\\ Watch (Free)
Location	Greenville, N.C. (ECU Softball Stadium)
Tickets	ECU Online Ticket Center
Social Media	@ECUSoftball (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Game Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted

GREENVILLE, N.C. – With 30 non-conference contests in the books, the ECU softball team begins league play this weekend with a three-game American Athletic Conference home series against the University of Houston. The teams will match up Friday through Sunday, playing one game each day.

The Pirates carry a 14-16 overall record and five-game winning streak into the set, most recently defeating Duke 4-1 Wednesday at the ECU Softball Stadium in the teams' first-ever meeting. Redshirt sophomore Tate McClellan hit a two-run home run in the first inning and three Pirate pitchers combined to hold the Blue Devils to one run on six hits.

ECU is hitting .234 as a team entering league action with 30 doubles, two triples and an American Conference second-best 23 home runs. McClellan leads the charge with a .311 batting average, .633 slugging percentage, eight doubles, seven home runs, 22 RBI and 15 runs scored. Senior infielder Meredith Burroughs has hit a team-best eight home runs and has driven in 18.

In the circle, the Pirates own a collective 3.03 earned run average and have posted 128 strikeouts against 95 walks. Opposing batters are hitting .261 off of the ECU unit. Redshirt junior Ashley Cruise sports a team-best 2.10 ERA in 16.2 innings of work while freshman Erin Poepping has tossed a team-high 88 innings with a 3.02 ERA and 57 strikeouts.

About Houston
Houston swept a doubleheader Tuesday at Sam Houston State by 6-0 and 13-11 (10 innings) scores to improve its overall record to 19-9. Arielle James and Sarah Queen pace a Cougar offense that is hitting .294 with 32 doubles, three triples and 15 home runs. The pair boasts respective .368 and .367 batting averages while Queen leads the squad with five home runs. In terms of pitching, Houston has compiled a 1.41 team ERA led by Savannah Heebner who is 12-2 with a 0.72 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 97.2 innings pitched. She is holding opposing hitters to a .165 batting average.

Last Season Against Houston
The Cougars won all four meetings with ECU last season, including a 6-0 decision in the American Athletic Conference tournament semifinals.

The Series
Houston leads the all-time series 34-17 and has won 10 of the last 13 encounters. Last time the Cougars visited Greenville during the regular season, the Pirates captured the series two games to one.

Up Next: ECU hits the road for the first time in conference play next weekend, traveling to Tulsa for a three-game set March 29-31.

Gameday: Softball Hosts Houston In First AAC Series Of 2018

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Players Mentioned

Meredith Burroughs

Ashley Cruise

Tate McClellan

Erin Poepping

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