Pirates Set To Host Charlotte For AAC Series

Games 30-32: Charlotte
Date	Mar. 22-24, 2024
Coverage	Mar. 22 (Noon): Watch \| Live Stats Mar. 23 (4 p.m.): Watch \| Live Stats Mar. 24 (Noon): Watch \| Live Stats
Venue	Max R. Joyner Family Stadium
Statistics	East Carolina \| Charlotte \| The American
Game Notes	East Carolina \| Charlotte \| The American
Social Media	@ecu_softball (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ #WeBelieve

GREENVILLE, N.C. – The East Carolina softball team is set to return to action and continue its homestand inside the friendly confines of Max R. Joyner Family Stadium this weekend when the Pirates host in-state foe Charlotte.

All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ with Patrick Johnson (play-by-play) and Courtney Layton (analyst) on the call. Admission is free for fans.

ECU is coming off of being swept at the hands of preseason favorite Wichita State as the Pirates were competitive in the first two games falling 4-1 and 6-5 before going down in run-rule fashion, 9-1, in the series finale. The first inning proved to be the deciding factor in all three games as the Pirates surrendered at least three runs in the opening stages of each game.

The Pirates are led at the plate by Emma Jackson, who is batting .459 and has tallied 45 hits (1st in AAC/3rd in NCAA) along with 20 doubles (1st in AAC/1st in NCAA). Jackson was recently named best outfielder in the country by D1Softball and the eighth-best outfielder in the country by Softball America for the month of March. Morgan Johnson leads the American and is tied for 15th in the country in RBI with 34. Anna Sawyer is batting .415 with 11 doubles and 18 RBI. ECU is currently first in the AAC in hits (255), on-base percentage (.417) and doubles (63). The Pirates currently have three players who are hitting .400 or higher at the plate.

Scouting the 49ers
Charlotte is coming off a close loss on the road to Liberty on Wednesday, 6-5, that snapped a six-game winning streak. The 49ers are led at the plate by Arianna Rodi who is batting .366 with 26 RBI and 10 home runs on the year. Charlotte utilizes many arms in the circle as the team has had seven different players pitch in a game this year. Georgeanna Barefoot leads the 49ers' staff with a 1.98 ERA and 39 strikeouts for a 4-1 record.

Series History
ECU leads the all-time series with Charlotte 25-11, including an 11-3 mark on its home field but the Pirates have dropped the last three meetings with the 49ers. East Carolina's last win over Charlotte was on Mar. 15, 2014, and the last meeting between both programs was on Feb. 24, 2021.

Up Next
The Pirates will host Elon on Tuesday, Mar. 26 at 4 p.m.

Players Mentioned

Emma Jackson

Morgan Johnson

Anna Sawyer

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