Softball Plays Back-To-Back Doubleheaders This Weekend

Scouting the Blue Devils
CCSU posts an 18-26 overall record on the year with a 6-8 record in the NEC, good for seventh place in the conference. The Blue Devils most recently swept non-conference opponent, Hartford, in a doubleheader on April 28. Junior catcher Katherine Knowles leads the team offensively, batting .376 on the year with 47 hits and 26 RBI. Junior RHP Liz Montemurro has pitched in 30 games this year for CCSU, posting a 4.92 ERA with 99 strikeouts.

Scouting the Pioneers
Ranked just behind the Bobcats in the conference standings, Sacred Heart posts a 21-24 record on the year with an 8-6 record in the NEC. The Pioneers most recently dropped a non-conference game to Fairfield on April 29. Junior outfielder Taylor Froelich leads the team from the plate with a .318 batting average and 47 hits on the year. Junior Jen Russel posts a 1.75 ERA from the circle for Sacred Heart this season, with 139 strikeouts under her belt.

So Many Seniors!
The Bobcats will be honoring eight seniors in Sunday's pre-game ceremony against Sacred Heart. The eight seniors are as follows: Katie Allendorfer (Glenside, Pa.), Emily Bellush (Newton, Mass.), Christine Bourdeau (Seymour, Conn.), Angela Casella (Oceanside, N.Y.), Jaimie Iaquinto (Dix Hills, N.Y.), Kim Le Bel (Quincy, Mass.), Heather Maffeo (Milton, Mass.), and Kelly Wall (Westport, Conn.). Offensively, these eight seniors have combined to play in more than 1,000 games, have tallied 622 hits and drove in 292 RBI. The eight players have also scored over 300 runs for the Bobcats in their four years on the team. Bellush and Iaquinto have combined to throw over 400 innings from the circle for Quinnipiac and have compiled 19 wins and 256 strikeouts.

Rain Rain Go Away
In the past week, the Bobcats have seen two doubleheaders cancelled or postponed due to rain. The non-conference doubleheader against St. Peter's, originally scheduled for April 27, was cancelled and will not be made up. The conference doubleheader against Fairleigh Dickinson, scheduled for April 25, has been rescheduled for Saturday, May 8, at 1 p.m. in Teaneck, N.J.

Just Drop It In
In Quinnipiac's last doubleheader against Wagner on April 24, the Seahawks took an early 3-0 lead in the second inning of game one. The two teams played through three scoreless innings before the Bobcats came back to tie the game in the bottom of the sixth. Tied at three in the bottom of the seventh with two outs on the board, Quinnipiac gained a baserunner in freshman Lauren Salgado (Covina, Calif.) who tallied a bunt single and advanced to second on a throwing error. She was scored in the following play to earn the Bobcats' victory as Casella hit the game-winning bloop single into center field to win the game 4-3.

The Massachusetts Effect
Game two against the Seahawks saw continued offensive momentum from the Quinnipiac bats, with senior Maffeo and sophomore Alex Murray (Milford, Mass.) leading the team in RBI. The Massachusetts-natives each tallied two RBI and two hits apiece in the 7-1 victory, while Maffeo also scored a run in the win.

Double Time
Sophomore RHP Heather Schwartzburg (Mission Viejo, Calif.) earned both wins from the circle for Quinnipiac in the sweep of Wagner last weekend. Schwartzburg pitched the complete second game and threw three relief innings in game one. She earned just one run in the ten innings of work, while striking out ten batters on the day. The right-hander continues to lead the NEC in strikeouts (224), ERA (1.23) and in opposing batting average (.174).

KIM-BERR!
Junior outfielder Kim Brzezinski (Tinley Park, Ill.) also saw strong offensive contributions against Wagner on April 24. Brzezinski went 2-for-5 on the day with a walk and two RBI. The junior also tallied her second double of the season in game two against the Seahawks. She currently leads the team in batting average as she posts a .320 average on the year.

Clean House
The two wins against Wagner on April 24 was the fourth Northeast Conference sweep of the season for Quinnipiac. Monmouth, Bryant, and St. Francis (Pa.) have seen similar fates against the Bobcats. The team has incurred just four losses in league play, and currently rank fourth in the NEC.