April 29, 2003

Columbia, S.C. – The No. 18 South Carolina Gamecocks will close out their regular season on Wednesday as they travel to Coastal Carolina for a 4 p.m. doubleheader. The Gamecocks are 36-15 overall and ended SEC play with an 18-10 record. The Lady Chanticleers are 33-14 overall and 8-2 in the Big South. USC boasts a 35-1 record against Coastal. Last year, USC swept Coastal 5-0 and 4-1. The Gamecocks lone loss to Coastal came in a 7-5 defeat in 2000.

The Lady Chanticleers are led by Holly Lee at the plate. With a .374 hitting percentage, Lee leads the team in home runs with 15, runs scored with 30 and RBI’s with 43. Leading the pitching staff for Coastal is Christine Doyle with a 17-7 record and a 1.55 ERA. Doyle leads the team in strikeouts with 118 and in 27 appearances, has made 24 starts. Coastal has a three-game win streak after sweeping Winthrop last weekend.

Carolina is on pace to break the school single season home run record. With 33 home runs this season, USC needs just two long balls to tie the current record of 35, which was set by the 2002 team. Senior Debralee Troesh already set the school record this year for most home runs in a single season with 10. This marks the first time any Gamecock has reached the double-figure mark in home runs for a single year.

The Gamecocks will be only the second SEC team that Coastal has played this season. The Lady Chants went 1-2 against Mississippi State earlier this year. This will be the first Big South team that USC has faced this year.

Carolina will take the weekend off and prepare for the SEC Tournament, May 8-11 in Plant City, Fla. The Gamecocks are the fourth seed in for the tournament and will most likely play Florida in the first round.