Softball Continues Home Stretch with Charlotte and Liberty

March 2, 2015

South Carolina vs. Charlotte
Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field
Tues., March 3 at 6 p.m.
SEC Network +/Watch ESPN |

Charlotte Ticket Promotions
Weekday Work Perk – $1 admission by showing your business card
T-Shirt Trade Tuesday – Trade an old t-shirt for a new Gamecock T-shirt
Macey Webb Day

South Carolina vs. Liberty
Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field
Thurs., March 5 at 6 p.m.
SEC Network +/Watch ESPN |

Liberty Ticket Promotions
Weekday Work Perk – $1 admission by showing your business card
Ansley Ard Day

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15 SC Softball Notes – 3/2

15 SC Softball Stats – 3/1

Feature on Julie Sarratt
Feature on Nickie Blue
Feature on Kristen Struett

Gamecocks Continue Home Stand with Charlotte and Liberty

In the midst of a 14-game-in-18-day home stand, South Carolina hosts Charlotte and Liberty in non-conference action on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.
First pitch of both games is set for 6 p.m. with SEC Network + showing the contests live.

Carolina Classic Catch-Up

The Gamecocks went 3-1 in the Carolina Classic, their final non-conference weekend of 2015.
In the 10-3 win over Charleston Southern, senior Kristen Struett posted her first four-hit game, going 4-for-4 with a double and three runs scored.
The 2-0 shutout of Marshall by sophomore Nickie Blue was quite impressive, as Blue faced one hitter over the minimum, striking out 12. With that game, Marshall (13-5) is hitting .309 as a team.
On the weekend, Blue fanned 21 batters and walked one in 16 innings.
South Carolina run-ruled Tennessee State 8-0 (5), with seven of the eight runs coming via the long ball (3-run HR by Jordan Bizzell, 2-run HRs by Victoria Williams and Alaynie Page).
The only setback came against No. 24/24 South Alabama, 4-1, where the Jags fanned 12 Gamecock hitters.
South Carolina’s only run in the USA game came after Page tripled and Struett drove her in.
Struett (1 hit, 1 walk, 1 HBP) and Page (2 hits) accounting for five of the six Gamecock base runners.
With the contest against South Alabama, the Gamecocks have hosted non-conference games in consecutive years against ranked foes (No. 16 Minnesota on March 19, 2014).

Page Soaring in 2015

Junior left fielder Alaynie Page has propelled the Gamecock offense in the early part of 2015.
She leads the team in 12 offensive categories, including batting average (.441), slugging percentage (.897), runs (20), hits (30), home runs (7) and RBI (25).
The Gamecocks’ leadoff hitter has reached base 57.6 percent of the time she’s led off an inning.
Page has matched her freshman-year output in home runs with seven, tying for 14th in South Carolina history on the single-season charts.
She’s already moved much higher on some Gamecock career charts, which can be found on page 8.
Of note, 15 of her 25 RBI have come with two outs.

First Trip to Nutter Classic for South Carolina A Success

The Gamecocks went 3-2 in the trip to the Palm Springs area, picking up two wins over Pac-12 foes in consecutive games.
South Carolina downed Stanford 6-2 and No. 21/20 California 3-1 in the event, marking the first time the Gamecocks had two wins over a Pac-12 team in the same season since 2007 (W’s over Oregon in 2007 Columbia Regional).
When was the last time SC beat two different members of the current Pac-12 in a year? 1996 (W 2-1 vs. Utah, W 1-0 vs. No. 1 Arizona). Never had it beaten two different Pac-12 teams in the same weekend before.
Redshirt senior Julie Sarratt returned to form during the event, picking up two wins, including the complete-game victory over the Bears.
Sarratt also homered in that win, capping a streak of four-consecutive hits over three games, driving in runs with three of those.
Overall, Sarratt and Nickie Blue combined for a 2.06 ERA, the sixth-best mark in the 35-team event.
Junior left fielder Alaynie Page kept up her strong play, pushing her hitting streak to 14 games before drawing two walks in an 0-for-2 outing vs. Northwestern to snap the skein.
Page hit .375 in the event and walked four times, most on the squad.
Senior centerfielder Kristen Struett matched Page in hits (6) and runs (4) in her native California.
Struett shined in the finale, going 3-for-3 while hitting her first homer of the year against Northwestern.
Other notable performances include Taylor Williams 3-for-4 day vs. LIU Brooklyn, Sarah Mooney and Victoria Williams two-hit days with a double each vs. Stanford
For the second-straight year, Gamecock head coach Beverly Smith challenged her team with a West Coast trip that includes games against two ranked foes.
This year, as part of the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, Calif., the Gamecocks took on No. 9/8 Florida State and No. 21/20 California.
Last season, South Carolina faced No. 3 Arizona State and No. 19 Minnesota in Tempe, Ariz.

Scouting Charlotte

The 49ers are 7-4 on the season, missing one weekend due to weather issues. Last year, Charlotte went 20-29.
Seven position starters and all three pitchers are back for head coach Aimee DeVos.
After stealing only 10 bases as a team in 2014, the 49ers have 29 steals in 34 tries already in 2015.
Lexi Betancourt is 3-4 on the year with a 2.16 ERA, fanning 54 batters while walking 12.
Last year, Betancourt struck out 211 and walked 90 in 220 innings, posting a 2.20 ERA.
Mackenzie Hauser has looked better on the surface, tallying a 2.62 ERA in 21.1 innings so far, but she’s walked 15 and sat down 12.
In 39.2 innings in 2014, Hauser had a 11.47 ERA, walking 31 and striking out seven.
At the plate, Jackie Kleinsmith returns after hitting .349 with nine doubles and 32 RBI.
Jessica Plemmons hit 10 homers and drove in 36 in 2014, leading the team. This season, she’s posted two triples already and tallied 15 RBI.
Samantha Slade had 11 doubles, seven homers and 25 RBI last year but has struggled in her senior year with only one double and a .194 batting average.

Series History vs. the 49ers

The Gamecocks are 36-5 all-time against Charlotte in a series that dates back to 1988.
In Columbia, South Carolina owns a 20-3 mark against the 49ers.

The Last Meeting – South Carolina at Charlotte – Feb. 19, 2014

An 11-run seventh led South Carolina to a 12-0 win over Charlotte at the Phillips Complex.
Sarah Mooney’s sixth-inning leadoff homer, her third of the season, broke the scoreless tie.
Nickie Blue got the win in relief, pitching three scoreless innings, striking out four.

Watch Us Play on the SEC Network + (At Home and On The Road in SEC Play)

All 31 home games will be on either the SEC Network (five games) or on SEC Network + via the WatchESPN app and WatchESPN.com.
Also, four road SEC games will be on the SEC Network with the rest on the SEC Network +.
The three remaining road non-conference games will be streamed live via an audio broadcast for a $10 monthly fee as part of the Gamecocks All-Access page at GamecocksOnline.com.

Scouting Liberty

Four starters return from last year’s 11-46 squad for head coach Dot Richardson.
Also back is pitcher Chandler Ball, who missed last year due to an injury.
So far, she’s tossed 50.1 of the team’s 79.2 innings this year, fanning 37 while walking 26 with a 5.15 ERA.
Ball has given up 15 doubles already, with foes hitting .318 against her. She’s also tossed 14 wild pitches.
The top offensve threats return in Megan Robinson (.303, 8 HR, 26 RBI) and Kelby Allen (.298, 9 HR, 34 RBI).
Allen has fared better in `15 so far, with three doubles and seven RBI.
Freshman Tori Zavodny has sparked the lineup, hitting .351 with three triples and eight stolen bases in 10 tries.
Junior transfer Mickie Loveridge leads the Flames with 10 RBI and four doubles in her short time in Lynchburg.
Blair Lawrence stole 20 bases in 24 tries in 2014 and already has a team-best nine steals in 2015.

Liberty and South Carolina Against Common Foes

Both teams have fallen to South Alabama, the Flames in a season-opening, 8-0 (5) loss in Mobile, Ala., and the Gamecocks in a 4-1 setback on Sunday in Columbia, S.C.

South Carolina Staff Has Top Credentials

Gamecock head coach Beverly Smith has now been a part of 10 NCAA Tournament teams as a coach (eight at UNC, two at South Carolina).
Associate head coach Lisa Navas has been to four NCAA Tournaments as an assistant coach (two at SC, one each at UNC and Missouri) and eight as a head coach (six Division II at Barry, two at NC State). Her 1998 Barry squad played in the national championship game.
Assistant coach Calvin Beamon has three titles to his credit, the biggest a College World Series title at Texas during 2005.
He also won the NJCAA Division I title in 2003 at the College of Southern Nevada and a high school state championship at Smoky Hill High School in Cherry Creek, Colo.

South Carolina Team Notes

South Carolina is 0-3 when not collecting an extra-base hit during a game.
Julie Sarratt has a 8.40 ERA in the first inning and a 1.19 ERA in the rest of the contest.
Nickie Blue has allowed a .131 batting average with two outs (11-of-84). Once she gets a batter to two strikes, she has given up a .081 batting average (11-of-136) with 69 strikeouts.

We Schedule Tough

The Gamecocks play 24 of their 56 regular-season games against teams who made the 2014 NCAA Tournament.
A total of 41 of the Gamecocks’ scheduled games come against teams that finished in the top 100 of the NCAA’s Ratings Percentage Index last year. Of those, 26 are against RPI top-50 teams.
Thirty-one games come at home, including non-conference foes UCF, South Alabama and USC Upstate, who all made the NCAA Tournament with RPI’s in the top 30.
UCF (American), Florida State (Atlantic Coast), USC Upstate (Atlantic Sun) and Coastal Carolina (Big South) won their leagues’ regular-season last season.

Roster Notes

Seven position player starters return for the Gamecocks from last year’s squad.
In the circle, only 28 innings depart, while the duo of Nickie Blue and Julie Sarratt return after going 35-22 with 11 saves last year.
Back from 2014 are team leaders in home runs (Sarah Mooney, 12), runs batted in (Kaylea Snaer, 35), walks (Snaer, 31) and stolen bases (Ansley Ard, 9).
SC lost four seniors who combined to start 157 games, including every start at second base and shortstop as well as 54 of 58 starts in right field.
The top offensive loss is Ashlyn Masters, who started a team-high 56 games and led the way in 10 categories: at bats (174), batting average (.362), on-base percentage (.447), runs (47), hits (63), doubles (19), triples (3), total bases (112), slugging percentage (.644) and sacrifice flies (3).
South Carolina looks to replace highs of 53 percent of its sacrifice hits and sacrifice flies (8 of 15 in both) as well as 51 percent of doubles (42 of 82).
In the rest of the offensive categories, the Gamecocks bring back from 53.8 percent (at bats and triples) to 70.7 percent (home runs) of their production from 2014, a season where the Gamecocks set four team offensive records.
Seven freshmen join the squad to put the roster at 22 for the second-straight year.
The team is dominated by South Carolina natives, with 36.4 percent of the roster (eight players) hailing from the Palmetto State. California is second with four players.
The Gamecocks hail from 10 states this year, with the freshmen coming from California, Delaware, Pennsylvania and the Palmetto State.
Nickie Blue and Hayley Copeland are the first Gamecock duo who are both over six-feet tall.
While both Williams’ and sophomores by class, Taylor and Victoria are not sisters.

Alum Codee Yeske Trying to Make USWNT in Baseball

Former Gamecock infielder Codee Yeske (2012-14) is among 36 invitees to the 2015 USA Baseball Women’s National Team Trials, set for May 22-24, 2015.
Also on the invitee list is former volunteer assistant Laura Trout.

Smith Has Former Staff Members and Gamecock Players Coaching

Gamecock head coach Beverly Smith has a growing collegiate coaching tree from her short time at South Carolina.
Two former student-athletes (Ashley Chastain and Kelley Dillon) are on the College of Charleston staff.
Her first two volunteer assistants serve as full-time assistants at Connecticut (Chrissy Schoonmaker) and at George Washington (Laura Trout).
Former top assistant Janelle Breneman took over at UNC Greensboro as the head coach after two years with the Gamecocks and Smith in Columbia.

South Carolina Sweeps Through Gamecock Invitational

The Gamecocks picked up four wins over Carolina rivals in the Gamecock Invitational.
Twice, the Gamecocks came from behind to win, both coming in the nightcaps on Friday (9-6 vs. Presbyterian) and Saturday (5-4 vs. College of Charleston).
Junior left fielder Alaynie Page led the Gamecock offense, hitting two doubles and four round-trippers in the event.
She helped the Presbyterian comeback with a program-tying two home runs and five RBI in the game, while she started the effort against the Cougars with an inside-the-park homer.
Page also had 10 RBI and two stolen bases in the event and tied for the team lead with six runs scored alongside junior right fielder Ansley Ard.
Of those who started three games or more, only one didn’t hold a .400 on-base percentage on the week.
Sophomore Nickie Blue allowed one earned run in the four games, going 3-0. She pitched six innings in the one-hitter against Appalachian State.
Also against the Mountaineers, freshman Tiara Duffy picked up her first collegiate hit.

Offense Struggled in Two Straight Losses

In the second East Carolina game and the home opener vs. UCF, the Gamecocks did not have a single extra-base hit after posting at least two and as many as seven in the first four games, all wins.
Another common stat in the losses, the AAC foes hit a triple to start the first in each.

Opening Weekend Notes

South Carolina went 4-1 in the Pirate Classic, posting 10 runs or more in three of its first four games for the second time in three years (2013 Stetson Lead-Off Classic).
Both Nickie Blue and Julie Sarratt posted two wins and one shutout in the tourney, with Blue adding a save.
Blue joined Alaynie Page and Taylor Williams on the Pirate Classic All-Tournament Team.
The junior Page hit a team-best .500 while also leading the squad with seven runs and eight RBI out of the leadoff spot, four coming on a grand slam vs. Delaware State.
Williams hit two home runs in the 11-2 win over East Carolina on Saturday night, matching a program record.
Gamecocks Effie Manahan, Kate Shereyk and Kamryn Watts all posted their first career hits on RBI singles in the tourney, while Caroline Cash also tallied her first hit.
Junior Jordan Bizzell was never retired while at bat in the event, scoring five runs while walking five times and going 3-for-3 with a double and a home run.

South Carolina Softball Historical Record

South Carolina has played 2,070 games in its softball history, going 1344-719-7 (.651) in its 41st season of sponsorship.
With the first game of 2015, Beverly Smith becomes the second person to serve as the Gamecocks’ coach for five seasons at South Carolina, joining NFCA Hall-of-Fame coach Joyce Compton.

Gamecocks Picked to Finish 10th in SEC Coaches Preseason Poll

In a poll of the SEC coaches, South Carolina was picked to finish 10th in 2015.
Last season, the Gamecocks finished in a tie for eighth, three spots better than what the league’s coaches predicted in the preseason.
Of note, all nine teams picked ahead of South Carolina appear in both national rankings.
Defending national champion Florida was the coaches’ selection to take the 2015 league crown.
The past two years, the SEC has sent 11 teams into the NCAA Tournament, with two of the last three NCAA Champions hailing from the league.

Offensive Records Falling Regularly for Gamecocks Under Smith

South Carolina set six team offensive records in 2014, four cumulative and two per-game.
The 53 homers, 210 walks, .385 on-base percentage and .464 slugging percentage all topped previous marks.
Per-game marks broken include home runs (0.91) and walks (3.62), both set the previous year.
Sixteen team single-season records have been set in Smith’s first four years, eight each in both cumulative and per-game stats.
Smith’s teams have set the home run and slugging percentage records now in three-straight seasons.
The 210 walks snapped a mark (173) set in 1992.

Gamecocks Have a Rich History in NCAA Tournament

South Carolina earned its 17th bid in the NCAA Tournament in 2014 and its second straight.
The Gamecocks are 32-31 in those trips, making three Women’s College World Series in their history (1983, 1989 and 1997).
The program has five AIAW World Series trips in its history as well prior to 1982.

This Is How Tough 2014 Was (Especially in the SEC)

When looking at last year’s RPI, the Gamecocks went 13-19 against top-100 RPI teams during regular-season play, with the only loss outside of the top 100 coming to Maryland (147).
South Carolina rebounded to beat Maryland the next day.
Overall, South Carolina was 7-17 against RPI top-50 squads.
South Carolina played 11 of the 63 other teams in the NCAA Tournament in the regular season, going 9-16 against those squads.
Six of those 11 were SEC foes, teams that the Gamecocks went 6-12 against during the year.
Five opponents earned national seeds, with the Gamecocks posting a 2-10 mark against them (No. 2 Alabama, No. 4 Georgia, No. 9 Arizona State, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 16 Minnesota).