South Carolina Travels for Furman Doubleheader on Wed.

March 12, 2013

Gamecocks at Furman (DH) – Wed., March 13 – 2 p.m.

2013 SC SB Notes (3/12)

South Carolina Team Notes

The Gamecocks won its first 13 games by scoring seven or more runs. In the last two, the Gamecocks won by scoring four runs.
Winning five-consecutive games (2/24-3/3) by the run rule is the best as far as those records go (since 1995). The previous best stretch of run-rule wins came in 1995.
South Carolina’s leadoff batter has reached 52.1 percent of the time so far in 2013, tops in the SEC.
The top two hitters in the batting order, Samie Garcia and Alaynie Page, have a combined 20 multi-hit games in this season’s 20.
The Gamecock pitchers has walked 1.92 batters per seven innings, which ranks fourth in the SEC.
In three of the five losses, the Gamecocks drew one or no walks. Only once in a win (0 vs. Villanova) did South Carolina walk less than two times.
In the win over Radford (2/24), redshirt senior Audrey Broyles tossed her first shutout since Feb. 26, 2011 against Elon. This was a three-hitter to defeat the defending Big South regular-season champs.
Also recording their first shutouts as Gamecocks this year were sophomore Katelynn Howser (vs. Buffalo) and freshman Katie Marks (vs. Florida International).
Gamecock pinch hitters are 8-for-17 (.471) at the plate and reach base at a .591 clip, drawing four walks and taking one hit by pitch.

Updates from USF Under Armour Showcase

The Gamecocks won their first extra-innings game of the year in their second try, beating Penn State 4-3 in eight innings.
Freshman hurler Katie Marks fanned 14 in 13.1 innings during the event, throwing a complete game in the nine-inning affair against Northwestern.
South Carolina picked up its ninth run-rule win of 2013 against UMass, the reigning Atlantic-10 champs, matching the 2000 team for its most run-rule wins this century.
Senior catcher Shelby Gonzales had two homers on the weekend, the first two of 2013.

Statements Made in Statesboro

South Carolina picked up its first win against a 2012 NCAA Tournament team when it downed Georgia Southern 7-2 on Sunday.
The Gamecocks scored their most runs in the NCAA era (since 1982) with a 29-0 victory over Alabama State. That also matches the largest margin of victory in recorded history at South Carolina, tying a 32-3 win over Allen in 1977.
The team tied a program high with 25 RBI in the game, matching the output from a 27-0 win over Coppin State on March 31, 1996.
Only in 1996 have the Gamecocks scored more than 56 runs in a four-game stretch, with 62 vs. Coppin State and Virginia twice each.
The 1988 team scored 55 (vs. North Carolina, Georgia Southern twice and McNeese State), while the Gamecocks tallied 52 the 2013 opening weekend vs. Michigan State and Stetson, twice each.
Sophomore Olivia Lawrence broke the school record by scoring five runs in the Alabama State game, topping a mark set nine times, including thrice this year.

Postcards from Orlando

Sophomore pitcher Katelynn Howser garnered her first career shutout in the Gamecocks’ 8-0 (5) win over Buffalo, giving up only one hit.
It was the first one-hitter for a Gamecock hurler since 2011, when Julie Sarratt did it against Coastal Carolina (4/11/11), and the 56th since 1995 for South Carolina.
Samie Garcia tripled in each of the last four games, matching her 2012 total in those four games.

Opening Weekend Notes

South Carolina scored 52 runs on the opening weekend of 2013, picking up two run-rule victories while scoring double-figures in all four games.
It ranks as the first time the Gamecocks have scored double-figure runs in four-consecutive games in the NCAA era (since 1982).
The only other time in the NCAA era that the Gamecocks scored double figures in three-straight games was 1995 (10 at Virginia, 11 vs. George Mason and 11 vs. USF), later matched this year.
The 15 runs in the opener against Stetson is the most in a season opener in the program’s NCAA era.
The two run-rule wins to start the year matches the 1993, 1996 and 2004 squads.
On three occasions, Gamecock student-athletes tied the then-school record in runs scored. Twice, Samie Garcia accomplished the feat on Feb. 9, while Alaynie Page did it as well in the second game (vs. Stetson, Feb. 9).
Samie Garcia reached base in each of her first 10 plate appearances.

Schedule Notes

South Carolina opens the 2013 season with 22 road games (five weekends + one midweek DH) and 29 of 32 due to ongoing construction at the new Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field.
The 1997 team spent 23 of its first 26 games away from home in the most similar stretch in the Gamecocks’ SEC-era history.
The 1988 squad played its first 31 games away from Columbia (six weeks on the road), while the 1987 team spent its first 20 games traveling (10 days).
The Gamecocks have 31 of their 53 scheduled games against teams who made the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
All 24 SEC games are against NCAA tourney participants.
Four of South Carolina’s SEC games will be on television, including one on national outlet ESPNU.

Tracking Garcia

Samie Garcia entered 2013 on many top 15 career lists at South Carolina, and her performance so far in 2013 has helped her leap up the charts.
She’s third in batting average (.365), second in on-base percentage (.437) and fourth in slugging percentage (.543).
After triples in the last four games of the UCF Holiday Inn Select Tournament, Garcia is tied for seventh in that career category with 10.
Garcia is also fifth in hit-by-pitches (14), tied for 14th in homers (11),15th in runs (102) and tied for 19th in total bases (232).
Currently, Garcia ranks as the 18th toughest Gamecock in recorded history to strike out, going 13.34 at bats per strikeout.
In the per-game categories, she’s second in hits (1.19), third in runs (0.78), fourth in triples (0.08), sixth in home runs (0.08), 10th in doubles (0.18) and 10th in walks (0.31).
She stole four bases in the Stetson Lead-Off Classic to move into the top 10 in that category. Now with 13 on the year, she’s seventh in stolen bases (39) and second in stolen bases per game (0.30).

Roster Notes

South Carolina returns four position starters from last year’s team, including 40 starts in right field (Chelsea Hawkins), 44 at catcher (Shelby Gonzales) and 54 at both shortstop (Samie Garcia) and second base (Dana Hathorn).
The Gamecocks’ 2012 leaders in batting average, hits, doubles, triples, home runs, slugging percentage, walks and stolen bases graduated.
Eighty-two percent of the team’s sacrifice hits departed, the highest of any offensive category. The next highest percentage is stolen bases (71%).
Despite losing doubles leader Kaitlin Westfall and single-season home run record-tying holder Evan Childs, the Gamecocks have 51 percent of its doubles and 52 percent of its homers back in 2013.
With the 11 departed players, the Gamecocks also lost players who took 41 of their 65 pinch-hitting appearances and the top four pinch runners.
Back is the 2012 team leader in runs scored (Samie Garcia, 41), who also tied for the team lead in stolen bases.
The team returns over two-thirds of the innings thrown in 2012, including ERA leader Audrey Broyles and strikeout leader Katelynn Howser.
Coming back from season-long injuries last year are redshirt senior Kelley Dillon and redshirt sophomore Julie Sarratt.
Nine newcomers join the roster, including six freshmen, a sophomore transfer and two junior-college transfers.
The team is again dominated by South Carolina natives, with 40 percent of the roster hailing from the Palmetto State.

Family Ties

The Masters sisters Ashlyn and Lauren are the first siblings to play on the same Gamecock team and the second set ever, after the Troesh sisters, Leanna (1997-99) and Debralee (2000-03).
Junior Chelsea Hawkins is the niece of Tia Rogers (2002-04 letter-winner).
While not a Gamecock, Samie Garcia is the cousin of Boston Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury.

Scouting Furman

The Paladins enter Wednesday’s doubleheader with an 8-11 record, dropping six straight including two to common foe Kennesaw State.
Furman is led by pitchers Lauren Collier and Meaghan Houston.
Collier, a junior, has fanned 35 batters and walked 13 in 53 innings, posting a 2.25 ERA.
The freshman Houston holds a 2.94 ERA, tossing 47.2 innings and striking out 36 against 13 walks.She’s also tops in the country with three saves.
Sophomore Ambree Muller tops the team with her .327/.358/.592 line.
Sophomore Taylor Jenkins is tied with Muller for the team lead with three homers, while Jenkins has 13 RBI.
Paladin junior Sarah Eidt played on coach Beverly Smith’s first Gamecock team, while SC sophomore Lakyn Shull played at Furman as a freshman.