March 26, 2007

COLUMBIA, S.C. – After taking a week off, the South Carolina softball team returns to action Tuesday when the Gamecocks host the Winthrop Eagles for a 4 p.m. doubleheader at Beckham Field. The Gamecocks are 24-9 and are hoping to snap a six-game losing streak. The Eagles are 29-10 and have won their last 11 of 12 games. Head Coach Joyce Compton enters the contest with a career Division I record of 999-456-3, and is one win away from No. 1,000. The twin bill can be followed live via Gametracker or audio Internet broadcast at www.uscsports.com.

South Carolina leads the series against Winthrop 40-6-1 and won the doubleheader last year. The Eagles’ last win over South Carolina came in game one of the 2005 series. The two teams tied in game two after it was called due to weather.

The Eagles had a 10-game win streak in tact before falling to Wright State over the weekend at the Mercer Nissan Invitational where they went 4-1. The Eagles currently lead the Big South in wins with 29. Pitcher Megan Evans was named Big South Pitcher of the Week as she leads the Eagles in the circle, 13-4 with a 2.27 ERA in 89.1 innings pitched. Evans has not lost a game since Feb. 25 against Alabama. Lisa Kingsmore leads the team in hitting with a .472 average and 58 hits. Tessa Thomas leads the Eagles in runs scored (34), while Jenny Scrymgeour leads in RBI with 43.

The Gamecocks are hoping to get back on the winning track after suffering losses to now No. 24 ranked Virginia Tech, No. 2 Alabama and No. 1 Tennessee. This is the longest losing streak of the season for South Carolina. As a team, the Gamecocks are hitting .252 while its opponents are hitting .167. In the circle, the Garnet and Black post a 1.18 ERA while opponents have a 2.34 ERA. Kate Pouliot is 12-3 with a 0.92 ERA and Melissa Hendon is 10-5 with a 1.15 ERA. Hendon leads in strikeouts with 155, while Pouliot has climbed among South Carolina’s all-time career strikeout leaders and ranks tenth.

This will mark South Carolina’s last non-conference doubleheader of the season. The Gamecocks are 21-4 in non-conference action this year and are 10-2 in non-conference games at home.

With a win, Coach Compton will pick up her 1,000th career D-I victory, becoming only the ninth coach in NCAA history, and the sixth coach in D-I history, to reach this milestone.