March 29, 2010
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Trying to get back onto the winning path, the South Carolina Gamecocks head to Chapel Hill, N.C., to face off against the North Carolina Tar Heels on Tuesday afternoon at Anderson Stadium. Gametracker live stats can be found on GamecocksOnline.com, as well as the Gamecock All-Access audio feed.
Compton Hits Another Milestone
With Wednesday’s win at Coastal Carolina, Gamecock head coach Joyce Compton hit another milestone in her career in Columbia, S.C. The victory stands as her 950th in her career in the Garnet and Black. She is the ninth coach in NCAA Division I history to win at least 950 games at one school, cementing her names alongside fellow legends like Arizona’s Mike Candrea and Michigan’s Carol Hutchins.
South Carolina vs. Ranked Opponents
In history against foes ranked in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) poll, South Carolina has an 86-152-1 (.362) mark. In 2010, the Gamecocks are 0-8 against ranked opponents, 0-5 against top-10 squads. Last season, the Gamecocks went 2-12 versus top-25 teams, with the two wins coming over a fourth-ranked Alabama squad on Easter weekend at Beckham Field.
Carolina in the Month of March
Since 1984, the Gamecocks are 407-197-3 (.673) in the third month of the year and 365-173 (.678) in the Joyce Compton era. This year, the Gamecocks are at 2-13 in March.
Scouting the North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina enters Tuesday’s contest with a 24-10 overall record and at 4-5 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The nationally-ranked Tar Heels are good at all aspects of the game. Pitching may be the strongest part, though, as the squad has a 1.77 ERA, striking out 307 batters in 233.1 innings, while walking just 68 hitters. Danielle Spaulding leads the way with a 0.91 ERA and a 9-2 record. She’s tossed six shutouts, fanning 154 batters in 92.2 innings while walking just 26 hitters. Opponents bat just .111 off of her. Amber Johnson has tossed more innings at 135.1 while carrying a K:BB ratio of over 4:1. She holds an ERA of 1.75 and a 15-8 mark. The defense has been stellar as well, making just 26 errors in 34 games.
The Tar Heel offense is led by Spaulding as well, as she tops the squad in batting average (.351) and slugging percentage (.597). She also leads North Carolina with 24 RBI and is tied for the top spot with five home runs. Christine Knauer tops the squad with 31 hits and 26 runs scored while she’s second with a .341 batting average. Knauer provides lots of speed as well, as she has 26 steals on 28 attempts. Ally Blake reaches base nearly half the time (.495 OBP) while hitting at a .321 clip. Kelli Wheeler provides more power, ranking second on the Heels with a .587 slugging percentage, helped by her five home runs. Tisha Mahon has excelled in a pinch-running capacity, successfully swiping 11 bags in 12 tries.
Gamecocks All-Time vs. North Carolina
South Carolina has dominated the series against their northern rivals from the Atlantic Coast Conference, taking 47 of the 58 all-time meetings. However, of the Tar Heels 11 wins, eight have come in Chapel Hill, while the Gamecocks have won 15 times there, including in their last two trips. The series was played annually from 1987-2007 and was scheduled to continue the past two years, but weather kept the 2008 and 2009 games from happening.
The Last Meeting – South Carolina vs. North Carolina – April 18, 2007
It was a matter of stranding base runners that cost the South Carolina Gamecock softball team to fall 1-0 to the 22nd-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. Breanna Brown drove in Christine Knauer for the winning run in the sixth inning to boost the Tar Heels to victory. South Carolina posted five hits to the Tar Heels’ two but the Gamecocks left nine runners on base and were unable to drive in a run. The Gamecocks had runners in scoring position in four of the first six innings of the game, but were unsuccessful bringing home any runs. In all four of those innings, South Carolina’s leadoff batter reached base safely with a double, a single and two walks, and in the fourth and sixth innings, advanced all the way to third.
Schedule Ranks Among the Toughest
Head coach Joyce Compton always assembles a tough schedule for her squads, but the rise of the SEC has helped make that schedule automatically among the toughest in the nation the past few seasons. This year is no exception, as the Gamecocks are slated to face three of the top five and eight of the top 25 teams in the preseason polls this season. Of those 20 games against the preseason top 25, 14 of those games will come away from Beckham Field. In fact, all 11 games against the preseason top 10 will happen in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Gainesville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
While facing three of the top five is rough, the Gamecocks have had tougher slates before in regular-season play. Twice South Carolina has faced four of the top five teams in the preseason NFCA coaches poll in 2001 and 2003 and three on two more occasions in 1997 and 1999. There will be no sympathy from another SEC member, however, as Auburn is slated to face all five top-five teams this year.
Broyles Out
The Gamecocks will continue on this season without its top starter, as sophomore Audrey Broyles has undergone surgery on her right shoulder. The Pembroke Pines, Fla., native was on pace for an amazing season after tossing two consecutive one-hitters in the Florida Atlantic Strike Out Cancer Tournament. Wednesday’s surgery by Dr. James Andrews should have Broyles back in the circle in time for the 2011 season for the Gamecocks.
Back to Bash
Junior Laura Mendes ranks as the top Gamecock hitter returning from last year’s squad. Her powerful left-handed bat should once again anchor the lineup, where she hopes to best her eight doubles and two triples from a year ago, both of which led the squad.
So far, Mendes leads the team in six offensive categories: batting average (.363), hits (37), triples (2), RBI (26), on-base percentage (.377) and slugging percentage (.539). Mendes also tops the team and is tied for the SEC lead with 11 doubles. She’s tied for 19th at South Carolina with 25 in her career. After the home run at Coastal, she’s 10th on the career slugging percentage charts at .436.
Need Some Help in the Pinch
The shorter bench for the Gamecocks this season has shown up mostly in pinch-hitting situations. In 12 plate appearances, South Carolina pinch hitters are 1-for-12 with two RBI. Kandyce Redondo broke the ice in the first Arkansas game with an infield single. Earlier in the year, Audrey Broyles brought home a run with a bases-loaded walk, while Kaitlin Westfall also has a run batted in off the bench. Last season, Gamecock pinch hitters hit .179 with eight RBI.
The Glove Where Triples Goes to Die Came from This State, Too
South Carolina native Joe Jackson had a glove that was described as the place where triples go to die. This year’s Gamecock outfield could follow in the legacy of the great Jackson. Both senior Adele Voigt and sophomore Lauren Lackey have above-average speed that could help keep balls out of the gaps. And newcomer April Borchardt picked up three steals during the fall while covering a lot of ground when in the outfield. That trio was the opening-day starters, with Voigt shifting to center after claiming SEC All-Defensive honors in left in 2009, with Borchardt flanking her in left and Lackey in right.
The pitchers have allowed 40 doubles, but only five triples have been given up by the Gamecocks in 2010. The outfield also has 11 assists, with the three listed above all making at least one. Lackey has made six, including five from right field.
Steady Influence Behind the Plate
Junior catcher P.J. Fulmer has been a solid contributor for two years. She started 43 of the team’s 45 games last season behind the plate, lending leadership to a staff that had four members in their first year in the SEC. She’ll be relied upon once again to guide a young staff, as there will be two juniors and three sophomores throwing for the Gamecocks.
Fulmer has started every game at catcher again this season, and she’s tied for second on the squad with 13 runs batted in on the year.
Bats Showed Early Life
While snow kept South Carolina from starting its season as planned, the Gamecocks began the season hot at the plate. The team has won two mercy rule-shortened games (Coastal Carolina and North Florida), while another went seven but was a 15-1 Gamecock win. The squad owns two season bests in the SEC this year, including eight doubles in the Coastal Carolina victory.
Still Looking for That Right Mix
Even with just 13 position players on the roster, South Carolina has still done quite the mixing and matching, trying to find the right player at the right position. Junior P.J. Fulmer has started every game at catcher, but no other position has had the same starter in every contest. The closest spot is in center, as senior Adele Voigt has started all but the two games she missed with a leg injury. In 32 games, the Gamecocks have used 18 different defensive alignments behind their pitchers. In the same thought, the lineup has been shuffled many times too, with 28 different batting orders attempting to generate the offense.
Childs Ties Another Single-Game Record in Romp of Longwood
Sophomore Evan Childs is becoming known for big bursts of offense early in the year. In her second career game, she tied the program single-game record with two homers against the College of Charleston. This season, she waited until game four to put up a historic mark. The Conway, S.C., native hit three doubles in the second game against Longwood, tying Ashley Smith’s six-year-old record.
Nice Double, Can You Do It Again?
Evan Childs did something last season that has only happened three other times in Gamecock history (since 1982). The Conway, S.C., native led South Carolina in both home runs and stolen bases, putting her name among legends like Dana Fulmer, Christie Dammer and Lindi James. She was also the first Gamecock to accomplish the feat during the Southeastern Conference era. What will she do for an encore? That is something everyone is waiting to see.
Childs stands second on the team in slugging percentage (.318), while her one stolen base is tied for second on the squad. Her eight doubles are second on the team and tied for 10th in the SEC while her 13 RBI tie her for second on the squad.
Mendes, Walker Lead Gamecocks to Season-Opening Win
Behind two doubles by both senior Lindsay Walker and junior Laura Mendes, the Gamecocks won their first game of the 2010 season over Coastal Carolina. Those four doubles accounted for half of the Gamecocks’ total of eight, the most since a six-double outbreak against Mercer on March 5, 2005. The 17 hits were the most since South Carolina recorded 20 in a 15-2 (5 inn.) win over South Dakota State earlier on that same day in `05.
The Fall’s Shining Star Struggling in Spring
Junior Ashley Chastain came in without a lot of fanfare last year, but she finished the spring with a bang. The winner in the season-ending contest against Kentucky, Chastain continued that momentum into the fall. She won all four games in which she pitched while tossing one complete game. She did not allow an earned run in 22 innings while tying for the team lead in strikeouts.
The spring has not been great so far for Chastain. While she leads with four wins and is tied for tops on the squad with two saves, she ranks second in ERA at 3.77 and has 27 strikeouts against 26 walks in 55.2 innings. She has also hit seven batters and tossed five illegal pitches with runners on base.
