Softball Set To Play Host To Gamecock Invitational

COLUMBIA, S.C. —- No. 18 South Carolina softball continues its eight-game home stand this weekend when it plays host to the Gamecock Invitational at Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field. Tournament action begins Friday at 12:30 p.m. ET against Seton Hall before the Gamecocks face Longwood at 3:00 p.m.
 
The Garnet and Black’s weekend continues on Saturday against the Pirates at 3:30 p.m. before it takes on the Lancers at 6:00 p.m. Tournament action concludes on Sunday with a 12:00 p.m. first pitch against No. 16 Duke.
 
All five Carolina games will stream on SEC Network + with student broadcasters on the call thanks to a partnership between Gamecock softball and the university’s journalism school.
 
NOTES FOLLOWING COASTAL CAROLINA WINS

• South Carolina has played in five games this year and started five different pitchers (Bailey Betenbaugh, Leah Powell, Rachel Vaughan, Karsen Ochs and Kelsey Oh). Each of the five has tossed a complete game in their outing with three (Powell, Vaughan and Betenbaugh) throwing complete-game shutouts.
• Mackenzie Boesel is off to a great start at the plate. She’s hitting .692 thus far on nine hits with seven RBI.
• Kassidy Krupit is bringing the runs home, too. She has a Carolina best nine RBI through five games.
• As a group, Carolina’s pitchers have combined for a 0.68 ERA with 16 strikeouts and just five walks in 32 innings of action.
• The Gamecocks are now 337-22 in 11 seasons under the leadership of head coach Beverly Smith.

OPENING WEEKEND 2021

• Carolina posted a 2-1 record in its opening weekend with wins over Auburn and Jacksonville. The Gamecocks had an opportunity to beat the Tigers in the opening game of the year (after Auburn had already played three games prior) but ultimately dropped the game.
• Carlie Henderson shined at the plate, going 5-for-7 (.714) with three runs scored and an RBI.
• Maddie Gallagher had four walks in her career debut against Jacksonville on 2/20. The last time a Gamecock drew that many walks in a game? Samantha Jennings vs. Miss. State way back on March 16, 2002. Gallagher wasn’t born for another eight months.
• The freshmen came out swinging. Six first-year Gamecocks made their Carolina debut over the weekend on their way to a 12-for-33 (.364) weekend with 11 runs scored, four RBI and five walks.
• Bailey Betenbaugh didn’t need much time to settle into the season. She opened her year with a complete-game shutout in the 10-0 win over Jacksonville.
• Karsen Ochs earned the win over Auburn in a complete-game performance. She threw a career-high 116 pitches in the game.
• Carolina is now 38-9 (.809) in opening weekends under head coach Beverly Smith.

THIS IS CAROLINA… TRADITION LIVES HERE

• South Carolina softball has made 22 trips to the postseason, a number that started in 1982. The Gamecocks have reached two super regionals and three WCWS. In conference play, Carolina owns two SEC Championships.
• Carolina rolls into the 2021 season with a 45-48 record all-time in those crucial postseason games and a 14-15 mark under Beverly Smith.
• Fans and opponents have become accustomed to seeing the Gamecocks play on Sundays in the postseason. Carolina has reached the regional final four-straight completed years. The Gamecocks are 2-3 in those past five Sunday games.
• A historic trend Carolina will look to change is its record against host schools in regionals. Since 1982, the Gamecocks are just 2-11 against host schools and 0-7 under Smith. On the flip side, South Carolina is 4-2 at home in the postseason under Smith having advanced to just the program’s second super regional in 2018 with two win-or-go-home games against Liberty.

THE GAMECOCKS

• South Carolina comes into the 2021 season looking to build off a 17-6 shorted season highlighted with wins over Ohio State, Iowa State, No. 8 Michigan and No. 12 Georgia.
• The Gamecocks are set to welcome 10 freshmen to the program (Maddie Gallagher, Carlie Henderson, Kylee Gleason, Zoe Laneaux, Aaliyah White, Skylar Trahan, Leah Powell, Carly Robbins, Riley Blampied and Leslie Carroll.
• Carolina will have nine left-handed batters available in the lineup. It had five in 2020, seven in 2019, eight in 2017 and six in 2016. Of the nine left-handed batters, four (Carlie Henderson, Kylee Gleason, Haley Simpson and Aaliyah White) are listed as slap hitters.
• 13 Georgia natives help make up the Gamecock roster. It’s the most from any single state for the 2021 season. For comparison, Georgia has 14 on its 2021 roster while Georgia Tech has 17.

 THIS NEW CLASS… IT’S A 10/10

• South Carolina will have 10 newcomers on the 2021 roster. The group (Maddie Gallagher, Carlie Henderson, Kylee Gleason, Zoe Laneaux, Aaliyah White, Skylar Trahan, Leah Powell, Carly Robbins, Riley Blampied and Chooch Carroll) bring a mix of power and speed to the plate and plenty of versatility defensively.
• Two newcomers (Gallagher and Blampied) bring national team experience with them after playing on the gold winning U-17 squad this past summer.
• The freshmen class is comprised of five infielders, two outfielders, two pitchers and one catcher.
• Majors in the group include pre-business (Gallagher), retailing (Henderson, Laneaux, Trahan, Powell, Blampied and Carroll), exercise science (Gleason), cardiovascular technology (White) and biological science (Robbins).

 GUESS WHO IS BACK… TELL A FRIEND

• They aren’t Slim Shady… but the four 2020 Carolina seniors are back to finish what they started in 2021. Cayla Drotar, Lauren Stewart, Kenzi Maguire and Mackenzie Boesel all announced over the summer they’d be returning.
• With their return, nine of the top-10 individual batting averages from the 2020 season will return for this upcoming year. The returning pitching staff of Bailey Betenbaugh, Drotar, Kelsey Oh and Rachel Vaughan bring back 12 of Carolina’s 17 wins in 2020 (71 percent) and its lone SEC winner in the circle last year (Ochs).
• As a team, Carolina brings back 85 percent of its 2020 runs scored, 86 percent of its hits, 83 percent of its doubles, 85 percent of its home runs and 87 percent of its RBI.
• Boesel returns looking to secure her spot as one of the all-time greats at Carolina. She comes into her final season as one of just five Gamecocks ever to be in the top-10 for 10 or more career offensive records and is on pace to break many of them. Off the field, she’s also a three-time Academic All-American.

 THAT’S… INTERESTING 

• South Carolina will have at least one student-athlete on from the state of California for the 26th-consecutive year dating back to 1994 in 2021. With a signing class that includes two more (Marissa Gonzalez and Emma Sellers), the streak could continue on for three decades.
• Kenzi Maguire’s 2021 season will be her sixth season in Columbia, meaning she’s been here for more than half of the Beverly Smith era (11 years).
• Carlie Henderson won’t be the first in her family to achieve at a high level in sports. Her grandpa, Billy Shaw, played football at Georgia Tech and went on to play offensive line for nine years with the Buffalo Bills before being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999. Her father, Chip, played baseball at Shorter University and has been the baseball head coach at Calhoun High School for 26 years. He’s won more than 600 games with three state titles (and had eight players drafted into MLB).
• Maddie Gallagher has actually played for one of her teammates. Maguire was her assistant coach this past year on Gallagher’s travel ball team. The team was coached by Maguire’s dad, Kevin, and was based out of Tampa, Fla., even though Gallagher lived in Port Washington, N.Y.

 MUST WIN AT HOME! AND THE GAMECOCKS DO

• South Carolina is 183-81 (.665) at home during the Beverly Smith era, which does not include a 4-1 record at home while hosting a regional at Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field.
• The Gamecocks have lost more than 10 games at home in a single season just three times in her ten years.
• Carolina has finished .500 or better at home seven of Beverly Smith’s ten years.
• South Carolina has not lost double digit games at home in seven years and has won 20 or more six of the past seven seasons (2020 included).

 CAROLINA HOSTS TOURNAMENTS… AND WINS A LOT 

• Carolina is an amazing 28-0 over the past six seasons in the Gamecock Invitational.
• The Gamecock pitching staff has shined in the tournaments. In the 28 games during that span, Carolina pitching staffs have allowed three or more runs eight times. On the flip side, nine games have ended as shutouts for South Carolina.
• Including the Carolina Classic and Black & Garnet Challenge the Gamecocks are 51-2 in their past 53 home tournament games. Carolina’s other home tournament loss during that stretch, before Troy in 2020, came in a 4-1 loss to South Alabama way back in 2015.
• South Carolina went 4-0 in the Gamecock Invitational last season, outscoring teams 40-13.

 GAMECOCKS VS. RANKED OPPONENTS

• South Carolina is 142-325-1 (.293) against opponents ranked in the NFCA top 25 since 1995.
• Broken down by site, the Gamecocks are 67-104 (.358) at home, 33-149 (.154) on the road and 43-71-1 (.407) in neutral-site outings.
• During the notable 2018 season, the Gamecocks went 8-14 against ranked teams, including an 8-1 record in home games. The Gamecocks notably swept Tennessee and Mississippi State in home series against ranked teams last year. The Gamecocks also took two of three games against Arkansas, as well.
• Last season, the Gamecocks went 2-5 against ranked foes with wins over Michigan and Georgia.

 
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