Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Softball Wraps Up Early-Season Tournament Play at Mount St. Mary's this Weekend
3/25/2011 8:00:00 AM | Softball
March 25, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell softball had started to pick up steam when the Rebel Spring Games ended a week ago, and the Bison are hoping that momentum carries into their next tournament when they head to Emmitsburg, Md., for the Mount St. Mary's Tournament March 26-27. Bucknell (5-17) will have a second go-round with Cornell, while also meeting with the host Mountaineers. Live stats for games with Mount St. Mary's will be available at mountathletics.com.
MOUNT ST. MARY'S TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Saturday, March 26
11:30 a.m. - Mount St. Mary's vs. Cornell
1:30 p.m. - Mount St. Mary's vs. Bucknell
3:30 p.m. - Bucknell vs. Cornell
Sunday, March 27
9 a.m. -Cornell at Mount St. Mary's
11 a.m. - Bucknell vs. Cornell
1 p.m. - Bucknell at Mount St. Mary's
ABOUT THE BISON
- Bucknell had a busy stretch last week, playing 13 games in nine days. The Bison went 4-9 during that time with victories over George Mason and Cornell at the Mason Invitational, and St. Peter's and Hartford at the Rebel Spring Games in Orlando, Fla.
- In eight contests at the Rebel Spring Games, Alison Ford (Suisun City, Calif./Fairfield) hit a team-best .429 (12-28). The senior had a .250 average at the plate heading into the Mason Invitational, but the performance has boosted that to .357 to lead the Bison so far this season. Ford has registered at least one hit in 14 of her last 15 games, a major turnaround after hitting 1-for-19 in her first seven outings.
- Ford was not the only Bison who started to find her swing in Florida. Elyse Colmenero (Fresno, Calif./Central) was .412 (7-17) at the plate, while Courtney Conover (Ocean Township, N.J./Ocean Township) hit .364 (4-11). Conover currently has a four-game hitting streak, which started with her first career hit against Akron. The freshman also recorded the first RBI of her career opposite the Zips on March 16.
- Bucknell closed out the Mason Invitational with back-to-back wins over Cornell and George Mason. Bridget Gates (Milford, Conn./Academy of Our Lady of Mercy Lauralton Hall) pitched the 4-1 win over the Big Red, and earlier in the tournament, the sophomore did not allow an earned run in Bucknell's 1-0 loss to Binghamton. Gates' performance that weekend, which also included a then-season-high five strikeouts against the Bearcats, earned her the title of the Patriot League Pitcher of the Week on March 14. It was Bucknell's first citation from the league this season.
- Nearly a week after being named the Patriot League's top pitcher, Gates recorded her 100th career strikeout. She now has 102 in just over a year with the Orange and Blue, having reached the milestone against Fairleigh Dickinson on March 19. Gates had five strikeouts against the Knights.
- Sophia Geraci (East Moriches, N.Y./Westhampton Beach) grabbed a handful of firsts when Bucknell defeated Hartford 3-1 in the final game of the Rebel Spring Games. After singling in the Bison's season opener against James Madison, the freshman had failed to reach base in her next dozen games. That changed against the Hawks when she went 3-for-3 at the plate with a double and two runs batted in. With the performance, Geraci recorded her first career multi-hit game, extra-base hit and RBI.
- The record watch continues for several Bison. Jessie Snyder (Tacoma, Wash./Stadium) moved into the top-10 in career games played and is currently tied for 10th with Jenny Snyder (no relation) with 166 appearances. Lauren Fry (South Plainfield, N.J./South Plainfield) moved into a tie for ninth in career hits, equaling former teammate Mary Pavlovich's 150. Fry is also fourth in career runs scored (99) and fifth in career doubles (33). Sophomore Alex MacLean (Northampton, Pa./Northampton Area) climbed into sixth all-time at Bucknell with 147 career strikeouts.
ABOUT THE MOUNTAINEERS
- Mount St. Mary's enters its tournament with an 8-9 record this spring. The Mountaineers have been alternating wins and losses for some time. They have recorded consecutive wins just once so far, getting three in a row off UMBC, Iona and Georgia Southern the first week in March.
- At the top of the team's list in batting average are seniors Jenna Zimmerman (.310) and Beth Everist (.308). Everist also leads the team in hits with 16 and RBI with 13. Sophomore pitcher Nicole Pagano is 5-5 on the year with a 2.19 ERA. She has 52 of the team's 84 strikeouts, while opponents are batting .246 against her.
- In 2010, Mount St. Mary's posted a 25-25 record overall with a 7-12 mark in the Northeast Conference. It was just the second time since the Mountaineers went Division I and the sixth time in program history that they finished .500 or better. Current junior Liz Christiansen was named the NEC Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-NEC at first base. Classmate Taylor Beebe was also a second team honoree at shortstop.
- Bucknell has a commanding 22-7 lead over Mount St. Mary's in the all-time series. The Bison swept the doubleheader last season, 11-4 in game one and 8-0 in five innings in the nightcap. In the two contests, Bucknell recorded 13 extra-base hits, including two home runs. Fry was 3-for-4 at the plate with four runs and two RBI. She finished the day with two doubles and a triple. Recent graduate Shelly McCormack was 3-for-6 at the plate with each of her hits going down as doubles. Ford was also 4-for-7 with four RBI in the two games.
- The meeting in 2010 was the teams' first since 2004. Bucknell and Mount St. Mary's split that doubleheader, but Angela Stackhouse closed out the series having set the program single-season record for runs batted in with 35.
ABOUT THE BIG RED
- Cornell is 6-10-1 overall this spring, although the Big Red will play a doubleheader at Longwood before making the trip to Mount St. Mary's this weekend. In its two most recent series, Cornell was swept by Virginia Tech with both games ending in five innings. The Big Red then spit with Liberty, winning 10-6 and falling 9-1 in six frames.
- Marissa Amiraian is batting a team-best .375 (21-56) with 10 runs scored, which also leads the Big Red. Kristen Towne has claimed her share of team-leading marks as well with 13 RBI and five home runs, one of which came off Bucknell two Saturdays ago. Elizabeth Dalrymple continues to be strong in the circle for Cornell. Despite having just a 3-3 record, the pitcher has a 0.77 ERA, 57 strikeouts to her 11 walks allowed and a .189 opponent batting average.
- Bucknell and Cornell should be very familiar with each other after this weekend. The squads squared off March 12-13 at the Mason Invitational and split decisions. After playing each other just eight times since 1994, the Bison and Big Red will face off four times in a two-week span. Bucknell leads in the all-time series, 7-3.
- Earlier this year, Cornell took the opening contest against Bucknell 3-0 as Dalrymple gave up a mere two hits and struck out 12 batters in 7.0 innings. It took some time for either team to get some base runners in action as Dalrymple and MacLean combined for 15 strikeouts through the first four innings. The second game went more in Bucknell's favor, giving the Bison a 4-1 victory. Three Bison finished with multiple hits, including Ford who was 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles. Gates allowed just one run on five hits but did not strike out a batter.
- In the two games against Cornell, Ford hit .429 with three doubles and a .857 slugging percentage. Gates was 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA and a .185 opponent batting average. MacLean was 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA while limiting opposing batters to a .200 average.
LOOKING AHEAD
Bucknell will finally make its first appearance at home when it returns after the tournament at Mount St. Mary's. The Bison host Drexel in a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. on March 30. The contest will be the first at the newly refurbished and renamed Charles and Karen Becker Field. The official field dedication is scheduled for Saturday, April 2 when Bucknell opens Patriot League play against Lehigh.
