Bucknell University Athletics
Softball Heads Back to North Carolina for Five Games at UNCW Invitational
2/25/2016 5:35:00 PM | Softball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell softball team returns to North Carolina for five more games this weekend as it travels to Wilmington to play in the UNCW Invitational on Feb. 26-28. The Bison will play three games against the host Seahawks, including their tournament opener on Friday at 6 p.m., and two games against North Carolina Central.
The Bison are 2-3 after opening the season with five games at the ECU Pirate Clash in Greenville, North Carolina last weekend. They opened the tournament with wins over Saint Francis and the host East Carolina team, but then lost two games to the Pirates and one to UMass. Two of the three losses came by just one run, including a 1-0 loss to the ECU in the final game.
Bucknell had numerous individual performances during the opening weekend worth noting. To call sophomore Meghan Kovac a tough out at the tournament would be an understatement. She earned Patriot League Player of the Week recognition after going 11-for-16 at the plate with two doubles and a home run. She added two walks to reach base in 13 of her 18 plate appearances. Kovac started the event with hits in eight of her first nine at-bats.
Senior Amanda Fazio also picked up a weekly award from the conference, receiving the Patriot League Pitcher of the Week accolade. She went 1-2, with both losses coming by just one run, posting a 1.84 ERA while pitching 19 innings. She struck out 15 batters and walked just four.
In addition to the two weekly awards Bucknell did win, it had another player that was a strong contender to earn the team a third honor. Freshman Lauren Hadley had an outstanding start to her collegiate career. She ranks third on the team with a .353 average, going 6-for-17 over the first five games. That included a 4-for-4 performance in a win on the first day.
Following this weekend's event, the Bison will travel to Delaware for four games at the Blue Hen Blast on March 5-6. They won't play their first home game until they open conference play with three games against Holy Cross on March 26-27.
vs. UNCW | Friday, 6 p.m. | Saturday, 12:30 p.m. | Sunday, 12:30 p.m.
- UNCW is 7-2 to start the season, including a 3-1 record against Patriot League opponents. The Seahawks went 1-1 against Army West Point and 2-0 against Lafayette.
- UNCW and Bucknell have one common opponent this season, which is Saint Francis. The Seahawks lost their season-opening game to the Red Flash 11-0, while Bucknell won its season-opener over the Red Flash 5-3.
- The Seahawks are riding a five-game winning streak, including a 4-0 victory over Delaware State in their most recent game.
- Kali Jones leads UNCW offensively with a .611 average. She is 11-for-18 with nine runs scored and is a perfect 5-for-5 on stolen base attempts.
- UNCW has two pitchers with a sub-1.00 ERA early in the season. Haley Lenderman is 3-0 with 0.35 ERA in five appearances, while Sarah Davis is 2-0 with a 0.93 ERA in three appearances.
- Bucknell trails 1-5 in the all-time series.
vs. North Carolina Central | Saturday, 3 p.m. | Sunday, 10 a.m.
- North Carolina Central is 0-7 to start the season, including shutout losses to Oakland, Kent State and USC Upstate in its three most recent games.
- Dominique Wilson leads the Eagles offensively with a .313 average. She is 5-for-16 with a pair of doubles. They are hitting .139 as a team.
- Bucknell is a perfect 2-0 in the all-time series with North Carolina Central.
