Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, March 26
Clarksville, Tenn.
11 a.m.
Eastern Michigan University
at
Austin Peay State
Softball Travels to Clarksville, Tenn. for Three-Game Series
3/25/2011 2:00:21 PM | Softball
The Eagles will face Austin Peay State University in three games over the weekend
Click HERE for Game Notes.
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) — The Eastern Michigan University softball team will be heading to Clarksville, Tenn. this weekend, March 26-27, for a three-game series with the Lady Governors of Austin Peay State University. The Eagles were originally slated to take part in the Lady Govs Classic this weekend, but the Southern University Jaguars dropped out of the event, leaving the Eagles and Lady Governors to switch the format to a three-game series between the two squads.
SCOUTING THE LADY GOVS: The Eastern Michigan University softball team will be heading to Clarksville, Tenn., as the Eagles are slated to face the Lady Governors of Austin Peay State University in a three game series. The Green and White will meet with the Lady Governors for just the second time in school history. APSU holds a 1-0 advantage over the Eagles after taking a 6-1 victory dating back to Feb. 24, 2006.
The Eagles were originally slated to take part in the Lady Govs Classic this weekend, but the Southern University Jaguars dropped out, leaving the Eagles and Lady Governors to switch the format to a three-game series between the two squads.
APSU currently sits at 5-20 overall (1-7 OVC). The Lady Governors are led offensively by Lauren de Castro. The freshman leads the team in batting average with a .288 clip after a 21-for-73 effort at the plate in 24 games played. In the circle, Morgan Brewer (3-8) has held her oppenents to a .287 batting average through 68.1 innings of work. She also leads the staff in ERA (4.00), strike outs (30) and complete games (four).
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Following this weekend's trip to Clarksville, Tenn., the Eagles will have traveled a total of 4,290 miles this season. EMU has already visited Fort Myers, Fla. for a round-trip total of 2,563 miles, in addition to the 676-mile trek to Bloomington, Ind. and back. The Green and White's cruise to the Volunteer State will rack up appoximately 1,050 miles round trip.
ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS: The Eagles made history this past weekend when they defeated Wright State at the Hoosier Classic to boost their overall record to 8-2 on the year. The mark represents the best start in EMU softball history, surpassing the previous 7-2 start dating back to the 1982 campaign. Then Head Coach Ann Johnson led her squad to an overall mark of 27-20 while going 10-8 in the Mid-American Conference.
EMU opened the season at Florida Gulf Coast University's Moe's Blue and Green Invitational and later took part in two doubleheader matchups with both St. Francis (Pa.) and FGCU. The Eagles began the five-game invite with a 6-1 win over UMBC. From there, the Green and White dropped two straight with a 7-0 setback to Iowa and a 5-4 extra-innings loss to Albany. The Eagles would bounce back in dominant fashion, outscoring their opponents 35-10 through six consecutive victories.
On March 18, the Eagles topped the Raiders 9-2 to boost their record to 8-2 overall, setting a new standard for the program. After four games of action at the Hoosier Classic, the Green and White now sit at 9-4, holding the best winning percentage (.692) in the Mid-American Conference.
IN THE RANKS: EMU currently ranks in the top-five of several statistical catagories in the Mid-American Conference. As a team, the Eagles have the highest winning percentage in the MAC (.692). They are also fifth in team batting average (.264) and third in pitching (2.86 ERA).
Individually, sophomore hurler Jenna Ignowski and senior shortstop Stacie Skodinski rank in the top-five in a slew of catagories. Ignowski leads the MAC in ERA (1.14), has the fourth best mark in wins (six) and is tied for third in complete game shutouts with two. She has held her opponents to a meager .179 batting average, representing the third best mark in the conference.
Skodinski leads all hitters in the MAC with a .765 slugging percentage, and currently sits tied for third in on-base percentage (.500). The senior also boasts the fifth best batting average with a .412 clip through twelve games this season.
ON THE HORIZON: After this weekends trip to APSU, the Eagles will head to Detroit on March 29 for a non-conference doubleheader set for 3 p.m. The Green and White will then travel and play two at Northern Illinois for the MAC opening weekend in DeKalb, Ill. on Friday, April 1. EMU then travels to Kalamazoo, Mich. for single games on Saturday, April 2 and Sunday April 3.
THE WINNER'S CIRCLE: The EMU pitching staff has showcased an impressive performance in the circle so far this season. Through 13 games, they have posted a 2.86 ERA in 85.2 innings of work. The Eagle hurlers have held opponents to a .238 batting average while fanning 71 and walking 44. The Green and White also shut out three of its opponents and have held them to just 39 runs compared to EMU's 63.
WELCOME BACK: Head Coach Karen Baird has returned to the helm of the softball program after taking the season off on maternity leave.
In her absence, Assistant Coach Eric Oakley filled in as the interim head coach in 2010 as the Eagles posted a 19-30-1 record. The Green and White narrowly missed their MAC tournament berth despite sweeping Northern Illinois in exciting come-from-behind victories in the final two contests of the year. EMU needed losses by both Buffalo and Bowling Green on the final day of the regular season to secure a postseason appearance, but each squad managed victories to steal the remaining spots for the conference championship tournament.
EAGLES WELCOME NEW ADDITIONS: The Eagles welcome four newcomers in Kayla Kostich, Shaina Peters, Amanda Stanton and Lauren Wells to the 2011 squad and will be looking to make major contributions this season.
Kostich, a Taylor, Mich. native, hails from Cabrini High School where she helped lead her team to a Division III State Championship in 2007 and runner-up finishes in 2008 and 2010. The Miss Softball Candidate also earned All-Catholic League, All-Downriver Dream Team, All-District, and All-State honors her senior season.
Peters will join the Eagles after posting an impressive senior campaign at East Jordan High School. She was a four-year All-Conference athlete for the Devils and helped them to three disctrict championships during
Stanton brings experience as a four-year letterwinner from Rockport High School where she boasted a .400 batting average and .923 fielding
Wells will round out the rookie class. The Lowell, Ind. native broke eight school pitching records for Lowell Senior High School including most wins and most strikeouts for the Red Devils.
MAC POLL: The Eastern Michigan University softball team was picked to finish fifth in the Mid-American Conference West Division in the 2011 MAC Preseason Softball Coaches Poll as released by the conference office. Last year's MAC Tournament Champion Ball State was selected by the coaches to win the MAC West Division followed by Central Michigan, Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan and Toledo. In the East, Miami was picked to win the division as well as the MAC Tournament title in 2011. Ohio was picked second followed by Kent State, Bowling Green, Buffalo, and Akron. The 2011 MAC Softball Tournament will be held at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio May 11-14.
SENIOR LEADERSHIP: Jaclyn Caro, Lauren Delapaz, Jamie Melchert, and Stacie Skodinski will compete for the Eagles one last time in 2011. The senior class will seek their first Mid-American Conference tournament appearance since 2007.
As freshman, Caro, Delapaz, and Skodinski came into a team that was fresh off of the program's first MAC Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament berth. The 2008 season ended sooner than hoped as the Eagles narrowly missed a tournament appearance.
The same fate fell upon the Eagles in both the 2009 and 2010 campaigns as the Green and White made late runs in conference play but fell just short as they were edged out for the final spots in the postseason.
Heading into 2011, the solid core of seniors will look to lead a team that is hungry to return to Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio to make a run for the MAC Championship once again.
CONFERENCE TOUR: The Eagles will see a slew of representatives from several different conferences this season, taking on opponents from nine different leagues in 2011.
EMU will square off against teams from the Horizon League (Cleveland State, Detroit-Mercy, Wright State), Big East (Notre Dame), Atlantic Sun (Florida Gulf Coast, Loyola-Chicago), Summit (IPFW, Oakland), Big Ten (Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State), Northeast (St. Francis Pa.), Southwestern Atlantic (Southern), Ohio Valley (Austin Peay State) and America East (Albany, UMBC). The Eagles will also play an entire slate of MAC foes.
THEY SAY IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY: Five members of the EMU softball team and one member of the coaching staff will celebrate birthdays during the 2011 season.
Jessica Richards (5-2-90) will turn a year older during the season, and Stacie Skodinski (3-31-89) will celebrate her 22nd birthday. Nellie Coquillard will be leaving her teen years behind and turn the big 2-0 (4-13-91), while sophomore Jillian Williamson turns one year older at 21 (4-7-90). EMU freshman Amanda Stanton (4-15-92) will enjoy her 19th birthday this season with a double header against Ball State in March. If the Eagles make it to the NCAA Tournament, assistant coach, Heather Han (5-17-87), will celebrate her birthday during the season as well.
MOVIN' ON UP: Stacie Skodinski and Jaclyn Caro are climbing the ladder in the EMU history books.
Skodinski is currently the leader for EMU's all-time career batting average with a .336 career clip (142-for-423). She also appears in seveal other offensive catagories, including a sixth place mark in career doubles with 33. This puts the senior on pace for 40 which would tie her with her predecessor, Lauren Clark ('07), who currently sits in fourth all-time. Skodinski also boasts 18 career home runs, good for fourth-best on the all-time list.
For Caro, 23 wins in her first three seasons puts her on pace to finish with 31 at the end of her career, which would tie her for fourth place all-time with Heidi Russell ('88) on the EMU list. With 260 strikeouts, she's already sixth on the all-time record, but if she maintains her current pace, she could vault into third with 328 career punchouts by the end of the 2011 campaign.
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) — The Eastern Michigan University softball team will be heading to Clarksville, Tenn. this weekend, March 26-27, for a three-game series with the Lady Governors of Austin Peay State University. The Eagles were originally slated to take part in the Lady Govs Classic this weekend, but the Southern University Jaguars dropped out of the event, leaving the Eagles and Lady Governors to switch the format to a three-game series between the two squads.
SCOUTING THE LADY GOVS: The Eastern Michigan University softball team will be heading to Clarksville, Tenn., as the Eagles are slated to face the Lady Governors of Austin Peay State University in a three game series. The Green and White will meet with the Lady Governors for just the second time in school history. APSU holds a 1-0 advantage over the Eagles after taking a 6-1 victory dating back to Feb. 24, 2006.
The Eagles were originally slated to take part in the Lady Govs Classic this weekend, but the Southern University Jaguars dropped out, leaving the Eagles and Lady Governors to switch the format to a three-game series between the two squads.
APSU currently sits at 5-20 overall (1-7 OVC). The Lady Governors are led offensively by Lauren de Castro. The freshman leads the team in batting average with a .288 clip after a 21-for-73 effort at the plate in 24 games played. In the circle, Morgan Brewer (3-8) has held her oppenents to a .287 batting average through 68.1 innings of work. She also leads the staff in ERA (4.00), strike outs (30) and complete games (four).
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Following this weekend's trip to Clarksville, Tenn., the Eagles will have traveled a total of 4,290 miles this season. EMU has already visited Fort Myers, Fla. for a round-trip total of 2,563 miles, in addition to the 676-mile trek to Bloomington, Ind. and back. The Green and White's cruise to the Volunteer State will rack up appoximately 1,050 miles round trip.
ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS: The Eagles made history this past weekend when they defeated Wright State at the Hoosier Classic to boost their overall record to 8-2 on the year. The mark represents the best start in EMU softball history, surpassing the previous 7-2 start dating back to the 1982 campaign. Then Head Coach Ann Johnson led her squad to an overall mark of 27-20 while going 10-8 in the Mid-American Conference.
EMU opened the season at Florida Gulf Coast University's Moe's Blue and Green Invitational and later took part in two doubleheader matchups with both St. Francis (Pa.) and FGCU. The Eagles began the five-game invite with a 6-1 win over UMBC. From there, the Green and White dropped two straight with a 7-0 setback to Iowa and a 5-4 extra-innings loss to Albany. The Eagles would bounce back in dominant fashion, outscoring their opponents 35-10 through six consecutive victories.
On March 18, the Eagles topped the Raiders 9-2 to boost their record to 8-2 overall, setting a new standard for the program. After four games of action at the Hoosier Classic, the Green and White now sit at 9-4, holding the best winning percentage (.692) in the Mid-American Conference.
IN THE RANKS: EMU currently ranks in the top-five of several statistical catagories in the Mid-American Conference. As a team, the Eagles have the highest winning percentage in the MAC (.692). They are also fifth in team batting average (.264) and third in pitching (2.86 ERA).
Individually, sophomore hurler Jenna Ignowski and senior shortstop Stacie Skodinski rank in the top-five in a slew of catagories. Ignowski leads the MAC in ERA (1.14), has the fourth best mark in wins (six) and is tied for third in complete game shutouts with two. She has held her opponents to a meager .179 batting average, representing the third best mark in the conference.
Skodinski leads all hitters in the MAC with a .765 slugging percentage, and currently sits tied for third in on-base percentage (.500). The senior also boasts the fifth best batting average with a .412 clip through twelve games this season.
ON THE HORIZON: After this weekends trip to APSU, the Eagles will head to Detroit on March 29 for a non-conference doubleheader set for 3 p.m. The Green and White will then travel and play two at Northern Illinois for the MAC opening weekend in DeKalb, Ill. on Friday, April 1. EMU then travels to Kalamazoo, Mich. for single games on Saturday, April 2 and Sunday April 3.
THE WINNER'S CIRCLE: The EMU pitching staff has showcased an impressive performance in the circle so far this season. Through 13 games, they have posted a 2.86 ERA in 85.2 innings of work. The Eagle hurlers have held opponents to a .238 batting average while fanning 71 and walking 44. The Green and White also shut out three of its opponents and have held them to just 39 runs compared to EMU's 63.
WELCOME BACK: Head Coach Karen Baird has returned to the helm of the softball program after taking the season off on maternity leave.
In her absence, Assistant Coach Eric Oakley filled in as the interim head coach in 2010 as the Eagles posted a 19-30-1 record. The Green and White narrowly missed their MAC tournament berth despite sweeping Northern Illinois in exciting come-from-behind victories in the final two contests of the year. EMU needed losses by both Buffalo and Bowling Green on the final day of the regular season to secure a postseason appearance, but each squad managed victories to steal the remaining spots for the conference championship tournament.
EAGLES WELCOME NEW ADDITIONS: The Eagles welcome four newcomers in Kayla Kostich, Shaina Peters, Amanda Stanton and Lauren Wells to the 2011 squad and will be looking to make major contributions this season.
Kostich, a Taylor, Mich. native, hails from Cabrini High School where she helped lead her team to a Division III State Championship in 2007 and runner-up finishes in 2008 and 2010. The Miss Softball Candidate also earned All-Catholic League, All-Downriver Dream Team, All-District, and All-State honors her senior season.
Peters will join the Eagles after posting an impressive senior campaign at East Jordan High School. She was a four-year All-Conference athlete for the Devils and helped them to three disctrict championships during
Stanton brings experience as a four-year letterwinner from Rockport High School where she boasted a .400 batting average and .923 fielding
Wells will round out the rookie class. The Lowell, Ind. native broke eight school pitching records for Lowell Senior High School including most wins and most strikeouts for the Red Devils.
MAC POLL: The Eastern Michigan University softball team was picked to finish fifth in the Mid-American Conference West Division in the 2011 MAC Preseason Softball Coaches Poll as released by the conference office. Last year's MAC Tournament Champion Ball State was selected by the coaches to win the MAC West Division followed by Central Michigan, Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan and Toledo. In the East, Miami was picked to win the division as well as the MAC Tournament title in 2011. Ohio was picked second followed by Kent State, Bowling Green, Buffalo, and Akron. The 2011 MAC Softball Tournament will be held at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio May 11-14.
SENIOR LEADERSHIP: Jaclyn Caro, Lauren Delapaz, Jamie Melchert, and Stacie Skodinski will compete for the Eagles one last time in 2011. The senior class will seek their first Mid-American Conference tournament appearance since 2007.
As freshman, Caro, Delapaz, and Skodinski came into a team that was fresh off of the program's first MAC Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament berth. The 2008 season ended sooner than hoped as the Eagles narrowly missed a tournament appearance.
The same fate fell upon the Eagles in both the 2009 and 2010 campaigns as the Green and White made late runs in conference play but fell just short as they were edged out for the final spots in the postseason.
Heading into 2011, the solid core of seniors will look to lead a team that is hungry to return to Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio to make a run for the MAC Championship once again.
CONFERENCE TOUR: The Eagles will see a slew of representatives from several different conferences this season, taking on opponents from nine different leagues in 2011.
EMU will square off against teams from the Horizon League (Cleveland State, Detroit-Mercy, Wright State), Big East (Notre Dame), Atlantic Sun (Florida Gulf Coast, Loyola-Chicago), Summit (IPFW, Oakland), Big Ten (Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State), Northeast (St. Francis Pa.), Southwestern Atlantic (Southern), Ohio Valley (Austin Peay State) and America East (Albany, UMBC). The Eagles will also play an entire slate of MAC foes.
THEY SAY IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY: Five members of the EMU softball team and one member of the coaching staff will celebrate birthdays during the 2011 season.
Jessica Richards (5-2-90) will turn a year older during the season, and Stacie Skodinski (3-31-89) will celebrate her 22nd birthday. Nellie Coquillard will be leaving her teen years behind and turn the big 2-0 (4-13-91), while sophomore Jillian Williamson turns one year older at 21 (4-7-90). EMU freshman Amanda Stanton (4-15-92) will enjoy her 19th birthday this season with a double header against Ball State in March. If the Eagles make it to the NCAA Tournament, assistant coach, Heather Han (5-17-87), will celebrate her birthday during the season as well.
MOVIN' ON UP: Stacie Skodinski and Jaclyn Caro are climbing the ladder in the EMU history books.
Skodinski is currently the leader for EMU's all-time career batting average with a .336 career clip (142-for-423). She also appears in seveal other offensive catagories, including a sixth place mark in career doubles with 33. This puts the senior on pace for 40 which would tie her with her predecessor, Lauren Clark ('07), who currently sits in fourth all-time. Skodinski also boasts 18 career home runs, good for fourth-best on the all-time list.
For Caro, 23 wins in her first three seasons puts her on pace to finish with 31 at the end of her career, which would tie her for fourth place all-time with Heidi Russell ('88) on the EMU list. With 260 strikeouts, she's already sixth on the all-time record, but if she maintains her current pace, she could vault into third with 328 career punchouts by the end of the 2011 campaign.
Thank You, Team 38
Monday, May 07
Overcoming Adversity: A Lauren Holdsworth Feature
Saturday, February 24
Closing Out a Legacy: Michelle Kriegshauser
Thursday, May 18
EMU Softball Signs Alyssa Feiler
Saturday, March 25