MELBOURNE, Fla. --- For the second time in three years, the MIssissippi College softball team will head to the NCAA Division II South Regional, entering as the #7 seed for the tournament being played in Melbourne, Fla. at Nancy Bottge Field. The Lady Choctaws (38-14) will face the host school, Florida Tech (39-10) at 12:00 p.m. (CT) on Thursday.
Â
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
TIME: Thursday, May 9 - Saturday, May 11
LOCATION: Melbourne, Fla. || Nancy Bottge Field
Â
QUICK HITTERS
This is MC's 5th NCAA Tournament appearance overall, making three trips (2007, 2010, 2011) while in Division III and the American Southwest Conference. The Lady Choctaws went to the 2017 regional after winning the Gulf South Conference championship. MC was the #4 seed in the South Region that season, going 1-2 with a win over Claflin and a pair of losses to Valdosta State.
The four-team, double-elimination regional also features #3 UAH and #6 Saint Leo. Those two teams will play at 2:30 p.m. (CT) on Thursday. #2 Florida Tech and Saint Leo are from the Sunshine State Conference, while UAH is a fellow GSC member. FIT won the regular season title in the SSC, while SLU finished 4th.
Â
HOW WE'VE DONE AGAINST THE FIELD
The Lady Choctaws will face #2 Florida Tech for the first time in program history when they play in Thursday's regional opener.
MC and #3 UAH have played 12 times with the Chargers holding a 7-5 edge in the all-time series. They faced off just once this season with UAH picking up a 7-2 victory in the GSC Tournament and eliminating MC from contention. However, when the Lady Choctaws won the 2017 GSC Championship, they did so with an 18-5 victory over UAH in Huntsville.
MC and #6 Saint Leo have played just once and that came earlier this season in Gulf Shores, Ala. The Lions picked up a come-from-behind 4-1 victory over the Lady Choctaws, handing MC their first loss for the season.
Â
#2 FLORIDA TECH PANTHERS (39-10, 23-7 Sunshine State Conference)
ROSTERÂ ||Â SCHEDULEÂ ||Â STATS
The Panthers, out of Melbourne, Fla., come into the NCAA Division II Softball Tournament as the #2 seed in the South Regional, making their first appearance in the D-II Tournament since 2015 when they were eliminated by Shorter in the Super Regional round. FIT won the 2019 Sunshine State Conference regular season championship, with a record of 23-7 in league play, finishing one game ahead of Tampa in the standings. The SSC does not play a postseason conference tournament.
Led by 9th-year head coach Val Silvestrini, the Panthers have won nine straight games heading into the NCAA Tournament, sweeping SSC series from Nova Southeastern, Florida Southern and Eckerd. FIT defeated GSC opponents Lee and West Florida earlier this season but dropped 2-of-3 games to Saint Leo to open league play. Four Panthers earned First Team All-SSC honors in 2019 (Shany Emerenciana, Jordan Kline, Melanie Murphy and Mikayla Wessel).
The Panthers finished 2nd in the SSC in fielding percentage (.971) and were third in earned run average (1.71), holding opponents to just a .210 batting average. They also finished 4th in the league in batting average (.278) but led the SSC in runs scored (229) and were second in stolen bases (99).
Wessel (.364) has the team's top batting average this season, followed closely by Emerenciana (.328), who had a team-high four triples. Xiarysse Emerenciana (.291) led the squad in runs scored (41) and stolen bases (37), whlie Tina Velazquez Rolon (.283) had a team-high five home runs.
Murphy (22-5, 1.52 ERA) has tossed 189.0 innings in 2019, compiling 18 complete games and six shutouts with 129 strikeouts and just 32 walks. Jordan Lawlis (7-2, 1.53 ERA) and Velazquez Rolon (10-3, 2.27 ERA) have combined for 108 strikeouts in 150.1 innings this season.
Â
#3 UAH CHARGERS (38-15, 21-8 Gulf South Conference)
ROSTERÂ ||Â SCHEDULEÂ ||Â STATS
The Chargers, out of Huntsville, Ala., come into the NCAA Division II Softball Teournament as the #3 seed in the South Regional, making their 17th straight trip to the D-II Tournament. UAH finished 2nd in the Gulf South Conference regular season standings and went 1-2 in the GSC Tournament in Pensacola, Fla. After an extra-innings loss to Union in the opener, UAH eliminated MC before bowing out to West Alabama in an elimination game.
Led by 24th-year head coach Les Stuedeman, the only coach in school history, the Chargers won 19-of-21 games through the middle of the season and won all but one GSC series in 2019, inlcuding sweeping #1 West Florida by a count of 19-3 over two games. Four UAH players earned First Team All-GSC honors (Kiara Akles, Shelby Booker, Ashley Cornell and Amber Hammonds).
The Chargers were the top hiiting team in the Gulf South Conference in 2019, posting batting average of .346 and leading the league in runs scored (.424) and doubles (101) while sitting 2nd in home runs (54). UAH finished 5th in the league in earned run average (3.34) and were 7th in fielding percentage (.956).
Booker (.447) posted the top batting average in the conference and stole 42-of-44 bases with a team-high 58 runs scored and 76 hits. Cornell (.419) was second on the team in runs (50) and hits (62), while Jada Hayes (.331) led the squad with 51 RBI and 12 doubles. Shannon Long (.302) had a team-best 10 home runs, followed closely by Akles (.366) with nine.
Three different pitchers have thrown at least 82.0 innings for the Chargers, led by Layton Murphy (11-7, 3.74 ERA) with 95.1 innings pitched. She is tied for the team-lead with Sydnee Uhlman (9-4, 2.74 ERA) with 55 strikeouts, followed closely by Akles (11-1, 3.66 ERA).
Â
#6 SAINT LEO LIONS (31-16, 20-10 Sunshine State Conference)
ROSTERÂ ||Â SCHEDULEÂ ||Â STATS
The Lions, out of Saint Leo, Fla., come into the NCAA Division II Softball Tournament as the #6 seed in the South Regional, making their 4th straight trip to the D-II Tournament and looking for their 2nd straight trip to the World Series. They finished tied for 3rd with Rollins in the 2019 Sunshine State Conference regular season standings, posting a record of 20-10 in league play. The SSC does not play a postseason conference tournament.
Led by 5th-year head coach Erin Kinberger, the Lions turned things on in March, winning 14-of-16 games and 18-of-21 before dropping 2-of-3 to Tampa in the final regular season series of the year. SLU went 3-4 against GSC schools this season, grabbing wins over MC, UAH and Lee. They also won 2-of-3 in a road series against Florida Tech earlier this season.
The Lions posted the 3rd-best batting average (.280) in the conference and also ranked 3rd in runs scored (216). They also ranked 5th in the league in earned run average (2.10) and fielding percentage (.963). Kacie Kelly earned First Team All-SSC honors, while Kendyl Crean, Shyanne DuBois and Sarah Pauscher were Second Team.
Kelly (.378) has the top batting average on the team, leading the way with 54 hits and 35 runs scored. DuBois (.336) tallied a team-high 11 doubles and 28 stolen bases, while Pauscher (.326) led the squad with five triples. Crean (.281) leads the team in RBI (35) and home runs (7).
Auria Mounts (12-7, 1.65 ERA) leads the team in innings pitched (123.1) and strikeouts (78) and picked up a complete game victory over the Lady Choctaws earlier this season. Three other Lions have tossed at least 59.0 innings this season, with Sadi Avants (8-2, 2.31 ERA) is second on the team in appearances (24) and Rachel Bean (7-5, 3.36 ERA) has 13 starts. Sara Neuman (4-2, 1.29 ERA) leads the team in earned run average this season.
Â
#7 MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE CHOCTAWS (38-14, 19-9 Gulf South Conference)
ROSTERÂ ||Â SCHEDULEÂ ||Â STATS
The Lady Choctaws, out of Clinton, Miss., come into the NCAA Division II Softball Tournament as the #7 seed in the South Regional, making their second-ever appearance in the D-II Tournament and fifth NCAA Tournament appearance overall. MC finished 3rd in the Gulf South Conference regular season standings but were eliminated after two games in the tournament. The Lady Choctaws fell to West Georgia in the opener and were knocked out by UAH.
Led by 13th-year head coach
Brooke O'Hair, the 2019 season has featured three winning streaks of at least eight games for the Lady Choctaws, including a season-high nine straight in March. MC went 13-2 in the month of April, picking up series sweeps of Christian Brothers and Shorter. Senior
Cori Cooper was named GSC Pitcher of the Year and was joined by four other Lady Choctaws on All-GSC Teams (
Morgan Bradford,
Carly Crawford,
Hannah Creel and
Annemarie Peavy).
The Lady Choctaws finished 2nd in the GSC in earned run average (2.04) and were one of just two teams with over 300 strikeouts, piling up an MC single-season record with 320. MC ranked 4th in the league in batting average (.299) and doubles (83), also ranking 2nd with 139 stolen bases.
Freshman
Annemarie Peavy (.347) was the team's top hitter this season, pacing the squad in average, slugging percentage (.618) and on-base percentage (.457). She's also second on the team in doubles (13), home runs (6) and RBI (35). Junior
Carly Crawford (.324) is the team-leader in doubles (14), home runs (7) and RBI (39), while junior
Shayla McKissock (.341) has a team-best 38 runs scored and is 21-of-24 on stolen bases.
Cooper (13-8, 1.52 ERA) and Creel (16-5, 2.27 ERA) have led the pitching staff in 2019. Cooper leads the league in strikeouts per game (9.4) and shutouts (6) while earning All-GSC honors for the second straight year, holding opponents to just a .189 batting average. Creel leads the team in innings pitched (145.0) and complete games (15).
Â
Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2016-17 academic year.
The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.
For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contactÂ
David Nichols at 601-925-3234 orÂ
nichols@mc.edu.Â
#MC#
