Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Saturday, April 30
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
1PM
Middle Tennessee
vs
Charlotte
Raiders to hold final home series of season
4/29/2016 9:00:00 AM | Softball
MT hosts Charlotte with an opportunity to gain ground in conference race
MURFREESBORO – The Blue Raiders will open their final home series Saturday when they take on the Charlotte 49ers at Blue Raider Softball Field.
Saturday's double header was originally scheduled for a 2 p.m. start, but since bad weather is expected, first pitch has been moved up to 1 p.m. Be sure to check goblueraiders.com and @MT_Softball on twitter for more updates when available.
Middle Tennessee is currently in last place in the East Division with a 6-12 conference record. But with the new format for the Conference USA tournament that guarantees the top three teams from each division a tournament spot, the Raiders are just 2.5 games behind WKU for the final guaranteed East Division spot. MT is also just three games behind UTSA for the final wild card position and hold the tiebreaker over the Roadrunners.
Charlotte comes into the weekend 5-5 in their last 10 games. The 49ers beat UNCG their last time out Tuesday, but like so many others, were swept by Florida Atlantic in their last C-USA series over the weekend. After a 2-7 start to conference play, however, Charlotte won five of their next six including a three-game sweep of Marshall to get back in the conference race.
Lexi Betancourt and Haley Wiseman have been great in the circle for the 49ers all year as they're both top 11 in C-USA in ERA. Betancourt is sixth with a 2.66 mark and Wiseman's ERA sits at 3.17, good enough for 11th in the conference. Betancourt and Wiseman are both third and fourth in C-USA in strikeouts respectively. Betancourt's 165 and Wiseman's 142 are just behind Jordan Dixon of Marshall and Kylee Hanson of Florida Atlantic, two of the most dominant pitchers the Raiders have faced this season. It's also tough to get either out of the circle as Betancourt is second in C-USA with 202.2 innings pitched.
Haley Pace has been pacing Charlotte from the plate this season as her .329 batting average leads the team. Pace also leads the 49ers with seven home runs and 37 RBIs with her RBI total also good enough for seventh in the conference. Middle Tennessee will have to be on their best game from the circle as the 49ers have five players hitting either at or better than .300 on the year.
Middle Tennessee has struggled over the last week and half as they're coming into the weekend on a five-game losing streak. They won two of their first three conference series to start 4-5 on the season, but have won just two conference games since going 2-7 in their last nine contests.
Precious Birdsong still leads the team with a .344 batting average and her 54 hits are 17 more than anyone else on the team. Birdsong has scored 42 runs, tied for third in C-USA and her 33 stolen bases are second in the conference.
Carlie Jenkins has come on strong lately as well as her .310 average is second on the team. Jenkins has shown good patience at the plate, drawing 15 walks season and has been a bit of a magnet as she's been hit by 11 pitches, third most in C-USA. Jenkins also has three triples on the year which is tied for second most in the conference.
The Raiders have struggled in the circle over the last few games, but Kelci Cheney is still the club leader with a 3.55 ERA and a 14-13 record. Pattie Taylor has been racking up the bullpen appearances as she's up to 23 now on the season. Taylor has a 3.96 ERA and a 5-5 record with two saves. The Raiders other starter this season has been Megan Chocallo as she is 4-6 in 10 starts with a 4.93 ERA.
Sunday's game is currently scheduled for a noon start as the Raiders will be celebrating their four seniors on Senior Day. Cheney, Jenkins, Randi Cookus and Megan Griffith have all played a huge role in the softball program and their final home game will be Sunday. The game is scheduled for noon, but with the possibility of bad weather throughout the weekend, be sure to check goblueraiders.com or @MT_Softball on twitter for updates about possible schedule changes.
Saturday's double header was originally scheduled for a 2 p.m. start, but since bad weather is expected, first pitch has been moved up to 1 p.m. Be sure to check goblueraiders.com and @MT_Softball on twitter for more updates when available.
Middle Tennessee is currently in last place in the East Division with a 6-12 conference record. But with the new format for the Conference USA tournament that guarantees the top three teams from each division a tournament spot, the Raiders are just 2.5 games behind WKU for the final guaranteed East Division spot. MT is also just three games behind UTSA for the final wild card position and hold the tiebreaker over the Roadrunners.
Charlotte comes into the weekend 5-5 in their last 10 games. The 49ers beat UNCG their last time out Tuesday, but like so many others, were swept by Florida Atlantic in their last C-USA series over the weekend. After a 2-7 start to conference play, however, Charlotte won five of their next six including a three-game sweep of Marshall to get back in the conference race.
Lexi Betancourt and Haley Wiseman have been great in the circle for the 49ers all year as they're both top 11 in C-USA in ERA. Betancourt is sixth with a 2.66 mark and Wiseman's ERA sits at 3.17, good enough for 11th in the conference. Betancourt and Wiseman are both third and fourth in C-USA in strikeouts respectively. Betancourt's 165 and Wiseman's 142 are just behind Jordan Dixon of Marshall and Kylee Hanson of Florida Atlantic, two of the most dominant pitchers the Raiders have faced this season. It's also tough to get either out of the circle as Betancourt is second in C-USA with 202.2 innings pitched.
Haley Pace has been pacing Charlotte from the plate this season as her .329 batting average leads the team. Pace also leads the 49ers with seven home runs and 37 RBIs with her RBI total also good enough for seventh in the conference. Middle Tennessee will have to be on their best game from the circle as the 49ers have five players hitting either at or better than .300 on the year.
Middle Tennessee has struggled over the last week and half as they're coming into the weekend on a five-game losing streak. They won two of their first three conference series to start 4-5 on the season, but have won just two conference games since going 2-7 in their last nine contests.
Precious Birdsong still leads the team with a .344 batting average and her 54 hits are 17 more than anyone else on the team. Birdsong has scored 42 runs, tied for third in C-USA and her 33 stolen bases are second in the conference.
Carlie Jenkins has come on strong lately as well as her .310 average is second on the team. Jenkins has shown good patience at the plate, drawing 15 walks season and has been a bit of a magnet as she's been hit by 11 pitches, third most in C-USA. Jenkins also has three triples on the year which is tied for second most in the conference.
The Raiders have struggled in the circle over the last few games, but Kelci Cheney is still the club leader with a 3.55 ERA and a 14-13 record. Pattie Taylor has been racking up the bullpen appearances as she's up to 23 now on the season. Taylor has a 3.96 ERA and a 5-5 record with two saves. The Raiders other starter this season has been Megan Chocallo as she is 4-6 in 10 starts with a 4.93 ERA.
Sunday's game is currently scheduled for a noon start as the Raiders will be celebrating their four seniors on Senior Day. Cheney, Jenkins, Randi Cookus and Megan Griffith have all played a huge role in the softball program and their final home game will be Sunday. The game is scheduled for noon, but with the possibility of bad weather throughout the weekend, be sure to check goblueraiders.com or @MT_Softball on twitter for updates about possible schedule changes.
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
1B/OF
/ Softball
P
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