5/19/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
COASTAL CAROLINA ELIMINATED BY GARDNER-WEBB IN BIG SOUTH TOURNAMENT: For the second time in the past three contests, the Chanticleers surrendered eight runs in the first inning against the Runnin’ Bulldogs, digging themselves a massive hole early in the contest. Much like the Liberty contest on May 2, the Chants began to chip away at the Bulldog lead little by little with a run in the second and a pair in the third. However, in the Runnin’ Bulldog third, Gardner-Webb plated four runs to stretch the lead to 12-3. Coastal Carolina made the game closer with five runs in the fourth, but ultimately fell by the final tally of 12-8, ending the Chanticleer season as well as Head Coach Jess Dannelly’s career with 669 victories. In game one of the tournament against Liberty, the Lady Flames defeated the Chants 4-2 to sweep the season series. The contest was knotted 2-2 in the fourth, but a two-run Liberty fifth pushed the score to 4-2 in favor of the Lady Flames and sent the Chants into the losers bracket.
TRIO NAMED TO ALL-BIG SOUTH SECOND TEAM: The trio of Kelsey Riffel, Michelle Evans and Mecaela Ballard were all named to the All-Big South Second Team for their performance this season. Riffel truly had a career year this season, as she senior has boosted her average 85 points after hitting .213 as a junior and .116 as a sophomore. She ended her season second on the team in batting average (.297) and is third in hits (43) as well as steals with seven. Riffel also showed that she is a true team player this season, making the move from the outfield, where she played her first three seasons, to second base. Additionally, Riffel was named to the Big South All-Academic Team for earning a 3.86 GPA in biology. Evans led the team in batting average (.331), ranking her 11th in the Big South in the stat. The sophomore, who split team between pitcher and designated player last season, also leads the team in hits with 51 and is tied for the lead with four home runs. Evans moved to third base at the beginning of the season, and held down the hot corner for the Chants with a .949 fielding percentage. She has had the longest hit streak of the season for the Chants (seven games) and has had 11 multi-hit games and four multi-RBI games. Ballard has been a mainstay for the Chants this season in the leadoff spot as well as centerfield. The slap hitter is fifth in the conference with 12 steals on the season, and had a career-high three RBI against College of Charleston on April 15. She leads the team in multiple hit contests this season with 13.
LONG TIME COMING; SNELLINGS BLASTS FIRST-CAREER LONG BALL IN BIG SOUTH TOURNAMENT: It took freshman Stacy Snellings 120 at-bats to hit her first home run of the season, a two-run blast in the third inning against Gardner-Webb in game two of the Big South Tournament. The freshman walk-on had a whirlwind of a campaign, as she went from designated player, to the bench for a short period of time, to the teams clean-up batter for the remainder of the season. The freshman from Richmond also displayed a superb eye at the plate, as she led the conference in walks with 35 and led the team in on base percentage with a .435 clip.
FREDERICK EARNS ACADEMIC HONOR: Junior pitcher Ashley Frederick earned CoSIDA Academic All-District III Second Team honors, as she held a 3.96 GPA in finance. The mark was the highest on the 10 athletes named to the Second Team. She is one of three Big South athletes named to the squad, as Winthrop’s Lisa Kingsmore was named to the First Team, while fellow pitcher, Kellie Snooks of Radford was named to the Second Team.
I’M WALKIN’, YES INDEED: Only a freshman, left fielder Stacy Snellings showed a superb batters eye at the dish in her initial campaign for the Chanticleers this season, as she led the conference in walks with 35. On a national level, the Richmond, Va. native ranked in the top-35 in the country in the statistic, as she averaged .67 walks per game.
GIVE IT UP FOR BIRNBAUM: For the second-consecutive season, senior Brittany Birnbaum led the conference in sacrifices. Last season, she ranked towards the top of nation in the state, while this season she had 14 to lead the Big South and rank in the top-30 in the nation.
OPPONENTS IN NCAA REGIONALS: Four opponents from this season’s slate made it to the NCAA Tournament this season. Florida ended the season as the No.1 team in the country, while Missouri (No. 12) and North Carolina (No. 15) also ended the season ranked. Radford will enter the tournament unranked and will represent the Big South after capturing the automatic bid by winning the Big South Tournament.
COASTAL CAROLINA SWEPT BY LADY FLAMES: The Chants were defeated by the Lady Flames 8-1 on Friday, in a contest where Liberty scored three runs in the first inning to take the early lead. Falling behind early became a common theme for Coastal Carolina, as the Lady Flames outscored Coastal Carolina 14-2 in the first inning in the three game set. After an 8-3 loss in game one on Saturday, the Chants turned in the most exciting contest of the weekend in game three. Liberty scored eight runs in the top of the first inning, and held an eight 8-1 lead after one full inning. However, the Chants roared back in the second, posting a season-high seven runs in the second frame to knot the contest at 8-8. After three full innings, the score was tied up at 9-9, but Liberty scored a pair of runs in the fifth to take the 11-9 lead, and cruised on to a game three victory as well as the series sweep.
FINAL STOP OF THE JESS DANNELLY FAREWELL TOUR: Since taking over the young program in 1988, he has led the Chanticleers to five Big South championships, as well as trips to the 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2006 NCAA Regionals. He will leave Coastal Carolina as the winningest all-time coach in any sport currently with 669 career victories, ranking him 43rd in NCAA history in career victories, all coming with the Chanticleers. Entering the Big South Tournament, he holds the Big South All-Time record in wins with 179 victories. He has coached 20 Chants to NCAA All-Region honors, 92 athletes to All-Big South honors, and 63 players to Big South All-Tournament honors, and has been named Big South Coach of the Year on five occasions. He has also coached Sara Graziano, whose .589 batting average in 1994 still sits as the top mark in NCAA history. He was honored between games one and two of the doubleheader against Liberty on Saturday, where nearly 30 former players were on hand to bid farewell to the long-time head coach.
SENIOR SWAN SONG: Saturday marked the final home game from Coastal Carolina’s lone seniors, second baseman Kelsey Riffel and first baseman Brittany Birnbaum. This season, Riffel, the Wichita, Kansas native moved to second base and was more than up to the challenge, having a career year at the plate this season. Entering today’s game, Riffel is second on the team with a .302 batting average, which is 121 points better than her career average heading into this season. On the year, she has gone on to set career-highs in average, hits and RBI. Kelsey will graduate from Coastal Carolina in May of 2010 with high honors in biology, as she currently holds a cumulative GPA of 3.85. Birnbaum has been a mainstay in the right side of the Coastal Carolina infield for the past three seasons, starting 123 games at first base in her career. The Chino Hills, California native enters today’s contests with a career-high .287 batting average, and has set career-highs in runs and doubles in her senior campaign. Birnbaum will also go down in the Coastal Carolina record books as one of the top defensive players in program history, as the first baseman holds a career fielding percentage of .975, and has committed only 12 errors in over 600 opportunities at first base in her tenure. Birnbaum, who will graduate in May of 2010, has also excelled in the classroom in her time at Coastal Carolina, as she holds a 3.986 GPA in health promotions.
EVANS SOLIDIFIES BID FOR ALL-CONFERENCE NOD WITH OUTSTANDING WEEKEND AT THE PLATE: Coastal Carolina’s leading hitter, sophomore third-baseman Michelle Evans solidified her bid for All-Conference honors with another solid series at the plate for the Chants. The Upland, Calif. native was 5-for-11 at the plate in the series, with five hits in total including a home run and pair of doubles. She drove in three runs and scored four en route to racking up 10 total bases. She is now hitting a cool .340 that ranks ninth in the Big South, and is hitting .375 in Big South play.
PISONE CONTINUES OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION: Sophomore Ashley Pisone has continued her run production numbers this season. Even though she holds the lowest batting average of any Chanticleer regular this season (.208), she still is tied for the team lead in home runs with four and leads the squad with 21 RBI on the season. She hit her most recent home run in game three of the Liberty series, an opposite field shot that sailed over the right field fence.
CHANTS LOOK TO SNAP SKID: The Chants enter the Big South Tournament on a seven-game losing streak, as the teams last victory came on April 21 in a 1-0, extra-innings victory over UNC Wilmington. During the streak, the Chants have been outscored 61-20. One trend seems be in the Chants favor however, as prior to Coastal Carolina’s first seven-game losing streak of the season (4/5 to 4/15), Coastal Carolina won the next two contests they played against College of Charleston (9-5) and Presbyterian (5-0).
PISONE ACCOUNTS FOR MAJORITY OF OFFENSE; CHANTS SWEPT BY WINTHROP: Coastal Carolina was swept by the Winthrop Lady Eagles in a weekend series, and were outscored in the set 28-5. Ashley Pisone accounted for four of the five runs, as she hit a three-run homer is game two of the series, and scored a run in game three.
CHANTS TAKE SOUTH CAROLINA TO THE LIMIT: On April 22, the Chanticleers found themselves down 2-1 in the seventh with two outs. Mecaela Ballard drew a two-out walk, and was followed by a game-tying RBI single to right field to score Ballard and send the game to extra-innings tied 2-2. However, a four-run ninth by the Gamecocks, led by a Jill Semento two-RBI single and a two-run blast by Evan Childs led to the 6-2 defeat.
FREDERICK’S NO-HIT BID, RIFFEL’S SINGLE GIVES COASTAL CAROLINA SERIES SPLIT WITH SEAHAWKS: On April 8, Coastal Carolina earned a 1-0 extra-innings win over the UNCW Seahawks. The Chants stranded 11 runners on base, but Ashley Frederick was dominant in the circle, taking a no-hit bid into the sixth inning. Coastal Carolina finally pushed a run across in the top of the eighth, as senior Kelsey Riffel had the game-winning RBI on a single over second base to propel the squad to the 1-0 win in eight innings. With the win, Coastal Carolina has now won three of their last four contests.
COASTAL CAROLINA EARNS FIRST SERIES WIN OF SEASON: The Chants earned a 2-1 series win over Presbyterian this past weekend, with a 5-0 victory on Saturday and a 4-2 victory on Sunday in their first series win of the season. In Saturday’s victory, freshman Ivy McCranie fanned a career-high eight batters to propel the Chants to the 5-0 victory. After dropping game two 2-1, Coastal Carolina finished off the series on Sunday with a 4-2 victory. McCranie earned her second victory of the weekend, throwing six innings of five-hit ball and allowed two runs in the win. With McCranie taking care of the pitching, Morgan Dodd took care of the offense, as the redshirt-freshman hit a three-run homer in the third inning to lead Coastal Carolina to the 4-2 victory.
CHANTICLEERS EARN SEASON SPLIT WITH COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON: In a midweek series, the Chants traveled to Mt. Pleasant for a doubleheader with College of Charleston. In game one, C of C jumped out to an early 4-0 lead in the third inning, and defeated the Chants 10-5. In game two, the Chanticleer bats were quiet once again in the early innings, as the squad was shut out for the first five frames. In the sixth, Coastal Carolina exploded, scoring five runs in the frame and four in the seventh, securing the 9-5 victory, and earning a season split with the Cougars.
BALLARD SURPASSES CAREER-HIGH AGAINST C OF C: In the 9-5 win over the Cougars on April 15, junior Mecaela Ballard had a career-high three RBI, doubling her season total from three to six, and eclipsing her previous mark of two RBI that she set on March 26 of last season against UNC Wilmington. A slap-hitter by trade, the native Texan drove in the trio of Chants on a single to deep centerfield to bust open game two of the twinbill against the Cougars.
JUST SAYIN’!: For the second week in a row, Freshman Ivy McCranie was superb in the circle, establishing herself as Coastal Carolina’s No. 1 pitcher. Following a rough outing against College of Charleston on April 15, the Nashville, Ga. native still compiled a sparkling 2.39 ERA in her four appearances on the week. In total, McCranie allowed 13 hits and five earned runs in her 14.2 innings of work to go along with 14 strikeouts. Her highlight on the week came in game one of the Presbyterian series, as she fanned eight Blue Hose in a complete-game shutout in the 5-0 victory. In the most recent Big South statistics, McCranie leads the conference with a 2.02 ERA in conference mark, as she has allowed 10 earned runs in 34.2 innings.
McCRANIE GIVES CHANTS A CHANCE: Freshman Ivy McCranie had the best week of any Chanticleer pitcher this season, as the freshman tossed 23 innings on the week in two starts April 7-12. In all, the Nashville, Ga. native compiled a 2.13 ERA as she appeared in all five contests on the week. In the three-game set against the offensive juggernaut Radford, she started the first and third game of the series. The pitcher allowed 16 hits in her 15.2 innings of work along with six earned runs while fanning seven Highlanders. Her best work came in relief of Katelin Edwards in game two, where she entered the game with one out in the first inning. McCranie went on to allow only two hits in 5.2 innings of work and struck out three batters in the loss.
SENIORS COMBINE FOR SOLID WEEK AT THE PLATE: The senior duo of second baseman Kelsey Riffel and first baseman Brittany Birnbaum had an outstanding week at the plate (4/5-10), as the pair combined to go 11-for-33 at the dish (.366). Individually, Birnbaum was 6-of-16 (.375) with a double and run scored, while Riffel with 5-of-14 (.357) with two runs scored.
PISONE CELEBRATES 20th BIRTHDAY WITH SECOND HOME RUN: Sophomore Ashley Pisone celebrated her the big 2-0 with her second home run of the season in the third inning of game three of the Radfrod series. Pisone drilled the Kellie Snooks 0-1 offering over the left centerfield fence to give the Chanticleers the 1-0 lead in the eventual 3-2 loss.
BATS QUIET IN PAIR OF DEFEATS; COME ALIVE IN LONE VICTORY: In a April 4-5 series with the Runnin’ Bulldogs, the Chanticleers went 1-2, as the Chants struggled to put the bat on the ball in the two defeats. Game one on April 4 saw Coastal Carolina muster only four hits and 12 strikeouts. In the rubber game of the series, the Chants had four hits to seven strikeouts. The squad did show promise in game two of the series that Coastal Carolina won, 9-1 in five innings. In the victory, Coastal Carolina had nine runs on 14 hits, and had only one strikeout. The highlight of the game came as sophomore Michelle Evans had the first four-hit game of the season for Coastal Carolina, as she was 4-for-4 with an RBI and scored a run in the victory. Her four-hit effort was the first for the Chants since Kimberly Cillis had four hits in a ball game against James Madison on March 11, 2007.
FREDERICK FANS CAREER-HIGH 11 IN 4-3 VICTORY: Junior pitcher Ashley Frederick had a unique game in game two of the March 25 doubleheader against Charleston Southern. She struck out a career-best 11 batters in the complete game effort, including striking out the side in the second inning. Her dominance failed to wane in the later innings, as she fanned the final two Lady Bucs she faced in the contest to help nail down the victory. She also found herself batting in the contest out of the nine hole for the first time in her Coastal Carolina career, going 0-for-3. Previously in her career, Frederick had only two plate appearances in her first two seasons in teal and black.
EVANS PROVIDES OFFENSIVE PUNCH, BLASTS PAIR OF HOME RUNS IN DOUBLEHEADER: Sophomore Michelle Evans hit her first home runs of the season in the twinbill against Charleston Southern, the first being a solo shot in game one. In game two, the California native hit a three run blast in the 4-3 victory. On the day, Evans drove in four of the six runs that the Chanticleers scored in the pair of contests, giving her a team leading .325 batting average and extended her team-high hitting streak to five games.
CHANTICLEERS DROP C OF C 9-8 IN THRILLER, SPLIT DOUBLEHEADER: In game one on March 22, the Chanticleers jumped out to a 1-0 lead early on, but the Cougars bounced back with a home run to give the Cougars the 2-1 lead in the second inning. The Chants would retake the lead, scoring runs in the second and third innings, but CofC would blow the game wide open in the fourth, as the Cougars scored five runs on the inning for a 7-3 lead. College of Charleston would add a run in the final three innings to increase the lead to 10-3. The Chants would score a trio of runs in the bottom of the seventh, but fell short in their comeback attempt, dropping the 10-6 decision. In game two, Coastal Carolina would again take a 1-0 lead, but again would surrender the advantage in the second inning. Coastal Carolina would tie the game up at 2-2 in the bottom half of the inning, and take the 3-2 lead in the third. CofC would tie the game up once again at 3-3 in the third inning. The Chants busted the game open in the fourth, as they scored a season-high six runs on the inning to take the 9-3 lead. The Cougars would cut the game to 9-7 heading into the seventh, and added a run on a homer in the inning. Freshman Ivy McCranie then entered the game with the go-ahead run at bat, but closed the game out for her first collegiate save and preserved the 9-8 Coastal Carolina victory.
CHANTS SPLIT DOUBLEHEADER WITH LIMESTONE: In Coastal Carolina’s first games of the week on March 17, the Chants fell to the Limestone Saints 1-0 in game one and bounced back to defeat the Saints 2-0 in game two. In game one, the Chants could not get on the board, squandering a solid pitching performance by freshman Ivy McCranie, who allowed one run on eight hits in six innings of work. In game two, Coastal Carolina scored both of it’s runs in the fourth inning on a Brittany Birnbaum two RBI single to give Coastal Carolina the 2-0 advantage. The cushion was all that pitcher Ashley Frederick would need, as she would pick up her third victory of the season in the complete game shutout. In total, the Lusby, Md. native fanned six Saints in the victory.
WILLIAMS DOUBLES UP ON THE WEEK: Sophomore transfer Olivia Williams had herself quite a week, as she was 5-of-12 at the dish (.417) with a double and a pair of RBI. After entering the week hitting only .118 on the season in primarily a pinch-hitting role, where she was 2-of-11 (.182) on the season, the Greensboro College transfer started a trio of games on the week at designated player, and doubled her average to .241 after the outstanding week at the plate.
CHANTICLEERS SPLIT WITH MICHIGAN STATE: The Chants used the long ball and a solid pitching performance to knock off the Michigan State Spartans in their first game of the tournament, 6-5 on March 13. Home runs by freshman Sarah Maples and senior Kelsey Riffel accounted for three of the six Chanticleer runs. Pitcher Ashley Frederick battled out of several jams in the contest, and improved to 2-3 with the win. She allowed five runs and struck out three Spartans in her third complete game of the season. In game two against the Spartans on Saturday, the Chants dropped a 10-8 decision despite two seventh-inning home runs by Ashley Pisone and Morgan Dodd.
0-2 AGAINST NATIONAL POWERS: In the 2009 Coastal Carolina Tournament, the Chants took on national powerhouses #15 North Carolina and #16 Missouri, dropping both contests. The Tigers made quick work of Coastal Carolina on March 13 9-0 in five innings, but the real story of the tournament was the Chants hanging with the Tar Heels for all seven innings. In the final game of the tournament, Frederick was outstanding in the circle for Coastal Carolina. After allowing an unearned run in the first inning, Frederick shutdown the juggernaut of an offense for five innings. The big blow of the game came in the sixth inning, as UNC had a two-run homer to extend the lead to 3-0. The Chanticleer bats only generated two hits on the day, but that didn’t take away from Frederick’s complete game, six-hitter. She allowed two earned runs, and struck out a pair of North Carolina batters.
RIFFEL HAS CAREER WEEK: Senior Kelsey Riffel hit a pair of homers March 15-21, matching her career total heading into this season. In her first three seasons, the Wichita, Kansas native averaged a homer every 102 at bats, while this season she is averaging a dinger every 30 at bats. On the week, she was 10-for-27 (.370) with a double, two home runs, and seven RBI.
CHANTICLEERS SPLIT WITH LADY BUCS: In game one of the March 7 doubleheader, the Chants led ETSU 3-2 heading into the top of the seventh, but couldn’t hold onto the lead. Junior Ashley Frederick surrendered four runs in the Lady Buc seventh inning in the 6-3 loss. Game two saw Coastal Carolina score six runs on eight hits, with senior Kelsey Riffel matching a career-high in hits with three in the 6-2 victory.
MAPLES BLASTS FIRST HOME RUN OF SEASON FOR CHANTS: Freshman Sarah Maples has been a consistent contributor all year at shortstop and holding down the No. 3 slot in the batting order. Up 5-2 In the sixth inning of game two of Saturday’s twinbill, Maples drilled an Alicia Boyd offering over the left centerfield fence for her first collegiate home run. On the season, Maples is hitting 12-for-42 (.286) with a pair of doubles and eight RBI.
EDWARDS RIGHTS SHIP AFTER ROCKY START: Sophomore transfer Katelin Edwards had a rough start to her Chanticleer career to say the least. In her fist nine appearances, the Newberry transfer was 1-7 with a 6.46 ERA. However, in her next three appearances, all starts, Edwards is 3-0 with a 1.33 ERA and has struck out 18 batters in 21 innings of work.
COASTAL CAROLINA GOES 3-1 IN JACKSONVILLE TOURNAMENT: On the season, the Chanticleers have displayed the ability to score runs in spurts, but have lacked consistency. That all changed in their second trip of the season to the Sunshine State, as the team outscored their opponents 24-3 on the weekend.
HEART OF THE ORDER HEATS UP: Coastal Carolina’s 3, 4, and 5 batters played an instrumental role in the teams success in Jacksonville. The trio of Sarah Maples, Michelle Evans and Stacy Snellings went 15-for-32 (.468) with five doubles, seven RBI, and scored 14 of the 24 Chanticleer runs in the JU Tournament.
PITCHERS EXCEL IN JACKSONVILLE: Pitchers Ashley Frederick, Katelin Edwards and Ivy McCranie allowed only two earned runs on the weekend, lowering their season staff ERA from 7.00 to 4.96 in the process. Frederick led off the tournament with a five-inning complete game shutout of Marist, striking out four Marist batters and allowing only one hit. McCranie earned her first collegiate victory in her first start of the season in the 8-0 shutout of Marist, allowing only three hits and struck out three in six innings of work. Edwards was the real star in the circle, in a pair of starts. In the 3-0 loss to Jacksonville, she allowed only two earned runs and struck out six batters. In the 5-0 win over Vermont, she struck out 11 Catamounts in the complete game shutout.
POOR WEATHER AFFECTS SCHEDULE: Poor weather in Jacksonville on March 1 resulted in the 11:45 a.m. tilt with the Dolphins being cancelled. The March 3 contest against College of Charleston has been postponed to a later date due to subpar weather in the Conway area, and will be made up with a doubleheader on March 22.
CHANTICLEERS DROPS SQUEAKER TO APPALACHIAN ST.: After being outscored 16-1 in losses to Virginia Tech and Maine to start off the Kickin’ Chicken Classic (2.20), the Chants looked to have turned things around against Appalachian State on Saturday night. However, a double play in the bottom of the seventh resulted in another Chanticleer defeat. Coastal Carolina entered the seventh down 4-1, but scored two runs in the inning to cut the Mountaineer lead to 4-3. With no outs and the tying run on third and the winning run on second, Michelle Evans hit a line drive to the third baseman, who made the diving catch and doubled off Mecaela Ballard at third base to effectively end the contest, 4-3.
BATS COME ALIVE IN LOSS TO WESTERN CAROLINA: The Chaticleer bats came alive in the 10-9 loss to Western Carolina on 2/21, as Coastal Carolina pounded out nine runs and 14 hits. Mecaela Ballard set new career bests in scoring three runs and getting three hits, including the first triple of her career. Senior Kelsey Riffel matched a career high in hits with three, while freshman Sarah Maples drove in three runs.
FREDERICK NEARS 100 PERCENT: Junior pitcher Ashley Frederick, who missed the Lipton Invitational due to offseason non-throwing surgery, made her season debut in the Kickin’ Chicken Classic. Pitching in relief in game one of the Classic against Virginia Tech, she threw two innings and allowed one run while striking out a batter. She bounced back after a rough outing against Maine in Sunday’s game against Western Carolina, throwing four innings and allowing two earned runs while striking out seven Catamounts.
AFTER ROCKY START, CHANTS DEFEAT FLORIDA ATLANTIC: It was a rocky start to the season for the Chants to say the least. After giving up 30 runs in 15 innings to begin the season, Coastal Carolina turned things around in their final game of the Lipton Invitational, and defeated the Owls 3-2 on 2/15. Third baseman Michelle Evans had the only RBI in the teams first three contests.
EDWARDS RIGHTS THE SHIP, THROWS GEM AGAINST FAU IN WIN: After allowing 20 runs in her first 7.2 innings in a Chanticleer uniform, sophomore transfer Katelin Edwards turned things around against Florida Atlantic on 2/15. The Greer, S.C. native threw a complete game four-hitter, and retired the first 11 batters she faced in order to earn the victory.
TORNATORE DOUBLES THE FUN: Junior outfielder Alyssa Tornatore had the best offensive performance of her career on 2/15, smashing a pair of doubles and driving in a pair of runs off Florida Atlantic pitcher Rose Gressley. The last time Tornatore had a double was on Mar. 2 of last season. Her doubles come in bunches as she had a pair of doubles against Birmingham Southern.
HITTERS FIND THEIR STROKES VS. FLORIDA ATLANTIC: In the first three contests of the season, the Chants totaled only eight hits. Against Florida Atlantic, the Coastal Carolina bats came alive, as the squad pounded out eight hits, (six singles, and a pair of doubles). Three batters had two hits in the contest, including junior Mecaela Ballard, freshman Sarah Maples, sophomore Michelle Evans, and Tornatore.
McCRANIE SHUTS DOWN NO. 1 FLORIDA GATORS: The Florida Gators certainly proved they were the No. 1 team in the nation against the Chants, scoring eight runs in the first two innings. However, freshman Ivy McCranie entered the game with no one out in the second, and was literally perfect for the final three innings of the five-inning contest. The freshman from Berrien, Ga. didn’t allow a runner to reach base, and struck out three Gators in one of the few bright spots on the contest against the powerhouse Gators.
OLD FACES, NEW PLACES: Six starters return from last years team, but only three, senior Brittany Birnbaum, junior center fielder Alyssa Tornatore and junior left fielder Mecaela Ballard will open up 2009 in the same position as 2008. Sophomore Ashley Pisone moves from catcher to right field, senior Kelsey Riffel goes from right field to second base, and sophomore Michelle Evans moves from designated player to third base.
CHANTICLEER PITCHERS TO MAKE DEBUTS: Coastal Carolina will enter this season with a pair of young pitchers making their Chanticleer debuts in sophomore transfer Katelin Edwards and freshman Ivy McCranie. Edwards, a transfer from Newberry College, went 10-15 with a 2.32 ERA for the Indians in 2008. McCranie was a First Team All-State selection in Georgia last season for Berrien High School.
FRESHMAN TO SEE TIME RIGHT OFF THE BAT: Along with McCranie, two other freshman will be in the everyday line-up this season in true freshman Sarah Maples and redshirt freshman Morgan Dodd. Maples, a three-time All-Region honoree for Deer Park High School in Pasadena, Texas will hold down the shortstop position, while Dodd who redshirted last season, could see extensive time behind the plate as well as third base. Another true freshman, Stacy Snellings, could also see action at either first base or designated player.
DANNELLY IN 22nd AND FINAL SEASON: Head Coach Jess Dannelly enters his 22nd and final season with 654 career victories. After announcing his retirement this past December, he will look to expand on his already impressive resume that includes seven Big South Conference Coach of the Year Awards, six Big South Regular Season titles, five Big South Tournament Championships, and four NCAA Regional appearances. Dannelly will enter his final year ranked 29th among active NCAA softball coaches in victories and 43rd in overall career victories.
FREDERICK EARNS PRESEASON HONORS: Frederick returns for her junior season after leading the Chanticleers in every major pitching category last year. Even after missing nearly half the season due to injury, the then-sophomore compiled a 2.55 ERA and a 9-14 overall record and 15 complete games. In 148 innings, she struck out 97 batters and held opposing hitters to a .258 batting average.
TOP COMPETITION ON 2009 SCHEDULE: Head Coach Jess Dannelly has always scheduled tog competition in his tenure at Coastal Carolina, with this year being no exception. This seasons schedule is highlighted by four teams that finished up last season ranked in the 2008 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Top 25 Final Poll in Florida (No. 3) and Virginia Tech (No. 8), both of whom made it to the College World Series a year ago. Missouri (No. 19) and North Carolina (No. 20) were also consistently ranked in the top 25 all season.
MEGAN MATTHEWS BUNING PROMOTED TO ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH: Matthews Buning, a former All-American pitcher during her days at South Carolina, joined Dannelly’s staff last season after a three-year stint as an assistant at Florida State. In her first season as an assistant with the Chanticleers, Matthews Buning worked primarily with the pitchers, inheriting a young pitching staff with only one experienced returnee. Matthews Buning will continue to work as pitching and outfield coach for the Chants, and assume a more significant role in game preparation, in-game management, and recruiting.
ALL-TIME ACC HOME RUN LEADER JEN CHAMBERLIN JOINS STAFF AS ASSISTANT COACH: The Chants welcome assistant coach Jen Chamberlin to the squad this season. Chamberlin was a standout player for the N.C. State Wolfpack, starting all four seasons. She was a three-time Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) All-Conference squad honoree, and was a 2007 All-Region performer. The San Leandro, California native wrapped up her career with a .304 batting average, 225 hits, 49 home runs and 155 RBI. Chamberlin also brings professional experience to the table, as she played the 2007 season for the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) Champion Washington Glory. As a member of the Glory, she was teammates with 2008 Olympian and 2007 USA Collegiate Softball Player of the Year Monica Abbott. Chamberlin’s responsibilities will lie in working with the hitters and infielders.
COASTAL CAROLINA PICKED TO FINISH FOURTH: The Coastal Carolina softball team has been selected to finish fourth in the 2009 Big South Preseason poll, as voted on by the league’s coaches. Winthrop finished ahead of Radford, who received 41 points. In the third spot was last season’s Big South Tournament runner-up Liberty, who landed 33 points. Coastal Carolina finished fourth with 25 points, followed by Big South newcomer Gardner-Webb with 23 points and Charleston Southern with 13 points. Presbyterian, who is eligible for the regular-season championship but not the tournament, rounded out the poll with 12 points.
COASTAL CAROLINA TO WELCOME TRIO IN 2010: The Coastal Carolina softball team has signed Olivia Piccirillo (Seneca, S.C./Seneca), Tabitha Cain (Harrels, N.C./East Bladen) and Megan Johnson (Pensacola, Fla./Tate) to a National Letter-of-Intent. Piccirillo has been an All-Region catcher the past two seasons for Seneca. Last season, she led the Bobcats in runs scored with 24 and had a .406 batting average. Piccirillo also excelled behind the plate, throwing out 10 baserunners and picking off another seven behind the dish. Johnson has been a four-year letterwinner for Tate High School, earning All-Area honors her junior year. The pitcher/second baseman has also excelled on a club level with Georgia Elite.
I DON’T CARE WHO YOU ARE, WHERE YOU’RE FROM...: Of the 17 players on this season’s roster, only two are from the state of South Carolina. Overall, this years Chants come from 11 different states. The great state of Texas is home to a team-high three Chants, while two Chanticleers hail from California, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, respectively.
