Drexel University Athletics
Friday, March 4
Atlanta, Ga.
11:00 a.m.
Drexel University
vs
Winthrop
Drexel Softball Takes a Swing at Georgia Tech Buzz Classic
3/4/2011 8:37:42 AM | Softball
Woodstock, Ga. - With their first wins of the season under their belts, the Drexel softball Dragons (2-6) cross the Mason-Dixon for the third time this spring to challenge the field at the Buzz Classic hosted by Georgia Tech at the Twin Creeks Softball Complex. The Dragons will play three days of doubleheader action starting on Friday, March 4 with they face Winthrop and Rhode Island. Drexel faces Austin Peay and Alabama Birmingham on Saturday before closing out the tournament against Akron and UConn on Sunday. Fans can follow the Dragons throughout the weekend via livestats on the tournament homepage by clicking here.
Junior slugger Paige Collings picked up where she left off last year, hitting .545 last weekend in four games at the College of Charleston Cougar Classic. Collings recorded her 100th career hit with a lead-off double in the fourth inning against Mariston on Feb. 25. She also bashed a two-run go-ahead homer in the top of the eighth inning to give Drexel a thrilling win over the College of Charleston in extra innings. The Dragons split their games at the tournament with losses to Liberty and Iowa State to close out competition on Saturday and Sunday.
Winthrop (3-8)
Winthrop has lost five straight games coming into the contest. The Eagles have seen a lot of success in the Big South Conference in the past few years. Winthrop has won the conference and made NCAA Tournament appearances in two of the last four seasons.
Ace of the Staff: Natalie Becker leads the Eagles with a 2-3 record and a 3.32 ERA. She has fanned 41 batters in 31.2 innings of work this season. The Eagles are working to replace a pair of graduated pitchers who combined for six All-Conference selections and a pair of Big South Tournament MVP awards.
Big Bats: Taylor Wright was a First Team All-BSC pick last season while leading the team with a .337 batting average, seven homers and 23 RBIs. This year Teja Durante is leading the team with a .429 batting average.
Rhode Island (0-10)
Kim Camara leads the Dragons against her alma mater Rhode Island on Friday. The Rams under third-year Head Coach Erin Layton are looking for their first win of the season against 10 losses thus far.
Ace of the Staff: Junior Alison Hartzell returns this year after leading the team with an 8-8 mark and a 2.82 ERA in 2010. The power pitcher struck out 97 batters in 109 innings of work last year. But she has struggled to get batters out this season, allowing 32 earned runs in 35 innings to date.
Big Bats: Nicole Massoni was the Rams' top slugger last season. As a sophomore she hit .324 while jacking 10 homers and driving in 26 runs. This year Brittany Julich as stepped up for Rhody, leading the team with a .417 batting average.
Austin Peay (2-11)
The Lady Governors return five starters from a team that went 16-35 and 8-13 in Ohio Valley Conference play last season. Drexel will be facing them in its first game of the day on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Ace of the Staff: Morgan Brewer has emerged as the Lady Govs' top hurler in her sophomore season. She had a 3.41 ERA in 37 innings of work despite posting a 1-4 record. Batters are hitting just .266 against her on the season.
Big Bat: Veteran infielder Tiffany Smith is doing her part to provide offense for Austin Peay. Smith his hitting .270 on the season with a pair of homers, six RBIs and a .486 slugging percentage.
Alabama Birmingham (10-6)
UAB is one of the top teams coming out of Conference USA this season. The Blazers went to the NCAA Tournament last year after posting a 37-22 record. UAB returns seven starters from last year's squad including the heart of its offensive production.
Ace of the Staff: Leigh Streetman has been hard to handle this season, holding batters to a .200 average against her while posting a 3-2 record and a 1.28 ERA. She has also fanned 46 hitters in 38.1 innings on the rubber.
Big Bats: Kayla Orr and Kate Armstrong provide a potent punch for the Blazers in the middle of their lineup. Orr is hitting .375 through 16 games this season and slugging .583 with two homers and 12 runs driven in. Armstrong has knoked home 11 runners and is batting .326 on the year.
Akron (6-4)
The Zips return six starters from a team that went 20-32 last year and took its knocks in the tough Mid-America Conference.
Ace of the Staff: Heather Bauer anchors the Zips' starting rotation this year. She boasts a stingy 1.24 ERA in 22.2 innings of work and is 3-1 on the season. Opponents are hitting just .189 against Bauer this year.
Big Bats: Akron has a dangerous lineup from top to bottom with the ability to beat teams with its power as well as its speed. Alex Feltes is the team's leading slugger, batting .441 and slugging .676 this year. Sarah Earley is the team's table setter. She is batting .375 and is 7-for-10 in stolen base attempts. Olivia Hegedus i the team's hottest hitter coming into the weekend. She is batting .313 with four homers and 10 RBIs on the season and is the reigning MAC East Player of the Week.
UConn (2-3)
The Huskies are just getting their season under way with a 2-3 record in five games on the year. Rhode Island's third-year head coach, Erin Layton, is a former Huskie.
Ace of the Staff: Early in the season Ali Adelman and Kiki Saveriano are emerging as the Huskies' aces. Adelman has a stingy 2.33 ERA an Saveriano is 1-2 with a 2.70 ERA.
Big Bat: Julianne Towers is the batter to avoid in the Huskies' lineup. She is hitting .375 and slugging .750 on the season with five RBIs in five games.
Junior slugger Paige Collings picked up where she left off last year, hitting .545 last weekend in four games at the College of Charleston Cougar Classic. Collings recorded her 100th career hit with a lead-off double in the fourth inning against Mariston on Feb. 25. She also bashed a two-run go-ahead homer in the top of the eighth inning to give Drexel a thrilling win over the College of Charleston in extra innings. The Dragons split their games at the tournament with losses to Liberty and Iowa State to close out competition on Saturday and Sunday.
Winthrop (3-8)
Winthrop has lost five straight games coming into the contest. The Eagles have seen a lot of success in the Big South Conference in the past few years. Winthrop has won the conference and made NCAA Tournament appearances in two of the last four seasons.
Ace of the Staff: Natalie Becker leads the Eagles with a 2-3 record and a 3.32 ERA. She has fanned 41 batters in 31.2 innings of work this season. The Eagles are working to replace a pair of graduated pitchers who combined for six All-Conference selections and a pair of Big South Tournament MVP awards.
Big Bats: Taylor Wright was a First Team All-BSC pick last season while leading the team with a .337 batting average, seven homers and 23 RBIs. This year Teja Durante is leading the team with a .429 batting average.
Rhode Island (0-10)
Kim Camara leads the Dragons against her alma mater Rhode Island on Friday. The Rams under third-year Head Coach Erin Layton are looking for their first win of the season against 10 losses thus far.
Ace of the Staff: Junior Alison Hartzell returns this year after leading the team with an 8-8 mark and a 2.82 ERA in 2010. The power pitcher struck out 97 batters in 109 innings of work last year. But she has struggled to get batters out this season, allowing 32 earned runs in 35 innings to date.
Big Bats: Nicole Massoni was the Rams' top slugger last season. As a sophomore she hit .324 while jacking 10 homers and driving in 26 runs. This year Brittany Julich as stepped up for Rhody, leading the team with a .417 batting average.
Austin Peay (2-11)
The Lady Governors return five starters from a team that went 16-35 and 8-13 in Ohio Valley Conference play last season. Drexel will be facing them in its first game of the day on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Ace of the Staff: Morgan Brewer has emerged as the Lady Govs' top hurler in her sophomore season. She had a 3.41 ERA in 37 innings of work despite posting a 1-4 record. Batters are hitting just .266 against her on the season.
Big Bat: Veteran infielder Tiffany Smith is doing her part to provide offense for Austin Peay. Smith his hitting .270 on the season with a pair of homers, six RBIs and a .486 slugging percentage.
Alabama Birmingham (10-6)
UAB is one of the top teams coming out of Conference USA this season. The Blazers went to the NCAA Tournament last year after posting a 37-22 record. UAB returns seven starters from last year's squad including the heart of its offensive production.
Ace of the Staff: Leigh Streetman has been hard to handle this season, holding batters to a .200 average against her while posting a 3-2 record and a 1.28 ERA. She has also fanned 46 hitters in 38.1 innings on the rubber.
Big Bats: Kayla Orr and Kate Armstrong provide a potent punch for the Blazers in the middle of their lineup. Orr is hitting .375 through 16 games this season and slugging .583 with two homers and 12 runs driven in. Armstrong has knoked home 11 runners and is batting .326 on the year.
Akron (6-4)
The Zips return six starters from a team that went 20-32 last year and took its knocks in the tough Mid-America Conference.
Ace of the Staff: Heather Bauer anchors the Zips' starting rotation this year. She boasts a stingy 1.24 ERA in 22.2 innings of work and is 3-1 on the season. Opponents are hitting just .189 against Bauer this year.
Big Bats: Akron has a dangerous lineup from top to bottom with the ability to beat teams with its power as well as its speed. Alex Feltes is the team's leading slugger, batting .441 and slugging .676 this year. Sarah Earley is the team's table setter. She is batting .375 and is 7-for-10 in stolen base attempts. Olivia Hegedus i the team's hottest hitter coming into the weekend. She is batting .313 with four homers and 10 RBIs on the season and is the reigning MAC East Player of the Week.
UConn (2-3)
The Huskies are just getting their season under way with a 2-3 record in five games on the year. Rhode Island's third-year head coach, Erin Layton, is a former Huskie.
Ace of the Staff: Early in the season Ali Adelman and Kiki Saveriano are emerging as the Huskies' aces. Adelman has a stingy 2.33 ERA an Saveriano is 1-2 with a 2.70 ERA.
Big Bat: Julianne Towers is the batter to avoid in the Huskies' lineup. She is hitting .375 and slugging .750 on the season with five RBIs in five games.
Drexel's Autocomplete With Softball Coach Katie Jansson.
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