UPDATE -- 2/29, 10:30 a.m. -- With weather conditions in Johnson City, Saturday's games have been tentatively rescheduled, with Tennessee Tech taking on Bowling Green at 2 p.m. CT, 3 p.m. local.
UPDATE -- 2/27, 8:45 a.m. -- With the weather situation in the area, the schedule for the tournament has changed. Tech's schedule now stands as:
-- Saturday, Feb. 29, 4 p.m. CT -- vs. Tennessee
-- Sunday, March 1, 9 a.m. CT -- vs. Bowling Green
-- Sunday, March 1, 11 a.m. CT -- at East Tennessee State
-- Monday, March 2, 11 a.m. CT -- vs. Tennessee
-- Monday, March 2, 1 p.m. CT -- at East Tennessee State
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech softball team will get to see a pair of in-state foes this weekend as the Golden Eagles are eastbound to compete in the Buccaneer Classic at East Tennessee State.
During the weekend event, the Golden Eagles will face Tennessee twice, East Tennessee State twice and a single game against Bowling Green.
The Lady Vols come into the contest with an 8-6 record, including a 3-2 victory over UT Martin on Tuesday. Tech has faced Tennessee 21 times to date in regular-season and postseason competition with the Lady Vols taking every meeting, with four of the last five decided by the run rule. However, Tech has also had 11 contests against UT decided by four runs or less and three by just one run.
However, the current Tennessee team is still hitting its stride. The Lady Vols enter the tournament hitting .269 as a team, led by Chelsea Seggern at the plate. The senior is currently hitting .378 with four home runs, 13 RBI and 30 total bases. Junior Amanda Ayala is also in double-digits in RBI (11) and runs scored (10).
As a team, UT has 16 doubles, one triple, 13 home runs and 52 RBI.
Tennessee can also steal bases with freshman Kiki Milloy swiping six of her attempted seven and Kaitlin Parsons a perfect 5-for-5.
In the circle, freshman pitcher Callie Turner has produced the best stats so far, recording a 6-4 mark with a 2.88 ERA. In 56 innings of work, she has allowed 35 runs – 23 earned – on 51 hits with 29 walks and 42 strikeouts, while opponents are hitting .241 against her. Samantha Bender (2-1) has also seen significant innings, posting a 3.10 ERA and opponents hitting .318.
The Tuesday win over the Skyhawks broke a four-game losing streak for the Lady Vols, who went 1-4 last weekend at the Tampa Tournament. UT defeated Florida International 9-1 in six innings, then was run-ruled itself twice against Central Florida (10-1 and 9-1) and dropped two games to South Florida 2-1 and 3-2.
Their current record aside, the Lady Vols will still be a formidable opponent, considering their other losses came at the hands of NCAA traditional powers Arizona and Texas, as well as the Mexican National Team – who qualified for the Tokyo Olympics this summer – in an exhibition contest in Puerto Vallarta.
Meanwhile, East Tennessee State enters the weekend with a 4-10 record overall, going 1-4 last week at the Bailey Memorial Tournament in Kennesaw, Ga. ETSU fell to Marshall twice, split a pair with Rhode Island and was run-ruled by tournament host Kennesaw State.
Kelly Warren leads the Bucs in average with a .440 clip, collecting 23 bases and six RBI, while also stealing six bases. Makenna Helton leads the team in RBI with 10 to go along with her .256 average and six stolen bases.
As a team, ETSU is hitting .243 with 18 doubles, three triples and two home runs, collecting 45 RBI.
In the circle, the work has been spread across five different pitchers, with four collecting a win each. Julia Fritz has the best ERA with a 1.04 in four appearances, all in relief. Kelly Schmidt (2.43, 1-1) has seen the most innings of work with 31 2/3 in six starts, while Taylor Boling (5.91 ERA) has the most decisions with a 1-4 record over five starts. MacKenzie Dyson (1-3, 3.60) and Allison Farr (1-1, 8.91) have also seen time in the circle and could make appearances this weekend.
Tech has a 19-9 record all-time against East Tennessee State, splitting a doubleheader with the Bucs last season in Cookeville with a 2-0 win and a 1-0 loss. The Golden Eagles are 5-7 against ETSU in Johnson City in a series that has dated back to 2001.
Bowling Green is a familiar foe for the Golden Eagles after facing the Falcons two weeks ago at the Chattanooga Classic. BGSU defeated Tech 3-1 as Alexis Trimiar's solo home run was the only hit for the Golden Eagles in the contest. Haeli Bryson took the loss, allowing three runs on seven hits, walking one and striking out six.
The game was the Falcons' first of the year. Since then, they have gone 6-3 and have won four straight games, including a pair of 7-1 wins over Tennessee State, a run-rule win over Rider and an extra-inning victory over Central Connecticut State.
As a team, Bowling Green is hitting .268 with 11 doubles, three triples and two home runs, with 35 RBI. Logan Everett has driven in 10 runs with a .296 average, while Sammy Dees has the team's best average with a .353 clip.
In the circle, Payton Gottshall, who struck out 17 batters against the Golden Eagles in the earlier meeting, has a 6-2 record with a 1.28 ERA, starting six of the team's nine games. In 43 2/3 innings of work, she has allowed nine runs – eight earned – on 22 hits, while walking 17 and striking out 65. Opponents are hitting .150 against her.
Madison French (0-0, 5.00 ERA) and Hannah Davies (0-1, 5.73) are the only other two BGSU pitchers to start a game, both of them combining for 14 1/3 innings in five appearances.
Tech is 3-1 all-time against Bowling Green, the loss coming two weeks ago.
The Golden Eagles come into this weekend with an 8-6 mark overall, splitting its games last weekend at the Wings Etc. Classic in Spartanburg, S.C. Tech topped La Salle 16-6 in five innings and knocked off Maine 3-1, before falling 9-1 to Virginia and 3-2 to tournament host USC Upstate on Sunday.
Tech comes into the weekend as the top hitting team in totals, posting a .280 average with 11 doubles, 15 home runs and 71 RBI. Sophomore Raleigh Lewis leads the team in average (.381) and RBI (13), while tied with junior Sydney Love-Baker with five home runs each. Love-Baker also has a .356 average with 10 RBI and a team-high 18 runs scored. Freshman Nicolle Nysted (.289) has also hit double digits in RBI with 11.
In the circle, the Golden Eagles are starting to develop a double-threat tandem between sophomores Alyssa Arden and Haeli Bryson. Last week, Bryson took a no-hitter into the fifth inning against La Salle in a run-ruled contest and has worked her way to a 3-4 record and a 4.86 ERA with opponents hitting .306 as her numbers continue to improve.
Arden, Tech's leading pitcher, has posted a 5-2 record with a save with a 4.77 ERA. She also leads the team in strikeouts with 45 and opponents are hitting .294 against her.
Weather for this weekend could make conditions interesting as snow is in the forecast for Friday and Saturday. Follow @TTU_Softball on Twitter or at TTUsports.com for updates.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
