By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – It'll be a slight reprieve from the tournament format the Tennessee Tech softball team has been used to so far this season as the Golden Eagles will make the trek to Johnson City on Saturday and Sunday to take on East Tennessee State for a three-game series.
The games are set for a Saturday doubleheader, starting at 12 p.m. Central, followed by a single game on Sunday also slated for a 12 Central start.
It's been a tough go so far this season for the Buccaneers, posting a 4-11 record thus far. ETSU has lost six straight games, including going 0-4 at the I-75 Tournament at Kennesaw State and Georgia Tech, dropping an 8-0 decision in six to the Owls, then a pair of five-inning defeats to the Yellow Jackets – 10-0 and 13-1. They also fell 6-2 to Georgia State, then lost a mid-week doubleheader at Presbyterian, falling 5-0 and 4-3 on Tuesday.
It'll be ETSU's home opener at Betty Basler Field.
Kelly Warren leads the Bucs in runs scored and batting average as she has come home 10 times and has a .372 batting average. Sara Muir (.235) leads the team in RBI with seven, hitting the team's lone home run of the season. Bailey Turnbow (.300) also has five RBI.
ETSU does like to force the issue on the basepaths, attempting 49 steals and has been successful for 38. Warren is 9-for-13, while Muir has swiped five of her six tries. Opponents have been successful 23 times in 33 attempts with catcher Amber Atkins catching 10 of them.
In the circle, Riley Tucker leads the team in ERA with a 3.30 mark, allowing 11 earned runs – 13 total – across 23 1/3 innings in four starts. She has walked five and struck out six, while opponents are batting .283 against her. Allison Farr, in eight appearances, has a 2-2 mark – the most wins for an ETSU pitcher so far this season – with a 4.32 ERA. She has walked seven batters and struck out 22 across 22 2/3 innings and batters hitting .340 against her.
Taylor Boling (1-1, 7.50 ERA, .383 BAA), Whitley Arnott (0-4, 7.56 ERA, .361 BAA) and Muir (0-1, 7.50 ERA, .408 BAA) have all seen significant time in the circle.
The Golden Eagles, meanwhile, dropped a tough game to No. 18 Tennessee on Wednesday, falling 11-1 in five innings.
Mackenzie Fitzgerald continues to lead Tech at the plate with a .418 batting average, collecting 23 hits – including three doubles, two triples and a home run – to go along with a team-best 19 runs scored. She has also driven in nine runs and swiped eight of nine stolen base tries.
Along those lines, the Golden Eagles have stolen 13 bases in 15 attempts, while allowing just nine steals on 11 tries to opponents.
Haeli Bryson leads the team in RBI with 22, fitting in nicely with a .348 batting average. She has two doubles, one triple and a team-high three home runs and has 11 runs scored. Sydney Love-Baker has also come home to score 11 times, getting on base with a team-high seven walks and one hit-by-pitch, along with four doubles, a triple and two home runs.
The Golden Eagle pitching staff has a 3.49 ERA for the season. Alyssa Arden (4-4) had the tough task of facing a top-tier offense against the Lady Vols and saw her season ERA increase to 3.50 with 22 earned runs – 23 total – on 36 hits across 44 innings of work with opponents hitting .212 against her. Bryson has a 2-1 mark and a 3.27 ERA with nine walks and 23 strikeouts, opponents hitting .263. Tyler Erwin is 3-1 on the year with a 3.43 ERA, striking out 11 and walking seven with opponents hitting .313.
