March 8, 2013

Tournament Central

Tampa, Fla. - While the snow accumulates on the Rose Hill campus, the Fordham softball squad is down south for its final trip to the Sunshine State, as the Rams make their annual trip to the USF/Under Armour Showcase in Tampa, Florida. The Rams will have five games over three days, beginning on Friday with Central Michigan and Tennessee Tech, as the team looks to build on last week's upset of nationally ranked Texas.

SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN: The Chippewas enter the USF Tournament with a 7-6 mark, and will play Wagner prior to their match-up with the Rams.

The team is batting .278 on the season, averaging over four runs a contest. Macy Merchant leads the Chippewas with a .417 average, seven runs scored and five stolen bases, and is one of five starters with a .294 batting average or better.

In the circle, Central Michigan has a 3.33 team ERA over 75.2 innings pitched, collecting only 44 strikeouts as a staff. Kristen Kuhlman has started her season well, posting a 3-1 record with one save and a 2.57 ERA in five relief appearances.

SCOUTING TENNESSEE TECH: The Golden Eagles enters this week's action with a 7-7 mark, and will play Maine before their game against Fordham on Friday.

Offensively, the team is batting .259 and averaging 3.3 runs a contest. The line-up boasts five players at .282 or better, led by Madison Taylor at a .394 clip. Melody Christian is right behind her at .388 on the year and has team-highs with nine runs scored and seven RBI.

In the circle, Tennessee Tech has a 3.78 ERA and 49 strikeouts over 89.0 innings pitched. Taylor Ketchum has been the top hurler thus far, posting a 5-2 record, six complete games and 33 strikeouts in 43 innings pitched.

SCOUTING WESTERN MICHIGAN: The Broncos are 6-11 heading into this weekend, and will play Loyola-Chicago in the first game on Saturday before playing Fordham.

The team has struggled a bit at the plate, hitting .235 as a group, scoring just 2.4 runs a contest. The Bronocos have two players hitting over .300, as Jenny Rohn is batting .357 over 17 games, while Melissa Palmer has a .333 average with nine runs scored .

On the rubber, the Broncos have a 4.72 team ERA and totaled 86 strikeouts in 111 innings. Becca Shemberger leads the staff with three wins, a 3.42 ERA, three complete games, and 38 strikeouts.

SCOUTING YOUNGSTOWN STATE: The Penguins have only played three games thus far due to weather cancellations. The team went 0-3 at the Phyllis Rafter Memorial Tournament in Georgia.

In limited at bats, Courtney Ewing and Vicky Rumph lead the team with three hits apiece, with Rumph having the lone home run for the club.

In the circle, Casey Crozier is 0-1 in two appearances with a 0.72 ERA in 9.2 innings, while Hana Somogyi is 0-2 with a 4.20 ERA in two appearances.

SCOUTING MAINE: The Black Bears will be the final opponents for the Rams on Sunday. After winning its season opener against N.C. Central, Maine has lost 13 straight contests heading into this tournament.

Maine is hitting .220 as a team, while allowing a .327 batting average. Jessica Burk leads the team with a .326 average to go with seven runs scored and six RBI, while Jean Stevens brings the power, recording three doubles, three home runs, and 12 RBI this season.

LAST TIME OUT: After a disappointing afternoon on Saturday at the ESPN Citrus Classic, the Fordham offense exploded on Sunday morning, upsetting the 5th ranked Texas Longhorns by a 9-7 margin.

Gabby Luety led the way for the Rams on Sunday, going 2-4 with two dingers and four RBIs. Michele Daubman and Chelsea Palumbo also hit home runs for Fordham. Elise Fortier finished the day with three RBIs.

After a day in which the Rams failed to get a run across in a combined ten innings of play, Fordham showed absolutely no signs of similar troubles early Sunday morning, tallying five runs in the bottom of the first inning. Texas put up a four spot in the top half of the frame, but a three run bomb off the bat of Luety and a solo shot apiece from Daubman and Palumbo put the Rams up 5-4 after one complete inning of work. The two squads traded runs in the second, as Luety smacked her second goner of the day to preserve the Rams' lead at one, 6-5.

Then, in the bottom of the third, the Rams loaded the bases and Fortier singled to centerfield and drove in all the ducks on the pond, extending Fordham's lead to four, 9-5, after three complete innings.

Texas would score two more runs in the top of the fourth to tighten the Fordham lead to two, 9-7, but Jamie LaBovick was a stalwart in the circle over the game's remaining innings. The senior from Peoria, Ariz., gave up no hits in the fifth, sixth or seventh innings, allowing Fordham to take home the victory over the number five team in the nation.

UPCOMING GAMES: The Rams will finish their southern swing on Tuesday, March 12th, when Fordham takes on Boston University in Clearwater, Florida at 1:30 PM.