Softball on the Road at Charlotte to Begin Conference USA Play

Game Notes
Live Stream: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
Marshall Radio Online Stream

CHARLOTTE – The Marshall softball is on the road again to get Conference USA play started at the Charlotte 49ers. The three-game series begins with a Saturday doubleheader at 1 p.m. The series finale is set for Sunday at 12 p.m.

The Thundering Herd enters the weekend with an overall record of 17-6. The 49ers enter at 8-12 and 1-2 in C-USA action.

The games will be streamed on CUSAtv through the Charlotte 49ers as well on 88.1 WMUL-FM with audio streamed online at www.marshall.edu/wmul. Scott Hall will have the call for Marshall's radio stream.

Last Time Out: Cherry Blossom Classic - Marshall finished 3-1
It was another crazy weekend of weather for the Herd at the Cherry Blossom Classic, hosted by George Mason. Marshall played just one game on Friday as snow came through and canceled the rest of the day, then cold temperatures and a soggy field on Saturday led to more rain overnight, to a cool a foggy Sunday morning that eventually cleared up and temperatures were on the rise by the time the Herd left northern Virginia. Marshall finished the weekend 3-1.

The Herd faced Monmouth in the first game and came away with a 1-0 victory. The game barely made it through the fifth inning as the snow began to come down harder and stick to the field. Sophomore Armani Brown got on base with her second double of the season in the first, advanced to third on a passed ball and then scored on a ground out to second by fellow classmate Aly Harrell. It ended up being the only run in the game. Senior pitcher Abigail Tolbert and the Marshall defense clamped down on the Hawks and allowed just three base runners. Tolbert gave up just one hit and struck out five in earning her 10th win of the season.

After more schedule changes, Marshall finally got to face the Lafayette Leopards after the game had been pushed back two hours and then another 44 minute delay to finally finish taking care of the field. The Herd received a great performance in the circle from junior Kailee Williamson as she tossed all seven innings, allowed just two hits, one unearned run and struck out seven on the way to the 6-1 win. Junior Sierra Huerta belted her second home run on the season to left and finished with two hits. Senior Hannah Giammarino recorded three hits, including a double and stole a base as well. Senior Hayden Ellis hit her fourth double of the season, scored a run and threw out two base runners attempting to steal second. Ellis became the ninth Marshall catcher since 2000 to throw out at least two runners in a game.

The Herd began a Sunday doubleheader falling to Monmouth, 4-2, ending a six-game winning streak. Harrell drove in Brown in the fourth and then Huerta brought home freshman Rachel Pennington to cut the deficit to one, 3-2. The Hawks added one more run in the sixth. Tolbert pitched all seven innings and struck out six.

In the final game of the weekend, Marshall defeated George Mason 5-4 in comeback fashion. The Herd scored first as junior Blakely Burch drove in sophomore Katie Adams with a triple. The Patriots scored the next three runs before Marshall added two more in the fourth. Senior Briana Daiss plated Huerta and freshman Chloe Lee to tie the game at 3-3. George Mason responded with one run in the bottom of the fourth to retake the lead. Freshman Caitlin Myers then stepped up in a big way with her first career hit in the sixth, a double down the right field line, which scored senior Abigail Estrada to tie the game again at 4-4. In the top of the seventh, Brown hit her third double of the year, advanced to third on another passed ball and then scored on a sacrifice fly to deep right by Harrell. Marshall took back the lead and held on as Tolbert recorded two strikeouts and induced a ground out to Huerta at short in the bottom of the seventh.

The Series: 25 meetings, Charlotte leads 13-12
The series between Marshall and Charlotte started back in 1996 and has been going every season since the 49ers moved into C-USA in 2014. Prior to being conference foes, the series was tied 5-5. Marshall took the first three games, and Charlotte won the last three. The 49ers then carried that momentum into the first meeting in C-USA action in 2014, winning the first two games before Marshall finally won the series finale, 2-1, in Charlotte. The 49ers continued to be a thorn in Marshall's side for the next two seasons as Marshall won just one meeting in 2015 and then Charlotte swept the series in 2016. However, the Herd turned things around in 2017 with another trip south. Marshall was on an 8-game winning streak going into the weekend and kept right on rolling with the series sweep on the road. Current senior Abigail Estrada hit a grand slam in the Sunday series finale to help nail down the third win. In 2018, Charlotte made just its second trip to Huntington and the Herd took the series two games to one. Marshall put up six runs in the third inning and then held on for the 7-5 win. The Herd will be in Charlotte for the fourth time in the now sixth Conference USA series match up.

Scouting the 49ers
The 49ers are out to an 8-12 start, including 1-2 in Conference USA, and have had six games canceled due to weather. Charlotte dropped the series at UTEP (March 9-10). The 49ers won the first game 11-6 and then fell 4-0 and 11-2. Charlotte also just lost a 6-0 decision against Virginia at home on Tuesday. The 49ers have played nine games at home and that continues as Marshall visits the Queen City. Offensively, Charlotte is hitting .294, scored 100 runs, 34 doubles and 11 home runs. However, opponents are hitting .335, have scored 132 runs and hit 23 homers. Emma Ocker leads the 49ers hitting .368 and has four triples. Lizzy Birch has seven doubles, three home runs and scored 17 times. Meredith Harris leads the team with 18 RBI to go along with seven doubles and two dingers. Four different pitchers have thrown at least 24 innings and combined for a 7.08 ERA. Carson Pace has 40 innings, a 6.48 ERA, 3-4 record and 22 strikeouts. Lauren Riley has a 5.96 ERA in 24.2 innings. Charlotte was picked to finish 11th in the preseason polls.

For all of the latest information on the Marshall Softball team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdSB, Facebook at Marshall University Softball and on www.herdzone.com.

To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!

---HerdZone.com---

Softball on the Road at Charlotte to Begin Conference USA Play

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Players Mentioned

Katie Adams

Armani Brown

Blakely Burch

Briana Daiss

Hayden Ellis

Abigail Estrada

Hannah Giammarino

Aly Harrell

Sierra Huerta

Chloe Lee

Caitlin Myers

Rachel Pennington

Abigail Tolbert

Kailee Williamson

Marshall University Athletics