St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Softball Set To Take On Syracuse
4/7/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 7, 2009
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's softball team (16-14, 6-4) will play six games in six days beginning with a doubleheader vs. Syracuse at 3 p.m. on Wednesday at Red Storm Field.
• Live stats will be available for the conference matchup between the Red Storm and the Orange, at www.RedStormSports.com. Live audio will also be streamed through the official site of St. John's Athletics.
• Syracuse leads the all-time series, 9-6. St. John's lost two close contests at Syracuse a year ago, 1-0 and 2-1.
• St. John's went 2-1 this past week including a perfect 2-0 record in BIG EAST play. St. John's lost on close a contest Fordham, 4-2 on Wednesday, but rebounded to sweep Rutgers, 9-0, in five innings and 5-3.
• Sophomore Linzee Sumrall threw a one-hit shutout vs. Rutgers in game one and picked up her third save of the season in game two. Sophomore Kacee Cox hit two home runs and had four RBI this past week, while redshirt freshman Erin Harris hit her first two career home runs including a grand slam vs. Rutgers.
STORM FRONT
• Senior slugger Roxy Struble continues to lead the Red Storm offense, pacing the team in batting average (.398), hits (37), home runs (6), RBI (23), total bases (61), walks (6), on-base percentage (.434) and slugging percentage (.656). Struble has also transitioned to shortstop after beginning the season as a corner infielder.
• Sumrall leads St. John's with a 2.12 ERA and has a team-leading 143 strikeouts in 102.1 innings. Sumrall also has 13 complete games, four shutouts and three saves this year which moved her into sixth in the nation.
• Classmate Kat Lawrence has kept up in the circle this season, matching Sumrall's 8-7 record. Lawrence also has nine complete games and one shutout to go along with 110 strikeouts in 94.2 innings.
• Sophomore leadoff hitter Chelsea Durning continues to be the sparkplug for the Red Storm offense. She leads St. John's in at-bats (93), runs (16), doubles (8), triples (1), walks (6) and HBP (7) and is second on the squad in hits (32) and on-base percentage (.425).
• Since transitioning to catcher after playing most of 2008 at third base, Cox is beginning to pick up where she left off last season. Cox, who was the team's offensive leader a season ago, has a .444 batting average, five runs, a double, three home runs, eight RBI, a 1.000 slugging percentage and a .565 on-base percentage over her past seven games. The Simi Valley, Calif., native has also done a great job behind the plate, managing the pitching staff to a 2.62 ERA and 257 strikeouts in just 200.0 innings this season.
• Junior transfer Stacia Dopudja has recently moved into the cleanup spot in the Red Storm lineup and has been pacing the offense in conference games this year. The Southeast Missouri State transfer leads the team with a .433 batting average along with 13 hits, three doubles, 22 total bases and a .733 slugging percentage in BIG EAST play.
• Junior outfielder Shauntaine Harris has played well in BIG EAST games this season, upping her batting average 138 points to hit .333 in conference play. Harris also has three runs and a team-leading three steals against BIG EAST foes.
• Freshman Julia Sanchez has a handle on the hot corner and has used her speed to her advantage this season. Sanchez has seven runs, three doubles and three RBI along with a team-leading two sacrifice flies, three sacrifice hits and eight steals.
SCOUTING SYRACUSE
• The Syracuse Orange are 17-11 and 6-2 in the BIG EAST conference this season after going 21-32, 12-10 a year ago.
• Syracuse is led by head coach Leigh Ross who is 42-63 in two seasons with the Orange and 279-261-2 in 11 years as a head coach.
• The team returns nine letterwinners along with seven starters and two pitchers.
• SU has a team batting average of .295, and a staff ERA of 2.53.
• Syracuse enters the doubleheader having won seven of its last 10 games. Most recently, the Orange swept Villanova on Sunday, April 5, to improve to 6-2 in BIG EAST play, its best start in league play since 2005.
• Freshman Jenna Caira pitched a no-hitter in game one to help the Orange secure a 5-0 victory against the Wildcats. It was only the third no-hitter in Orange program history and the first since 2005. Caira went on to pitch three more hitless innings in game two.
• Senior Nicole Miller was another top performer for the Orange in the two games. She finished game one against the Wildcats 2-for-3 with three of the team's five RBI. In game two, she was one of three players to hit a home run. Miller earned a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performance.
ON DECK
The Red Storm continues its stretch of six games in six days when the squad hosts St. Peter's on Saturday, April 11, in a doubleheader at noon.
If you would like to receive the most up-to-date information on the 2008-09 St. John's softball team, please send your e-mail address to michael.gambardella03@stjohns.edu.
