St. John's University Athletics
Red Storm Heads South For Charleston Southern Tournament
2/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 18, 2010
• Game Notes
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's softball team continues its season-opening trek down the East Coast in North Charleston, S.C. when the Red Storm competes in the Charleston Southern Tournament Feb. 19-20 at Buccaneer Field. On Feb. 19, St. John's will take on BIG EAST foe No. 21/22 Louisville in a non-conference matchup at 9:30 a.m. before facing Youngstown State at 11:30 a.m. STJ will play Youngstown State again on Feb. 20 at 9:30 a.m. before wrapping up the tournament against host Charleston Southern at 11:30 a.m. Live stats will be available for free for all four games at csusports.com.
The Red Storm trails the all-time series with Louisville, 6-3. The two teams last met on March 28, 2009, when STJ took a 5-4 victory over the then-No. 14/16 Cardinals at Red Storm Field.
The St. John's is 1-1 all-time against Youngstown State and will play the Penguins for the first time in nearly 20 years. The Red Storm last faced YSU March. 23, 1990, winning, 8-0, in Ocoee, Fla.
The STJ leads the all-time series against Charleston Southern, 2-1. The Red Storm defeated the Buccaneers 10-2 in their last meeting on March 13, 2004, during the Winthrop Ringor Invitational in Rock Hill, S.C.
After winning its Feb. 14 season opener against Liberty, 8-0, in five innings, St. John's will look to open the season 2-0 for the second straight year when it takes on Louisville on Feb. 19.
Following the Charleston Southern Tournament, STJ's non-conference tournament slate stays on the East Coast when the team heads to Athens, Ga., for the Seventh Annual Georgia Softball Classic on Feb. 26-28. During spring break the Red Storm will take part in the Univeristy of Arizona Tournament on March 12-14 in Tucson, Ariz. St. John's final tournament of the regular season is the Coastal Carolina Tournament on March 27-28 in Conway, S.C.
SCOUTING NO. 16/15 LOUISVILLE
The Cardinals are 4-1 after opening their 2010 season with the Marriott Tournament in Houston, Texas. Louisville defeated Kansas, No. 15/17 Baylor (twice) and Houston in the tournament before falling to No. 16/14 Ohio State, 2-0, on Feb. 13.
UofL returns six 2009 All-BIG EAST selections. First-team honoree and senior catcher Melissa Roth leads the team with a .533 batting average, eight hits, seven runs scored and three doubles. Roth also has three RBI and is tied for the team lead with one home run. Senior outfielder Brittany York has a team-high seven RBI and ranks second on the squad with a .429 batting average and six hits.
Louisville returns its top two pitchers from a year ago in All-BIG EAST first team selection Kristen Wadwell and Tori Collins. Wadwell, a senior, posted a 41-10 record with a 1.69 ERA in 2009. This season, she has a 3.20 ERA in three appearances (two starts) and leads the team with a 2-0 record. Collins leads the team in strikeouts (14) and ERA (1.50) through three appearances (one start). Freshman Chelsea Leonard is 1-0 with a 1.68 ERA through three appearances (two starts).
SCOUTING YOUNGSTOWN STATE
The Penguins open their season against St. John's on Feb. 19 at 12 p.m. Last year, YSU went 8-42 with a 2-12 record at neutral sites.
Youngstown State returns its top three hitters from a year ago in sophomore outfielder Jordan Ingalls, junior first basman Kim Klonowski and sophomore outfielder Haley Thomas. Ingalls led the Penguins with a .331 batting average to go with three home runs and 15 RBI. Klonowski (.329) and Thomas (.327) ranked second and third, respectively in batting average. Klonowski was YSU's power hitter in 2009, leading the squad with eight home runs, 32 RBI and a .540 slugging percentage. Thomas led the team with 27 runs scored.
The Penguins' top pitcher from 2009 was Cheryl Cale who returns for her senior season. Cale had a 4.13 ERA with a 7-24 record and 69 strikeouts last season.
SCOUTING CHARLESTON SOUTHERN
The Buccaneers are 3-2-1 this season and are coming off of a 10-6 win and a 2-2 tie against Campbell in a home-opening doubleheader on Feb. 16.
Charleston Southern has benefited from the hot starts of sophomore infielder Megan Lombard and Erin Kegley. Lombard leads the Buccaneers with a .450 batting average and nine hits through six games. Lombard led the Bucs with five homers in 2009. Kegley is hitting .421 and has found her power stroke with three home runs, one double and a team-high seven RBI. Senior Megan Hall, who had a team-best .339 batting average last year, is off to a slow start, hitting .167 through the CSU's first six contests.
Junior Kimberly Hobbs has a team-low 2.67 ERA with a 1-1 record and 11 strikeouts. Junior Sondra Vetter is 2-1 with a 2.86 ERA and 20 strikeouts. Vetter, the team's top returning pitcher from last year, went 12-12 with a 2.97 ERA as 112 K's in 2009.
