MILWAUKEE – The Mount Mary University softball team will play host to the inaugural Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference Softball Championship this week, welcoming six league opponents to 5 Diamonds at Infinity Fields Thursday through Saturday, May 6-8.
GAME DAY PROGRAM | MMU SCHEDULE PAGE | C2C TOURNAMENT HUB
MMU TOURNAMENT PREVIEW
Mount Mary (6-24 overall) will play the underdog role as tournament host, earning the #6 seed with a Massey Rating of No. 330. The Blue Angels have dropped five straight games, including double-headers to Lakeland University and the University of Chicago. MMU's offense has been quiet over that stretch, getting shut out twice while amassing just four total runs.
On the season, Mount Mary's .274 team batting average, .374 on-base percentage, and .365 slugging percentage all rank fourth in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference. Freshman Sam Allen (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows), sophomore Brianna Ecker (Fond du Lac, Wis./Stockbridge), freshman Marissa Heraly (Brillion, Wis./Brillion), and junior Aislinn Strusz (Aurora, Ill./West Aurora) all rank among the top 20 in various offensive categories.
Freshman Brianna Lupa (Plano, Ill./Plano) has undertaken much of the pitching calls this season, appearing in a team-high 18 games and 93.2 total innings. To accompany a 3.18 ERA and 3-13 overall record, Lupa averages 5.16 strikeouts a game—fourth best in the C2C. Sophomore Kaitlyn Gilpin (Lyons, Ill./Lyons Township) has seven complete games this season, tossing 58.2 innings while striking out 21 batters.
Defensively, the Blue Angels' .918 fielding percentage ranks last in the C2C.
ABOUT THE FIELD
Top seeded Salisbury University (21-7) went a perfect 6-0 against league opponents and enters the C2C Championship ranked No. 12 in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Poll, and No. 5 in the Division III Massey Ratings. The Sea Gulls, out of Salisbury, Md., lead the league in several offensive categories including batting average (.322 as a team), and slugging percentage (.543). They also boast the stingiest pitching staffs in the league with a 2.01 ERA while averaging 5.53 strikeouts per contest.
Christopher Newport University (26-10) falls right behind Salisbury as this weekend's #2 seed in the league tournament, No. 14 in the NFCA Coaches Poll, and No. 7 in the most recent Massey Ratings. The Captains, from Newport News, Va., dropped three of four against rival Salisbury, including a C2C double-header on April 17, 7-2 and 8-0. CNU has matched SU's potency at the plate with a .317 batting average and a league-highs in 427 total bases and 195 RBI. The Captain pitchers are average nearly six strikeouts per game with a 2.87 ERA.
University of Mary Washington (10-16) enters this tournament series as the #3 seed after compiling a 1-5 mark in C2C action and amassing a No. 142 Massey Rating. The Eagles, hailing from Fredericksburg, Va., rank fifth as a team in batting average (.235) and on-base percentage (.275), and sixth in slugging percentage (.290). However, UMW has done it with pitching and defense with the third lowest ERA (3.59) and third highest fielding percentage (.945) in the league. Mary Washington also has incredible experience at its helm in the form of 34-year veteran head coach Dee Conway, who has led the Eagles to nearly 600 program victories.
Southern Virginia University (7-19) receives the #4 seed, having split a twin bill with UMW and amassing a Massey Rating of No. 259. The Knights of Buena Vista, Va., have the league's highest ERA of 6.03, as well as the league's lowest batting average (.211) and on-base percentage (.269). SVU has hit eight home runs, which ranks third in the league, and are one of the younger teams in the conference with just two seniors on its roster.
Regional rival and fellow Midwest participant, Finlandia University (6-8), earns the #5 seed with a Massey Rating of No. 300. The Lions, of Hancock, Mich., enter the championship series with the fewest games played and have not played a four-year institution since April 18. Finlandia ranks third-best in several offense categories with a .301 batting average, .391 on-base percentage, and .387 slugging percentage and has five players batting over .300 individually.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Thursday, May 6
12:00 PM
G1 (Field 3): #4 Southern Virginia vs. #5 Finlandia
G2 (Field 4): #3 Mary Washington vs. #6 Mount Mary
2:30 PM
G3 (3): #1 Salisbury vs. G1 Winner
G4 (4): #2 Christopher Newport vs. G2 Winner
Friday, May 7
12:00 PM
G5 (3): G2 Loser vs. G3 Loser
G6 (4): G1 Loser vs. G4 Loser
2:30 PM
G7 (3): G3 Winner vs. G4 Winner
G8 (4): G5 Winner vs. G6 Winner
Saturday, May 8
10:00 AM
G9 (3): G7 Loser vs. G8 Winner
12:30 PM
G10 (3): G7 Winner vs. G9 Winner
3:00 PM
G11 (3): G10 Loser vs. G10 Winner (if necessary)
FOLLOW ALONG WITH THE ACTION
All of this weekend's championship action will be available virtually. Live video can be found on our YouTube and Facebook outlets, while Live Stats can be found on our Schedule page. All of the tournament information, including changes to the schedule if necessary, can be found at C2CSports.com.
EVENT LINKS
Live Video – Field 3 (YouTube)
Live Video – Field 4 (Facebook)
