GREENSBORO, N.C. – Guilford College junior Cynthia Hayes (Seagrove, N.C./Southwestern Randolph) and senior Sarah Cutright (Roanoke, Va./Hidden Valley) remain ranked among the nation’s best softball hitters according to the latest NCAA Division III statistical rankings. The NCAA’s third weekly report includes games through March 24 and those students with a minimum of 55 plate appearances, 2.5 appearances per game played, and having played in 75 percent of the team’s games.
Hayes, a 5-6 infielder, leads Division III in batting average for the second straight week with 40 hits in 72 at-bats through the Quakers’ first 24 games. Her .568 batting average stands ahead of Allee Beaty of Wesleyan (Conn.) University, who was hitting .560. Augsburg College’s Bri Dorale (.533) holds third place, just ahead of Guilford’s Cutright, who started the week with a .531 batting average thanks to 34 hits in 64 at-bats.
Both Cutright and Hayes also rank among Division III’s best in on-base percentage. Cutright is second at .605 only .002 points behind Beaty. The senior catcher/first baseman sits eighth with an .828 slugging percentage and 20th in home runs (5). Hayes ranks fourth in on-base percentage (.593) and 20th in slugging percentage (.784).
Hayes ended her school-record 21-game hitting-streak Mar. 23 at Eastern Mennonite University, but has continued to hit well the past week. Hayes hit 6-for-10 (.600) with an RBI and three stolen bases. She leads the Quakers in runs (22), triples (2), and stolen bases (12), and ranks second in doubles (6) and RBI (17). Cutright has a season-high six-game hitting streak and has hit .538 (7-for-13) with four doubles and five RBI over the past four games. She leads the Quakers in doubles (7), home runs (5), and RBI (21).
As a team Guilford is ranked 23rd nationally in both batting average (.355) and stolen bases per game (2.42).
Coach Dennis Shores’ team is 12-12 overall and 0-8 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. The Quakers host Salem College April 3 and league-rival Sweet Briar College April 6.