ELON, N.C. – Winners of two straight, the Elon University softball team will look to continue its run this weekend, April 5-6, as the Phoenix travels to Chattanooga for a three-game series against the Mocs. Both teams square off in a doubleheader on Saturday kicking off at 1 p.m. before the series finale on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Frost Stadium.
Live Coverage
Fans can follow the Phoenix via live stats by going to the Elon softball schedule page at elonphoenix.com. The game will also be streamed online through Chattanooga’s website at gomocs.com via a premium subscription. Twitter updates will also be provided the handle @ElonScores or @ElonUSoftball.
Series History
In a series that began in 2004, the Phoenix and the Mocs have faced each other 33 times. Chattanooga holds a 23-10 advantage all-time over Elon, but the Phoenix swept the Mocs for the first time ever last season at home.
Last Time Out
Elon defeated North Carolina A&T, 7-3, on Tuesday, April 1, giving head coach Kathy Bocock her 300th career win. It was also the team’s second straight victory following a season-high nine-game losing skid. Senior Carleigh Nester tied the program’s all-time career record in doubles with 48 in the fourth inning, placing her in a tie with Dani Concepcion (2002-05). Caitlin O’Shea, Aly Quintana and Grace Eng also homered in that contest with Quintana’s hit being the first of her career.
Scouting the Phoenix (18-16-1, 2-7 Southern Conference)
The Phoenix continues to be one of the top home run hitting teams not only in the conference, but the nation. Elon has a league-best 41 homers this season and was 20th in the nation in home runs per game in the latest NCAA National Rankings Report on Monday at 1.12.
Nester has already tied a single-season personal best with her team-high 11 home runs this season, which is 15th in the nation. The Kernersville, N.C., native is also only the second player in school history with multi double-digit home run seasons along with All American Tomeka Watson (2010-2013).
O’Shea earned the win in the circle against the Aggies on Tuesday and has one of the top ERA’s in the conference at 2.61 in her 80.1 innings of action. As a staff, the Phoenix has an overall ERA of 4.11 and 116 total strikeouts.
Scouting Chattanooga (21-14, 6-2 SoCon)
Picked to finish fourth in the 2014 SoCon preseason poll, the Mocs are currently sitting in second in the league standings behind preseason favorite Georgia Southern. Head coach Frank Reed is in his 14th season at the helm of the Chattanooga softball program.
The Mocs have also won two straight and seven out of eight after sweeping Tennessee Tech at home on Wednesday, April 2. Chattanooga also won two out of three at UNCG in its last conference series on March 29-30.
Chattanooga is tied with Elon for third in the conference with a .271 average with three players hitting .300 or better in their lineup. Anyssa Robles has team-highs in average (.347), hits (35), slugging percentage (.485) and RBI (25). The Mocs have hit 22 home runs as a team with Alyssa Taylor leading the way with five.
In the circle, the duo of Taylor Deason and Katie Henderson has been one of the top tandems in the conference this season. Deason has a league-low 0.93 ERA along with four saves while Henderson is in the top three in the SoCon in wins with 11.
On Deck
The Phoenix travels to North Carolina A&T for a rematch with the Aggies on April 9, with the first pitch slated for a 4:30 p.m. start.