ELON, N.C. – Coming off an important nonconference midweek win at NC State on Wednesday, the Elon University softball team looks to continue its momentum into the weekend for its Colonial Athletic Association home series versus Hofstra. The Phoenix and the Pride open with a twin bill on Saturday, April 9, at 1 p.m. before closing the series on Sunday, April 10, at 1 p.m.
Follow the Phoenix
Fans can keep up with the action of the Phoenix all this weekend via live stats from the program’s schedule page at elonphoenix.com. Updates will also be provided on Twitter on @elonscores or the program’s handle, @ElonUSoftball. All three games will also be streamed for free on the Phoenix’s All-Access channel.
Elon SAAC Food Drive
The Elon Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will be hosting a food drive as part of the Colonial Athletic Association’s fourth-annual conference-wide Food Drive Challenge beginning this Saturday with the Phoenix’s doubleheader vs. Hofstra.
The project not only provides an opportunity for student-athletes to compete in a non-athletic realm across campuses, it also allows institutions to address the need for donated food throughout their communities in an effort to stop hunger. With the help of Elon’s Campus Kitchen, Elon’s SAAC will donate all food and monetary gifts collected to Allied Churches of Alamance County.
SAAC members will be on hand at the following home events to collect nonperishable food items and monetary donations.
Versus Hofstra
The Phoenix and the Pride have met on the softball diamond four times prior to this weekend’s series with each of the matchups occurring last year in Elon’s inaugural year in the CAA. Hofstra holds a 3-1 advantage over the maroon and gold after taking two of three in its series in Hempstead, N.Y. The Pride also defeated the Phoenix in Elon’s opening-game at the CAA Tournament last year.
Elon’s lone win over the Pride came in the series finale last season at Hofstra as the Phoenix broke a 2-2 tie with a three-run top of the seventh to earn a 5-2 victory. Alaina Hall was 3-for-4 in the contest with an RBI. Senior Kayla Caruso earned the victory in relief for the Phoenix after allowing only one run in her four innings.
Leading Off For Elon
• Elon head coach Kathy Bocock won her 350th career game after the Phoenix earned a 6-5 victory over Charlotte on March 16. Elon also won its 400th game as a Division I program against the 49ers.
• The Phoenix is third in the CAA in batting average at .307 and has five regulars in the lineup hitting north of .300. Sophomore Kara Shutt is second in the league with her .450 average.
• As a team, Elon is first in the CAA in triples (12), nearly double than the next closest team in the league. Nationally, the Phoenix tied for sixth in the country in triples per game (0.34).
• Elon is second in the CAA in total runs with 198 and plates most of those runs in the fourth inning (43). The Phoenix has outscored its opponent in every inning that it has played in except the sixth frame.
• Both Hall and Shutt are tied for 13th in the nation in total triples with four each and ranked second in the CAA. Hall’s 11 career triples moves her into sole possession of seventh on the program’s all-time career list.
• The Phoenix has posted a 14-3 ledger at Hunt Softball Park this season with its most recent loss coming to College of Charleston last Sunday, April 3, in the series finale against the Cougars.
Last Time Out
The Phoenix earned a 4-2 key road win at NC State on Wednesday, April 6, in extra innings. After falling behind early 1-0 after the first and trailing 2-1 going into the fifth, Elon tied the game at 2-2 off a Wolfpack error in the fifth frame. In the top of the eighth, Elon plated the two go-ahead runs to capitalize off a pair of NC State miscues before hanging on to earn its second straight win over the Wolfpack. It is the first time that Elon has won two straight over its in-state foe since 2005.
Serafini Rewarded as the CAA Player of the Week
Freshman Erica Serafini was selected as the Colonial Athletic Association Rookie of the Week on Monday, April 4. Serafini helped the Phoenix to its second CAA series win this past weekend. The Tampa, Fla., native batted .500 (4-for-8) in the series while scoring a team-high four runs with three RBI, a double and a home run. She also had a 1.000 slugging percentage and a .556 on-base percentage. In the opening game of the series against the Cougars, Serafini went a perfect 2-for-2 at the plate while scoring three runs and hustling for a double. She then belted her first career home run on a three-run shot in the bottom of the fourth that proved to be the eventual game-winner as the Phoenix defeated CofC 4-1.
Perfecto
Rookie Abby Barker tossed the program’s first-ever perfect game at the Division I level in Elon’s 8-0 win over Niagara on Friday, March 11. The Granville, Ohio, native had three strikeouts in her 6.0 innings of work and only threw 74 pitches in the contest against the Purple Eagles. It’s also the first time that Elon has no-hit an opponent since 2011.
Scouting the Phoenix (20-15, 5-1 CAA)
With the Phoenix’s win at NC State on Wednesday, Bocock has won at least 20 games in each of her five seasons at the helm of the Phoenix softball program. She is the only head coach in program history to win 20 or more games in each of her first five seasons.
Elon has won six of its past seven games going into the weekend including earning its first true road win of the season at NC State. The Phoenix’s victory over the Wolfpack was also the third overall win that the maroon and gold has had against opponents from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) from the past two seasons (Virginia in 2015; NC State 2015 and 2016).
Shutt extended her reached base streak to 19 games on Wednesday at NC State. It’s the longest streak for the program since Tomeka Watson reached base safely in 18 straight games in 2013. Shutt’s .450 average is also the highest since Watson’s .419 mark in 2013. The sophomore from Greensboro, N.C., leads the CAA in total hits (50) and on-base percentage (.512) and is in the top-two of the league in batting average and slugging percentage (.685).
The Phoenix’s four-person pitching staff of Caruso, Mitchum, Barker and Elise Walton has posted a 3.41 ERA in their 228.0 innings of action. During league play, that number is lowered to a 2.90 ERA in 41.0 innings. Walton is the team-leader with a 1.93 ERA in her 83.1 innings and a 7-3 record. She has also fanned a team-high 61 batters.
Scouting Hofstra (17-14, 2-3 CAA)
The defending 2016 CAA Tournament champions, Hofstra is making its first-ever trip to Elon this weekend. The Pride is coming off an 8-4 victory over Seton Hall on Tuesday, April 5, in its most recent contest. Last Saturday, Hofstra went 1-1 against league foe UNCW in a twin bill at home before weather forced the cancellation of the series finale.
The Pride is hitting an even .300 as a team with five regulars hitting better than .300. Michaela Transue paces the squad with her .345 average followed closely by Nikki Michalowski with a .338 average. Kim Smith has a team-high seven home runs on the year as Hofstra has belted 38 as a team while scoring 178 runs.
In the circle, the Pride has a 4.81 ERA with three hurdlers seeing time toeing the rubber this season. Jessica Peslak has been the main workhorse for Hofstra this season with her 12-6 record and a 4.62 ERA through her 110.2 innings. Courtney Scarpato leads the CAA with her five saves and has a 3.50 ERA through her 40.0 innings.
On Deck
The Phoenix hosts Triad rival UNCG for a midweek contest next Wednesday, April 13, with the opening pitch scheduled for 5 p.m.