Elon Softball Faces Campbell in Midweek Road Tilt

ELON, N.C. – The Elon University softball team travels to Buies Creek, N.C., where it will face Campbell in a midweek road contest this Wednesday, March 7. Opening pitch for the single-game slate is scheduled for a 4:30 p.m. first pitch at Amanda Littlejohn Stadium.

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Follow the Phoenix
Fans can keep up with the action of the Phoenix all season via live stats from the program’s schedule page at elonphoenix.com. Updates will also be provided on Twitter on at the program’s handle, @ElonUSoftball. The game will also be broadcasted on radio on Campbell’s athletic website gocamels.com. For more on Elon softball, follow the Phoenix on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Inside the Series: Campbell
The Phoenix trails the Camels in the all-time series, 10-25-1, during Elon’s fastpitch era (since 1990). Opponents on the softball diamond since 1993, Elon and Campbell will meet for the sixth straight season on Wednesday. The Phoenix has won two of the past three meetings including a 11-3 victory over the Camels last season at Hunt Softball Park in Elon.

Midweek Play
Elon will play in its second midweek game of the season when it heads to Campbell this Wednesday. Earlier this season, the Phoenix fell on the road at NC State in midweek competition on Feb. 21.

Last Time Out
The Phoenix completed its stay at the Carolina Classic this past weekend, March 2-4, in Chapel Hill, N.C. Elon went 2-2 at the tournament and finished as the runner-up. The maroon and gold earned wins versus Harvard on Friday, 5-1, and versus the host Tar Heels on Saturday, 7-3. Elon’s win over North Carolina was its second of the season against the Tar Heels and its first at UNC since 1998. The Phoenix would advance to the championship game of the tournament versus Kansas on Sunday, March 4, but would fall to the Jayhawks, 6-1.

Around the Horn
• Heading into its game versus the Camels, the Phoenix is batting .274 as a team with 68 runs scored, 123 total hits, 25 doubles and 57 RBI.
• Among the Phoenix regulars, three players are hitting north of .300 with Kara Shutt (.400), Hannah Olson (.389) and Erica Serafini (.320) leading the way. Senior Kristin Hoover is just shy of hitting .300 with her .298 average.
• Shutt carries a team-best 15-game hitting streak into the game on Wednesday. The Greensboro, N.C., native is hitting .423 (22-for-52) during that stretch with six doubles and 16 runs scored. She recorded her 50th career double versus North Carolina on Saturday, moving her one shy of tying Carleigh Nester ’14 for the most in school history.
• Olson had an impressive weekend at the Carolina Classic at the plate. The Yorktown, Va., native led the tournament with a .583 (7-for-12) average and tied the tournament lead in hits, runs scored (four), RBI (five), home runs (one) and total bases (12).
• Both Shutt and Olson also carry double-digit reached base streaks into Wednesday’s contest. Shutt has reached safely in 15 straight while Olson has reached base in 13 straight. Serafini also had a double-digit reach base streak this season of 10 games.
• The Phoenix pitching staff has a 2.44 ERA this season through its 120.1 innings of action. Elon also has three saves on the season and has struck out 76 batters versus 35 walks.
• Kiandra Mitchum and Abby Barker have seen the majority of time in the circle this season for the maroon and gold. Mitchum paces the team with 46.2 innings and has a 4-2 record and a 2.40 ERA. She has also fanned 41 batters, which is currently third in the Colonial Athletic Association.
• Barker leads the team with her five wins (5-2) and is second behind Mitchum on the squad with 42.0 innings pitched. She has posted a 2.67 ERA with a save and 23 strikeouts.

Scouting the Camels
Campbell comes into the game with a 10-11 record after last playing at the Jacksonville/UNF Tournament over the weekend. The Camels went 2-3 at the tournament and defeated host Jacksonville in its final contest, 7-1. Coming off a 29-29 ledger in 2017, Campbell was tabbed to finish third in the 2018 Big South Conference Preseason Poll.

As a team, the Camels are hitting .249 with 94 runs, 132 hits, 31 doubles and 82 RBI. Campbell has also belted 20 home runs this season with Rachel McCollum providing eight of those. McCollum is batting a team-high .403, paces the squad with 29 RBI and is tied for the team-lead in doubles with eight. She is one of two players on the team hitting .300 or better.

In the circle, Campbell has used primarily a trio of pitchers in 2018 as the Camels have a 3.12 team ERA in 137.0 innings. The staff has also accounted for 64 strikeouts, 69 walks and two saves. Megan Richards has seen the most time toeing the rubber for the Camels with team-highs in innings (62.1), ERA (2.47), strikeouts (38) and wins (seven).

On Deck
The Phoenix will face its longtime Triad rival UNCG in a three-game series this weekend, March 10-11. Elon hosts the Spartans in a doubleheader on Saturday, March 10, at 1 p.m. before concluding the series with a single-game on Sunday, March 11, in Greensboro, N.C., beginning a 1 p.m.