MOUNT ST. MARY'S (13-27, 4-10 NEC) vs. MONMOUTH (24-13, 10-4 NEC)
Saturday, April 20, 2013, 1:00 p.m. (DH)
Our Lady of the Meadows Field, Emmitsburg, Md.
LIVE STATS
MOUNT UPDATE: The Mount split a mid-week doubleheader with Morgan State at Our Lady of the Meadows Field on Wednesday. In the game one win, the Mount scored two runs in the first and third innings before adding four more in the bottom of the sixth for an 8-0 victory. Nicole Pagano continued her stellar junior campaign by pitching a two-hit shutout. Rachel Gavigan and Kelly Hickman both picked up two hits in the win for the Mount. In game two, the Mount jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning but could not hold on as the Bears took the win, 13-8, in a contest shortened due to darkness.
ABOUT MONMOUTH: The Hawks have won seven of their last eight games entering the weekend. Last weekend, Monmouth swept a doubleheader with first-place Central Connecticut State then split a pair of games with Temple on Wednesday. The Hawks utilize a three-pitcher rotation with Cerissa Rivera, Lauren Sulick and Jordan Barnett all checking in with an ERA of 3.05 or better led by Rivera's 1.91. At the plate, Kayla Weiser and Alicia DeSanto have identical .306 batting averages with 33 hits in 108 at bats.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Mount brings a 4-38 all-time record against the Hawks into the doubleheader. Three of the four wins for the Mount have occurred at home in the series dating back to 1993. In 2011, the Mount secured a 5-2 victory in the second game of a doubleheader to snap a nine-game losing streak to the Hawks.
LAST TIME WE MET: The Mount took Monmouth to extra innings before falling by a 2-1 score in the opening game of a doubleheader last spring. In the second game, the Hawks outhit the Mount, 14-9, on the way to a 7-2 victory to pick up a sweep.
SENIOR DAY: In between games on Saturday, the softball team will recognize its seniors with the annual Senior Day celebration. Liz Christiansen, Kristen Collins, Kelly Hickman, Erin Leddy, Bre Lohman and Alexa Tuck will all be suiting up for their final home games in a Mount St. Mary's uniform. Christiansen will go down as one of the most decorated players in Mount history as the career leader in home runs (24) and RBIs (109). The Etters, Pa. native is a three-time NEC Academic Honor Roll selection as well as a two-time First Team All-NEC honoree. Collins has appeared in 34 games in her collegiate career, recording 13 hits and seven RBIs. She has made two NEC Academic Honor Rolls and was named NEC Rookie of the Week in 2010. Hickman set career highs with eight hits, seven RBIs and 14 walks as a junior in 2012. For her career, she has collected 17 hits in 74 appearances. Leddy has been a staple in the Mount's lineup with 181 career games, ranking fifth all-time in school history. Her 82 runs scored are the sixth most in program history. Lohman, who is a junior graduating in May to attend nursing school, set career highs in 2013 with 19 RBIs, three home runs and a .271 batting average. Entering the weekend, she has accumulated 30 hits and 28 RBIs for her career. Tuck has played in 104 games with 35 hits in her four-year career in Emmitsburg. Last season she tied for second on the team with 16 runs scored and had a career-high 19 hits.
HOME SWEET HOME: As a team, the Mount's offense has performed better at home than on the road or in neutral site games. In 16 games at Our Lady of the Meadows Field, the team has a collective batting average of .253 as opposed to .241 in road or neutral site contests. Nine of the team's 17 home runs have been at home and 17 of the 34 doubles for the Mount this season have occurred in the 16 home games.
RECORD BOOKS: Nicole Pagano broke the Mount's career strikeout record on April 9 in game two of a home doubleheader against George Washington. She also checks in at fourth in school history with 35 wins. Liz Christiansen, who already holds the Mount's career home run and RBI records, ranks in the top 10 in other career offensive categories including second in walks (68), second in total bases (240), fifth in doubles (28) and sixth in hits (138). Other Mount players in the top 10 are Erin Leddy, who is fourth for walks (59) and sixth for runs (82) and Cat Clifford is fourth in home runs (15).
RBI LEADER: Liz Christiansen recorded her 103rd career run batted in during game two against Canisius on March 30 to pass Amanda Burk for the most in school history.
PAGANO MAKING HISTORY: Nicole Pagano's complete game four-hitter in game one against FDU on March 24 was her 30th career win. She joins elite company as Zena Edwards, Jamie Fowler and Maria Lutz are the only other players to accomplish the feat in their Mount careers. She is currently fourth in school history with 34 wins. Her 11 wins this season are the fifth most in single-season history. On April 9, Pagano broke the Mount's career strikeout record in game two of a home doubleheader against George Washington.
DEFENSIVELY SOUND: The Mount has primarily used four outfielders this season in senior Erin Leddy, sophomore Kendra Hayward, freshman Megan Baker and junior Bre Lohman. The four have combined to make just three fielding errors this season.
FIVE-GAME WINNING STREAK: The Mount's five-game winning streak, which was snapped against Bryant on Saturday, March 23, was the second-longest winning streak in the program's Division I history. The longest in team history was 21 games in 1987 and the six-game run in 2006 was the team's longest since joining Division I in 1988-89.
HEAD COACH ANNA NAGRO: Anna Nagro is the eighth head coach in Mount St. Mary's softball history. She has compiled a 45-92 overall record, including 17-37 in the NEC. Last season's eight wins in NEC play tied for the third most in the Mount's single-season history.
OUR LADY OF THE MEADOWS FIELD: During Anna Nagro's tenure, the Mount holds a 17-29 record at home at Our Lady of the Meadows Field. The Mountaineers are 7-9 at home this season after a 3-9 record last season and a 7-11 mark in 2011. With seven home wins this season, the Mount could increase its home wins to nine for the first time since 2009 with two wins against Monmouth.
UP NEXT: Next weekend, the Mount will conclude the regular season with doubleheaders at Sacred Heart on Saturday, April 27, and at LIU Brooklyn on Sunday, April 28.
