Georgia On Softball's Mind For 2003 Buzz Classic

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The Maryland softball squad (6-7) heads into tournament play at the Buzz Classic in Marietta, Ga. after a two-week hiatus.The Terps take the field against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, tournament host Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Troy State Trojans, and Lipscomb Lady Bison. The Terps open tournament play against Western Kentucky at noon on Fri., March 21 at the Al Bishop Softball Complex

The Terps are taking the field for the first time in almost two weeks after having a slate of three home doubleheaders and a home tournament knocked off the schedule. The games were cancelled due to inclement weather that made the field unplayable. Maryland will open an eight-date homestand beginning Sat., March 29 at the Maryland Invitational.

This year's Buzz Classic will mark the ninth consecutive Terrapin appearance in this tournament. The Terrapins have competed in the Buzz since the program's first season in 1995. The team looks to continue its winning ways at the Buzz Classic this weekend, as it has captured four wins in each of its last three appearances. Last season the Terps collected wins against Michigan State, Elon, Harvard, and Western Kentucky. The Terps were eliminated in championship bracket play after dropping a 2-1 extra-inning game to host Georgia Tech.

SPEEDLINE INVITATIONAL RECAP

Maryland concluded the tournament with a 2-3 record. The team came out strong in its first game, defeating Florida Atlantic 5-3. The team then went on a three-game skid against Michigan State, No. 16/22 Oklahoma State, and Illinois-Chicago. The Terps picked up their game in the tournament's final contest against Chattanooga, domi-nating the Mocs in a 7-0 slugfest.

Sophomore shortstop Malissa Moczulski (Burlington, N.J.) hit her way to a 6-for-15 (.400) weekend at the plate. Moczulski, who leads the Terps with a .429 aver-age with runners in scoring position, drove in a career-high four RBI against Chattanooga. She drove in most of those runs with a bases-clearing single in the sixth.

Right-handed hurler Jessica Aditays (Shrewsbury, Mass.) worked through pain to pitch five and one-third innings of effective relief against Illinois-Chicago and toss complete games against Michigan State and Chatta-nooga. Aditays was listed as day-to-day heading into the tournament after being diagnosed with bursitis. Aditays's weekend performance was highlighted by a two-hit complete game shutout against Chattanooga.

Freshman Natalie Grossman (Skillman, N.J.) is making instant contributions to the Maryland squad. The outfielder made starts in four out of five tournament tilts. Grossman also collected one of four Maryland hits in a 9-0 loss to Michigan State, and racked up the first multi-hit game of her collegiate career against Chattanooga. Grossman is sharing duties in left field with versatile sophomore Nneka Cardoza (Brockton, Mass.).

The Terrapin bats are starting to heat up along with the weather. Sophomore third baseman Crystal Rizzuto (San Leandro, Calif.), Grossman, and Moczulski collected hits in Maryland's last two games. Maryland's longest hit-streak of the season belongs to charismatic senior Jillian Callaway (Brandywine, Md.), who hit in four straight games from Feb. 23 to Mar. 6.

SMARTS AND SPEED FOR SWEENEY

Redshirt-junior Samantha Sweeney (Marlton, N.J.) was awarded the Weaver-James- Corrigan Scholarship for excellence in academics. The $5,000 scholarship is given to ACC scholar-athletes who plan to attend graduate school in the upcoming year. Sweeney is one of 19 ACC athletes and one of two softball players to win the prestigious scholarship. She plans to use the award for her postgraduate studies in sports psychology.

Sweeney is currently tied for fouth in the ACC in stolen bases. Her seven swipes this season add to her school-record 35 career stolen bases.

CALLAWAY MAKING TEAM HISTORY

Senior first baseman Jillian Callaway (Brandywine, Md.) is knocking down Maryland team records throughout her 2003 campaign. She has already moved to eighth on the career hits list (97), ninth in RBI (44), ninth in walks (42), tenth in games played (163), and tenth in games started (157).

Callaway has been effective in replacing graduated Terrapin first baseman Kiesha Pickeral. Callaway's versatility has allowed her to assume many roles in the Terrapin infield. She spent the majority of last season as the starting third baseman and her freshman season as the starting second baseman.

FROM THE TRAINER'S ROOM

Junior double-threat Monica Cyphert (Warren, Ohio) has been bothered by tendinitis during practice this week. Despite the inflamation, Cyphert is still expected to pitch at the Buzz Classic.

Cyphert put together another stellar starting performance against Florida Atlantic at the Speedline Invitational (Mar. 6). Cyphert pitched all eight innings of the 5-3 victory, holding the Owls to three hits and two earned runs. Cyphert's best performance of the season came in a one-hit, 11 strikeout shutout of Radford during the USF-Best Western Tournament.

SCOUTING WESTERN KENTUCKY

The Hilltoppers (13-10) head into tournament action amidst an eight-game win streak. During the streak, the team has knocked off opponents Western Illnois, Indiana State, Detroit, Belmont, Loyola-Chicago, and Valparaiso.

Western Kentucky junior southpaw Allison Silver was named Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week for after leading her team to the 2003 Hilltopper Classic championship last weekend. Silver held opposing batters to a .193 batting average against and maintained a 0.68 ERA throughout tournament play. She was joined by teammates Shelly Floyd and Renita Pennington on the all-tournament team.

In addition to Silver, the Hilltoppers boast a four-pitcher rotation that includes rookies Adrienne Lathrop and Natasha Sevco, and veteran Kristalyn Smith.

The Western Kentucky offense is powered by both Floyd and Pennington, who hold the team's highest batting averages (.451 and .429 respectively). Floyd has smacked six home runs in 22 games.

SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH

The tournament host Yellow Jackets boast a 19-12 record that has them tied for wins with ACC rival Florida State (19-9).

The 2002 ACC Tournament Champions suffered a loss to Arkansas on Tues., March 18, halting a six-game win streak.

Sophomore Ace Jessica Sallinger (11-8) is currently third in the ACC with five shutout victories. She also is among league leaders in ERA (1.41).

Despite getting strong pitching from its starting staff, the Georgia Tech offense has been at bay in the first half of the season, placing fourth in the conference with a combined average of .247. The Jackets have won only three decisions where they have failed to put two or more runs on the board.

Seniors Felicia Coursey and Tara Neff are the only Jackets hitting above the .300 mark this season. Veteran boppers Tara Knudsen and Lindsey Wood have driven in 32 runs this season.

SCOUTING TROY STATE

The Trojans (19-11) knocked off No. 3 Nebraska in the first day of action at this year's Seminole Classic. The 4-3 victory marks the team's only win over a ranked opponent this season.

Troy State head coach Melanie Davis notched her 400th career win on Tues., March 18 in the first game of a doubleheader sweep of Florida A&M. Davis, who has led the Trojan troops for ten years, is the winningest coach in the school's softball history, and is just 33 wins away from being the school's all-time winningest coach next to former baseball coach Chase Riddle.

The Trojans have dominated regional competition in the past week, sweeping Birmingham Southern and Louisiana Tech at the Panther Spring Classic last weekend.

Offensive leader Erin Flater leads Troy State in batting average (.338), runs scored (15), hits (26), home runs (4) and RBI (18). She holds a .500 on-base percentage.

The Trojan pitching staff relies on the arms of seniors Christi Curran and Cassie Wilkenson and sophomore Kacie Flinn. Flinn leads the team with 51 strikeouts, with teammate Wilkenson trailing far in second with 28.

SCOUTING LIPSCOMB

The Lady Bison (12-8), much like the Terrapins, have been idle for almost two weeks. A doubleheader scheduled for last Tues., March 18 against Morris Brown was rained out but has been rescheduled for Wed., March 19.

Freshman Lauren Parker leads Lipscomb with a .352 batting average. She is also among team leaders in RBI and stolen bases.

The Lady Bison staff has a collective 3.18 ERA. Only one pitcher, Danielle Catalano, has an ERA under 3.50 (1.98). Teams are hitting .283 against this four-person rotation.

The Bison hit a five-game skid during their most recent contests against Middle Tennessee State, Southeast Missouri State, and Tennessee. The Bison got back on track after winning the nightcap of a doubleheader against Belmont.

This weekend's match-up will mark the first between the Lady Bison and the Terrapins.

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