March 10, 2005
MARYLAND (4-6, 0-0 ACC) at the FLORIDA STATE INVITATIONAL
March 11-13, 2005 | Florida State University
Seminole Softball Complex (1,000) | Tallahassee, Fla.
Tournament Central
The University of Maryland softball team travels to Tallahassee, Fla., this weekend for the Florida State Invitational. The Terrapins are scheduled to face Georgia State, Southern Illinois, Florida A&M and Troy State in pool play. First up is a 1 p.m. matchup with Georgia State on Friday, followed by a 5 p.m. contest against Southern Illinois. The Terps are coming off of a 3-2 weekend at the Red and Black Challenge at the University of Georgia, where they posted an impressive come-from-behind victory over the No. 13 Bulldogs.
NOTING THE TERRAPINS
Maryland's home opener, scheduled for Wed., March 9 at the Terrapin Softball Complex, was postponed due to field conditions related to ice and snow in the College Park area. The Terps have rescheduled their doubleheader with Maryland-Eastern Shore for March 31 at 2 p.m.
Maryland (4-6, 0-0 ACC) won three games at Georgia's Red and Black Challenge last weekend, earning victories over UNC Greensboro, Oakland and No. 13/17 Georgia. For the second time in as many tournaments, the Terps advanced to the championship game and faced a ranked team. The Terrapins got an impressive 5-4 victory over the host Bulldogs on the second day of competition, as sophomore pitcher Abbey Welch got her third complete game victory of the year and Jenny Belak drove in the game-winning run.
Lindsay Klein and Crystal Tweedy continue to pace the Terps offensively, as Klein opened the year with a nine-game hit streak and is hitting a team-high .364, while Tweedy is batting .333 through 10 games and is second on the team with eight hits.
RECAPPING THE RED & BLACK CHALLENGE
After entering the weekend in Athens, Ga., with a 1-4 overall record that included a win over Missouri, the Terrapins collected three wins en route to a second-place finish at the Red and Black Challenge on the campus of the University of Georgia.
Facing its third opponent that was either ranked or receiving votes in the Top 25 polls, the Terrapins rallied from a two-run deficit in the bottom of the seventh inning and defeated No. 13/17 Georgia in the final game of tournament pool play.
Although Maryland fell in the championship game, 5-0, to the host Bulldogs, several performances stood out over the five-game weekend. First baseman Lindsay Klein continued her productivity at the plate, as she hit her first home run of the season (seventh of her career) against Georgia and saw her hit streak conclude at an impressive nine games. For the tournament, Klein tallied a team-high five hits and three RBI. Left fielder Crystal Tweedy also stood out in Athens, as the senior led the team with a .308 batting average, hit a triple and knocked in two runs. Both Klein and Tweedy are two of five Terrapin starters who have played 10 errorless games this year.
In all, the Terps scored 20 runs over five games, and were led by Klein, Nneka Cardoza, Rachel Greyson, and Keri Lounge, as each had three RBIs for the weekend.
FRESH FACES
Head coach Gina LaMandre's squad welcomes seven new faces in 2005. Freshmen Jenny Belak, Meghan Booth, Medley McGuire and Whitney Reigel are the Terps' class of 2008, while sophomore Abbey Welch joins the program from Longwood University and juniors Nikki Smith and Crystal Crews come to College Park from Indian River Community College in Fort Pierce, Fla.
Welch (3-2) has made an immediate impact, as the versatile sophomore has seen time at pitcher and in the outfield. The La Plata, Md., native gave the Terrapins their first victory of the year with an outstanding pitching performance against Missouri (Feb. 19). She notched two more victories at the Red and Black Challenge against UNC Greensboro (March 4) and then-No. 13/17 Georgia (March 5). Welch has tallied 14 strikeouts through 10 games.
Smith has started eight of the Terps' first 10 games behind the plate and hit her first career home run on Feb. 19 vs. Penn State.
Belak has seen extensive action in the outfield and had her first career RBI in the Terps' 3-2 win over Missouri on Feb. 19. The rookie leads the team with four runs scored and hit the game-winning single against Georgia on March 4.
TURTLES IN NAME ONLY
Speedy freshman Jenny Belak has stolen three bases for the Terrapins this year, while Nneka Cardoza is 2-for-3 for stolen bases.
The Terps had 25 stolen bases in 2004 and have already tallied six this season.
SCOUTING GEORGIA STATE
Georgia State enters the FSU Invitaitonal with a 9-13 record after most recently dropping a 2-0 decision to Oakland in its final game at the Yellow Jacket Invitational March 9.
Leading the Panthers offensively is Candace Jones and Meghan McCoy. Jones is batting .340 with two home runs and 12 RBI, while McCoy has a .268 batting average, four doubles and six RBI. Georgia State pitcher Elizabeth Hyman has recorded a team-high eight victories and has notched 97 strikeouts while maintaining a 0.89 ERA.
At the helm of the Panthers is Bob Heck, who began coaching at Georgia State in 1983.
Maryland trails the all-time series with Georgia State, 3-1, but won the most recent meeting -- a 4-1 victory on March 12, 2004 at last year's Florida State Invitational.
SCOUTING SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
The Salukis, currently receiving votes in this week's ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 poll, are 8-7 on the season after most recently beating Kansas, 4-2, on March 6 to win the Kay Brechtelsbauer Southern Classic in Carbondale, Ill.
Kelly Creek is hitting .405 and has nine RBI, while Katie Jordan has tallied 11 hits, three home runs and nine RBI for Southern Illinois. Saluki pitcher Cassidy Scoggins has a 0.94 ERA and has struck out 28 batters.
Head coach Kerri Blaylock is in her sixth season as the head coach of Southern Illinois and has a 200-96 record.
Maryland and Southern Illinois have never met in softball action.
SCOUTING FLORIDA A&M
Florida A&M enters the weekend with a 14-15 record after most recently dropping an 11-3 contest to No. 19 Georgia Tech on March 6 at the Buzz Classic in Atlanta.
Kenycia Byrd is hitting .290 with a home run and 18 RBI, while Danielle Brown boasts a .347 batting average and has hit four home runs. Brown has also led the Rattlers on the mound, earning a team-high seven victories and striking out 47.
Head coach Veronica Wiggins is in her 13th season at Florida A&M.
Maryland leads the all-time series, 5-2, including victories in the last five meetings.
SCOUTING TROY STATE
The Trojans are 16-8 on the year after a March 9 sweep of UAB (10-4 and 10-0).
Tamra Hownren and Jenny Boyd pace Troy State offensively, as Hownren is hitting .380 with eight doubles, seven home runs and 23 RBI and Boyd has a .406 batting average, five triples and 18 RBI. Trojan pitcher Jocelyn McCallum has a 5-1 record with 92 strikeouts and a 1.44 ERA.
Head coach Melanie Davis is in her 12th season at the helm of Troy State.
Maryland leads the all-time series, 3-2, but lost last year's meeting at the Florida State Invitational, 8-3. The last Terrapin victory came on March 22, 2003 -- an 8-5 win.
LAST TIME OUT: No. 13/17 GEORGIA 5, MARYLAND 0
Despite defeating 13th-ranked Georgia the day before to advance to the championship game of the Red and Black Challenge, the Terrapin softball team fell in the rematch, dropping a 5-0 decision to the Bulldogs on March 6, 2005.
Georgia jumped out to an early 2-0 lead off of four hits, including doubles by Courtney Knight and Jessica Doucette. The Bulldogs added a run in the top of the fourth inning and two in the sixth to increase their lead to 5-0.
Georgia pitcher Michelle Green (6-2) was working a no-hitter until the bottom of the sixth inning, when Terp catcher Nikki Smith led off with a single through the left side. After a Terrapin strikeout, Crystal Tweedy slapped an infield single to third base, but the Bulldogs were able to end the inning with another strikeout and a foul out.
The threat in the sixth inning was the last scoring chance for the Terrapins, as they fell by a final score of 5-0. Terp first baseman Lindsay Klein, despite reaching base in the seventh inning on an error by Georgia third baseman Jessica Doucette, failed to notch a hit and saw her nine-game hit streak snapped. Abbey Welch was charged with the loss for the Terps and her record went to 3-2 on the year, while Green improved to 6-2.
For the five games of the tournament, the Terps were led by Crystal Tweedy (.308 BA, 2 RBI), Lindsay Klein (1 HR, 5 hits, 3 RBI) and Nneka Cardoza (.286 BA, 3 R, 3 RBI).
ACC CHAMPIONSHIPS: OUR HOUSE
The Terrapins' 2005 schedule is highlighted by being selected to host the ACC Softball Tournament from May 12-15. The Terrapin Softball Complex, now in its third full season as the home of the Terps, will provide an outstanding facility for the conference tournament.
TERPS PICKED SIXTH IN PRESEASON POLL
As determined by a preseason vote of the league's head coaches, the Terrapins were picked to finish sixth in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Florida State was tabbed the preseason favorite, followed by Georgia Tech and North Carolina.
CALLAWAY RETURNS TO MARYLAND AS ASSISTANT COACH
Former Terrapin infielder Jillian Callaway, a 2003 University of Maryland graduate, joined the staff of her former team as an assistant coach in August 2004. A standout for the Terrapin softball team from 1999-2003, Callaway finished her career on Maryland's all-time top 10 list for games played (195) and started (189), hits (128) and RBI (63).
Callaway joins former teammate Michelle Burrell on head coach Gina LaMandre's staff. Burrell, a 2001 Maryland graduate, was an outstanding outfielder for the Terps from 1998-2001 and is in her fourth season as an assistant coach.
EMAIL STRAIGHT TO YOU
If you would like the latest Maryland softball news sent directly to you as soon as it breaks, email softball contact Amy Mulligan at mulligan@umd.edu with "Softball Email" as the subject and you will automatically receive every update on the team.
