May 6, 2005
MARYLAND (24-19, 5-9 ACC) hosts GEORGE MASON (22-28, 6-11 CAA)
Saturday, May 7, 2005 | 1 p.m. (Doubleheader)
Terrapin Softball Complex | College Park, Md.
Game Notes
The University of Maryland softball team will close out its regular season Saturday when it hosts George Mason in a doubleheader at the Terrapin Softball Complex. The contest will be the final tune-up before the ACC Softball Championship, which gets underway Thursday, May 12 in College Park. The Terrapin senior class will be honored before Saturday's matchup with the Patriots, which begins at 1 p.m.
NOTING THE TERRAPINS
Maryland (24-19, 5-9 ACC) split a mid-week doubleheader with Delaware Wednesday, dropping a 2-0 decision in game one before exploding offensively in game two for a 11-1 five-inning victory.
Lindsay Klein hit for the cycle over the two games, tallying four RBI and blasting her fifth home run of the year. The sophomore first baseman continues to lead the Terps in nearly every offensive category, and is among the ACC's best with a .338 batting average. She is currently on a six-game hit streak and boasts 17 extra-base hits on the year.
Keri Lounge has also been a standout on offense, as she is the only other Terrapin with multiple home runs (4) and ranks second on the team with 28 RBI.
As a duo, Klein and Lounge have accounted for 58 of the team's 130 RBI (45 percent) and nine of Maryland's 14 home runs. Batting in the heart of the Terrapin lineup, the pair has been clutch during scoring opportunities, as Klein is hitting .400 and Lounge is batting .313 with runners on base.
With five conference victories, Maryland has improved on its ACC win totals from each of the last five years. The best conference mark in school history came in 1999, when Maryland compiled a 10-2 ACC record en route to a school-record 51 victories and appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Lauren Pollock continues to make the most out of her plate appearances, as she is third on the team with 14 runs batted in despite having the second-fewest number of at-bats (89) of the Terrapin starters. Pollock ranks second among Terrapin starters with a .321 batting average with runners in scoring position and is 1-for-1 on the year in pinch-hitting situations.
The other Terp in double digits for RBI is outfielder Jenny Belak, who has totaled 11 on the year. Belak, along with Nneka Cardoza, has also been one of the Terps' most effective base stealers, as the freshman is 7-10 for stolen bases in 2005.
The depth of the Terrapin pitching staff continues to show as all four hurlers have at least four victories. Elyse Lucas has a team-best ERA of 1.41, while Jessica Aditays leads the team with 90 strikeouts. Abbey Welch, meanwhile, has earned seven victories - including wins over ranked teams Missouri and Georgia - and has a team-leading three saves. Crystal Crews, despite having a 1-5 record in conference starts, is ranked second in ACC appearances with a 1.35 ERA.
Maryland opens play at the ACC Softball Championships, being held at the Terrapin Softball Complex, Thursday, May 12 at 5 p.m. The sixth-seeded Terrapins will face No. 3 seed Virginia.
SATURDAY IS SENIOR DAY
Saturday's contest with George Mason marks the last regular-season home game for the Terrapin seniors. Jessica Aditays, Nneka Cardoza, Lauren Pollock, Crystal Rizzuto and Crystal Tweedy will be honored before the game.
As a class, the quintet has won more than 130 games and been a part of many memorable Maryland victories.
The seniors will no doubt leave their mark in the Maryland record books. Aditays currently ranks in the all-time top five for victories, innings pitched, strikeouts, shutouts, complete games and appearances, while Pollock and Rizzuto are both approaching their 100th-career hits.
Cardoza's 84 runs scored ranks seventh all-time, while her 26 stolen bases is fifth. The shortstop recently notched her 100th-career hit and has put together arguably her best defensive season during her senior campaign.
Tweedy, meanwhile, ranks second all-time for sacrifice hits (32) and 10th with 72 runs scored. The speedy left-handed batter is also poised to crack Maryland's top 10 for career hits as her total is 106.
TLC AT THE TSC
With the ACC Tournament on the horizon, the Terps have reason to like their chances with the event being held at the Terrapin Softball Complex. In games played at home this season, nine Maryland starters (Klein, Lounge, Cardoza, Belak, Smith, Lounge, Pollock, Rizzuto and Grossman) are all hitting above their season averages. Klein has hit four of her five home runs within the friendly confines of the complex, and the Terps, as a team, are hitting .281 (up from their season average of .235) at home.
RECAPPING THE DELAWARE DOUBLEHEADER
The University of Maryland softball team avenged a 2-0 loss in game one of a doubleheader with Delaware, topping the Fightin' Blue Hens 11-1 in the second game Wednesday afternoon at the Terrapin Softball Complex. Lindsay Klein hit for the cycle over the two games and led Maryland with four RBI and her fifth home run of the year.
In game one, Maryland got eight hits off of Delaware pitcher Carolynn Sloat but was held scoreless. Crystal Tweedy was 3-for-3 at the plate, while Klein notched her 10th double of the year. Also recording hits for the Terrapins was Nikki Smith, Abbey Welch and Nneka Cardoza.
Terp pitcher Jessica Aditays fell to 8-4 with the loss, as Barbara Traynor's RBI double and Lauren Gardner's RBI single in the seventh inning gave Delaware the 2-0 victory.
Crystal Rizzuto's two-run double to left-center field in the bottom of the first inning of the second game gave Maryland its first runs of the day. Cardoza, who singled through the left side to extend her hit streak to seven games, and Klein, who walked, both scored on the play. For Rizzuto, it was her eighth and ninth RBIs of the year and her first multiple RBI game of 2005.
Abbey Welch brought Rizzuto home with an RBI single to center field and gave the Terrapins a 3-1 lead.
In the second inning, Natalie Grossman and Crystal Tweedy reached base on back-to-back bunt singles and both scored on Cardoza's third double of the year. The senior shortstop had a tremendous day at the plate, going 3-for-6 for the doubleheader with three runs, a double and two RBI.
Klein tripled later in the inning to score Cardoza and put Maryland up 6-1, and Keri Lounge scored Klein on a fielder's choice for her 28th RBI of the year.
Klein completed the cycle with a three-run home run to center field in the third inning. It was her fifth blast of the year and she now has a team-high 30 runs batted in. For both games of the doubleheader, Klein hit .800 (4-for-5) with three runs scored and four RBI.
The Terps won by a final score of 11-1 and improved to 24-19 on the year. Whitney Wides, Crystal Tweedy and Keri Lounge also notched hits for Maryland in game two. Crystal Crews pitched all five innings and allowed four hits and one earned run while striking out seven. The junior's record improved to 5-7 with the win.
ACC TOURNAMENT SEEDINGS ANNOUNCED
Maryland will be the No. 6 seed at this year's ACC Tournament, being held May 12-15 at the Terrapin Softball Complex. The Terps will face No. 3 seed Virginia at 5 p.m. on Thursday, May 12.
Georgia Tech captured the No. 1 seed, followed by No. 2 Florida State. The Seminoles will face No. 7 seed Virginia Tech at 1:30 p.m., while No. 4 NC State and No. 5 North Carolina will play at 11 a.m.
HOME RUN CLUB
Seven different Terrapins have hit home runs in 2005, eclipsing last year's total of different players. Seniors Nneka Cardoza, Lauren Pollock and Crystal Rizzuto, juniors Natalie Grossman and Nikki Smith and sophomores Lindsay Klein and Keri Lounge have all homered so far this season. Klein leads the team with five home runs.
TERPS IN THE ACC RANKINGS
Several Terrapins are at or near the top of the Atlantic Coast Conference top 10 lists. Lindsay Klein appears in the top 10 for hits, RBIs, total bases, doubles and slugging percentage.
Pitcher Elyse Lucas has the fifth-best ERA in the ACC and averages nearly seven strikeouts per game - good for eighth place in the league. Jessica Aditays is averaging 6.97 K's per game, which ranks seventh in the ACC. Crystal Crews, meanwhile, has the ninth-best ERA in the conference and second-best in conference games only.
THREE IS A MAGIC NUMBER
Three seems to be the decisive digit for the Terrapin offense. So far in 2005, the Terps have compiled a 20-0 record when they score at least three runs. All 19 of Maryland's losses have come in games that it has scored two runs or less.
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 (7-4) 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's most impressive performance to date came at the Florida State Invitational, where she one-hit St. Joseph's (March 13) and picked up two victories. Most recently, Welch shut out Towson (April 27) and struck out eight batters to pick up the win. In 2005, Welch has seven victories, 54 strikeouts and three saves.
Also excelling in the pitcher's circle is Crews (5-6). The junior fireballer returned from an autumn knee injury and has pitched extremely well in her 15 starts.
Smith has started 37 of the Terps' 43 games behind the plate and hit her first career home run on Feb. 19 vs. Penn State. The junior is hitting .248 on the year with six doubles and eight RBI.
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 has scored 18 runs and has stolen seven bases. She hit the game-winning single against Georgia on March 4 and posted her first-career multiple-hit game against Mount St. Mary's on March 19. In her ACC debut, Belak tallied three RBI and a stolen base in the three-game series at Virginia Tech. She notched a career-high three RBI in the Terps' 5-0 win over Villanova and hit her first career triple on April 6 vs. Delaware State. Recently, the right fielder tied a career-best with a 3-for-4 game against Towson (April 27), stealing her team-high tying seventh base and notching an RBI.
Booth and Reigel, meanwhile, have been the Terps' most effective pinch runners and have combined to score 15 runs.
TERPS BY THE NUMBERS
334
Career coaching victories by Terps' head coach Gina LaMandre
30
Lindsay Klein has batted in a team-high 30 runs
12
Maryland plays its last 12 regular-season games at the Terrapin Softball Complex
7
Seven different Terrapins have hit home runs in 2005
8
The Terps have faced eight opponents in 2005 that have either been ranked or receiving votes in the top 25 polls
5
Against those opponents, Maryland has earned five victories
SCOUTING GEORGE MASON
George Mason enters Saturday's matchup with a 22-28 overall record, 6-11 in the Colonial Athletic Association. Most recently, the Patriots won a doubleheader with George Washington, 2-1 and 9-1.
Leading George Mason offensively is Stacy James and Megan Farrell. James leads the team with a .333 batting average and has knocked in 19 runs, while Farrell hits .287 with 17 RBI. Farrell and Amber Straube share the majority of the time in the pitcher's circle. Farrell has a 8-11 record and 3.66 ERA, while Straube is 8-9 on the year with a 5.19 ERA.
George Mason head coach Joe Verbanic is in his first season leading the Patriots.
Maryland leads the all-time series with George Mason, 20-7, including the last six matchups. In last year's doubleheader, the Terps prevailed, 6-2 and 4-0.
LAST TIME OUT: MARYLAND 11, DELAWARE 1
The University of Maryland softball team avenged a 2-0 loss in game one of a doubleheader with Delaware, topping the Fightin' Blue Hens 11-1 in the second game at the Terrapin Softball Complex. Lindsay Klein hit for the cycle over the two games and led Maryland with four RBI and her fifth home run of the year.
Crystal Rizzuto's two-run double to left-center field in the bottom of the first inning of the second game gave Maryland its first runs of the day. Cardoza, who singled through the left side to extend her hit streak to seven games, and Klein, who walked, both scored on the play. For Rizzuto, it was her eighth and ninth RBIs of the year and her first multiple RBI game of 2005.
Abbey Welch brought Rizzuto home with an RBI single to center field and gave the Terrapins a 3-1 lead. In the second inning, Natalie Grossman and Crystal Tweedy reached base on back-to-back bunt singles and both scored on Cardoza's third double of the year. The senior shortstop had a tremendous day at the plate, going 3-for-6 for the doubleheader with three runs, a double and two RBI.
Klein tripled later in the inning to score Cardoza and put Maryland up 6-1, and Keri Lounge scored Klein on a fielder's choice for her 28th RBI of the year. Klein completed the cycle with a three-run home run to center field in the third inning. It was her fifth blast of the year and she now has a team-high 30 runs batted in. For both games of the doubleheader, Klein hit .800 (4-for-5) with three runs scored and four RBI.
The Terps won by a final score of 11-1 and improved to 24-19 on the year. Whitney Wides, Crystal Tweedy and Keri Lounge also notched hits for Maryland in game two. Crystal Crews pitched all five innings and allowed four hits and one earned run while striking out seven. The junior's record improved to 5-7 with the win.
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. The Terps are 11-6 on their home field so far this season.
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.
UP NEXT
Maryland's ACC tournament title quest begins Thursday, May 12 at 5 p.m. when it takes on No. 3 seed Virginia.
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.