ADA – With two weeks left in the regular season, the East Central University softball team is edging closer to clinching a spot in the 2016 Great American Conference Championship Tournament. The Tigers (21-24, 18-16 GAC) need four wins over the final games left to earn their spot.
ECU is set to host Arkansas-Monticello, April 15-16, with doubleheaders set to start at 2 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday. Before the start 15 minutes before Saturday's games the Tigers will honors its six seniors:
Taylor Davis,
Jordynn VanPelt,
Lacey Paulk,
Autumn Suydam,
Lauren Reeves and
Marissa Shaffer.
ECU was supposed to play the final two games of the series with arch rival Southeastern this week, but it was cancelled due to weather. Last weekend, the Tigers split the series with Southern Nazarene. Senior
Autumn Suydam led the team at the plate with a .429 batting average, three runs, six hits and five RBIs. Of her six hits she tallied two doubles and a triple.
Senior
Marissa Shaffer threw two complete game wins, allowing 15 hits, four runs and struck out nine.
The Cotton Blossoms are 27-21 overall and 21-15 in the GAC after splitting their mid-week series with Southern Arkansas this week. UAM has a .273 batting average and allowing a .264 mark for the year. Their magic number for advancing to the GAC Championship is two games, as they are one spot above ECU in the standings.
McKenzie Rice and Holly Wilmarth are the top producers for the Cotton Blossoms. Rice has a .364 average, 42 runs, 55 hits, 32 RBIs and 13 home runs. Wilmarth adds a .329 average, 36 runs, 54 hits, 37 RBIs and 12 home runs.
UAM has five pitchers on the staff, with two throwing over 80 innings. Kendra Coleman has a 13-10 record in 146.2 innings, 121 hits and 82 runs allowed and 145 strikeouts. Elizabeth Delafield adds an 8-4 record, 56 runs and 109 hits allowed and 31 Ks.
The teams have met on 14 previous occasions, with ECU holding an 8-6 advantage. The Tigers are 3-3 when playing at home and went 3-1 last year against the Cotton Blossoms in Monticello, Ark.
