Utica, NY (5/2/13)- The Utica College softball team is ready for arguably its biggest weekend in program history as it hosts the Empire 8 Conference Tournament for the first time ever. 

Season Review: The Pioneers are in the midst of their best season in program history as they finished the regular season with a 30-10 overall record and a 9-3 mark in the Empire 8 Conference.

National Spotlight: The Pioneers have earned national attention as they have been ranked No. 1 in the northeast region in the last two NCAA Regional Rankings… UC is also receiving votes in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll for the first time ever… Utica is fourth in the nation in home runs per game (1.11) and ranks 13th nationally in both batting average (.359) and slugging percentage (.517)… Utica also leads the Empire 8 in hits (404), runs (286), home runs (43), RBI (251), stolen bases (66), batting average, and slugging percentage.

Not an Easy Road: Second seeded Elmira College is one of seven teams to hand Utica a loss this year and did it in shutout fashion, downing the Pioneers 1-0 and 4-0...  Elmira is 4-12 against UC dating back as far as the 2006 season…  Alfred University split a two game double header back on April 6  against Utica… UC shut out the Saxons in game one 11-0 but lost in game two 5-6... Prior to this season Utica had a 13 game losing streak against St John Fisher College dating back to the 2006 season when the Pioneers spilt a two game double header... UC swept Fisher in their two meetings during the regular season, holding the Cardinals to just two runs each game.

Catch Her If You Can: Sophomore Christy Traglia (Mohawk, NY/Mohawk) is tied for first in the conference with 14 stolen bases… In her career, she is a perfect 26-for-26 on steal attempts… Traglia is also third on the team with a .402 average.

Super Seniors: Utica's three seniors are having impressive seasons in their final campaigns… Dominique Carcone (Frankfort, NY/New Hartford) leads the conference with a .449 batting average She is also tied with Traglia with 14 stolen bases… Mallory Ingalls (Oriskany, NY/Oriskany) is batting .344 and is second on the team and tied for fourth in the conference with 33 RBI… She has also hit a career-high six home runs this season… Bridgette Plummer (Saratoga Springs, NY/Schuylerville) has a .320 average and has also hit a career-best seven homers.

Home Sweet Home: The Pioneers have been almost unstoppable at Greenman Field this season… UC is 21-1 and has outscored opponents 203-59 on its home turf.

Big Bats: Utica has had solid hitting throughout the line up… Freshman Alysa Russell (Mechanicville, NY/Mechanicville) is second on the team with a .431 batting average and third on the squad in on base percentage (.458)… Russell has also hit six home runs on the season… Junior Chelsea Monroe (Watertown, NY/General Brown) has racked up a .390 batting average and is second on the team with nine home runs… Meanwhile sophomore Courtney Fitzgerald (Albany, NY/Colonie Central) has had a stand out season as she recently tied the College's single season home run record (10)… She also has a .381 average, 39 RBI and 90 total bases.

In the Circle: The Pioneers' pitching staff has been impressive as well… Freshman Abby Monroe (Watertown, NY/General Brown) ranks second in the conference with 16 wins… She is also fourth in ERA (2.02) and strikeouts (79)… Classmate Erica Colucci (Glenville, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) leads the team and ranks third in the conference with a 1.81 ERA…  She has also collected 59 strikeouts… Sophomore Briona Enny (Queensbury, NY/Queensbury) is an impressive 9-1 on the year while compiling a 2.79 ERA… Closer Cassidy Thompson (Bend, OR/West Valley) has four saves and a 2.15 ERA in 12 appearances.

Scouting Elmira: The Soaring Eagles are making their first trip to the conference tournament after finishing with a 23-11 overall record and an 8-4 in the conference… Elmira was ranked third in the Northeast region in the most recent NCAA regional rankings... The Soaring Eagles come into the tournament after dropping a pair of games against Cortland on Sunday… They are led by freshman Ashley Palmer who has a .414 batting average to go along with her team-best three home runs… Junior Alex Puglisi has been impressive in the circle, ranking second in the conference in ERA (1.31) and strikeouts (161)… She is also third in the E8 with 14 wins.

Scouting Fisher: St. John Fisher is making its eighth straight trip to the Empire 8 Tournament… The Cardinals earned the number three seed after compiling an 8-4 Empire 8 record… They were also ranked No. 2 in the latest NCAA Northeast regional poll…. Fisher enters the tournament on a 12 game winning streak, after being swept by Utica on April 14…. The Cardinals are led by senior Sarah Fordyce, who is second in the conference with a .434 batting average…. She also is tied for first in the Empire 8 with nine home runs, and is third in RBI (33)… Senior Sarah Stefanon has been lights out on the mound, leading the league in ERA (.74), strikeouts (212), and wins (18).

Scouting the Saxons: Alfred is 23-15 overall and 7-5 in Empire 8 (tied for fourth in conference)…The Saxons went 2-4 combined against the tournament field, splitting home games with top-seeded Utica and road games at second-seeded Elmira while being swept at third-seeded Fisher… AU has a team batting average of .315... Freshman shortstop Nicole Maher is hitting .314 with 32 hits and 19 runs ... She leads the team in RBIs (25) and extra base hits (10), including a team-high six homeruns… Sophomore Jessica O'Sullivan leads the pitching staff with a 10-4 record, 2.48 ERA and a team-leading 85 strikeouts.

For more information about the tournament, including game schedules and scores, please visit the Empire 8 Tournament Webpage.


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