NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The NEWMAC tournament-bound Smith College softball team (15-11) hosts regionally-ranked Amherst (17-7) for a single non-conference game this afternoon at 4:30 p.m.
Last Meeting: The Jeffs blanked the Pioneers 1-0 (8 inn.) and 8-0 (5 inn.) on April 4, 2013.
The Series: Amherst leads 19-9 and has won the last nine, including three in 2012. The Pioneers last win was on April 16, 2008 by a score of 9-3.
Fast Facts: Amherst is No. 7 in the NCAA regional rankings…the Jeffs defeated Wellesley 5-1 last Monday…Brianna Cook is ranked 11th in the nation with 0.56 doubles per game…led by Kaitlin Silkowitz, who leads the conference with a .462 batting average and three triples, Amherst is ranked third in the nation with 0.67 triples per game…
Gina Martucci (Pompton Plains, N.J./Pequannock Township) went the distance, struck out five and smacked a double in the first game against Amherst last year…
Tori Brown (New Market, Md./Linganore) batted 2-for-3 in the opener while she and
Caroline Kushner (Cheshire, Conn./Cheshire) accounted for both hits in game two…Martucci carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning of game one against Coast Guard on Saturday…The Pioneers are 7-1 in non-conference play this season.
Next Up: The official pairings will be out following the remaining three conference games being played today; however, it appears Smith will open NEWMAC Softball Championship play on Friday at 2:30 p.m. against either WPI or Springfield at Wheaton. Amherst treks to Wesleyan tomorrow for a single New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) game beginning at 5:00 p.m.
