April 29, 2011
WASHINGTON - The Georgetown University softball team will complete the road portion of its 2011 schedule when it travels to Providence, R.I. for a three-game series against the Friars this weekend. The squads will play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at noon and will wrap up the set with a single game on Sunday at the same time.
The Hoyas (12-37, 5-9 BIG EAST) are currently in 10th place in the BIG EAST Conference standings, sitting only a half game back of eighth place. The top eight finishers in league play qualify for the 2011 BIG EAST Softball Championship to be held in Louisville, Ky. from May 12-14.
GU is 2-3 in its last five conference matchups, earning its wins in home dates against Seton Hall and St. John's in the past two weeks. The Hoyas have made strong showings in the BIG EAST rankings for performances during league games, including coming in eighth in the team pitching. In 14 conference tilts, Georgetown has posted a 4.40 ERA, surrendering only 56 earned runs with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of nearly 2:1.
Freshman Jenna Stark (Huntington Beach, Calif./Orange Lutheran) leads the Blue & Gray in overall batting with a .316 average (42-for-133) and is tied for the team lead in hits (42), while currently second in RBI (17) and slugging percentage (.429) and third in total bases (57) and doubles (7). She also paces the Hoyas in a number of categories during conference play, leading the squad with 16 hits, 24 total bases, 10 RBI and a .571 slugging percentage. Stark is also near the top of the conference in putting the ball in play, tying for second place with only eight strikeouts all season.
Sophomore Shikara Lowe (Beaverton, Ore./Jesuit) is another of Georgetown's top offensive weapons. She is second on the team in average (.309) and leads the squad in runs (21), RBI (18), total bases (63) and slugging (.463). Her 10 doubles are also tied for ninth in the BIG EAST.
Lowe, along with junior Cara Savarese (Syosset, N.Y./Syosset), have led GU's offensive charge in its wins, with both batting over .400. In those 12 games, Savarese has batted .444 (16-for-36) with four doubles, six runs and eight RBI, while Lowe has hit .421 (16-for-38) with seven doubles, 10 runs and nine RBI.
Junior Mackensey Carter (Mission Viejo, Calif./Mission Viejo) is 2-2 in her last four decisions, including a pair of complete games in wins over Longwood and Seton Hall. Carter has nine total wins on the season, a new career high, with a 3.98 ERA. Her 162.0 innings pitched are the fourth most in the BIG EAST. She also tops Georgetown with five home runs this year.
Georgetown and Providence have met twice before, splitting a pair of games at Guy Mason Field in 2009. The Friars are 4-3 in their last six games, including going 1-1 in a couple of BIG EAST games at Connecticut on Wednesday. Providence is 21-28 overall with a 5-12 mark in conference and are led by Jen Abrams and Alicia Grosso. Abrams is batting .354 with nine HR and 23 RBI and is tied for third in the league with 58 hits. In the circle, Grosso has compiled an 11-16 record in 27 appearances with a 4.27 ERA. Fellow pitcher Corinne Clauss is ninth in the BIG EAST with 114 strikeouts.
