SU Seeded Sixth in BIG EAST Championship
5/8/2007 10:50:21 AM | Softball
Weekly Release #12 - BIG EAST Championship
BIG EAST Championship Central
Live Video - SU vs. UofL
Bracket
Syracuse University (21-30, 9-11) finished sixth in the final regular-season league standings to earn its fourth BIG EAST Championship berth. The Orange take on third-seeded Louisville (33-23, 14-6) in the quarterfinals when the eight-team single elimination extravaganza begins on Thursday, May 10. This is the third-consecutive season the Orange has qualified for the BIG EAST Softball Championship and the fourth time in team history that it has earned a bid. SU won its first post-season game in 2005, defeating Villanova, 5-1. Syracuse lost to DePaul, 8-0 (5), in the quarterfinals of the 2006 championship. SU is 1-5 all-time in the BIG EAST Tournament.
The Cardinals swept two games from the Orange on April 14 at the Syracuse Skytop Softball Stadium and lead the all-time series, 4-0.
The DePaul Blue Demons (40-10, 20-0) captured the regular season title and are only the second school in conference history to record a perfect 20-0 record. Four teams have posted unbeaten BIG EAST seasons since 1992, but only two with 20 wins. DePaul will face No. 8 Seton Hall (15-34, 9-13) at 4:00 p.m. on May 10.
The No. 2 seed is South Florida (43-21, 15-5). The Bulls will take on No. 7 Pittsburgh (23-34, 8-11) at 12:30 in game two of the first day’s events.
In the final game of the day on May 10, No. 4 Notre Dame (29-21, 13-7) will face No. 5 Connecticut (22-20, 10-9).
The winner of the 2007 BIG EAST Softball Championship will receive the league’s automatic bid to the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
The University of Notre Dame softball team claimed the 2006 BIG EAST Championship with wins over Providence, Pittsburgh and No.18 Louisville. The Irish entered the tournament as the third seed overall, but after three consecutive wins were crowned league champions for the fifth time since 1996.
BIG EAST SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP TO BE STREAMED LIVE IN ITS ENTIRETY ON BIG EAST ALL-ACCESS
Fans can access the four quarterfinal games and two semifinal games for free; championship game broadcast on CSTV to be available for fans online for $9.95. Fans can watch all of the action by visiting the league’s broadband channel, BIG EAST All-Access at www.bigeast.tv beginning with the first quarterfinal contest at 10:00 a.m. ET.
The championship game, which is set for May 12 at 5:30 p.m. ET is being telecast live by CSTV: College Sports Television. That live broadcast can be seen by fans who don’t have access to the all-college-sports-network on BIG EAST All-Access for a one-time fee of $9.95.
Fans who have already signed up for BIG EAST All-Access will need to enter their email and password to access the free video content. For those who have not registered, a simple registration process will need to be completed.
Scouting the Louisville Cardinals
The Cardinals (33-23, 14-6) have won four of its last six including its regular-season finale at St. John’s, 7-5.
Louisville is led offensively by senior third baseman Audrey Rendon who is hitting .365 on the season with 34 runs and 22 stolen bases. Rendon is ranked fifth in the nation with seven triples. Senior shortstop Courtney Moore follows closely with a .364 batting average and leads the team with 10 home runs and 39 RBI. Freshman catcher Melissa Roth is hitting .325 on the season with a team-leading 35 runs. Sophomore centerfielder Kristi Cunningham rounds out the top four hitters with a .324 batting average, six home runs, 37 RBI and 12 stolen bases.
In the circle, freshman Kristen Wadwell leads the Cards with a 13-8 record and a 2.23 ERA in 151.0 innings. Sophomore Kassie Stanfill (12-5) carries a 2.32 ERA and is holding opponents to a .221 batting average. Senior Catherine Bishop (8-10), who has been hampered by injury this season, brings a 2.35 ERA and a team-leading 123 strikeouts into the weekend.
Scouting the Syracuse Orange
Syracuse (21-30, 9-11) has won five of its last seven, but lost its regular-season finale to Villanova, 11-3 (5).
The Orange is hitting .282 as a team and is led by junior OF/RHP Chanel Roehner who is hitting .345 with 50 hits, 29 RBI, 27 runs, 12 doubles and six home runs. Sophomore 1B Heather Kim is batting .336 with 49 hits, 28 runs, 28 RBI, seven doubles and six home runs. Senior 3B Erin Gray is hitting .329 with 48 hits, 24 runs, 19 RBI, 10 doubles and five home runs. Sophomore Tonye McCorkle follows closely with a .309 batting average and leads the team with 12 stolen bases. She also has 46 hits, 28 runs, 17 RBI, seven doubles and one triple. Freshman Ev Anderson is hitting .308 with 45 hits and eight stolen bases.
Syracuse looks to freshman RHP Brittany Gardner (12-21, 5.17 ERA/182.2 IP), Roehner (8-9, 5.04 ERA/126.1 IP) and sophomore Keri Casas (1-0, 2.62 ERA/26.2 IP) in the circle.
During the regular season, Louisville swept Syracuse 7-2 and 6-2 in Syracuse. UofL also swept SU 2-1 and 8-0 (5) in 2006 in Louisville.
