'Cuse, Pitt Meet For Three Game Weekend Series

SYRACUSE ORANGE AT PITTSBURGH PANTHERS
Game Details	Saturday, April 12 at 1 p.m. \| 3 p.m. Sunday, April 13 at 12 p.m.
Game Coverage	Twitter: @Cuse_Softball Live Updates: In-Game Blog Live Video Stream Live Stats Game Changer
SUSB Links	Game Notes \| Roster \| Schedule \| Statstics \| Quick Facts \| Media Guide
PITT Links	Roster \| Schedule \| Statstics \| Fact Book \| @PITTSoftball

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – After a one-year layoff, the Syracuse softball team will continue its rivalry with Pittsburgh, this time as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, in a three-game set this weekeend beginning on Saturday, April 12. The schools will play a doubleheader on Saturday starting at 1 p.m. and will wrap-up the series on Sunday, April 13 at 12 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT:
Syracuse swept Binghamton on Wednesday, 8-0 in five innings and 9-6 in the second game. Freshman Sydney O'Hara tossed a two-hit shutout in the opener for her sixth shutout of the season. She also picked up her second save of the season, pithcing three more scoreless innings to close to door behind freshman Christina Clermont. Offensively, SU was led by freshman Alyssa Dewes and sophomore Danielle Chitkowski who each homored twice on the day.

CAREER DAY FOR CHITKOWSKI & DEWES:
Sophomore Danielle Chitkowski and freshman Alyssa Dewes combined to go 7-for-11 with four home runs and 10 RBIs against Binghamton in Wednesday's doubleheader. Each player smacked two home runs and finished the day with five RBIs apiece. In the first game, Dewes crushed a three-run homer and Chitkowski hit a walk-off that ended the game in the fifth. In the finale, Chitkowski homered for the second time in as many at bats to give SU an early 3-0 lead. Dewes tacked on a solo shot in the sixth to give SU an insurance run.

LUNDSTROM REACHES BASE AT HIGH RATE:
Freshman Nicole Lundstrom has a knack for getting on base nearly 50-percent of the time in her first season. The rookie leads the Orange with a .375 batting average, on 36 hits, which combined with 20 walks, brings her on-base percentage to .487, good for fourth in the ACC. If Lundstrom can keep up that rate, she will be on pace to break the single-season school record of .472 which was set by Hallie Gibbs in 2010. Lundstrom's numbers are even better in ACC games, posting a .469 batting average while reaching base at a clip of .630. Those numbers rank third and first, respectively.

OFFENSIVE OUTPUT:
Since beginning ACC play, Syracuse has been one of the best teams in the league offensively. In conference-only games, the Orange rank in the top-four in batting average, slugging percentage and on-base percentage. The teams' batting average of .324 is just a single percentage point behind Notre Dame and Florida State, while the .420 on-base percentage is a mere eight points away from North Carolina.

SCOUTING PITTSBURGH:
Pittsburgh (13-19, 4-9 ACC) was sitting at 8-7 before a seven game losing streak dropped the team below .500 on the season. The Panthers bounced back to win its next three and four of five, but have now lost four of five since, all coming in the ACC. Pittsburgh has played top-10 teams competitively, losing by one to second-ranked Oklahoma and No. 7 Kentucky in extras. Part of Pitt's success is the emergence of junior Carly Thea, who is batting .393, which ranks third in the ACC. Maggie Sevilla is next in batting at .277, but leads the team with eight homers and 26 RBIs. In the circle, the Panthers are led by Savannah King. She boasts a 7-13 record with a 3.58 ERA, and 10 complete games in 20 starts.

SERIES HISTORY:
Due to an unbalanced schedule, Syracuse and Pittsburgh did not meet during their final season in the BIG EAST, so the last meeting came in a doubleheader sweep by the Orange on April 18, 2012. SU owns a 15-8 series advantage between the teams and has won 10 of 11, including the last three.

LOOKING AHEAD:
The Orange revamps its rivalry with Boston College in a doubleheader in Syracuse on Wednesday, April 16 followed by a single game at Colgate the next day. SU and BC met as non-conference foes just last year but it was the first game between the two since 2005.

Syracuse University Athletics

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