GREENSBORO, N.C.- The UNCG softball team (32-24, 9-9 SoCon) will face ETSU (20-20, 9-9 SoCon) in the first round of the Southern Conference Softball Tournament Wednesday, May 11 at 10 a.m., at the UNCG Softball Stadium. The Spartans earned the No. 4 seed after finishing in a three-way tie with Western Carolina and the Bucs during the regular season. WCU was given the three seed after applying SoCon official tie break rules and UNCG beat our ETSU for the four seed after taking the regular season series 2-1 on the road.
This marks the third time in four years UNCG has hosted the SoCon Softball Tournament since 2013. The previous two times the Spartans lost in the championship game and finished as SoCon Tournament Runners-Up.
After landing five players on the All-SoCon Team and pitcher/utility Stephanie Bryden (Orlando, Fla,/East River) being named SoCon Freshman of the Year, UNCG has been even more motivated to cap off on of the best seasons in program history.
Lindsay Thomas (Irvine, Calif./Northwood) and Nicole Thomas (Irvine, Calif./Northwood), both First Team All-SoCon selections, will play in their final games at the UNCG Softball Stadium this week. The Spartan duo has rewritten the record books at UNCG and has one thing left to check off their list.
“I don't want to say that winning the tournament would mean everything because every one of these games has meant everything,” said Lindsay Thomas earlier this week. “I just want it so bad.”
Lindsay Thomas leads the SoCon in batting average, on base percentage, runs scored, total bases, slugging percentage and home runs this season. She broke program records in career hits, home runs, batting average and is six RBI shy of breaking that career record as well. Thomas' All-SoCon First Team selection made her part of an elite group with Tuesday's announcement as she became just the fifth player in league history to be named All-SoCon First Team all four years of their career. Lindsay's .843 slugging percentage ranks 13th in the nation this season and she ranks top-30 in three other categories.
Nicole Thomas is not to be overlooked. She ranks third in batting average this season for the Spartans and has launched eight home runs this season. Despite missing a chunk of her senior campaign, Thomas ranks second on the team with RBI and is slugging .673 in 37 games.
Senior third baseman Danielle Vega (Rialto, Calif./Aquinas) led the team with 44 runs batted in and has a .398 batting average. She's tied for second on the team in home runs (9) and tied for first in multi-RBI games (12). She reached base safely in the first 15 games of the season and is currently on her longest hit streak of the season, six games, going into the tournament.
Bryden poses a threat on both sides of the plate for UNCG. She ranks fourth on the team in batting average (342), and is slugging .514 this season. In the circle, she posts a 12-13 record with 127 strikeouts in 146 innings of work. She's held opponents to a .257 batting average and boasts a 3.79 earned run average.
Splitting time in the circle with Bryden is Alicia Bazonski (Sheffield, Ma./Mount Everett) who holds a 18-8 record this season, the second best in the league. She has a 3.01 ERA and has struck out 103 batters in 165.1 innings pitched. She has help opponents to a .252 batting average and has allowed just 71 earned runs in her 38 appearances.
Home field advantage is no joke for the Spartans as they posted a single-season record for home wins (23) with a 23-9 record at the UNCG Softball Stadium.
The Spartans have played ETSU 24 times in program history holding a 18-6 record against them. UNCG went 2-1 against the Bucs during the regular season sweeping the Saturday double header before falling 4-1 in the Sunday finale on the road in Johnson City, Tenn.
Every game of the tournament will be broadcasted live on the SoCon Digital Network. Live stats will also be available at UNCGSpartans.com.
For fans planning to attend, tickets will be sold at the UNCG Softball Box Office. For more information visit SoConSports.com.
-UNCG-
