College of Charleston Softball Embarks on First Road Trip

Cougars to play five games in the Citrus Classic

KISSIMMEE, Fla. March 1, 2013 – After 10 games at Patriots Point, – excluding a handful of rainouts – the College of Charleston softball team embarks on its first road trip of the season with this weekend’s Citrus Classic. The Cougars are set to face James Madison, No. 9 Texas A&M, No. 13 Louisiana-Lafayette, Georgetown and Hofstra.

The Cougars are riding a seven-game win streak with the seventh victory coming in Thursday’s landmark win over No. 7 Tennessee. CofC (7-3) took down the Lady Vols behind a complete-game, four-hit performance from sophomore Hope Klicker (Walla Walla, Wash.) and late-inning RBIs by freshmen Chandler Frisbie (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and Rebecca Mueller (Fair Oaks, Calif.).

The Lady Vols scored in the top of the first, but Klicker iced them the rest of the way and the Cougars rallied in the fifth and sixth innings to come away with the 3-1 victory.

For a team which just knocked off a perennial powerhouse, the schedule doesn’t let up much as the Cougars face several tough opponents at the ESPN Wide World of Sports this weekend.

The weekend slate opens with James Madison which is receiving votes in the USA Today / NFCA Top 25 poll this week. The Cougars will be seeking redemption from a 6-0 loss which they suffered in the season opener on Feb. 15. The Dukes come into the game at 7-3 with two of their losses coming against No. 14 South Florida and No. 12 Louisiana-Lafayette last weekend at the NFCA Leadoff Classic. The Cougars and Dukes square off at 5:45 p.m. on Friday.

Saturday will be a test for the Cougars as they meet with the Aggies and Ragin’ Cajuns, two top-15 teams.

The No. 9 Aggies come in unblemished with an 18-0 record having already taken down three ranked opponents. Senior Mel Dumezich enters the tournament as the ASA/USA Softball National Player of the Week and the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week after going 4-0 in the circle last week with two no-hitters and a 0.00 ERA. The Whiting, Ind., native also shined from the plate, hitting .500 through seven games. The Cougars and Aggies are set to meet at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.

CofC follows that affair up with a 7 p.m. clash with No. 13 Louisiana. The Ragin’ Cajuns have hit 20 home runs in 15 games to surge to a 14-2 record to start the year. Brianna Cherry was named the Sun Belt Player of the Week after a powerful weekend at the plate in the NFCA Leadoff Classic. Cherry went 7-for-19 at the plate with eight RBI with seven runs scored and four home runs, helping the Cajuns claim the Classic.

The Cougars wrap up the Citrus Classic on Sunday, March 3 with Georgetown and Hofstra. CofC will meet the Hoyas in an early-bird special with a 9 a.m. start. The Hoyas have struggled to a 1-10 record this season with their lone win coming back on Feb. 10 against Florida International. They are coming off an 0-3 weekend at the USC Upstate Tournament in which they were outscored 18-1.

The slate concludes with Hofstra at 11:15 a.m. on Sunday. Hofstra (3-7) comes into the game amongst a four-game losing skid. Olivia Galati was named a NFCA Top-50 Player of the Year Watch List candidate and is already Hofstra’s all-time strikeout leader with 1,086. She brings 92 career wins into the Citrus Classic.