Feb. 24, 2011
Magic City Classic Schedule
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford softball team will open home play this weekend as it helps host the annual Magic City Classic. The Bulldogs will play one game at UAB on Friday before hosting its first two games of the season at Bulldog Softball Field Saturday.
The tournament hosting responsibilities are rotated between Samford and UAB each year. UAB will serve as the official host for this year's edition of the tournament. However, because of the increased size of the tournament field, Samford will host five of the tournament games Saturday and three Sunday.
The tournament field has doubled in size from five teams last year to 10 in 2011. Joining Samford and UAB in tournament play will be Stephen F. Austin, St. Louis, Eastern Kentucky, Indiana State, Lipscomb, Radford, Eastern Illinois and Alabama State.
Samford enters the weekend 2-8, after winning one game in each of the tournaments it has played so far. The Bulldogs have played some tough competition to start the season, including nationally-ranked Alabama to open the 2011 slate. Samford head coach Stephanie VanBrakle said the competition will not get any easier and her team must step up to the challenge.
"We have been playing some good, tough competition and that won't change this weekend," VanBrakle said. "For us to be consistent, I think we need to play at our level of softball against any opponent on any field. We need to set the tone and keep it there."
True freshman Julianne Surane leads the Bulldogs after having a stellar weekend in the Quality Inn Classic. Surane earned her first collegiate start against Central Arkansas on Friday and has not exited the lineup since. She boasts a .500 batting average and has collected six hits in five games.
Redshirt freshman Brianna Chambers has also been a big contributor for the Bulldogs. Although she has only posted hits in two games this season, she was a driving force offensively for Samford in those games. In Samford's win over Alabama State, she posted three hits including a triple and a home run, amassing three RBI. Last weekend against North Florida, she also went 3-for-4 with a triple.
Also true freshman Nicole Bobrowski leads all Samford pitchers with a 1-2 record and a 4.02 ERA. She also has pitched Samford's only shutout on the year.
VanBrakle said it has been great to see her young players doing so well so early.
"The play of the younger players will be key for us because we will need them to step up in key situations and come through," VanBrakle said. "If this play says anything, it is that these young athletes have come a long way and we aren't even close to reaching their potential."
The Bulldogs open the weekend with Lispcomb at 5 p.m. Friday night at the UAB Softball Complex. It will mark the first-ever meeting between the Bulldogs and Lady Bisons. Lipscomb enters the tournament with a 3-6 overall record. The Lady Bisons went 2-2 last weekend in the Georgia State Tournament, sweeping the host team and falling to Appalachian State and Memphis.
Breanna Thurman leads Lipscomb with a .318 batting average, a team-high seven hits and is a perfect 3-for-3 on stolen bases. Whitney Kiihnl leads in the circle with a 3-4 record and a 1.26 ERA. She has posted 60 strikeouts in 44.1 innings of work and has only allowed eight earned runs and 16 walks.
Samford will then begin play on its home field Saturday at 12:30 p.m., taking on Indiana State. The last and only other time the Bulldogs and Sycamores met was in 2008, when Samford won, 3-1. ISU comes into the weekend with a 1-3 record. The Sycamores have not seen action in two weeks after their home opener with IPFW was cancelled last weekend.
Alex Baumgart leads all Sycamore starters with a .385 batting average and a team-high five hits in 13 at-bats. Lindsey Beisser leads the ISU pitching staff with a 1-1 record and a 0.77 ERA. She has recorded 11 strikeouts in 11.2 innings of play.
At 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, the Bulldogs will take on a familiar opponent in Alabama State. The Bulldogs have won 12 straight over the Hornets, including a 10-1 victory two weeks ago at the All-Alabama Classic at Liberty Park. Samford will look to remain undefeated against ASU Saturday evening.
After going 0-4 in the All-Alabama Classic, Alabama State chalked up their first three wins of the season last weekend sweeping Maryland Eastern Shore in a three-game series.
The Bulldogs round out tournament play against Radford on Sunday at 2 p.m., at Bulldog Field. The last time Samford faced the Highlanders was in 2004 when Radford shutout the Bulldogs, 3-0. The loss snapped a five-game win streak over the Highlanders. The Bulldogs now lead the series, 5-1.
Radford comes into the weekend with a 2-3 record. The Highlanders' two wins came over Samford's SoCon foe Georgia Southern in the Eagles' home tournament last weekend. The Highlanders also fell twice to Mercer to round out play in the tournament, and most recently dropped a 2-0 decision to Virginia Tech Wednesday afternoon.
Kristin Shifflett leads the Highlanders with a team-high six hits and a team-high six RBI. She boasts a batting average of .400 and has hit a double, a triple and a home run already this season. Stephanie Dameron leads all Radford pitchers with a 0.00 ERA and a 2-1 record. In 11.0 innings of work, she has given up just one unearned run and three hits. She has also pitched one combined shutout with Chelsea Kelley against Georgia Southern.
In addition to games involving Samford, eight games will be played over the weekend at Bulldog Softball Field. Saturday's action begins at 10 a.m. with Alabama State taking on Eastern Illinois. Radford and Lipscomb will face off at 3 p.m., and the Highlanders will close out the day at 8 p.m. against St. Louis.
On Sunday, Stephen F. Austin and Eastern Illinois kick things off at 9 a.m., followed by Eastern Illinois and Indiana State at 11:30 a.m.
A full recap of Samford's action in the Magic City Classic will be available, along with statistics, on www.samfordsports.com at the conclusion of each day in the tournament. Daily admission is $7 for adults and $5 for children ages 6-17. Tournament passes are available for $15 for adults and $8 for children ages 6-17. Admission is free for children age five and under.
