Story Links
CHARLOTESVILLE, Va. The Virginia softball team (7-13, 2-1 ACC) will play host to Atlantic Coast Conference foe Florida State this weekend, beginning with a doubleheader at 4 p.m. Friday at The Park. The three-game series will conclude at 1 p.m. Saturday. The first game Friday and the Saturday game between the Cavaliers and Seminoles will be shown on ACC Select.
The 4 p.m. game Friday also kicks off a promotion for UVa students in which they have the chance to win free tuition for a semester. Virginia Athletics is challenging students to attend 13 selected spring sporting events and have an Orange Passport card scanned at each event. Students who attend all 13 selected events will be entered into a drawing to win free in-state tuition for the 2008 fall semester. The winner will be announced Monday, April 21.
Virginia is coming off a split with James Madison at home Wednesday. The Dukes shut out UVa in the first game 4-0 before the Cavaliers defeated JMU 2-1 in game two. Game one marked the 2008 home opener for Virginia.
In ACC play, Virginia boasts a 2-1 record after taking the opening conference series at Georgia Tech last week. The team’s two conference wins already double the league win total from last year when UVa went 1-20.
Second-year Kelly Haller continues to lead Virginia at the plate with a .367 batting average. Haller was instrumental in UVa’s win over James Madison, hitting a two-out two-RBI double in the bottom of the fifth. Fourth-year Lindsey Preuss is hitting .349 and leads the team in hits (22) and home runs (four) while Carly Winger boasts a .339 average and leads the squad with a team-best 12 runs and a .578 slugging percentage.
Florida State is 18-9 on the season and 1-2 in ACC play. The Seminoles are 3-0 on the road this year and are led at the plate by Brittany Osman, who is hitting .378. Osman’s 19 RBI lead the team and her four home runs and four doubles also tie for the most on the squad. Whitney Buckmon boasts a .369 batting average and leads FSU with 31 hits.
The Seminole pitching staff has recorded a 1.77 earned run average to date. Terese Gober (84.2 innings pitched) is 6-6 on the season while Tiffany McDonald (39.0 innings pitched) leads the team with a 1.08 ERA and a 5-1 record in the circle.