Softball Welcomes UNC for Final Home Series

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. The Virginia softball team (13-28, 4-8 ACC) welcomes North Carolina (37-8-1, 10-1 ACC) to The Park for the final home series of the 2008 season. The Cavaliers and Tar Heels will play a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday before closing the series at 1 p.m. Sunday. Live stats will be available online at www.VirginiaSports.com.

On Saturday, Virginia seniors Kierstie Cameron (Pinon Hills, Calif.), Whitney Holstun (Escondido, Calif.), Meghan O’Leary (Baton Rouge, La.) and Lindsey Preuss (La Plata, Md.) will be honored prior to the start of the doubleheader.

Virginia enters the weekend tied for fifth place in the Atlantic Coast Conference standings. The Cavaliers were swept at Virginia Tech last weekend and most recently split a doubleheader Wednesday at Longwood.

Three UVa players are hitting over .300 for the season, led by second-year Kelly Haller’s .353 average. Preuss hits .344 and leads UVa with 43 hits and six home runs. Third-year Carly Winger hits .313 with a team-best 22 runs scored and 23 RBI and is second with five home runs.

North Carolina currently sits atop the conference standings, leading the second-place Hokies by one game. Breanna Brown leads the Tar Heels with a .349 average and 52 hits. Emily Troup and Jennifer Jacobs each hit .327 and Jacobs leads the squad with eight homers and 31 RBI on the year.

In the circle, UNC’s Lisa Norris is 13-3 on the year with a 0.88 ERA and 156 strikeouts. Danielle Spaulding is 11-1 with a 1.09 ERA and 139 strikeouts.

The Tar Heels lead the all-time series with Virginia 62-27-1 and have claimed the last eight meetings. UVa’s last win over UNC came during the 2005 season when the Cavaliers took two-of-three from the Heels.