April 18, 2006
ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech softball team (39-14) will host Georgia State (20-23) for a non-conference doubleheader on Wednesday, April 19, at Glenn Field. First pitch for the Yellow Jackets and Lady Panthers is scheduled for 2 p.m.
The Yellow Jackets hold a nine-game winning streak against the Lady Panthers, and have won 14 of 15 games against their in-state foe. Tech defeated Georgia State twice at the Lady Panther Invitational, 12-4 (5), in round robin play and 9-4 in the championship game.
Freshman Whitney Haller continues to lead Tech offensively, smashing 21 home runs through 53 games, a single-season Atlantic Coast Conference record. She also set a new ACC single-season record with 66 runs batted in and ranks second in the NCAA in home runs and RBI. Haller leads the ACC with a .430 batting average and .897 slugging percentage. Haller was tabbed ACC Player of the Week this past Monday after leading Tech to a perfect 6-0 record, hitting .450, with four home runs and 11 RBIs.
Sophomore Whitney Humphreys ranks fifth in the ACC with 16 victories in the circle and holds a team-low 2.14 earned run average.
In the first simulated RPI rankings, the Jackets appear at No. 22. Tech has only dropped one game all season long to a team outside the top 100, falling 5-4 to Kennesaw State on Feb. 18. The ACC appears at No. 4 in the conference RPI rankings, behind No. 1 Pac-10, No. 2 Southeastern Conference, No. 3 Big XII. With No. 5 Big Ten rounding out the top five.
This weekend the Jackets and No. 22 North Carolina Tar Heels will battle for first place in the ACC, April 22-23, in Chapel Hill, N.C. UNC (42-12, 11-4 ACC) holds a one-game lead over GT and NC State (10-5). Tech is 9-3 against the Tar Heels since the 2002 season and holds a one-game advantage in the overall series, 19-18.
All Tech games can be followed via live stats at www.ramblinwreck.com.
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