April 22, 2008
ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech Softball Team (25-28) continues its eight-game homestand on Wednesday as Georgia State (31-14) visits Glenn Field for a doubleheader beginning at 3:00 p.m. The Yellow Jackets are 8-2 in their last 10 games and are looking to avenge an early season loss to the Panthers at the Georgia State First Pitch Classic. Live stats will be available via Gametracker at www.ramblinwreck.com.
“Georgia State is having a tremendous year so we are looking for two very competitive games tomorrow,” head coach Sharon Perkins said. “With just five regular season games remaining, it’s important that we work hard and continue to improve. I cannot say enough how much credit goes to this team for battling back like they have in recent weeks. To go from where we were and have a chance to finish strong speaks volumes for the attitude of our player’s and their never say never mind set.”
The Yellow Jackets were 10-21 on March 20, but now have a chance to finish over .500 with a strong final week to the regular season. Tech will also host Maryland this weekend in a big ACC series. Both the Yellow Jackets and Terrapins have six league wins and seeding in next month’s ACC Tournament will be on the line this weekend.
Despite the 11-3, six-inning loss on Feb. 9, the Yellow Jackets still lead the all-time series against Georgia State 33-18. Senior Becky McCraw and freshman Jessica Weaver each had two hits for Georgia Tech, while Weaver smacked a three-run home run to account for the scoring.
Georgia Tech is 8-2 in its last 10 games and looks to carry the momentum into next month’s ACC Tournament, which will be May 10-13 in College Park, Md. During this stretch, the Yellow Jackets are hitting .314 and outscoring the opposition 56-35. The top three batters in tech’s line-up consisting of senior Aileen Morales, freshman Christy Jones and junior Blair Shimandle have combined to hit .390 with 26 runs scored and 19 stolen bases in the last 10 games.
Also red-hot is ACC Player of the Week Whitney Haller. The junior batted .667 (10-15) last week with eight RBI and hit her 46th career home run at Georgia Southern last Wednesday. She is now tied with Tara Knudsen atop the all-time Georgia Tech home run list and just three shy of tying the ACC record.
In the circle, senior Whitney Humphreys has won seven of her last eight starts while posting a 1.86 ERA. She has also won two consecutive ACC Pitcher of the Week awards. Junior Tiffany Johnson returned to the circle last weekend against Boston College after missing more than a month with an injury and hurled seven shutout innings as she looks to build up her stamina for the stretch run.
Three Tech players take hitting streaks of at least four games into Wednesday’s games with Georgia State. Morales has hit in six straight (.500, 10 runs, two doubles, two home runs, three RBI, five walks, six stolen bases), while Haller is on a five-game hitting streak (.667, three doubles, one home run, eight RBI) and senior Savannah Brown has hit safely in four straight games (.500, one double, two home runs, six RBI).
