March 28, 2003
ATLANTA – After winning eight of its first nine games at home, the Georgia Tech softball team (24-13) plays its first of five consecutive doubleheaders away from Glenn Field Sunday at Mercer (20-12) at 2 p.m. The Jackets are 6-5 on the road this season.
The Jackets lead the all-time series with Mercer, 41-12. Tech swept last year’s doubleheader from the Bears, 10-2 and 4-0, in Atlanta.
Tech, winners of 11 of 13, swept a doubleheader from Harvard Wednesday, downing the Crimson, 5-2 and 3-2. Junior All-American Tara Knudsen homered twice and drove in five runs in the first game, while sophomore Katie Donovan drove in three runs in game two.
Knudsen, who is batting .433 with five homers and 13 RBI in her last 10 games, is Tech’s top offensive player. She leads the team with eight homers and 24 RBI, as well as eight doubles. Knudsen is batting .308, trailing only senior Tara Neff’s .312 mark.
Tech’s pitching staff owns a 1.86 team earned run average and is led by sophomore Jessica Sallinger, who is 13-9 with a 1.31 ERA. She is averaging 10.7 strikeouts per seven innings. Junior Erin Voeltz is 8-3, while senior Tiffany Goodman is 2-1 with a 1.95 ERA.
Mercer, owners of a .319 team batting average, is led by senior Nikki Bowey, who has a .457 average with five homers and 29 RBI. The Bears’ top pitcher is senior Kristi Montgomery, who is 4-4 with a 0.95 ERA.
On an interesting side note, Tech head coach Kate Madden will face younger sister and former Yellow Jacket assistant Sarah Madden, who is a first-year assistant for the Bears.
Following Sunday’s games, Tech travels to ninth-ranked Georgia Wednesday, April 2, before opening ACC play next weekend at Maryland and Virginia.
-GT-
