Senior Jamie Swank, who is on a 14-game hitting streak, will be playing in her final Southern Conference Tournament this week.
  
 
Catamount Softball No. 8 Seed; Play No. 1 Chattanooga in SoCon Tourney Wednesday

Ross and Swank riding hitting streaks into tournament play

May 6, 2008

CATAMOUNT TRACKS PODCAST - 2008 SOCON SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT PREVIEW

CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Western Carolina softball opens the 2008 Southern Conference Tournament as the No. 8 seed and will face No. 1 seed Chattanooga at noon Wednesday in Charleston, S.C. at Patriot Point. The game will be broadcast by the Catamount Sports Network and can be heard locally on WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5 in Cullowhee or online at www.WWCUFM.com.

The Catamounts ended the regular season with a record of 19-34 and 7-14 in the Southern Conference. The team suffered through some ups and downs to start the season and found themselves with a 6-23 record and 0-9 in the SoCon at the end of March. Western Carolina proved in the month of April that it is one of the hottest teams entering the tournament, as the team went 13-11 in the month and 7-5 in the SoCon - winning three conference series; two on the road.

Senior Jamie Swank leads the club with a .329 batting average and also paces the team in runs scored (33) and hits (54). Her 54 hits ties Swank for sixth place in the Catamount single-season record books. Swank is also riding a 14-game hitting streak.

Teammate Lauren Ross is also enjoying a nice streak, having hit safely in her last 10 games. The reigning Southern Conference Player of the Week, her second honor as a Catamount ranks second on the team this year in homeruns (6) and holds the career homerun record with 27 and she also captured the career RBI record and currently holds the top spot with 84. Stephanie Beatty, whom Ross took the RBI title from, is just one behind her with 83.

The plate isn't the only place Ross has found success. On the mound, Ross was the pitcher of record for all seven Southern Conference victories. She threw a no-hitter against College of Charleston on her 21st birthday and also went over 100 strikeouts for the second consecutive season. Here 104 this season bests her mark of 102 in 2007.

 

 

Western Carolina will face a Chattanooga club for the first time in its three year history at the tournament. The Lady Mocs have won the last five meetings between the two schools and hold a 3-6 record over the Catamounts. Earlier in the season, Chattanooga swept Western Carolina 3-1, 7-4, 4-2.

The winner between Western Carolina and Chattanooga will play the winner of Elon and UNC Greensboro at 3 p.m. Thursday. The loser will play the loser of Elon and UNCG at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.

Be sure to catch a special edition of the Catamount Tracks Podcast for the 2008 Southern Conference Tournament Softball preview with Head Coach Christine Hornak, freshman Amber Hawkins and junior Stephanie Beatty.