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LEADING OFF
* The Kennesaw State softball team (4-6) returns to Bailey Park this weekend to host the I-75 Challenge at Bailey Park. Play opens Friday with the Owls hosting Detroit Mercy (3-6) in a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. The games will be streamed live at www.facebook.com/KennesawStateOwls.
* The I-75 Challenge continues on Saturday with KSU hosting DePaul in a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m., and the weekend concludes with a 1 p.m. contest against UConn on Sunday.
* Kennesaw State will be looking to rebound from a 9-0 loss at Georgia Tech on Wednesday. Detroit Mercy is playing for the first time since it concluded play at the Southeastern Louisiana Tournament on Feb. 18.
* The 2018 season marks the second under head coach Pete D'Amour, who took the reins on Sept. 16, 2016, and guided Kennesaw State to a 40-20 record and postseason appearance in 2017. The Owls finished second in the ASUN Conference and made their first postseason showing at the NCAA Division I level, finishing third in the inaugural National Invitational Softball Championship. KSU was ranked No. 47 nationally in the final RPI rankings.
* Kennesaw State returns 13 letter winners from a year ago and has added 11 newcomers to the roster.
* The 2018 roster is highlighted by sophomore pitcher Alley Cutting (2017 ASUN Conference Freshman of the Year) and outfielders Olivia Tamewitz, Hannah Thomason and Noelle Winkles, who earned All-ASUN Conference second team honors a year ago. Cutting was selected ASUN Preseason Co-Pitcher of the Year in a vote by the league coaches.

THIS WEEKEND'S SCHEDULE

Friday, March 2
2 p.m., 4 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. Detroit (DH)
Saturday, Mar. 3
2 p.m., 4 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. DePaul (DH)
Sunday, Mar. 4
12 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. UConn

 
SCOUTING DETROIT MERCY
The Titans begin the weekend 3-6 after posting a 1-3 record at the Southeastern Louisiana Tournament two weeks ago. After opening with a 2-1 victory over Texas A&M Corpus-Christi, Detroit Mercy lost consecutive games to Omaha, Belmont and Southeastern Louisiana. The Titans are batting .249 as a team and have four players batting .300 or better. Senior Savvy Ferstle leads the club with a .370 average, eight home runs and 17 RBIs. Sophomore Liz Murphy tops Detroit Mercy with two wins, while junior Ashley Mauser has a team-best 2.66 ERA in a team-high 23 2/3 innings pitched.

SERIES VERSUS DETROIT MERCY
Friday's game will mark the first meeting between the Titans and Owls.
 
SCOUTING DEPAUL
The Blue Demons enter the weekend 11-3 and their six-game winning streak snapped in the final game of the UTA Maverick Tournament, falling 4-2 in eight innings to the Mavericks. DePaul is batting .283 as a team and has four players batting .300 or better. Freshman Maranda Gutierrez tops the club with a .389 average and two home runs. Sophomore Missy Zoch leads the Blue Demons in the circle, posting a 6-2 record, 1.38 ERA and five complete games in 50 2/3 innings.  
 
SERIES VERSUS DEPAUL
The Blue Demons and Owls will meet for the first time on Saturday.

SCOUTING UCONN
The Huskies are 7-7 on the season and are coming off a 2-4 record at the FGCU Tournament last week. UConn's two wins came over Wright State (8-1) and Stony Brook (2-1). The Huskies have recorded a .230 team batting average and are led by Hollis Wivell and Samantha Barnett, who are batting. 333. Marybeth Olson has registered a 3-2 record and 0.70 ERA in the circle to lead UConn.
 
SERIES VERSUS UCONN
The Owls lead the all-time series, 2-1. The two programs last met a year ago in the I-75 Challenge and Kennesaw State recorded a 5-1 victory.   
 
ASUN PRESEASON COACHES POLL
Coming off a 40-win season that included a postseason berth plus a solid nucleus returning, Kennesaw State was picked to finish first in the 2018 ASUN Conference Softball Preseason Coaches' Poll that was released on Jan. 17. The Owls, who received four first-place votes and totaled 46 points to finish ahead of defending conference champion USC Upstate (43 points, 2 first-place votes), garnered the top spot in the poll for the first time since joining the ASUN Conference prior to the 2006 season. KSU was ranked second in the preseason coaches' poll on three different occasions (2007, 2008, 2013).
 
ASUN Preseason Rankings

Rank	Team (First Place Votes)	Votes
1.	Kennesaw State (4)	46
2.	USC Upstate (2)	43
3.	Florida Gulf Coast (1)	31
4.	Lipscomb	29
5.	North Florida	23
6.	Jacksonville	13
7.	Stetson	11

CUTTING TABBED ASUN PRESEASON CO-PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Sophomore Alley Cutting was named ASUN Preseason Co-Pitcher of the Year, along with Lipscomb's Mandy Jordan, and selected to the all-conference team. She was also named the ASUN's Preseason Pitcher of the Year in a vote by the fans. The Owls right-hander posted a 20-10 record, 2.19 ERA, 16 complete games and two saves while making 38 appearances, including 31 starts. She worked 201 1/3 innings, allowed 63 earned runs, walked 49 and struck out 186 batters en route to earning ASUN Freshman of The Year and first team all-conference honors.
 
SOLID NUCLEUS RETURNS IN 2018
Including Alley Cutting, the Owls return five players who earned ASUN Conference accolades in 2017. Senior Noelle Winkles (.360, 8 HR, 41 RBI), junior Hannah Thomason (.354, 47 R, 33 SB) and sophomore Olivia Tamewitz (.342, 31 RBI, 19 SB), who earned second team All-ASUN Conference recognition a year ago, are back to form a talented outfield, while sophomore utility player Katey Lynch (.285, 4 HR, 28 RBI) also returns after garnering all-freshman team honors.
 
IN THE BATTER'S BOX
* The Owls are batting .265 as a team and averaging 3.6 runs a game. Four different players have hit home runs and KSU has totaled 17 extra base hits, including 11 doubles.
* Freshmen Patricia Awald and Meredith Milam, sophomore Olivia Tamewitz and junior Jessie Mullen lead the team with two doubles apiece.
* Olivia Tamewitz is KSU's leading hitter, batting .400 with six runs scored, and is 4-for-4 in stolen bases. She has hit safely in five straight games.
* Awald ranks second on the club with a .375 average, eight RBIs, two multiple-RBI games and .583 slugging percentage.
* Awald, Lynch, Milam and Tamewitz lead the Owls with three multiple-hit games.
* Milam is batting .333 and has hit safely in five of 10 games.
 
IN THE CIRCLE
* Junior Hailey Andrews is 1-0 with a team-leading 0.64 ERA after making two starts and logging 11 innings. She earned her first KSU victory on Saturday after tossing seven innings, scattering six hits, surrendering one run and striking out nine versus Florida A&M on Saturday.
* Sophomore Alley Cutting has worked a team-high 24 innings and is 1-3 with a 1.75 ERA. She has struck out a team-leading 19 batters.
* Sophomore Abby Deane is 2-1 with a 2.06 ERA while appearing in a team-high tying four games and allowing five earned runs in 17 innings. She has worked at least six innings in each of her last two starts, including seven innings versus Rutgers on Friday.
 
HEAD COACH PETE D'AMOUR
* Head coach Pete D'Amour enters his second season as Kennesaw State head coach after spending the prior 10 seasons at the University of Missouri.
* In his first season guiding the Owls, D'Amour led KSU to 40-20 overall record National Invitational Softball Championship Region 5 title and a No. 47 ranking in the final RPI rankings.
* While at Mizzou, D'Amour helped the Tigers post a 453-154 (.746) record, advance to three Women's College World Series (2009, 2010, 2011), reach eight NCAA Division I Super Regionals, and participate in 10 NCAA Regionals.
* During D'Amour's tenure, Missouri won two Big 12 Conference championships and earned 10 straight Top 20 national rankings.
* Primarily responsible for working with the pitchers and catchers, D'Amour watched Tigers pitcher throw 11 no-hitters, while mentoring 11 All-Americans, two SEC Freshen of the Year, three conference Pitchers of the Year, a national earned-run average leader, and a Defensive Player of the Year. 
 
UP NEXT
Following the I-75 Challenge, Kennesaw State will be back at Bailey Park on Wednesday to UAB in a doubleheader beginning at 4:30 p.m.

To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State softball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsSB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook. You can also follow head coach Pete D'Amour at @KSUSBCoach.
 
To learn more about The Owls Fund visit www.ksuowls.com/theowlsfund.
   
 

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