Kennesaw State (22-11) at No. 7 Georgia (29-3)
Date: March 28 | Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Athens, Ga. (Turner Softball Stadium)
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LEADING OFF
* The Kennesaw State softball team (22-11) travels to Athens on Wednesday to visit No. 7 Georgia (29-3) at Turner Softball Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game will be available on ESPN3.
* The Owls, who have won 16 of their last 19 games, are coming off a solid weekend at the Homewood Suites by Hilton RDU/RTP Challenge where they posted a 4-1 record and were tabbed the tournament champion. KSU defeated Niagara (6-5), Marist twice (9-6, 8-0) and split with host North Carolina State (L, 3-4, W, 8-2).

THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE

Wednesday, March 28
6 p.m.	Kennesaw State at No. 7 Georgia
Friday, March 30
1 p.m. & 3 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. North Florida
Saturday, March 31
1 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. North Florida

 
SCOUTING GEORGIA
The Bulldogs enter the week 29-3 and ranked No. 7 in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. Georgia captured two of three games at SEC foe No. 21/23 Mississippi State over the weekend. The Bulldogs are batting .363 as a team and have seven players batting .300 or better, including four individuals hitting over .400. Senior outfielder Kendall Burton tops the club with a .446 average, while junior infielder Alyssa DiCarlo is batting .398 with a team-leading 13 home runs and 43 RBIs. Georgia has a 1.08 team ERA and is led by senior Brittany Gray who has authored a 15-0 record and 0.48 ERA.

SERIES VERSUS GEORGIA
Wednesday's contest will mark the eighth meeting between Georgia and Kennesaw State, and the Bulldogs hold a 5-2 series lead. The two programs last met during the 2016 season and the 12th-ranked Bulldogs recorded an 8-1 victory in Athens. The Owls' two series wins came during the 1997 season as they posted 5-2 and 4-3 victories.
 
2018 HONORS
ASUN Player of the Week
Noelle Winkles (March 12)
Patricia Awald (March 19)
 
ASUN Pitcher of the Week
Alley Cutting (March 19)
 
IN THE BATTER'S BOX
* The Owls are batting an ASUN-Conference-leading .304 as a team and top the conference in slugging percentage (.469), runs scored (170), hits (262), RBIs (152), doubles (53), home runs (26) and total bases (405).
* Freshman Patricia Awald leads KSU with a .432 average, 30 runs scored, 10 home runs, 31 RBIs, .852 slugging percentage and .510 on-base percentage.
* Awald is first in the ASUN in slugging percentage, home runs, RBIs, runs scored and total bases, and third in batting. She also has 11 multiple-hit, seven multiple-RBI and three multiple-home run games.
* Sophomore Olivia Tamewitz ranks second on the club with a .402 average and 25 runs scored, while topping the Owls in hits (45), doubles (9) and stolen bases (15). She is among the ASUN leaders in average (No. 5), runs scored (5), hits (3), doubles (3), total bases (6) and stolen bases (7). Tamewitz leads the Owls with 10 multiple-hit games.
* Junior Maddie Roth has been hot during a current seven-game hitting streak as she is batting .652 (15-for-23) with four runs scored and three RBIs, while slugging at a .696 clip and posting a .680 on-base percentage. She reached base in 17 of 25 plate appearances and had two or more hits in six of seven games, including a pair of three-hit contests. The Owls' junior raised her batting average 102 points last week and is currently batting .400 in 29 games.
* Kennesaw State has four players – Awald (.852; 1), Kira Czyrklis (.634; 5), Noelle Winkles (.598; 6) and Roth (.575; 8) – ranked among the ASUN's top 10 in slugging percentage.
 
IN THE CIRCLE
* The Owls have a 2.28 team ERA, are yielding a .229 opponents' batting average and have 20 complete games.
* Sophomore Alley Cutting has a 7-5 record and team-best 1.69 ERA while making a team-high 17 appearances, including 12 starts. She also has eight complete games and two saves. Cutting has struck out 75 batters in 83 innings while allowing 20 earned runs.
* Senior Abigail Green is 9-4 with a 2.76 ERA in 14 appearances. She has made 12 starts and posted eight complete games. Green, who has struck out 10 or more batters in a game three times, has fanned a team-high 87 in 71 innings.
* Over her last nine appearances, Green has registered an 8-1 record, 1.35 ERA and five complete games. In 47 innings of work, she has allowed 10 earned runs and struck out 61, including a career-high 13 versus Marist on March 23.
 
ASUN PRESEASON COACHES POLL
Following 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

2017 REVIEW
* Under first-year head coach Pete D'Amour, who took the reins on Sept. 16, 2016, Kennesaw State posted a 40-20 record and advanced to the postseason 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.

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.
 
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 Wednesday's game, the Owls return to Bailey Park to open a three-game ASUN Conference series versus North Florida. The series opens with a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. on Friday and concludes with a 1 p.m. contest on Saturday.

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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