Kennesaw State (32-14, 10-2) vs. Lipscomb (29-11, 8-4)
Dates: April 21-22 | Times: Saturday: 1 p.m. & 3 p.m. | Sunday: 1 p.m.
Location: Kennesaw, Ga. (Bailey Park)
Game 1: Live Stats | Game 2: Live Stats | Game 3: Live Stats | Watch
 
LEADING OFF
* The Kennesaw State softball team (32-14, 10-2) closes out its regular-season home schedule this weekend when it hosts Lipscomb (29-11, 8-4) in a key ASUN Conference series that features the conference's top two teams. The series opens with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. and wraps up with a 1 p.m. contest on Sunday.
* Saturday also marks Senior Day and will include the Circle of Honor ceremony. Lauren Bennett, Abigail Green and Noelle Winkles are concluding their collegiate careers this year. Longtime KSU softball friend Linwood Register and former Owl Sharon Swanson will be welcomed into the Circle of Honor.
* The Owls enter the weekend in first place in the ASUN Conference and have clinched a berth into the conference tournament. They currently hold a two-game lead over Lipscomb with six conference games remaining.  

THIS WEEKEND'S SCHEDULE

Saturday, April 21
1 p.m. & 3 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. Lipscomb
Sunday, April 22
1 p.m.	Kennesaw State vs. Lipscomb

SCOUTING LIPSCOMB
The Bisons are currently 29-11 on the season, including 8-4 in ASUN Conference play. Lipscomb, which has won three in a row following an ASUN series win at North Florida last weekend and a mid-week victory at Tennessee Tech on Wednesday, is fourth in the conference in batting (.274) and tops the ASUN in pitching with a 1.91 team ERA. Junior Sarah Higgins, who is one of two Bisons batting .300 or better, leads the club with a .336 average and ranks second with five home runs and 22 RBIs. Junior right-hander Mandy Jordan leads the pitching staff with a 15-4 record and an ASUN Conference-leading 1.36 ERA.

SERIES VERSUS LIPSCOMB
Kennesaw State and Lipscomb will be meeting for the 33rd time and the Owls lead the all-time series, 17-15. KSU has won the last five contests played between the two teams, including a three-game sweep in Nashville in 2017.
 
PATRICIA AWALD HONORED
Patricia Awald was named one of 25 finalists for the Schutt Sports / NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Award, it was announced by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) on Thursday (April 19). The group includes eight infielders, including four first basemen, four outfielders, seven pitchers, four utility players and two catchers. The list will be paired from 25 to 10 on May 10, to three on May 23, and the National Freshman of the Year announcement is May 29.

Awald, a resident of Marietta, Ga., has played an integral role in helping Kennesaw State to a 32-14 record and a first-place standing in the ASUN Conference. As the Owls' first baseman, has started 44 games and is batting .369 with 38 runs scored, 45 hits (10 doubles and 12 home runs) and 38 RBIs, while recording a .746 slugging percentage and .473 on-base percentage.

KENNESAW STATE SWEEPS ASUN WEEKLY HONORS
For the second time this season, and following a series win over Florida Gulf Coast, Kennesaw State softball team swept the weekly conference awards, the league announced on Monday (April 16). Junior Kira Czyrklis was named Player of the Week, while sophomore Alley Cutting was tabbed Pitcher of the Week. Czyrklis was honored for the second time, while Cutting received her fourth career weekly accolade, and second this season.
 
Alley Cutting
Cutting was impressive in two outings against Florida Gulf Coast as she helped the Owls clinch an ASUN Conference Championship Tournament berth. The KSU right-hander posted a 2-0 record and 0.00 ERA in two outings. In 13 innings of work, Cutting scattered nine hits and struck out 15 while not walking a batter. She began the weekend by pitching six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out 10. Cutting followed that effort with a complete-game, seven-inning performance on Sunday. She allowed six hits and struck out five. In eight appearances, including six starts, Cutting has posted a 5-0 record and 0.48 ERA in ASUN Conference play. She has struck out 52 batters in 43 1/3 innings.

Kira Czyrklis
Czyrklis had a big week while helping the Owls to a 3-1 record. The KSU right fielder batted .467 (7-for-15) with four runs scored, a triple, two home runs and seven RBIs, while producing a 1.000 slugging percentage and .467 on-base percentage. She had three multiple-hit games, two multiple-RBI contests and scored two runs in a game twice. The Simi Valley, Calif. native opened the week with two hits, including a game-winning triple in the bottom of the 10th inning that gave the Owls a 1-0 victory over Georgia Tech. She followed that effort with a 5-for-10 (.500) showing, four runs scored, two home runs and six RBIs while helping KSU to a series win over Florida Gulf Coast. Czyrklis capped the weekend with a 2-for-4 performance that included two runs scored and four RBIs. Her three-run fourth-inning home run gave KSU a 3-0 lead.

2018 HONORS
ASUN Player of the Week
Noelle Winkles (March 12)
Patricia Awald (March 19)
Kira Czyrklis (April 2)
Kira Czyrklis (April 16)

ASUN Pitcher of the Week
Alley Cutting (March 19)
Alley Cutting (April 16)
 
HIGHLIGHTING THE SENIORS
This weekend marks the final regular-season home series for seniors Lauren Bennett, Abigail Green and Noelle Winkles. The following are highlights on each student-athlete.
 
Lauren Bennett 
A consummate team player, Lauren Bennett is a four-year member of the Kennesaw State softball program. During her career, Lauren has appeared in 152 games and started 105 entering play today. While at KSU, Lauren has been part of Owl teams who have won 30 or more games each season, and a 2017 club that posted 40 wins and made the program's first postseason appearance during the Division I era. A native of Buford, Ga., Lauren will earn a degree in exercise science.
 
Abigail Green
A transfer from Columbus State, Abigail Green is concluding her third year at Kennesaw State. After redshirting during the 2016 season, Abby has appeared 19 games, starting 14, and recorded a 19-8 record and 2.07 ERA with 14 complete games and four saves. During the 2018 season, Abby has registered a 14-5 record, 2.20 ERA and established single-season career-highs for wins, appearances, games started, complete games, innings pitched and strikeout. Her signature moment came on April 11 when she pitched 10 innings and struck out a career-high 15 batters in a 1-0 victory over Georgia Tech. In 2017, Abby was named an NFCA All-American Scholar-Athlete. The Grandville, Mich. native will earn a degree in exercise science. 
 
Noelle Winkles 
Noelle Winkles has enjoyed a solid career during her four years as a member of the Kennesaw State Softball program. In four seasons, Noelle has played in 201 games and started 175. She has totaled 142 hits, 90 runs scored, 31 doubles, 91 RBIs and 28 stolen bases entering play today. Noelle had a breakout season in 2017, batting a career-best .360 with 33 runs scored, 62 hits, 18 doubles, eight home runs and 41 RBIs. That performance earned her ASUN Conference second-team all-conference honors. The Ringgold, Ga. native will graduate with a degree in integrative studies.

IN THE BATTER'S BOX
* The Owls lead the ASUN Conference with a .296 average, and top the league in slugging percentage (.461), runs scored (228), hits (354), RBIs (205), doubles (69), home runs (37) and total bases (552).
* Junior Maddie Roth leads the Owls with a .402 average and 12 doubles and is second with seven home runs. She ranks third in the ASUN Conference in average, slugging percentage (.672) and total bases (82), tied for third in doubles and home runs, and fourth in hits (49) and on-base percentage (.454).
* Roth also leads the Owls and is tied for seventh in the ASUN with a .351 conference average.
* Freshman Patricia Awald is second on the team with a .369 average and tops the club with 38 runs scored, 12 home runs, 38 RBIs and .746 slugging percentage. She leads the ASUN in runs scored and RBIs, is second in slugging percentage and home runs, and fourth in on-base percentage (.473). Awald is sixth in the country among freshmen in home runs and 11th in slugging percentage.
* Sophomore Olivia Tamewitz (.355), junior Kira Czyrklis (.348) and senior Noelle Winkles (.313) join Roth and Awald as Owls, who are batting .300 or better.  Tamewitz and Czyrklis, rank seventh and 10th, respectively, in batting in the ASUN.

IN THE CIRCLE
* The Owls have a 1.96 team ERA, are yielding a .220 opponents' batting average and have 29 complete games. The staff's 314 strikeouts lead the ASUN.
* Sophomore Alley Cutting has a 12-7 record and team-best 1.53 ERA while making a team-high 26 appearances, including 19 starts. She also has 13 complete games and three saves. Cutting has struck out 133 batters in 132 1/3 innings while allowing 29 earned runs. She ranks second in the ASUN in ERA and is third in strikeouts.
* Senior Abigail Green is 14-5 with a 2.20 ERA in 21 appearances. She has made 18 starts and posted 12 complete games. Green, who has struck out 10 or more batters in a game five times, has fanned a team and career-high 139 in 108 1/3 innings. Her is second in the ASUN in strikeouts and tied for third in wins.
* The KSU right-hander has established single-season career highs for wins (14), games started (18), complete games (12), shutouts (5) and innings pitched (108.1).  

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 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 Sunday's series finale, the Owls will close out their regular season with a three-game series at Jacksonville beginning April 28. The two teams open with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. before closing out play with a 1 p.m. contest on Sunday (April 29).

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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