Friday, October 17, 2008

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Oct. 17, 2008) - After a month and a half of conditioning, practicing and playing in two tournaments, the ETSU softball team is set to close the door on the fall season, as the Buccaneers host their fourth annual Blue/Gold Classic on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at Metro-Kiwanis Park.

The Lady Buccaneers wrap up a productive fall season on Saturday, playing an eight-inning winner-take-all contest. ETSU has enjoyed some hot-hitting this fall, thanks to the bats of sophomore Katie Henderson (Jackson, Tenn.), juniors Katy Jett (Talbott, Tenn.) and Trisha Massenzo (Russellville, Tenn.) and senior Jessie Hackworth (Clinton, Tenn.).

Jett led the way for ETSU as she posted a team-high .473 batting average (9-for-19). The Talbott, Tenn. native also recorded team bests with her nine hits and seven runs scored, and also finished with a home run and four RBI. Massenzo led the club with seven RBIs, and ended the fall campaign 8-for-18 (.444) with three doubles, a home run, and five runs scored. Hackworth, a 2008 Atlantic Sun Tournament Team selection, posted a .400 average (6-for-15) with a double, six runs scored and one RBI. Henderson went 5-for-12 (.417) with two doubles, a home run, four runs scored and six RBI.

Each of the three Lady Buccaneer pitchers notched a victory in the circle. Junior Darci Gilbert (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) completed the fall season with a pair of wins, marking a team best; while fellow junior Marissa Hardy (Rocklin, Calif.) and freshman right-hander Shelby Morris (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) also recorded a win.

Saturday marks the final Blue/Gold game for seniors Kate Powell (Johnson City), Vicki McCoy (Ringgold, Ga.), Cat Zyskowski (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and Hackworth.

The Gold squad has held the upper hand in the last two meetings, but this year's series seems to be evenly matched. Last season, Gold enjoyed a five RBI effort by then freshman Katie Henderson, as they went on to defeat team Blue, 8-3. Once again Henderson will be supporting the Gold squad, however, another thorn in Blue's side last year, Katy Jett, crosses over to the Blue team and looks to hand Gold its first-ever loss in the series.

Below are the rosters for each team:

Blue

Cheniece Cason

Staci D'Apice

Marlina Delisa

Marissa Hardy

Katy Jett

Trisha Massenzo

Kate Powell

Lexie Whittenburg

Cat Zyskowski

Honorary Coaches

Kevin Brown - Assistant Director for Athletic Media Relations

Briana Knight - Former Lady Buccaneer standout from 2005-08

Jared Fries - Academic Counselor

Gold

Ashley Boyd

Amy Campbell

Darci Gilbert

Jessie Hackworth

Katie Henderson

Annie Martin  

Vicki McCoy

Shelby Morris

Chelsea O'Connor

Whitney Socha

Honorary Coaches

Kirsten Clark - Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance

Amanda Haverman - Former Lady Buccaneer standout from 2005-08

Dawn Thomas - Graduate Assistant for Athletic Training

For a full recap of Saturday's game, visit www.ETSUBucs.com.