Softball Weekly Notes
3/22/2000 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 22, 2000
TOP STORY
Michigan State travels to San Diego, Calif., this weekend to compete in the San Diego State Tournament. MSU's first game will be against San Diego (12-13) on Friday, March 24 at 12:00 p.m. (PST), followed by a game against San Diego State (14-13) at 2 p.m. On Saturday, the Spartans play both San Diego schools again, at 9:30 a.m. (PST) and noon, respectively. The Aztecs of SDSU hold a 1-0 series advantage over MSU, while the game against San Diego will be the first meeting between the two schools.
FAU Invitational Recap
Last weekend, March 17-19, the Spartans traveled to Boca Raton, Fla., competing in the Florida Atlantic Invitational. MSU went 4-1 in the tournament, winning all of its first round games before falling to host Florida Atlantic 3-1 in the championship game.
The Spartans advanced to the championship game after cruising through first round play, shutting down their opponents by a combined score of 11-0.
On Friday, MSU defeated both Tennessee-Chattanooga and Rutgers by a score of 1-0. Keri DeJong won both games on the mound, improving her record to 9-2.
Saturday, revenge was in the air as the Spartans avenged an earlier season loss to Florida Atlantic by shutting out the Owls of FAU, 1-0. Erica Strutz threw a complete game two-hitter to earn her seventh victory of the season. MSU completed the first round sweep and extended its winning streak to seven games after crushing Colgate, 8-0. The Spartan bats came alive for the nightcap, pounding out 12 hits, including three triples and two doubles. FAU claimed the title on Sunday, topping MSU 3-1 in the championship game.
The Coach
Jacquie Joseph is in her seventh year as the head coach. The Spartan mentor has posted a record of 220-160 (.579) at MSU and has a career mark of 356-293 (.549) in 11 years in the collegiate ranks.
Joseph spent five years as the head coach at Bowling Green prior to being named the fourth head coach in MSU history.
The Flint native has guided MSU to four-straight 30-win seasons, 40 victories in two of the last three years and two NCAA Tournament appearances (1997, 1999). Joseph completed a four-year term as president of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association in December of 1998 and currently serves on the Board as the past President.
Phillips Takin' the World By Storm
Senior Stacey Phillips is certainly making the most of out her last year as a Spartan. Phillips has seven home runs this season, which is already good for fourth on the single season charts. She also has 22 RBI, only 25 away from the single-season record she set in 1998.
Phillips not only has impressive numbers, but more importantly, she is coming through in the clutch. With the Spartans down 6-1 in the bottom of the seventh against Florida Atlantic on March 10, Phillips blasted her second home run of the game, a grand slam, to cut the lead to 6-5. The very next day, facing a 2-1 deficit again in the bottom the seventh, Phillips hit a two-run homer over the leftfield fence to give the MSU the win, 3-2.
Phillips is hitting .364 with runners in scoring position this season. On the spring trip (March 5-12), she hit .409 (18 for 44) with 12 RBI.
Dazzlin' DeJong
Sophomore Keri DeJong knows how to make the best of a situation. With Becky Gray out most of the first 20 games due to a sore arm, DeJong has stepped into the rotation just fine, posting a 9-3 record with a 2.16 ERA.
DeJong threw the 13th no-hitter in Spartan history in her first outing of the season, shutting down Eastern Illinois, 10-0. She leads the team in strikeouts with 76, and opponents are only hitting a meager .180 against her.
Last weekend, DeJong threw 1 2/3 innings of relief for the win over Tennessee-Chattanooga on March 17, striking out four of the five batters she faced.
She also tossed a two-hit complete game victory over Rutgers in the nightcap for her sixth complete game win this season.
Shea Must Be Butter, 'Cause She's on a Roll
Junior Shealee Dunavan has not missed a beat from last year, hitting for a .378 average with nine RBI so far this season. Dunavan also leads the team in hits (34) and doubles (five). Dunavan, who hit .312 (5-for-16) over the weekend, was named to the FAU Invitational All-Tournament team. "Shea" exploded for two triples and a double against Colgate, finishing the game 3-for-4 with two runs scored.
Seven Down, 20 More To Go
Senior Erica Strutz had a career year last season, but is looking for even a better season in her senior campaign. She is definitely on the right track.
Strutz's record is currently 7-2 with a 2.46 ERA. The seven wins for the season move her into second place on the all-time wins chart, only 20 behind Stacey Smith, who holds the record with 68 victories.
Strutz had her best outing of the year in the first game against Florida Atlantic in the FAU Invitational, pitching a two-hit complete game shutout. It was Strutz's third complete game victory thus far on the season, with her other wins coming against North Carolina and Temple.
All-Tournament Team
Senior Erica Strutz and junior Shealee Dunavan were each named to the all-tournament team for the Florida Atlantic Invitational.
Strutz posted one victory over FAU, and finished the tournament pitching 12 1/3 innings, allowing no runs on just six hits while striking out 11. Dunavan went 5-for-16 in the tournament, good for a .312 average. Dunavan's best game came against the Red Raiders of Colgate, as she pounded out three extra-base hits, including two triples. "Shea" now has four triples overall on the season.