ACC/B1G Challenge On Tap for Softball

Dates	Feb. 15-16, 2019
Location	Atlanta, Georgia; Shirley Clements Mewborn Field
Tournament Schedule
Friday	vs. Boston College; 10 am Live Stats Webstream (Facebook Live)
	vs. Georgia Tech; 3 pm Live Stats Webstream (ACC Network Extra ($)
Saturday	vs. Boston College; 10 am Live Stats Webstream (Facebook Live)
	vs. Georgia Tech; 12:30 pm Live Stats Webstream (ACC Network Extra ($)
Game Notes	Michigan State \| Boston College \| Georgia Tech
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram

THE WEEK AHEAD
• Michigan State participates in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge this weekend in Atlanta, Georgia. The Spartans will play two games each against Boston College and the host, Georgia Tech. Illinois is the other Big Ten team on site, and also plays two games against each of the ACC rivals.

LOGISTICS
UPDATE: The original game schedule has changed; please see the modified schedule above. Due to the weather forecast, there may be other changes; follow on Twitter for the most up-to-date schedule

• Links for live statistics can be found on MSUSpartans.com on the Spartan schedule page.

• Both games against Georgia Tech will have a live video webstream on the ACCNetwork Extra. MSU will stream its neutral-site matchups against Boston College on Facebook Live. MSU's official facebook page can be found at Facebook.com/MichiganStateSoftball.

• Spartan Sports Network continues its coverage of Spartan softball in 2019, and begins its coverage of MSU at the Miami (Ohio) Tournament March 16-17. SSN will provide a live broadcast from every game, home and away, for the remainder of the season. Matt Tjapkes is back for his fifth season on the call.

THE MATCHUPS
• MSU makes its first appearance in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge in 2019, the fourth year of the inter-conference matchups. Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Northwestern, Penn State and Wisconsin are representing the Big Ten in the Challenge games. On the ACC side, Duke, Georgia Tech, North Carolina and N.C. State will serve as host sites for this year's Challenge, with the other ACC participants being Boston College, Louisville, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.

• MSU takes on Boston College first in the Challenge, and owns a 2-0 record all-time against the Eagles. The teams last met last February at the FIU Invitational, where the Spartans earned a 9-5 victory.

• BC is 0-4 after a weekend at the Aggie Classic, falling twice to No. 22 Texas A&M and once each to Houston and Texas Tech (RV).

• MSU and Georgia Tech play Saturday and Sunday. The two teams last met in 2017 during MSU's spring break, downing the Yellow Jackets 7-3 in a midweek tilt. Georgia Tech hosts Georgia State on Wednesday in a midweek tilt before this weekend's tournament.

• Georgia Tech went 2-2 in its opening weekend tournament in Jacksonville, dropping the first two games of the season to Providence by identical 4-3 scores. The squad rebounded to defeat UMass-Lowell 9-8 in eight innings, and then closed it out with a 13-8 win over Jacksonville in the final game.

TEAM NOTES
• The Spartans entered the 2019 campaign with five returning starters after losing six seniors to graduation at the conclusion of 2018. MSU carries 21 on its roster, including five returning starters: seniors 3B Kaitlyn Eveland and LF Ebonee Echols, junior 2B Melanie Baccay, and sophomores RF Katie Quinlan and SS Caitie Ladd.

• Michigan State went 3-2 in the opening weekend at FIU's Felsburg Invitational. MSU dropped a tough 3-2 decision to UConn to open the tourney, then won back-to-back shutout decisions over FIU (5-0) and Bryant (3-0) before facing Memphis in a pair of three-hour affairs. MSU took the first battle 11-6, and the Tigers countered with an 11-9 win on getaway day.

• Twenty of 21 players had at least one at-bat on the weekend, 12 position players got at least one start in the field, and all four pitchers saw action.

• MSU's relatively young pitching staff was impressive over the first five games, posting a 1.31 staff ERA, which ranks fourth in the Big Ten. All four pitchers saw action, combining for just six earned runs allowed (tied for fourth among Big Ten pitching staffs).

• On offense, MSU managed a .252 batting average on the weekend, drew 24 walks (tied for the third-most in the Big Ten) and was a perfect 9-for-9 on stolen bases, also the third-highest total in the Big Ten. MSU smacked seven doubles and had a pair of home runs among its 33 base hits.

• MSU's 29 RBI is tied for fourth in the Big Ten, behind Wisconsin (39), Rutgers (32) and Nebraska (30).

• The Spartans committed half of their six errors on the weekend in the finale against Memphis. MSU's fielding percentage (.959) is ninth.

• Michigan State head coach Jacquie Joseph is in her 26th season at the helm of the Spartan softball program, and is the longest-tenured coach in program history, along with being the second-longest-tenured head coach in MSU's athletics department.

• Joseph is the third-longest tenured head coach in the Big Ten Conference, behind Carol Hutchins (Michigan, 35th season) and Rhonda Revelle (Nebraska, 27th season)

• Joseph's staff consists of pitching coach Ben Sorden, hitting coach Corrie Hill, and volunteer Bruce Lenington. Sorden begins his second season with the Spartan pitchers, while Hill and Lenington joined the staff in the fall of 2018.

PLAYER NOTES - PITCHERS
• MSU's returning pitchers threw just 66.1 of 336 innings a year ago. The staff makeup is intriguing, however, as it features junior Jordan Watson, sophomore McKenna Gregory, redshirt freshman Leah Shipp, and JUCO transfer sophomore Alli Walker.

• Jordan Watson was MSU's opening-day starter and went 1-0 on the weekend, picking up the win over Memphis. She tossed 9.2 innings over three appearances and owns a 2.90 ERA.

• Leah Shipp's collegiate debut was an impressive one, tossing a complete-game shutout of Florida International. She came on in relief in both games vs. Memphis, and finished with a 1-1 record on the weekend. She threw 11.0 innings and allowed just one earned run, striking out three and walking just one. Her 0.64 ERA ranks in a tie for seventh in the Big Ten, and she is tied for 15th in innings pitched.

• Alli Walker also made an impressive statement in her first Spartan games. She was the hard-luck loser in the opener vs. UConn, throwing three innings of four-hit relief, but rebounded with a 3-0 complete-game one-hitter in a rain-shortened contest vs. Bryant. She boasts a 0.70 ERA (10th, B1G) in 10 innings over three appearances.

• McKenna Gregory tossed 1.1 innings of scoreless ball in the Sunday finale vs. Memphis, allowing just one hit.

PLAYER NOTES - FIELD PLAYERS
• While five starters return to the 2019 lineup, the Spartans are still a youthful bunch with just two seniors among those five: LF Ebonee Echols and 3B Kaitlyn Eveland.

• Both Eveland and Ebonee Echols are among MSU's top-10 all-time in several career categories. Eveland ranks third with a .350 career batting average, behind school recordholder Patti Raduenz (.372, 1993-96) and 2018 graduate Lea Foerster (.368, 2015-18); Echols ranks 10th (.318). Eveland is 11th all-time at MSU in RBI (100), and walks (65).

• Eveland led the Spartans with a .400 batting average in the opening weekend, with three RBI and three walks, stealing two bases. She went 3-for-5 in the first game against Memphis with a pair of RBI.

• Ebonee Echols hit .308 with a pair of homers and a double, posting seven RBI (sixth, B1G) with three walks. The homers were the 10th and 11th of her career. Her .846 slugging percentage ranks 11th in the B1G.

• Ebonee Echols is MSU's career record holder and shares the Big Ten record with 23 career triples. She also shares the Big Ten single-season record of 11, set in 2017.

• Ebonee Echols has 158 base hits, good for 24th on MSU's all-time list, ranks eighth with 114 career runs scored, and is 11th with 36 career stolen bases.

• Mackenzie Meech was second among Spartans with a .357 average over the first five games, smacking two doubles, walking once, and compiling a team-best eight RBI, good for third in the Big Ten. She had 40 putouts at first base (tops among all B1G players).

• Charla Echols batted .333 over five games, starting four behind the plate and one at third base. Four of her six base hits were doubles, and she had four RBI and a pair of walks. Her four doubles ranks second in the Big Ten and fifth nationally.

• Charla Echols and Katie Quinlan each have hits in each of MSU's last four games, the team's longest active hitting streak. Echols hitting streak includes a double in each of those four games.

• Katie Quinlan scored a Big Ten-best seven of MSU's 30 runs on the weekend, and was also a perfect 4-for-4 on stolen base attempts. Her four SB is second in the Big Ten. Over five games, she hit .278, drew two walks, and recorded 13 putouts in right field.

• Sophomore Caitie Ladd started four of five games last weekend, missing Sunday's game with an injury. She had a pair of RBI and a walk, hitting just .091, but hit .273 with seven doubles, three home runs and 17 RBI in 2018.

• Melanie Baccay had a pair of base hits and three walks last weekend, hitting .333 in four starts, all at second base. She walked twice in the first game vs. Memphis (Feb. 9), tying her career high for walks in a game.

• Laney Joyner started all five games last weekend - three in center field and two at shortstop. She drew a team-high four walks for a .357 OBP, despite hitting .100. She also had four putouts and five assists in the field.

• Senior Lexi White appeared in all five games, getting two starts in the designated player position. She had one hit and one RBI, walking three times and hitting .143.

• Joanna Bartz started twice at DP and appeared in all five games. She had a two-run single in the second game against Memphis as a pinch hitter.

• Freshman outfielder Courtney Callahan got two starts in center field over the weekend. Classmate Abby Joseph made her collegiate debut as well, delivering a pinch-hit two-RBI single in the finale against Memphis.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Melanie Baccay

Joanna Bartz

Courtney Callahan

Charla Echols

Ebonee Echols

Kaitlyn Eveland

Lea Foerster

McKenna Gregory

Abby Joseph

Laney Joyner

Caitie Ladd

Katie Quinlan

Leah Shipp

Alli Walker

Jordan Watson

Lexi White