University of Massachusets Athletics
Softball Looks For 12th Straight Win Tuesday At UConn
April 16, 2007 | Softball
April 16, 2007
What's On Tap: Massachusetts (22-12-1) puts its 11-game winning streak on the line Tuesday afternoon with a single game at Connecticut (15-17) beginning at 4:00 PM. The Minutewomen are tied with Baylor for the nation's second-longest overall winning streak. They also are tied with Alabama for the longest home winning streak of 21 games in a row. UMass is 42-41-2 all-time against the Huskies and have won three games in a row in the series since suffering a 4-3 loss on April 21, 2004, in Storrs.
Balschmiter Mowing Them Down: Since allowing six earned runs to Michigan State in the third-place game of the FAU Parent's Weekend Tournament on March 18 in Boca Raton, Fla., UMass sophomore pitcher Brandice Balschmiter has been nearly untouchable. The 2006 A-10 Pitcher of the Year is 10-0 with a 0.56 ERA. She has held opponents to a .117 batting average and allowed just six runs (five earned) on 25 hits and 16 walks in 62.0 innings. She has 74 strikeouts, an average of 1.2 per inning. Balschmiter recorded her second career no-hitter vs. Dartmouth and has three double-digit strikeout performances in this stretch. That includes a season-high 12 against Saint Louis.
Sanders Finding Groove: The other member of the "Killer B's" in the circle, freshman Bailey Sanders, has begun to settle down and regain her High School All-American form. Sanders pitched a two-hitter in a complete-game win at Boston College April 11. She took a no-hitter into the fourth inning before yielding a leadoff home run, her only run allowed of the game. In the second game of the Charlotte series April 14, Sanders needed just seven pitches to record a perfect seventh inning en route to her first collegiate save. In her last 10.0 innings pitched, Sanders has allowed just one earned run on three hits and three walks while striking out 10.
Cullington Continues Home Run Onslaught: Junior Stacy Cullington already has established new career-highs with eight home runs and 35 RBI, both team-highs. The Encinitas, Calif., hit a three-run home run against Charlotte April 13, her third three-run shot in the last four games, moving her into fourth place all-time with 20 home runs. In the most recent NCAA statistics report, Cullington was 33rd in the nation averaging 1.0 RBI per game.
Tops In The Nation: UMass has currently reeled off 21 straight wins at home, which is tied with Alabama for the longest active streak in the nation. This includes three wins in the NCAA Tournament last year. The last loss for the Minutewomen at the UMass Softball Complex was a 2-1 defeat to Charlotte on April 9, 2006. UMass has previously held a 73-game home winning streak. That was stopped by Saint Joseph's in the 2004 A-10 Tournament.
The Minutewomen are still 124-9-1 (.929) all-time at the UMass Softball Complex. The Minutewomen are 63-4 (.941) against league foes and 3-0 in the NCAA Tournament at the UMass Softball Complex. Here is a statistical breakdown of how the Minutewomen have fared all-time at the UMass Softball Complex.
AVG: .346 (1130-3269)
Opp. AVG.: .160 (499-3116)
Runs: 839 (6.3/game)
Opp. Runs: 154 (1.1/game)
Home Runs: 85 (0.63/game)
Opp. Home Runs: 15 (0.11/game)