Quinnipiac University
Oakland University
QU Softball Set for EMU Madeira Beach Invitational
2/16/2017 11:43:00 AM | Softball
EMU Madeira Beach Invitational
Madeira Beach, Florida
Quinnipiac University Bobcats (0-0, 0-0 MAAC)
Oakland University Golden Grizzlies (0-0, 0-0 Horizon League)
Central Michigan University Chippewas (0-5, 0-0 MAC)
Villanova Wildcats (0-0, 0-0 BIG EAST)
Boston University Terriers (2-2, 0-0 Patriot League)
Eastern Michigan University Eagles (0-0, 0-0 MAC)
2017 Madeira Beach Invitational Schedule
Friday, Feb. 17
Quinnipiac vs. Oakland University - 9 AM
Quinnipiac vs. Central Michigan – 11:30 AM
Saturday, Feb. 18
Quinnipiac vs. Villanova – 4:30 PM
Quinnipiac vs. Boston University – 7 PM
Sunday, Feb. 19
Quinnipiac vs. Eastern Michigan – 11:30 AM
2017 SEASON OPENER
This weekend the Quinnipiac softball team will kick off their 2017 spring season in Madeira Beach, Florida for the Madeira Beach Invitational, hosted by the EMU Eagles. The Bobcats will play five games over three days at the invitational and the tournament will mark the first of two for Quinnipiac to begin the year.
SCOUTING OAKLAND
The Golden Grizzlies will open their spring season against the Bobcats at 9 a.m. on Friday, February 17. Last season, Oakland University finished the year 13-31 and 8-14 in the Horizon League. The Golden Grizzlies will look to sophomore Brittney Miller to lead the offense. In 2016, Miller finished the year with a .360 batting average and a .504 slugging percentage.
SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN
Central Michigan enters the Madeira Beach Invitational with an 0-5 record. The Chippewas could not capture a win at the Texas A&M Invitational in College Station, Texas. CMU fell to Ohio State twice, Lamar twice and No. 19 Texas A&M. Morgan Gardner leads the offense with a .417 batting average through five games.
SCOUTING VILLANOVA
The Wildcats will open their spring season against Eastern Michigan at 2 p.m. on Friday, February 17. Last season, Villanova finished the year 32-18 and 14-7 in the BIG EAST. The Wildcats will look to senior Laure Herschberg to lead the offense. In 2016, Herschberg finished the year with a .347 batting average, six home runs and 37 rbi's.
SCOUTING BOSTON UNIVERSITY
The Terriers currently sit at 2-2 through four games to start the season. At the FAU Kick-Off Classic, BU upset No. 23 Florida Atlantic, 3-1, and defeated North Florida before losing to Bethune-Cookman and North Carolina State. Junior Jilee Schanda leads the squad with a .462 batting average on six hits in 13 at-bats to go along with two runs batted in. Freshman pitcher Kali Magane is 1-0 with a complete game shutout in seven innings, allowing just three hits and recording four strikeouts.
SCOUTING EASTERN MICHIGAN
The Eagles will open their spring season against Boston University at 9 a.m. on Friday, February 17. Last season, EMU finished the year 19-32 and 9-14 in the Mid Atlantic Conference. The Eagles will look to senior Michelle Kriegshauser to lead the offense. In 2016, Kriegshauser finished the year with a .381 batting average, seven home runs and 35 rbi's.
THE MAAC PRESEASON POLL
The Quinnipiac University softball team was picked to finish sixth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, as announced by the conference office on Monday, Jan. 30, 2017.
BOBCAT RETURNEES
Quinnipiac returns 11 players from last year's squad, seven of which are juniors or seniors. In addition the Bobcats will look to a strong core of four sophomores who each played in at least 40 games including Taylor Troyan (Boca Raton, Florida) and Erin Larsen (Kissimmee, Florida) seeing time in more than 40 games. Troyan led the team in batting average (.301), slugging percentage (.466) and second in home runs (2).
VETS IN THE BOX
The Bobcats return three of the four players that led the team in hits in Miranda Magana (Santa Paula, California), Sarah Heimbach (Greenwich, New York) and Keilani Finley (Alameda, California). Magana led the team in hits (46), doubles (9), second in batting average (.282) and in total bases (57). Heimbach led the team in on-base percentage (.390), second in stolen bases (5) and runs (21). Finley led the team in home runs (4), triples (2), RBI's (22) and total bases (63).
QUEEN OF THE MOUND
The Bobcats also return top pitcher, Casey Herzog (Wappingers Falls, New York), who led the team in wins (14), complete games (15), innings pitched (172.1), strikeouts (153), batting average against (.229) and ERA (2.92.)
WELCOME ABOARD
Five new players join the Bobcats in three freshman, Rachel Marchuk (San Ramon, California), Abbey Long (Eau Claire, Wisconsin) and Megan Dyson (Bellmawr, New Jersey), as well as two junior transfers, Keala Cordeiro (Huntington Beach, California) and Lexi Courtney (Scapposse, Oregon).
HAMDEN ADVANTAGE
Last season, the Bobcats registered a 11-9 home record at the QU Softball Field.
HEAD COACH JILL KARWOSKI
Head coach Jill Karwoski will guide Quinnipiac in her fourth season at the helm in the hopes of improving on a 2016 season that saw Quinnipiac finish the year at 28-29 overall, which was 10 wins better than the 18 wins the team earned in 2015.
ON DECK
The Bobcats will take some time off after competing in the Madeira Beach Invitational before heading to Washington, D.C. on Friday, Mar. 3 for the Colonial Classic Tournament. Quinnipiac will play four games in three days at the tournament, taking on George Washington three times as well as Bucknell.
