Columbia Softball Opens 2016 Season This Weekend At FAU Invitational
2/24/2016 2:30:00 PM | Softball
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL | TWITTER | SEASON PREVIEW
NEW YORK - Led behind second-year head coach Jennifer Teague, the Columbia softball team will kick off the 2016 season this weekend as they head to Boca Raton, Florida, for the 2016 FAU Invitational on Feb. 26-28.
Columbia heads into the 2016 season with a very young team made up of 11 underclassmen, including a group of six newcomers, four juniors and a lone senior in pitcher Tessa Kroll. While the team may be young, the Lions will be returning four of the top five hitters from last season as well as the entire pitching staff made up of Kroll, Tonia Wu and Kayla Maloney.
Earlier this season, Kerry Cook, Shelby Unger and Tonia Wu were named College Sports Madness Preseason All-Ivy Second Team selections after an impressive campaign for the Lions last year.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Boston University
Columbia All-Time Series Record vs. Boston University: 0-2
The Terriers head into this weekend with a 1-3 record after opening the season last weekend at the CSU Tournament in Charleston, South Carolina. After falling in a pair of games to Western Carolina and another to Charleston Southern, the Terriers were able to round out the tournament with a six-inning, 8-0 shutout victory over North Carolina A&T. Boston Unviersity heads into the 2016 season with a new head coach in Ashley Waters, a former America East Player and Scholar-Athlete of the Year at Maine and a three-year assistant coach at Harvard. In 2016, the Terriers return nine players from the 2014 Patriot League Championship team, including junior co-captain and former Patriot League Rookie of the Year, Brittany Younan.
Maryland
Columbia All-Time Series Record vs. Maryland: 1-4
Maryland heads into the weekend after already competing in a pair of tournaments at the Kajikawa Classic and the Georgia State Tournament over the last two weekends, compiling a 3-7 record in that time. The Terps return 15 players from last season while welcoming five newcomers to the field in 2016 as Julie Wright enters into her first season at the helm of the Maryland softball program. Last year, the Terps set the program record in doubles (98), home runs (69), RBI (316) and walks (232) while ranking among the top 30 in the nation in doubles (sixth), scoring (21st), home runs (27th), on-base percentage (27th) and slugging percentage (29th).
Stony Brook
Columbia All-Time Series Record vs. Stony Brook: 5-9
Stony Brook heads to Boca Raton after opening the season with a 2-3 record at the Charlotte 49er Invitational last weekend, picking up a pair of wins over Saint Joseph's. Picked to finish second in the America East Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Seawolves have won the last two America East regular-season championships and have posted up at least 30 wins in each of the last four seasons. This year, the Seawolves will be returning six starters to the squad including last week's America East Player of the Week, Allie Pisciotta, who went 8-for-15 (.533) with a home run and a pair of doubles in the Charlotte Invitational.
Michigan State
Columbia All-Time Series Record vs. Michigan State: 0-0
Michigan State heads into the weekend with a 6-4 record after a pair of tournaments already this season. The Spartans opened things up with a 4-1 performance at the FGCU Kickoff Classic on Feb. 12-14 before heading across the nation to Tempe, Arizona, for the Littlewood Classic at Arizona State. So far this season, the MSU pitching staff has combined for a league-best 70 strikeouts, with 23 of those batters caught looking. Through the team's 10 games this year, Lea Foerster leads the offense with a .485 batting average and .576 slugging percentage after hitting three doubles while knocking in four runners this year.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
Friday, Feb. 26
9 a.m. - Columbia vs. Boston University
1:30 p.m. - Columbia vs. Maryland
Saturday, Feb. 27
11:15 a.m. - Columbia vs. Stony Brook
1:30 p.m. - Columbia vs. Maryland
Sunday, Feb. 28
9 a.m. - Columbia vs. Michigan State
