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Softball Brandon Sans

Seahawks Face Tiger Test In NCAA Regionals

WILMINGTON, North Carolina – The Colonial Athletic Association Champion UNCW softball team makes its NCAA Championship debut against No. 10 seed Clemson on Friday at McWhorter Stadium.
 
The Seahawks, 32-13, meet the Tigers (39-15) for the first time at Noon on the ACC Network with Jenn Hildreth and Carol Bruggeman on the call. Auburn (39-15) and Louisiana (45-11) will play an afternoon game to complete the field in the three-day, double-elimination regional.
 
­­­"We are excited for our program to appear on a bigger stage," said UNCW Head Coach Kristy Norton. "Our mantra all year has been nameless and faceless opponents and that doesn't change after a championship. It will be a challenge, but we have played close games since the first weekend. Those battles have prepared us for this moment.
 
"It is a tremendous opportunity for our girls to represent UNCW in front of a national audience and to showcase what Seahawk softball is about."
 
UNCW earned the CAA's automatic NCAA bid by winning three games in three days last weekend in the CAA Championship at Elon's Hunt Softball Park. The Seahawks upset the tournament's top two seeds, Delaware and Hofstra, in a pair of rubber matches before downing the host Phoenix, 10-2, in six innings for the program's first conference title.
 
Freshmen right-handers Emily Winstead and Kara Hammock are at the forefront of one of the best pitching staffs in the nation. The rookie hurlers paired with veteran stalwarts Amberlyn Pearce and Janel Gamache, a two-way player, for the sixth-lowest team ERA (1.73) among Division I programs.
 
Winstead and Hammock recorded every out of UNCW's thrilling CAA Championship run. Winstead was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Performer after striking out 25 batters in 12.2 innings. Hammock earned All-Tournament honors with a microscopic 0.95 ERA and limited opponents to a .200 batting average.
 
Gamache, seven home runs and 29 RBI, has been the main power bat in a lineup that won many close games utilizing the short game and stealing bases. The Seahawks lead the CAA with 29 sacrifice hits. UNCW stole 110 bases and its 2.44 stolen bases per game clip rank third in the country.
 
Sophomore second baseman Tayler Vitola, the CAA's seventh-leading hitter with 49 hits, is a mainstay at the top of the Seahawk lineup. The Middletown, Del., speedster is also tied atop the conference leaderboard with 26 stolen bases.
 
Clemson, a first-time NCAA Regional host, also features one of the country's top staffs. The Tigers are tenth nationally with a 1.87 ERA, the top mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference, paired with 324 strikeouts. A trio of Tigers – Regan Spencer, Millie Thompson, and Valerie Cagle – own three of the 10 lowest ERAs in the ACC, led by Spencer's 1.11 mark in 57 innings.
 
Tigers redshirt sophomore Alia Logoleo leads Clemson with 14 home runs and 43 RBI. The Nashville, Tenn., product is one of four Clemson players to have 10 or more round-trippers and at least 30 RBI.
 
The winner of Friday's game moves on to play the victor of the Auburn-Louisiana game on Saturday at 1 p.m. The loser faces elimination at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.
 
REGIONAL NOTES: UNCW opened its season in the state of South Carolina with a four-win weekend at Charleston Southern … The Seahawks have never played Clemson or Louisiana … UNCW has played Auburn five times, lasting meeting in 2020 at Auburn … The Seahawks have won 27 of 29 games when holding opponents to two or fewer runs … Winstead's 9.4 strikeouts per seven innings clip ranks fifth among Division I freshman ... UNCW hit .316 in the 2022 CAA tournament … Anna Knox is second on the Seahawks with five home runs and 20 stolen bases … Auburn is coached by former James Madison coach Mickey Dean, who guided the Dukes from 2013-17.
 
2022 NCAA Softball Championships | Clemson Regional
Friday, May 20
Game 1: UNCW vs. Clemson - Noon
Game 2: Auburn vs. Louisiana - 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 21
Game 3: G1 Winner vs. G2 Winner - 1 p.m.
Game 4: G1 Loser vs. G2 Loser - 3:30 p.m.
Game 5: G3 Loser vs. G4 Winner  - 6 p.m.
Sunday, May 22
Game 6: G3 Winner vs. G5 Winner - Noon
Game 7: G6 Winner vs. G6 Loser (If necessary) - 2:30 p.m.



 
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Players Mentioned

Janel Gamache

#9 Janel Gamache

P/IF
5' 11"
Junior
R/R
Anna Knox

#15 Anna Knox

C/UTIL
5' 7"
Senior
R/R
Amberlyn Pearce

#5 Amberlyn Pearce

P
5' 6"
Sophomore
R/R
Tayler Vitola

#27 Tayler Vitola

UTIL
5' 7"
Freshman
L/R
Emily Winstead

#13 Emily Winstead

P
5' 8"
Freshman
R/R
Kara Hammock

#18 Kara Hammock

P
6' 2"
Freshman
R/R

Players Mentioned

Janel Gamache

#9 Janel Gamache

5' 11"
Junior
R/R
P/IF
Anna Knox

#15 Anna Knox

5' 7"
Senior
R/R
C/UTIL
Amberlyn Pearce

#5 Amberlyn Pearce

5' 6"
Sophomore
R/R
P
Tayler Vitola

#27 Tayler Vitola

5' 7"
Freshman
L/R
UTIL
Emily Winstead

#13 Emily Winstead

5' 8"
Freshman
R/R
P
Kara Hammock

#18 Kara Hammock

6' 2"
Freshman
R/R
P