BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University softball will compete in its fourth tournament in as many weekends when it travels to Campbell's Camel Stampede to play four games in three days. The Mountaineers will take on Marshall (3 p.m.) on Friday, Loyola-Chicago (10 a.m.) and Campbell (12:30 p.m.) on Saturday and Loyola-Chicago (11 a.m.) again on Sunday. Live stats will be available for all four games right here at AppStateSports.com.
App State (2-13) is coming off its best weekend of the season in more ways than one. Not only did the Black and Gold get their first and second wins against Canisius (8-2) and Rider (8-0/5 Inn.), but they also took a big step forward statistically. The Mountaineers lowered their team ERA from 11.44 to 8.72 and raised their batting average seven points from .252 to .259. This past weekend alone, Appalachian State hit .271 and registered an ERA of 3.57.
SCOUTING THE THUNDERING HERD (6-6)
• Appalachian has never beaten Marshall in five all-time meetings with the most recent being a 9-1 loss on Feb. 19, 2006 at the Georgia Softball Classic in Athens, Ga.
• Marshall started the season by winning six of its first seven games, but is currently on a five-game skid. However, those five losses came against some pretty stiff competition in Arizona (x2), Tennessee (x2) and Alabama.
• As a team, the Thundering Herd are hitting .298 and have a team ERA of 4.49. Those marks are sixth and ninth in the Conference USA, respectively. Individually, though, Marshall boasts one of the league's top hitters in Morgan Zerkle whose .465 batting average is third in the C-USA. Zerkle has tallied 10 runs, two doubles, one triple, one home run, and five RBI.
• So far, the team's top pitcher has been Jordan Dixon with an ERA of 3.10 in 58.2 innings pitched, 46 frames more than the next closest hurler. Dixon is 5-5 in 11 appearances, including eight starts, with six complete games, 59 strikeouts and 20 walks.
SCOUTING THE RAMBLERS (9-3)
• This weekend will be the first time App State and Loyola-Chicago have ever played each other.
• Loyola-Chicago enters this tournament with the best record of any team competing at 9-3, which includes a six-game winning streak dating back to Feb. 20. During that span, the Ramblers have outscored their opponents 55-9 and ended the game after five innings three times.
• Statistically, Loyola-Chicago has been far and away the best team in the Missouri Valley so far this season. The Ramblers are first in the league in batting average at .382 (63 points than the next closest team) and ERA at 2.01 (.08 better than Missouri State).
• Leading the offense has been Erica Nagel hitting an unheard of .711 (27-for-38) with 16 runs scored, four doubles, three triples, and seven RBI. In the circle, Madison Hope and Ashley Rogers both have a sub-two ERA at 1.12 and 1.59, respectively.
SCOUTING THE CAMELS (3-6)
• In six all-time meetings between the Mountaineers and the Camels, Campbell has won four of them. Most recently in 2015, the Camels won with a 5-0 shutout on March 25 in Buies Creek, N.C.
• Campbell started the 2016 season with four-straight losses, but is winners in three of its last five to get its record back to 3-6 overall.
• The Camels are fifth in the Big South in batting average at .304 and second-to-last in ERA at 6.04. Individually, four hitters are above .300 led by Taesha DuBoise's .348.
• Pitching-wise, Amber Schisler has been a bright spot for Campbell with an ERA of 2.33 in five appearances, one start and 12 innings pitched. Schisler has accumulated 12 strikeouts and only four walks so far this spring.
