Emory Athletics Weekly Preview: March 25th - March 31st

Emory Athletics Weekly Preview: March 25th - March 31st
Posted: Mar 25, 2024

The Emory Athletics weekly preview for March 25th through March 31st. This preview is to serve as a weekly snapshot of all upcoming athletic events for the coming week.

Softball:

The Emory softball team (12-6) will be back on the diamond this week, finishing up its non-conference schedule with a double-header against St. Olaf on Monday before taking on Carnegie Mellon this weekend to kickoff its UAA schedule. The Eagles enter the week riding a four-game winning streak, with sweeps over Agnes Scott and LaGrange.

Freshman Ellie Zerr has flourished at the plate in the Eagles' non-conference schedule. The rookie has driven in a team-high 31 runs and is hitting .418 to go along with her .782 slugging percentage. First-year head coach India Chiles has penciled her in at the three hole as of late, and Zerr has not missed a beat. Sophomore Ashley Chu has done a great job at setting the table for Zerr, hitting an impressive .561 through 18 games. Chu doesn't hit for extra bases often but has advanced herself into scoring position often via the stolen base. She is 16-of-17 on stolen base attempts this year, leading the team.

Sophomore Mackenzie Duford and freshman Lexi Bach have been a solid one-two punch for Chiles in the circle this spring. The two have combined for 76.1 innings of work and have surrendered just 39 earned runs. They've done a good job at keeping the ball inside the yard, with Bach yet to surrender a home run and Duford giving up just one.

St. Olaf is on a tour of Georgia, taking on a slew of opponents from the Peach State. The Eagles will be their second opponent on the trip, having swept Agnes Scott this past Sunday. The Oles are off to a slower start offensively this season but have been solid inside of the circle, with a team ERA of 2.10. It took a bit to get the bats going, but they saw some offense against the Scotties when they combined for 22 runs in the doubleheader, 16 coming in game two.

Roxanne Ring has been dominant inside the circle this spring, owning a 0.70 EAR over 30.0 innings of work. Meanwhile, the offense was led by Shreya Ashok against the Scotties. Ashok went 6-for-6 in the second leg of the doubleheader, driving in four runs with a triple and a stolen base to add. This is the first time in program history that the Eagles will take on the Oles.

After their doubleheader with the Oles, Emory will begin its conference schedule against the Carnegie Mellon Tartans. The Tartans are 6-6 this year and are winners of five of their last seven. One thing the Tartans don't do is make a lot of errors, boasting a fielding percentage of .970. The Tartans are coming off a year in which they went 5-15 in conference play, finishing last in the UAA. Sophomore Maya Goodwin has had a strong start at the plate for the Tartans, owning a batting average just shy of .500. She's also slugging an impressive .897 this year, with three doubles, three triples and one home run. Senior Amanda Smith has been the ace of the Tartan staff, pitching 42.2 innings so far this spring and owning an ERA of 1.31 and a 0.89 WHIP.

The Tartans and Eagles have met 12 times before, with the Eagles having a 9-3 edge in the series. Emory is coming off a year in which it went 8-11 in conference play. With a rejuvenated lineup alongside new leadership, the Eagles are poised to flip the script this year. The games against the Tartans will span Friday through Sunday, with a doubleheader on Saturday. Fans can enjoy the SPC Tailgate ahead of the doubleheader on Saturday. The tailgate will feature Community BBQ, food trucks, t-shirt giveaways and more. The event will take place at the Campus Live Pavilion, starting at 11:30 AM. Fans in attendance for the softball game on Saturday will also have the opportunity to pick up an Emory softball or baseball replica jersey.

When/Where:

  • Monday, March 25th – vs St. Olaf – 1:30 PM / 3:30 PM – Cooper Field (Atlanta, GA)
  • Friday, March 29th – vs Carnegie Mellon – 3:00 PM – Cooper Field (Atlanta, GA)
  • Saturday, March 30th – vs Carnegie Mellon – 12:00 PM / 2:00 PM – Cooper Field (Atlanta, GA)
    • SPC Tailgate (Campus Life Pavilion)
    • Replica Jersey Giveaway
  • Sunday, March 31st – vs Carnegie Mellon – 1:00 PM – Cooper Field (Atlanta, GA)

Coverage:

 

Baseball:

The Emory baseball team (13-9) wrapped up its non-conference schedule this past week and is getting hot at the right time. After slugging their way to three-straight wins, including a 14-3 victory over #18 Birmingham Southern, the Eagles will bring their red-hot offense into conference play this upcoming weekend. The reigning UAA Champions will start their conference schedule with the Case Western Reserve Spartans at home.

Opposing pitchers seemed to have no answer for the Emory offense last week, scoring 32 runs over the course of three games. The Eagles got it started with a dominating win over a ranked opponent, with senior Jacob Grossman having one of his best games of the year, going 3-for-5 with three doubles. Freshman JT Rattigan picked up his fourth win of the year, going 5.0 innings and allowing just two hits and two earned runs.

Meanwhile, the series finale against Wooster saw the Emory bats come alive, with three different Eagles leaving the ballpark. Sicoli along with juniors Jack Halloran and Blake Dincman all went yard in the 14-3 win over Wooster. Halloran's homer was a towering shot, clearing not only the fence, but also the trees in left field, good for his 19th career homer. He now finds himself tied for second all-time in career home runs.

As a team, the Eagles are scoring 8.9 runs per game and hitting .317 collectively. Their team slugging percentage of .459 also ranks in the top in the nation.

The Case Western Reserve Spartans enter their four-game tilt with the Eagles having won eight of their last nine, including five straight. They got their UAA schedule started last weekend when they took on the Chicago Maroons and swept all four games. Case Western Reserve finished just two wins behind Emory last year in the final UAA standings, having gone 11-5 last year. The Spartans return a consensus All-American and the reigning UAA position player of the year to the lineup in graduate student Jack Anderson. Anderson was one of Division III's top players last year, sitting second in the nation in hits (89) and doubles (25). Anderson has picked up right where he left off last year, hitting .380 with six doubles, two triples and two home runs in 19 contests this year. He has also driven in 23 RBIs despite hitting primarily out of the leadoff spot.

Sophomore Archer Stankowski has had a strong start to his season on the bump, starting five games and owning a 3.12 ERA. His opponents are batting .225 against him this year and has yet to surrender a home run this year.

The Eagles and Spartans have met 69 times before, with Emory having the edge in the all-time series, 38-21. Emory took three of four in last year's series with the Spartans in Cleveland. The games this weekend will be played Friday through Sunday, with a doubleheader on Saturday. Fans can enjoy the SPC Tailgate ahead of the doubleheader on Saturday. The tailgate will feature Community BBQ, food trucks, t-shirt giveaways and more. The event will take place at the Campus Live Pavilion, starting at 11:30 AM. Fans in attendance for the softball game on Saturday will also have the opportunity to pick up an Emory softball or baseball replica jersey.

When/Where:

  • Friday, March 29th – vs Case Western Reserve – 3:00 PM – Chappell Park (Atlanta, GA)
  • Saturday, March 30th – vs Case Western Reserve – 12:00 PM / 3:00 PM – Chappell Park (Atlanta, GA)
    • SPC Tailgate
  • Sunday, March 31st – vs Case Western Reserve – 11:00 AM – Chappell Park (Atlanta, GA)

Coverage:

 

Track and Field:

The Emory track and field teams will be back in action this weekend with two meets on the schedule. Some will make the trip to Southern Wesleyan for the Gotta Run Invite while others will compete in the Kennesaw State Invitational.

Emory is coming off a weekend in which they hosted the Emory Thrills in the Hills meet. The Eagles saw 11 individual event wins and four relay wins during the meet. Graduate student Nikki Boon stole the show, breaking a program-record in the discus. Boon's 43.07m mark broke the previous record of 42.60m, which had stood since 1989. Senior Amaya Martin was impressive as well, winning the 100m hurdles with ease in a time of 14.75. Junior Audrey Johnson won the 100m dash and set a new personal-best in the process with a time of 11.81. The women also seized nine of the top 10 places of NCAA affiliated runners in the 1500m, with graduate student Brigid Hanley taking the gold.

Meanwhile, senior Kenya Sei continued to dominate this year as he took first among all NCAA competitors in the hammer throw with a distance of 55.95m. Junior Jackson Price had a strong weekend as well, turning in a first-place finish in the 100m dash with a time of 10.64, narrowly edging out junior Sam Ryba, who put up a time of 10.69 to take second. Price also finished third in the 200m on the first day of the meet.

The Eagles will look to pick up some more medals and personal-bests this weekend when they head to the two meets. The meets will both be single-day events, both taking place on Friday, March 29th.

When/Where:

  • Friday, March 29th – Gotta Run Invite – All Day – Joe R Gilbert Track and Field (Central, SC)
  • Friday, March 29th – KSU Invitational – All Day – KSU Outdoor Track & Field Facility (Kennesaw, GA)

Coverage:

 

Women's Golf:

The No. 5 ranked Emory women's golf team is heading north to Athens, Georgia this weekend to compete in the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, hosted by the University of Georgia. The Eagles will take on several NCAA Division I teams, including several teams ranked inside of the top-25 of Division I. Alongside the host, Division I's No. 24 ranked Georgia Bulldogs, they'll see the likes of #10 Auburn, #17 Florida, #22 Virginia and #25 SMU. Rounding out the field of NCAA Division I teams are Alabama, Augusta (Division II), Charleston, Georgia Southern, Illinois, Kansas State, Michigan, Missouri, N.C. State and San Diego State.

The Eagles have had the last couple of weeks off after competing in the Westbrook Invitational in Peoria, Arizona over spring break. The Eagles finished third out of 10 teams at the event. Junior Sharon Mun had a strong showing at the competition, shooting a 141 and tying for fourth overall on the individual leaderboard. Sophomore Katie Park and Ellen Dong were also consistent in Arizona, hovering around even for most of the event and both finishing in a tie for 11th.

The Eagles, under the leadership of first-year head coach Liz Fernandes, will head to Athens looking to topple some of the NCAA Division I's best. The event will span two days from Friday, March 29th to Saturday, March 30th.

When/Where:

  • Friday, March 29th-Saturday, March 30th – Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic – UGA Golf Club (Athens, GA)

Coverage:

 

Women's Tennis:

After a perfect 3-0 weekend at home, the No. 7 ranked Emory women's tennis team (9-4) will take on local rival Oglethorpe this weekend at the Woodruff P.E. Center. The Eagles took on two teams ranked in the top-20 of the most recent ITA rankings this past weekend, with #8 Johns Hopkins and #20 Tufts making the trip down to Atlanta.

After falling to the Blue Jays at the ITA Indoor Team National Championship last month, the Eagles got revenge this past weekend with a 7-2 win. The Eagles followed up the win with a pair of 8-1 wins over #20 Tufts on Saturday and a victory on Senior Day against Colby.

Sophomore Emily Kantrovitz has been seemingly unstoppable this spring with a 10-1 record in the No. 1 singles position and has won nine straight matches. Meanwhile, senior Ilayda Baykan has found her rhythm, winning five straight after starting her spring 1-3. Sophomore Iris Beman and junior Eliza McPherron have been a steady anchor on the doubles court, going 9-4 this spring in the No. 2 position.

Riding their five-match winning streak into the weekend, the Eagles will look to pick up another win against the Stormy Petrels. Oglethorpe enters Friday's match having lost five straight and are 3-5 on the year. Junior Izzy Forster has been Oglethorpe's top performer this year, owning a 5-3 record out of the No. 1 position. She is also 3-4 in No. 1 doubles alongside senior Brianna Ali.

The match against the Stormy Petrels is scheduled to start at 2:30 PM on Friday, March 29th.

When/Where:

  • Friday, March 20th – vs Oglethorpe – 2:30 PM – Woodruff P.E. Center

Coverage:         

 

Men's Tennis:

The No. 1 ranked Emory men's tennis team will return to Atlanta this weekend to play two home matches. The Eagles spent the past weekend on the road, playing two matches in Trinity, Texas before playing Berry on the way home. Emory went 2-1 on the road trip.

The Eagles won a thrilling marathon against #16 Amherst on Thursday before falling to #14 Trinity (TX) the following day. Emory got back on track on Sunday with a 9-0 drubbing of the Berry Vikings. After the weekend, the Eagles' spring dual match record comes to 9-2.

Freshman Christian Liew has experienced a phenomenal start to his collegiate career, owning a 9-2 overall dual match record, primarily playing in the No. 4 and 5 position. Senior Nolan Shah has been solid as well, boasting a 7-3 dual match record, playing primarily in the No. 2 position. Shah has performed well on the doubles court as well alongside sophomore Dean Kamenev. The two own an 8-1 record on court two. Seniors Brandon Cohen and Ryan Glanville have anchored the No. 1 doubles position for Emory, with a record of 7-2 this spring.

The Eagles will welcome Oglethorpe and Georgia Gwinnett to the Woodruff P.E. Center this weekend. The Stormy Petrels are 5-3 this year and have won three of their last four. Bailey Raymond has served Oglethorpe well this year, going 4-1 in dual matches out of the No. 1 and 2 singles position. The doubles tandem of Daneil Cohen and Sam Wasko has been impressive as well for Oglethorpe, owning a 5-1 record in the No. 1 doubles position.

The Eagles will also get another shot at the Georgia Gwinnett Grizzlies this weekend. The NAIA powerhouse got the best of Emory earlier this month when they won, 6-1. However, the Eagles will host this match on their own courts, looking to get vengeance for their loss.

The match against Oglethorpe is scheduled to start at 4:30 PM on Friday and the faceoff with the Grizzlies slated for an 11:00 AM start on Saturday.

When/Where:

  • Friday, March 29th – vs Oglethorpe – 4:30 PM – Woodruff P.E. Center (Atlanta, GA)
  • Saturday, March 30th – vs Georgia Gwinnett – 11:00 AM – Woodruff P.E. Center (Atlanta, GA)

Coverage: