Softball to play five games at the Buzz Classic this weekend
The Tennessee Tech softball team will return to the field this weekend at the Buzz Classic in Woodstock, Ga., to play five games in the tournament hosted by Georgia Tech.
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee Tech softball team will return to the field this weekend at the Buzz Classic in Woodstock, Ga., to play five games in the tournament hosted by Georgia Tech. The Golden Eagles begin their stretch of five contests in three days on Friday when they take on Western Carolina at 10 a.m.
So far this season, Tech has nearly had as many games canceled as the Golden Eagles have played. Entering the second month of the season, TTU has compiled a 5-5 record through 10 games, although the team had 16 games scheduled through this point.
Three of the six canceled games have been or will be rescheduled. TTU will take on Tennessee at the Tech Softball Field on April 20, while the doubleheader against Middle Tennessee State will be made up at a date to be determined.
The Golden Eagles will hope for Mother Nature to cooperate this weekend as Tech looks to build off a 3-2 finish in last weekend's Frost Classic Inspired by Memorial. Callie Schmidt turned in an impressive performance throughout the weekend as the junior was named the OVC Player of the Week.
Schmidt hit .500 (8-for-16) and slugged 1.125 at the Classic as she homered three times and also doubled. She went 4-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and an RBI against Miami (Ohio) to start the tournament. Schmidt's four hits in a game were a career high. Schmidt also hit homers against Oakland and East Tennessee State en route to totaling five runs scored and six RBIs for the tournament. To finish the weekend, the catcher went 2-for-4 against ETSU with three RBIs and two runs scored.
Along with Schmidt, three other Golden Eagles are hitting above .300 to begin the season. Schmidt leads the team with a .448 batting average, while Whitney Cummings (.429), Chanelle Spalding (.333) and Kaleigh Gates (.320) have all helped carry the Golden Eagles at the plate.
In the circle, Holly Thomas has shown improvements in her second year as a Golden Eagle. The sophomore leads the team with a 4-2 record and 1.85 earned run average. Opposing batters are hitting just .183 collectively against Thomas, and she leads all pitchers in the Ohio Valley Conference with 35 strikeouts.
Providing head coach Tory Acheson some flexibility in his rotation to begin the season has been Maddie Schmissrauter. A junior, Schmissrauter has appeared in five games this season, all in relief, and has been a reliable option to hold opponents at bay. Schmissrauter has a 2.40 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 11.2 innings of work to go along with a 1-1 record.
Following their opening game against Western Carolina, the Golden Eagles will take on Mercer at 1 p.m. on Tuesday in a rematch from earlier this season. Tech will then have games against James Madison and Mississippi on Saturday before wrapping up the weekend against UNC Greensboro on Sunday.
To visit the Buzz Classic Web page, click here.
