March 27, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Spartanburg, S.C. - USC Upstate hits the road for its first A-Sun road games of the season, starting with a doubleheader at Campbell Friday. The Spartans own a 2-0 record against the Fighting Camels, having swept a doubleheader 17 years ago in 1991. Upstate enters Friday with a 17-8 overall record and a 3-3 mark in the A-Sun. Campbell stands 25-13 overall and 1-3 in the league. For more information on the doubleheader, including live stats and live audio/video of the games, please visit the Campbell Athletics website at www.gocamels.com.
Recapping East Tennessee State
For the fifth straight doubleheader, Upstate looked solid in game one only to see its opponent come back to win game two as the Spartans won 6-0 to open the doubleheader, but fell 13-6 in the nightcap.
In the first game, Tiffany Pitcher slapped a pair of doubles and collected two RBIs and Morgan Childers tossed a four-hit shutout with eight strikeouts. The Spartans scored three runs in the first inning and two more in the third to take a commanding lead. In the second game, Upstate took a 2-1 lead into the fifth inning before watching as ETSU scored 12 runs over the next three innings to win the game. Upstate starter Brittany Rice was lifted in the fifth inning for Childers, but the Lady Bucs' bats were still hot as ETSU scored four runs in the fifth. Upstate answered with four runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth to take the lead back at 6-5. However, ETSU scored five runs in the sixth to take a 10-6 lead and added three more in the seventh for the final margin.
Childers ran her record to 14-4 in the doubleheader. Shay Slater scored two runs to tie Upstate's all-time runs record of 182 now shared with Krista Altom.
About The Competition
Campbell enters Friday's game with a 25-13 overall record and a 1-3 mark in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Fighting Camels have won three of their last four games, including a sweep of the Southern Conference's Elon on March 26 and a split with A-Sun rival Stetson on Mar. 22. Campbell has played two common opponents with the Spartans this season, sweeping UNC Wilmington in a doubleheader on Feb. 19 and winning two single games against Charleston Southern on March 14 and 15.
Campbell hits the ball well, owning a .310 team batting average. The Fighting Camels have six players who see regular at bats and are hitting over .300 on the season. Karlie Love leads the team with a .400 batting average with nine home runs and 31 RBIs. Courtney Quinn tops the club with 14 home runs and has also collected 12 doubles and a .381 batting average. Amanda Littlejohn hits .392 on the year with a team-high 13 doubles and 45 RBIs.
Campbell's pitchers own a 2.64 team ERA on the year. Lauren Stephan and Brittany Stanley see the majority of the action in the circle for the Fighting Camels, Stephan is 11-9 on the year with a 2.36 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 121.2 innings pitched. Stanley is 13-4 on the year with a 2.87 ERA and 90 strikeouts in 119.2 innings of work.
Campbell head coach Drew Peterson is in his eighth season at the helm of the Campbell program. He owns a 213-238-1 record at the school. He is 496-388-1 in his 18-year career as a head coach.
Slater Moves To Top Of All-Time Runs List
After scoring two runs in the doubleheader split with East Tennessee State Monday, senior center fielder Shay Slater moved into a tie atop Upstate's all-time runs scored list with 182. She now shares the record with former All-American Krista Altom. Slater recently passed Altom for the all-time lead in game starts.
Brasil Breaks Home Homerless Streak
Entering the second game of the doubleheader against East Tennessee State Monday night, Upstate had not hit a home run at Cyrill Stadium this season. Prior to Kim Brasil's two-run homer in the fifth inning, the Spartans had gone 13 games and 94 1/3 innings without a home run at the stadium.
Childers Earns Upstate's First A-Sun Weekly Honor
Standout freshman pitcher Morgan Childers didn't take long to make a name for herself at Upstate, striking out a school record 18 batters in the season opener against Tusculum on Feb. 13. She can add another milestone to her list of accomplishments after she was named the Atlantic Sun Conference's Pitcher of the Week. She becomes the first Upstate softball player to earn a weekly conference award from the A-Sun in this, the first year of membership in NCAA Division I and the A-Sun. She earned the award after posting a 3-1 record with a 0.76 ERA, 36 strikeouts and two shutouts the week of Mar. 10-16.
Spartans In The A-Sun
In its first season as a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference, Upstate is turning in some strong numbers and ranks among the league leaders in several categories. The Spartans currently rank third in the league in hitting with a .287 batting average and 4th in pitching with a 2.04 ERA. Upstate ranks sixth in the conference with a .957 fielding percentage.
Individually, Heidi Gibbs ranks seventh in the conference with a .386 batting average. Shay Slater ranks seventh with 15 stolen bases. In the circle, Morgan Childers ranks second in the league with a .177 opponent's batting average and ranks fourth with a 1.49 ERA, 13 wins, 144 strikeouts and five shutouts, eighth with 13 complete games, ninth with 113 innings pitched and 10th 21 appearances.
Pitcher Queen Of The Sacrifice
Senior catcher/first baseman Tiffany Pitcher has accomplished a lot in her four years at Upstate. She currently ranks second all-time school record with a .990 fielding percentage. With a sacrifice on March 16, she surpassed Erin Driggers for first on the all-time sacrifice bunts list at Upstate. She now has 31 in her four-year career.
Slater Starts Above All Others
With two starts against East Tennessee State, senior center fielder Shay Slater climbed to the top of Upstate's all-time games started list with 206 in her four years. She passed former All-American Krista Altom on the all-time list.
Slater Close To Three Other Career Records
Standout senior center fielder Shay Slater is in the final year of a standout career at Upstate. She ranks among the all-time leaders in 15 categories and is nearing the top spot in three categories. She is closing in on the top spot for games played, triples and stolen bases. She has played in 207 games and needs to play in seven more to reach the top spot (214). She has legged out 16 triples, three shy of the all-time mark of 19. Finally, she has swiped 121 bases in her career and needs just six more to move to the top of the list (127).
Slater already owns the single-season school record with 89 hits (2007), 70 runs (2007) and 44 stolen bases (2006). The 70 runs scored last year also established a league record in the Peach Belt Conference.
Childers Mowing Them Down
Sensational freshman pitcher Morgan Childers has certainly started her collegiate career with strong performances in the circle. While she ranks second in the A-Sun with a .177 opponent's batting average, perhaps the most dominant part of her game is the strikeout. She has rung up 144 batters on the season, having reached double figure strikeouts totals in six games this year. She struck out a single-game school record 18 in the season opener against Tusculum, tallied 10 against Charleston Southern, 12 against Lafayette, 13 against Coastal Carolina, 11 against Belmont, and a strong 15 against Kennesaw State last Friday.
Morgan Childers - Record Breaker
Freshman pitcher Morgan Childers had a tremendous start to her collegiate career when she stepped into the circle on Feb. 13 against Tusculum. The righty struck out 18 batters and tossed a no-hitter in her collegiate debut. The 18 strikeouts broke a school record that stood for nearly 16 years. Debra Rozier had struck out 15 batters in a 2-0 shutout of Austin Peay on March 8, 1992.
Quevedo Basking In The A-Sun
Entering A-Sun play against Belmont, freshman first baseman Lauren Quevedo was hitting .161 on the year. Since the start of A-Sun play, she has raised her season average to .292. She leads the Spartans in hitting during A-Sun play, entering the Campbell doubleheader with a .529 batting average during conference games. She has hit safely in six straight games, all A-Sun tilts, including a five-hit performance in the split with Belmont on March 16.
Freshmen Solid In A-Sun Play
Upstate has several first-year players making an impact in the school's first season as a member of the A-Sun. Lauren Quevedo is hitting .529 during A-Sun games and has a six-game hitting streak in league games. Kim Brasil ranks second on the team in hitting during league play with a .400 batting average. Courtney Feldon ranks fifth on the team in hitting with a .357 batting average in conference games. Pitcher Morgan Childers has collected all three A-Sun wins in the circle and has struck out 40 batters in 27.1 innings pitched.
Run and Gun Offense
No, we're not talking basketball, we are talking about Upstate's affinity for running on the base paths. The Spartans led the Peach Belt Conference in stolen bases last season, swiping 176 bases in 197 attempts. Upstate has not slowed down this season, stealing 55 bases in 25 games this season. The Spartans have only been caught stealing 11 times this year. Shay Slater leads the way for the Spartans with 15 stolen bases in 15 attempts.
Spartans In Tournament Play
Upstate has played in two tournaments this spring, going 5-2 in tourney play. The Spartans went 2-2 at the First Pitch Classic hosted by Charlotte Feb. 23-24. Upstate claimed an 8-2 win over Stony Brook in the tournament opener. The Spartans fell twice to Kent State, losing 8-3 on Feb. 23 and 5-0 on Feb. 24. Upstate then went 11 innings, with Morgan Childers pitching all 11 innings, to take a 4-3 victory over Charlotte. Upstate went 3-0 at the Tar Heel Invitational Mar. 8-9, finishing with wins over Lafayette (6-0), James Madison (7-5) and Princeton (6-2).
Deja Vu?
In 2005, freshmen Tiffany Pitcher and Shay Slater helped lead the Spartans to a then-school record 46 wins and an appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament South Atlantic Regional championship game. Now seniors, the two players get to watch as three of the freshmen players on the 2008 squad have emerged as key players on the team. Morgan Childers is the ace of the staff and leads the team with a 1.17 ERA, 12 wins, 119 strikeouts and a .155 opponent's batting average. Kim Brasil ranks fourth on the team with a .324 batting average and tops the Spartans with 20 runs. Courtney Feldon has taken over the starting spot at shortstop and ranks in a tie for second on the team with a .352 batting average.
Bayer, Berrong In The Hall
Former USC Upstate standout softball players Beth Bayer and Stacey Berrong are the only two members of the softball program to be inducted into the Upstate Athletics Hall of Fame. Berrong was the program's first inductee and was elected to the Hall in 2005. She played for Upstate from 1996-99. She currently ranks among the program's all-time greats in 15 career statistical categories, including topping the list with 46 home runs, 215 RBIs, 425 total bases and 87 walks. Bayer was the program's second and last inductee into the Hall, being elected in 2006. She was a member of the program for just two seasons, but put up impressive numbers. She currently ranks among the all-time career leaders in nine statistical categories. She tops the all-time list with a .799 slugging percentage, ranks second with 28 home runs and third with 79 stolen bases.
Head coach Chris Hawkins was also inducted into the Upstate Athletics Hall of Fame, entering the shrine in 2003. However, with over 460 wins in his career, he was not enshrined because of his accomplishments as a softball coach. Instead, he was elected to the Hall for his exploits as a member of the baseball program from 1986-87. Hawkins was a pitcher for the team after the program was reestablished and moved from a club sport to varsity level. Hawkins became the first Upstate baseball player to be elected the Athletics Hall of Fame at Upstate.
