Softball | 4/30/2019 1:21:00 PM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – For the fifth consecutive season, the St. John Fisher College softball team will be playing for an Empire 8 Championship as the second-seeded Cardinals are set to take on third-seeded Alfred University at 1 p.m. on Friday in the opening round of the four-team, double-elimination tournament in Hoboken, N.J. at Weehawken Waterfront Park.  Top-seeded Stevens will host fourth-seeded Nazareth in the day's other game with the winners of each game moving on to face off on Saturday.

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LEARNING TO SHARE: We're taught from a young age that sharing is caring…well…sometimes sharing isn't as fun as having the whole thing to yourself.  Following Sunday's split with Stevens, the Cardinals and Ducks shared a piece of the Empire 8 Regular Season Championship with a 12-2 conference record.  Despite the shared title, the Ducks earned the right to host this weekend's championship by virtue of a stronger strength of schedule.  Fisher, which hosted the four-team pod last season, will play as the second overall seed for the third time in the last four years.

WE'VE BEEN HERE BEFORE: 17 times actually.  The Cardinals have been a staple in the postseason since the Empire 8 Championship was first played in 2002.  Overall, Fisher has missed the tournament just once and has laid claim to six conference crowns in its history including the last two.  In 2017, Fisher came out on top as the second seed and parlayed that into its second straight trip to the World Series.

RBI MACHINE: Over the last four seasons, we've had the pleasure of watching Sarah Kubik do what Sarah Kubik does – drive in runs.  Over 178 career games, the Orchard Park native has accounted for 137 career RBI.  To put that into perspective, no other player to ever wear a Fisher uniform, or any player to have ever competed in the Empire 8, has collected more RBI than she has, and she's not done yet. 

MILESTONE WATCH:  Speaking of Kubik – she's quickly approaching another coveted milestone as she needs just two more home runs to eclipse Leanne Merchant's program and Empire 8 record of 35 homers.  This season, Kubik has a career-high 11 dingers.  She's not the only one looking to re-write history, however, as Ashley Prince sits just three doubles shy of breaking the team mark in that category.  Prince also needs just eight hits for 200 in her career.  Senior Julia Sortisio is also nearing a significant accomplishment as, like Prince, she will look to become just the fifth player in team history to surpass 200 hits.  To date, Sortisio needs just four more hits for an even 200 while she also needs just two stolen bases to stand atop that list at 39.

BANGERS AND MASH: Although a delicious meal to some, we're talking about the touted Fisher offense this season.  Through the completion of the regular season, no other Empire 8 team could even hold a candle to head coach Bari Mance's team's production.  With 37 games under their belt, the Cardinals will enter this weekend's championship leading the Empire 8 in batting average (.318), hits (323), doubles (65), home runs (32), RBI (183), total bases (492), slugging percentage (.484), runs scored (199) and clever dugout chants (11). Time will tell if the bats stay hot at the right time.     

RUNNING CIRCLES AROUND EM: Get it?  No?  I guess it was just a cheesy way of saying that Emily Trotman has had a huge season in the circle for the Cardinals.  Entering this weekend's Championship, the sophomore owns a 19-8 overall record.  Her 19 wins is the eighth most in program history in a single season and currently leads the Empire 8 by four victories.  Trotman has a 2.39 earned run average over 167.0 innings to go along with 79 strikeouts.

SCOUTING STEVENS: The Ducks earned a share of the Regular Season Championship on Sunday and the right to host this weekend's tournament by virtue of a 12-2 overall mark in conference play.  Stevens will host after winning a tiebreaker situation in the Empire 8 by-laws as its strength of schedule was slightly higher than Fisher's.  Nonetheless, Stevens boasts a strong team this year that features two of the Region's top pitchers in Marissa Cappello and Christine LaRochelle.  Cappello is 12-4 in the circle with a 2.07 earned run average.  Over 21 appearances, Cappello owns 120 strikeouts over 111.2 innings.  Last weekend, Fisher was able to get to her as she allowed four runs on nine hits.  LaRochelle has put together another nice season as she enters the weekend with a 6-10 record and a sub-three ERA. 

Offensively, the Ducks rank third in the Empire 8 with a .303 batting average while their .970 fielding percentage led the conference during the regular season.  Samantha Schattin leads the team with a .393 average and 48 hits while Melissa Alfonso is hitting .374 on the season with 34 hits.  Meg Halloran owns 42 hits this season while Katie Tirabassi leads the roster with four home runs and 27 RBI.

SCOUTING ALFRED: Alfred's biggest strength lies in the right arm of Jessica Wilcox (15-8).  Over 24 starts this season, Wilcox led the Empire 8 during the regular season with a 2.03 earned run average and 128 strikeouts.  Looking ahead to Friday's matchup, she was able to squeak out a 1-0 win over the Cardinals back on April 13th before falling in the nightcap, 5-0. 

At the dish, Alfred ranks seventh in the Empire 8 with a .274 batting average.  Alyssa Guitron leads the team with a .330 batting average along with 35 hits while Jillian Murray owns a team-leading seven doubles and 16 runs batted in.  As a team, Alfred has accounted for six home runs and 127 RBI. 
  
SCOUTING NAZARETH: The Golden Flyers earned the fourth and final seed on Monday by virtue of a split against Utica in a winner-take-all doubleheader.  Nazareth, which posted a 14-20 overall record and a 6-8 mark against Empire 8 opponents, finished the regular season with a 1-5 record against this weekend's field.  In the circle, the Golden Flyers rely heavily on Gabriella Corasaniti (8-8, 4.26 ERA) and Kylie Smith (4-9, 6.71 ERA).

Offensively, head coach Jack Carpenter's squad ranked fourth in batting average at the close of the regular season with a .297 mark.  The Golden Flyers are capable of hitting the cover off the ball as they ranked second behind Fisher with a .399 slugging percentage while their 75 walks was tied for the second-most of any team in the conference this season.  Sarah Simmons was among the conference leaders with a .404 batting average while Marissa Tortora was second on the team with a .402 average. 

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