BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian College softball team is set for its second appearance in the NCAA Division III Super Regionals as the Greyhounds head to Rowan (N.J.) University for the first game of the best-of-three series on Friday, May 18 at 1:00 p.m.
The Hounds advanced to the Super Regional after winning four straight elimination games including two on Monday versus Salisbury (Md.) University to capture the NCAA Division III Ewing, New Jersey Regional hosted by The College of New Jersey. Rowan advanced by doing the same in the Glassboro, New Jersey Regional. Tickets are $10 for adults, $7 for seniors and $5 for students and children over the age of 12.
Moravian, led by 25-year head coach John Byrne who has a career slate of 822-240, have posted a 36-6 overall record this spring, the 25th straight year that Moravian has won at least 23 games, and an 11-1 mark in Landmark Conference action to earn the top seed in the Landmark Conference Tournament where the Greyhounds won their eighth Landmark Conference title and 16th overall conference championship two weeks ago. The Blue & Grey are also ranked No. 8 in the nation in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III Top 25 poll.
The Greyhounds, who have won over 30 games 19 times under Byrne, are in the NCAA Division III Tournament for the 17th season, and the program is 45-35 all-time in NCAA Tournament play. Moravian posted NCAA regional championships and berths in the 2007 and 2010 NCAA Division III World Series and a national runner-up finish at the 2004 Division III World Series. The Hounds also won a regional championship in 2015 to advance to the first Super Regional in program history. The Greyhounds will be facing Rowan for the fourth time in the NCAA Tournament with an 0-3 mark that includes a 1-0 loss in 2001, a 4-2, nine-inning loss in 2002 and a 3-1 loss in 2012.
Moravian is hitting .330 entering the Super Regional with 369 hits including 103 extra-base hits with 66 doubles and 29 home runs for a .482 slugging percentage. Moravian has out-scored its opponents, 273-90, for an average of 6.50 runs per game, and the Greyhounds have a .959 fielding percentage. Moravian has posted 14 shutouts in 36 wins for a 1.58 ERA, and the Hounds' pitchers have recorded 242 strikeouts and just 54 walks this spring.
In the circle, senior pitcher Josie Novak, who was selected as the Ewing, New Jersey Regional Most Outstanding Player, the 2018 Landmark Conference Pitcher of the Year and All-Conference First Team honoree, has a 20-3 record with a 1.21 ERA, eight shutouts and 173 strikeouts in 156 innings while senior pitcher Amanda Carisone, a Second Team Landmark All-Conference Selection, is 16-3 with a 1.87 ERA, four shutouts and 65 strikeouts in 112.1 innings. Sophomore pitcher Paige Lesher has tossed four innings while freshman pitcher Meghan Bauer has two innings.
Senior center fielder Kat Spilman, the 2018 Landmark Conference Co-Player of the Year and All-Conference First Team player as well as a member of the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team, leads the Greyhounds with a .452 average, 57 hits, 39 runs, nine doubles, four triples, eight homers, 21 walks and 37 RBIs while freshman second baseman Shannon Brogan, who earned a spot on the All-Conference Second Team, has added a .377 average to go with 43 hits, 42 runs, seven doubles, two homers and 28 RBIs in her debut season. Freshman right fielder Brooke Wehr, a Landmark All-Conference First Team honoree and member of the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team, has a .366 average, 53 hits, 48 runs, nine doubles, 12 home runs – five of which have led off the first inning of games and nine are solo – and 38 RBIs while senior catcher Janae Matos, who was named to the Regional All-Tournament Team, has contributed a .347 average, 43 hits, 19 runs, 11 doubles, a triple, a homer, 21 walks and 31 RBIs.
Junior third baseman Madison Shaneberger, who made the Landmark All-Conference First Team, has a .342 average, 41 hits, 21 runs, 10 doubles, two homers and 28 RBIs while senior first baseman Jean Markovic, a Landmark All-Conference Second Team player, has added 35 hits, 15 runs, five doubles, two triples and 28 RBIs. Freshman shortstop Maddisen Bieber has 30 hits, 21 runs, three doubles, a homer and 14 RBIs while sophomore left fielder Lauren Goetz, who was named to the Landmark All-Conference First Team as a utility player, has added 21 hits, 13 runs, five doubles, two homers and 17 RBIs. Junior designated player Kaela Kane has 22 hits, 15 runs, three doubles and 12 RBIs while junior designated player Julia DeMarco has 12 hits, 10 runs, two doubles, a triple, a homer and 10 RBIs.
Sophomore outfielder Emily Stanilious has nine hits, 16 runs, a double and an RBI while senior outfielder Jackie Marshall has scored 14 runs. Junior outfielder Ashley Gindle has contributed eight runs, a double and two RBIs while freshman infielder Maura Kane has two hits. Sophomore outfielder Samantha O'Keefe has two runs while senior infielder Megan Taylor has driven in one run.
