CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Queens University of Charlotte softball team looks to face the Presbyterian Blue Hose and the Norfolk State Spartans in non-conference action at the Stick on Wednesday, Feb. 21 starting at 1:00 PM and Saturday, Feb. 24 starting at 12:00 PM.
The Queens vs. Presbyterian matchups will be streamed on ESPN Plus, while the games against Norfolk State will be through an audio-only broadcast on the Queens Sports Network.
GAME NOTES & FAST FACTS
QUEENS ROYALS
- The Royals finished up their home opener in tremendous fashion on Monday against Canisius as the Royals finished off the 8-0 victory from a grand slam from junior Kaylee DeJesus.
- The 8-0 victory marks the third shutout for the Royals in the 2024 season alone, and all three have been with Autumn Courtney in the circle.
- Courtney finished her day in the circle against the Griffins swiping 12 strikeouts and allowing only three hits in six innings of work. The 12 strikeouts marks a season-high for the ASUN Preseason Pitcher of the Year.
- The Royals needed to get back in the win column after a tough stretch in the UNC Charlotte Tournament. In the tournament opener, The Royals held the undefeated Boston University Terriers to only one run and led 6-1 before a three-run bottom of the sixth and a game-winning three-run seventh inning gave the Terriers the triumph.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
PRESBYTERIAN BLUE HOSE
- After a program record hot start of 12-0 in 2023, Presbyterian is just 4-5 to begin this season. They went 2-3 during the Pinnacle PC Invitational this past weekend, after a 2-2 performance in the season-opening Pinnacle Blue Hose Invitational the week prior.
- Freshman Kasey Wolfe was named the first Freshman of the Week by the Big South on February 13. Wolfe opened her college career batting .583 (7-15) in the Blue Hose Invitational and had a 0.78 ERA in the circle with a 1-0 record. She is now batting .481 with 13 hits and 8 RBI and also has tallied a 2-0 record along with a 0.89 ERA in 15.2 innings of work on the year.
- Head Coach David Williams is in his 6th season as the head coach of the Blue Hose. Last year, he became the winningest Division 1 era coach at Presbyterian, and he currently has 107 wins in Clinton. In his 19 career seasons as a head coach, including his combined 13 years at Mars Hill and Morehead State, he has 443 career wins.
NORFOLK STATE SPARTANS
- The Spartans come to the Queen City still looking for their first win of 2024. They began their season in Clinton, SC at the Pinnacle Blue Hose Invitational and got swept by Presbyterian and Tennessee Tech. Then, last week they hosted Friday and Saturday doubleheaders to open up home play this year and were swept both days by Wagner and Bryant, respectively. Norfolk State went 24-23 in 2023.
-Junior Rylie Gilbreath is leading the team in batting average (.348) and is averaging a hit a game to begin the season for Norfolk State. She is also slugging .522, by far the best on the team for players with at least ten at-bats.
-Norfolk State will be coming to The Stick looking for their first home run of the season. In 2023, the Spartans knocked 23 dingers as a team, which was second-best in the MEAC, but only three of those 23 (13 percent) returned to the team this season. Gilbreath, Lauren Sheehan, and Loren Hudson. who all hit just one homer each a year ago.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow the Royals softball team on Instagram and Twitter/X to stay up to date on all the latest news surrounding the team. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics to stay updated on all the Royals sports teams in action by searching @QueensAthletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
