Akron And Buffalo Conclude Season Series On Wednesday

Wednesday, April 11

Akron, Ohio

2 PM

University of Akron

University at Buffalo

Akron And Buffalo Conclude Season Series On Wednesday

April 10 | Softball

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Buffalo at Akron Game Notes: 4/11/18

Buffalo at Akron
April 11
Akron, Ohio | Lee R. Jackson Field

April 11 vs. Buffalo | 2 p.m.

Game Information
Live Stats: GoZips.com
Watch: Zips Digital Network

What's Ahead
The three-game series between Akron and Buffalo continues this week as the Zips and Bulls are scheduled to conclude the season series on Wednesday, April 11, at 2 p.m. at Lee R. Jackson field on the campus of the University of Akron. The series began on April 3, with a doubleheader in Buffalo, N.Y. with the Bulls taking both contests.

Scouting The Bulls
With 15 games left in the 2018 softball season for Buffalo, the Bulls have tallied a 13-20 record (.394) along with a 5-6 record at the halfway point of the conference season. Prior to league play, Buffalo went 8-14 after competing in five early-season tournaments. In the MAC season opener, the Bulls swept Eastern Michigan to start off 3-0 but was then swept by Northern Illinois. Following the sweep, Buffalo went on to beat Akron 16-1 and 7-4 in their first meeting and was again swept, this time by Central Michigan. The Bulls currently sit in third place in the MAC East and eight overall in the conference.

The Buffalo offense has posted a .263 team batting average through 33 contests including 217 hits, 39 doubles, 12 triples (second most in the MAC), 17 home runs and 143 runs scored in 2018. Jessica Goldyn leads the way for the Bulls inside the batter's box hitting .400 (36-for-90), including four doubles and two triples. Her .400 average is seventh best in the MAC heading into Tuesday's match-up. Jenelle Martinez is the top run producer for the Buffalo offense with a team-high 28 RBI, five home runs, a .596 slugging percentage and a .372 batting average. Anna Aguon rounds out the trio of Bulls who average over. 300 with a .340 average (32-for-94) along with being tied with a team-best .596 slugging percentage. Aguon has tallied the second most RBI (24) and a team-high 13 extra-base hits.

Buffalo's one-two combo of Ally Power and Lace Smith inside the circle have a combined record of 13-18 as the work horses for the Bulls. Power (10-11) owns a team-low 4.25 ERA in 23 games and 20 starts while tossing 12 complete games. In 110.1 innings of action, Power's has surrendered 124 hits, 79 runs (67 earned), struck out 87 and walked 41. The opposition is hitting just .282 when Power's toes the rubber. The Bulls number two pitcher, Smith, has logged 70.0 innings in 12 starts and 19 appearances and owns a 3-7 record. Smith has hurled four complete games, given up 111 hits, 73 runs (59 earned), 40 strikeouts, and 16 walks.

Series History
Since the first meeting between the two programs in 2000, Akron has seen nothing but success against Buffalo on the softball diamond. The Zips own an all-time series record of 33-9 against the Bulls and an 18-4 record at Lee R. Jackson Field. The Zips are 11-4 in the last 15 encounters with Buffalo.

2018 Zip Breakdown
Under the guidance of 12th-year head coach, Julie Jones, the Zips are amidst the 42nd season of competition in 2018 after ending the 2017 season in the Mid-American Conference tournament for the fourth straight year and a 27-30 overall record. In 2018, Akron returns seven letterwinners from a season ago and welcomes seven newcomers to the squad, including four transfers and three true freshmen.

Through 33 games, redshirt freshman Sydney Jascoe (Commerce, Mich.), redshirt junior Kimberly Rodriguez (Las Vegas, Nevada), junior Maddy Clowdus (Eastvale, Calif.), and senior Cassie Gillespie (Sylvania, Ohio) pace the Akron offense posting a combined .302 average (96-of-310) and 27 RBI. Jascoe is the Zips leader in the hits category going 32-for-96 for a team-high .333 average in 30 starts, while also posting the teams third-most RBI (7). In 33 starts at first base, Gillespie is hitting a career-best .319 with 23 hits in 72 at-bats which includes a seven-game hist streak and three multi-hit performances. Gillespie also leads the squad defensively with a .988 fielding percentage, 166 putouts, and five assists. Rodriguez is averaging .303 from the dish and owns a team-high.454 on-base percentage while the speedster has scored a team-high 13 runs, totaled 42 bases, hit four home runs, and is 13-for-16 in stolen base attempts. Along with her .273 batting average, Clowdus has garnered a .569 slugging percentage and four home runs to help pace the Zips offense.

Inside the circle, freshmen Mikayla Newland (Chillicothe, Ohio), Kayla Kmett (San Clemente, Calif.), senior Kooper Vertz (Dilsboro, Ind.), and freshman Shaye DeLeonardis have tossed a combined 195.0 innings, own a 7.32 earned run average and have recorded 102 strikeouts. Kmett owns a 1-13 record for Akron on the rubber and has compiled a staff-low 6.13 ERA, two complete games, given up 111 hits, 94 runs (68 earned) and struck out 37 batters. Vertz, the lone senior on the staff stands 0-9 in 22 games and 10 starts. In 57.1 innings of work, Vertz has tallied an 8.67 ERA on 98 hits, 82 runs (71 earned) and struck out 35. Since joining the team, DeLeonardis has pitched 11.0 innings, given up 28 hits, and 25 runs.

Jones named Gillespie and Lakins team captains for the 2018 season.

Zips Tidbits

Cassie Gillespie is currently on a team-high seven-game hit streak which has included three multi-hit contests. Maddy Clowdus (2/24-3/11) and Caitlin Gambone (2/17-2/24) recorded six-game hit streaks earlier this season.
Rodriguez reached base safely in a team-high nine straight games and Jascoe reached safely in eight straight, a season-high for the Zips shortstop.
Sydney Jascoe leads the Zips with eight multi-hit performances while along with Jascoe, Gambone, Holzman, and Rodriguez have all posted a three-hit contest.
Jessie Holzman tallied a season-high three RBI in a contest and Cassie Gillespie, Laura Lakins, Kayla Wulf, Rodriguez has each garnered a two-RBI performance.
Sydney Jascoe is hitting a team-high .343 with the bases empty and .308 with runners on the base path, while Cassie Gillespie is hitting .471 with runners in scoring position.
With two outs, Caitlin Gambone has recorded a .414 average (12-for-29).
Shaye DeLeonardis, Kooper Vertz, and Kayla Kmett are fly ball pitchers forcing 10.82, 8.79 and 9.46 fly ball outs per contests, while Mikayla Newland utilizes the ground ball out recording 9.4 per ballgame.
Kimberly Rodriguez hit a home run in back-to-back days against Toledo (3/24-25) for her second and third of the season.
Shaye DeLeonardis made her Akron debut against Toledo (3/24).
Kayla Kmett set a new career-high in strikeouts per game (6) against Toledo (3/24).
Rodriguez went a perfect 3-for-3 against Toledo (3/25) with a home run. The first three-hit game of her career.
In the three-game series against the Rockets, Rodriguez played second base, center field, right field, and as the designated player and recorded 11 putouts and three assists (.933 fld%).
Kooper Vertz tallied a career-best 6 K's against Ball State (3/30).
Against Ball State on 3/30, Caitlin Gambone went 3-for-3 and Sydney Jascoe went 3-for-4 combining to register 2/3 of Akron's total hits (9) in the contest.
Akron earned its first MAC win against Western Michigan on April 8 by a score of 5-4.
Kooper Vertz strikes out a team-best 4.3 batters per game.
Kayla Kmett earned her first collegiate win in an Akron uniform against Western Michigan (4/8).

Where They Rank

Sydney Jascoe's .333 batting average ranks 32nd in the league and Cassie Gillespie's .319 ranks 40th.
Jascoe is tied for seventh-most doubles in the conference with nine.
Rodriguez is tied for ninth in league play for hit by pitches (4) and ninth in walks (16).
Caitlin Gambone is sixth in the league in SAC bunts (7), while Laura Lakins and Gillespie are tied for seventh (6).
Defensively, Cassie Gillespie ranks eighth in the league in chances (173), sixth in putouts (166), while Caitlin Gambone ranks T-12th in assists (56).
Rodriguez ranks t-2nd in the conference in stolen bases with 13 while Gillespie fifth in the MAC with nine.
Kayla Kmett ranks tied for 12th in the MAC in strikeouts looking (15) and innings pitched (77.2).

Up Next
The Zips return to the road after one game back at Lee R. Jackson Field when Akron heads to southern Ohio for a three-game series with Ohio on April 13-14. The Zips and Bobcats will square off in one game on Friday (April 16) before playing a doubleheader on Saturday (April 17).