VIDEO: Vickee Kazee-Hollifield Interview
JEFFERSON CITY. Tenn. – Three days after playing the team with the best overall batting average in the South Atlantic Conference, Carson-Newman (19-9, 1-3 SAC) matches wits with the highest scoring team the SAC has to offer in No. 21 Queens (26-4, 3-1 SAC).
The Eagles and Royals play two Sunday at 1 p.m. at the Vickee Kazee-Hollifield Softball Complex.
Carson-Newman will be looking to put a halt to a three-game losing streak. In the program's 33-year history, the program has just the five, four-game losing streaks. Carson-Newman is trying to avoid matching the school record for consecutive losses - a five game streak in 2012 with losses to Wingate, Augusta (twice) and Lenoir-Rhyne (twice).
The Eagles lost the back half of a doubleheader to Newberry before getting swept in the mid-week by Anderson.
"We talk about it all the time, you've got three categories, hitting, defense and pitching," Kazee-Hollifield said. "We can't win winning one category. We've been inconsistent. We're starting seven kids who won championships last year. I know it's frustrating for them. We can't be nonchalant about, we have to go out and attack."
Carson-Newman has allowed double-digit runs in three straight games. Something that has never happened in the history of the program. From 2002-2007, only one team scored double-digit runs on the Eagles (Newberry). There have only been 35 games in the 1,559 games C-N has played where a team has scored at least 10 runs on Carson-Newman.
Those numbers will have to drop in a hurry against the South Atlantic Conference's best scoring offense.
"Stacy's recruited well and has tons of speed on her team," head softball coach Vickee Kazee-Hollifield said. "You want to call them a scrappy team, however you want to put it, they are very aggressive. They are going to flat get after it and when they get on base, they're going to move."
Queens has the highest scoring team in the South Atlantic Conference. The Royals average 7.71 runs per game, the tenth best tally in the nation.
Queens is aggressive on the base paths, stealing 2.54 bags per game, a figure that leads the SAC and is 11th in the nation. Sydney Ditton and Sabrina Martinez are tied for second in the SAC with 14 swipes each.
While the Royals have the potential to utilize small-ball tactics, the Royals also average nearly two doubles per game, tops in the South Atlantic Conference and the 13th best tally in the country.
First pitch between the Eagles and No. 21 Royals is set for 1 p.m. Sunday. Coverage will be available on the Eagle Sports Network online at cneagles.com/live.
