VIDEO: Michael Graves Interview
VIDEO: Meet the 2022 Carson-Newman Softball Team
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman cracks open its 2022 slate with a trip to Milledgeville, Ga., to compete in the Georgia College Invitational Saturday and Sunday at the Peeler Complex.
The Eagles take on Florida Tech to open the season Saturday at 3 p.m. before playing the host Bobcats at 5 p.m. Then, Sunday, Carson-Newman wraps up its four-game weekend with an 11 a.m. first pitch against the Panthers before finishing the weekend out with Emmanuel at 3 p.m.
"It's a challenging and fun weekend," Carson-Newman head softball coach Michael Graves said. "We're immediately strengthening our schedule from the get go with a scrappy Florida Tech team. Jamie at Georgia College is so good at what she does. Emmanuel made a regional. It really should be a fun weekend."
Carson-Newman is playing Emmanuel and Florida Tech for the first time in program history. The Eagles are matching wits with Georgia College for the first time since the 2018 Southeast Regional when it beat the Bobcats 2-1. The Eagles land Bobcats are tied 16-16 in the all-time series heading into the 33rd all-time meeting between the programs in a series that dates back to 1994.
"She's (Georgia College Head Coach Jamie Grodecki) always has had speed and it reminds me a bit of Young Harris," Graves said. "Then she always has really good pitching."
Carson-Newman will be looking to restore its season-opening winning ways. King put an end to a number of Carson-Newman streaks when the Tornado handed Carson-Newman an 8-2 defeat to start 2021 on Feb. 17. It marked the Eagles first ever home opening loss and C-N's third ever season opening loss.
It snapped a string of nine straight season-opening wins dating back to a 2-0 defeat to Bellarmine in 2011. Additionally, King became the first team to hand Michael Graves a non-conference loss at home in his tenure as Carson-Newman softball's head coach. It snapped a streak of 16 straight non-conference home wins for Carson-Newman.
Carson-Newman is 31-3 all-time in season openers. This marks the first time C-N has opened away from the banks of Mossy Creek since 2020 when it started the year with a 15-0 run-rule win at Converse.
"We only return three starters, but this team is as veteran as it gets," Graves said. "We've got kids that have been to the college world series and won championships. They are excited about playing together and I'm excited to see what they can accomplish."
Emmanuel was one of eight schools to accrue a first-place vote in the Conference Carolinas preseason poll in a muddled ranking where 31 points separated the first and eighth-place teams. The Lions were picked eighth in the preseason rankings.
The Lions return reigning Conference Carolinas tournament MVP Mackensie Hogan. Kya Santiago earned all-league honors.
Georgia College, a perennial Peach Belt power will look to return to winning form after an 11-win season last year. The Bobcats lost their first eight games to start the year before collecting their first win in 2021 in March, 8-2 at Barton.
The Bobcats are anchored by All-PBC Shortstop Katelyn Hobbs. In 2021, Hobbs had a .320 batting average, including five homers to lead the squad. She also led the offense with 19 total RBIs in the previous season.
The Bobcats were also listed No. 7 in the PBC Preseason Coaches' poll, just one point behind Augusta University.
Meanwhile, Florida Tech went 13-15 last year. The Panthers were picked smack dab in the middle of the Sunshine State Conference preseason poll in sixth. The Panthers are three years removed from a SSC regular season title in 2019.
Follow @CN_Eagles on Twitter for live updates from all of this weekend's games. Georgia College will provide live stats and video of outings.
