CCC TOURNAMENT: No. 2 Endicott Softball Postseason Preview

2016 CCC Softball Pairings Release

CCC 2016 Interactive Bracket

BEVERLY, Mass. — The No. 2 Endicott softball team will meet the winner of No. 3 Salve Regina/ No. 6 Eastern Nazarene in Game 6 of the CCC Tournament on Tuesday, May 3rd (weather permitting) at the Softball Field, beginning 20 minutes after the conclusion of the 2:30 p.m. matchup between Salve Regina and Eastern Nazarene.

The Gulls (21-14 overall) earned the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament after posting a 12-4 record in CCC play and have advanced to the CCC Tournament in every season since joining the conference in 2000.

PREVIOUS MATCHUPS

The Gulls met Salve Regina and Eastern Nazarene twice in the regular season, as the Gulls split an away doubleheader at Salve Regina (W 1-0, L 3-0) on April 16, while sweeping Eastern Nazarene (3-0, 8-0 [6 inn.]) at home on April 15th.

ALL-TIME SERIES NOTES

• The Gulls are 31-10 all-time and 22-2 at home against Salve Regina dating back to March 30, 2000.
• The Gulls are 30-1 all-time and 17-1 at home against the Lions dating back to April 19, 2001. Endicott has won 11 straight in this series.

PLAYOFF HISTORY 

• The Gulls and Seahawks have met four times in the postseason, with the most recent meeting being a 3-1 victory for Endicott in Beverly, Mass. on May 2, 2014.
• The Gulls and Lions have met once before in the postseason as Endicott came away with a 5-0 win in Newport, R.I. on May 3, 2012.

POSTSEASON HISTORY

The Gulls have captured 10 CCC titles (nine straight from 2003-11) and 13 conference championships overall, in addition one ECAC Championship (2012) dating back to 1995 under the tutelage of 22-year veteran head coach Mark Veilleux. Veilleux has led the Gulls to a 596-258-12 (.695) record in his tenure and his Gulls have made the CCC Tournament in every season since joining the CCC for the 2000 season. Endicott has appeared in 15 of the past 16 CCC title games, including a 4-1 loss to Western New England in the 2015 CCC Championship.

NEED TO KNOW

ENDICOTT (21-14, 14-4 CCC) | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS: The Gulls notched their 17th 20-win season in the program's 23-year history and are led by All-CCC First Team senior pitcher Courtney Blake (East Islip, N.Y.) who is currently second in the CCC with 11 wins under her belt (four shutouts) in 19 appearances (16 starts) this season. All-CCC Third Team junior right fielder Julia McNeill (Smithtown, N.Y.) leads the team in hits (37) and total bases (51) with a team-high nine doubles, and her team-leading 11 stolen bases ranks fifth in the conference. All-CCC First Team freshman designated player Hayley Arduini (Southington, Conn.) is batting a team-high .415 (75 AB) and has hit a team-leading six home runs, good for a tie for third in the conference. Arduini tied the Endicott softball program record earlier this year with a seven RBIs against Curry on April 19th. All-CCC First Team senior catcher Emily Hoffman (Malden, Mass.) and All-CCC First Team junior second baseman Chrissy Gikas (Danvers, Mass.) have scored a team-leading 21 runs apiece, while Hoffman paces the squad in triples (4), extra-base hits (12), walks (19), and on-base percentage (.516) and ranks second in RBIs (21) and slugging percentage (.653) and third in hits (29). Gikas is second in hits (35) and third in plate appearances (107) out of the two-spot in the lineup. All-CCC Second Team sophomore first baseman/utility Margaret Martzolf (Port Saint Lucie, Fla.) leads the team with 23 RBIs. 

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HOW TO FOLLOW THE GAME:

Live Stats/Video: http://ecgulls.com/sports/sball/2015-16/boxscores/20160502_bfjs.xml

2016 CCC SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Dates and times subject to change 

PLAY-IN PHASE

Saturday, April 30

Game 1 -  #5 Roger Williams 8, #8 Gordon 0 (5 inn.)
Game 2 - #6 Eastern Nazarene 7, #7 Nichols 4 (10 inn.)

DOUBLE-ELIMINATION PHASE

Tuesday, May 3 (weather permitting)

Game 3 - #5 Roger Williams vs. #4 University of New England (at #1 WNE), 2:30 PM
Game 4 - #6 Eastern Nazarene vs. #3 Salve Regina (at #2 Endicott), 2:30 PM
Game 5 - Game 3 Winner at #1 Western New England *
Game 6 - Game 4 Winner at #2 Endicott *

* Games 5 and 6 begin 20 minutes following the completion of Games 3 and 4, respectively.

Thursday, May 5

Game 7 - Game 3 Loser vs. Game 6 Loser (at WNE), TBD
Game 8 - Game 5 Loser vs. Game 4 Loser (at American International), TBD
Game 9 - Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner (at WNE) *
Game 10 - Game 7 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner (at American International) *

* Games 9 and 10 begin 20 minutes following the completion of Games 7 and 8, respectively

Saturday, May 7

Game 11 - Game 10 Winner vs. Game 9 Loser (at highest remaining seed), TBD
Game 12 - Game 11 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner (at Game 11 site), TBD**
Game 13 - If Necessary, TBD**

** Games 12 and 13 may not start earlier than the published start time, but may start later if the previous game runs long.