Newburgh, N.Y. – The Mount Saint Mary College Softball team begins its quest for consecutive conference crowns on Thursday when it opens play in the 2017 Skyline Conference Championship on campus in Newburgh. Live Stats for each game of the championship will be available for those who are unable to attend.
Championship Schedule: Due to forecasted inclement weather, the format of the championship has changed. The 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. games on Thursday will now be single elimination with the Knights opening play against the winner of the Farmingdale State and College of Mount Saint Vincent contest at 1:30 p.m. You can view an updated bracket here.
At A Glance: The Knights won their third straight regular season crown in 2017 after posting a 17-1 league mark. The Mount begins play in the championship winners of its last seven games and at 24-12, the most wins on record in program history.
Three players enter play on Thursday hitting at least .400 for the Knights, led by a .430 mark from senior
Shannon Sommer (Brewster, N.Y.). She paces the Knights in hits with 58 and runs with 38 and set the program's career record in both categories in 2017. She begins play on Thursday with 192 hits and 120 runs scored.
Junior
Cindy Connoly (Walden, N.Y.) is hitting .413 for the Knights with a team-high 33 RBI with freshman
Bridget Bennett (Gardiner, N.Y.) hitting .405 in 42 at-bats with 12 runs scored.
Four other Knights are hitting over .300 on the season, with
Nicolette Moustouka (Seaford, N.Y.) batting .373 in 51 at-bats and
Amanda Almodovar (Goshen, N.Y.) posting a .342 batting average with a team-high 13 stolen bases.
Kathryn Eiler (Merrick, N.Y.) is checking in at .330, while
Michelle Surdan (Acton, Mass.) is hitting.314 and is second on the team in RBI with 22. On Saturday against Farmingdale State, Surdan moved into first place all-time at the Mount in runs batted in and enters Thursday with 88.
Connoly paces the pitching staff with 17 complete games and a 119.0 innings pitched. She holds a 10-7 record with a 1.88 earned run average and leads the Skyline Conference with 146 strikeouts against just 13 walks. Bennett leads the team with 11 wins and holds a 2.17 earned run average, while
Colleen Dunn (Bellmore, N.Y.) is 3-1 with a 2.03 earned run average.
Season Recap: The Knights swept four participants in the championship, taking two from Mount Saint Vincent, Sage, Farmingdale State and St. Joseph's-L.I. The Mount's lone blemish in conference came in a 2-1 loss at Purchase in game one on April 8. The Knights rallied for a 13-1 win over the Panthers in game two.
Championship History: The Knights will host the championship for the third straight season in 2017 and claimed the conference crown with three straight wins in 2016. Since the start of the 2008 year, the Knights have qualified for the championship eight times and hold an 8-11 overall record.
What's At Stake: The conference champion will earn the league's bid to the NCAA Division III Championship, with the Knights searching for their second straight trip to the national tournament and the third trip in program history.
