Rock Hill, S.C.— Winthrop softball is set to host the Winthrop Eagle Invitational Feb. 18-20. The Eagles will open up on Friday, Feb. 18 against Youngstown State and Albany.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Tournament Info: Winthrop Eagle Invitational | Rock Hill, S.C. | Feb. 18-20, 2022 |
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Full Tournament Schedule | Participating Teams: Albany, Ball State, Robert Morris, Towson, Western Carolina, Winthrop, Youngstown State
Friday, Feb. 18 (Terry Field)
Winthrop vs. Youngstown State, 3 p.m. |
Live Stats
Winthrop vs. Albany, 5:30 p.m. |
Live Stats
Saturday, Feb. 19 (Terry Field)
Winthrop vs. Robert Morris, 3 p.m.|
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Winthrop vs. Western Carolina, 5:30 p.m.|
Live Stats
Sunday, Feb. 20 (Terry Field)
Winthrop vs. Ball State, 12:30 p.m. |
Live Stats
GLANCE AT THE EAGLES
- Eagles opened up the 2022 season at the River City Leadoff in Jacksonville, Fla.
- Opened the season falling 3-2 to North Carolina State as the Wolfpack managed two runs in the sixth
- Dropped a couple of close games to Western Carolina and Florida A&M before falling at North Florida in the final two contests of the weekend
- Freshman Courtney Cygan leads the team with a .250 average as she also managed to go 3-for-4 in stolen bases
- Junior Macy McCall went 5-for-5 in stolen bases on the opening weekend and also had a team-high four runs
- Eagles are coming off a 26-24 campaign in which the team won six out of the final eight games of 2021
- In 2021 the Eagles as a team finished with the 4th most homeruns (49) and stolen bases (88) in a single-season in program history
- The team set the program single-season mark for hit-by-pitch and the 5th best on-base percentage
- Return 12 players from last year's team while welcoming nine newcomers
- Among the departed are Big South All-Conference performers Ansley Gilreath, Ashley Westbrooks and Madyson Watson
- Westbrooks and Gilreath combined for 67 doubles, 59 homeruns, 251 RBI and 135 walks in their careers
- Watson was the ace in the pitching circle and also did damage at the plate with 17 runs, seven homeruns, and an on-base percentage of .354
- Also gone is catcher Taylor Charlton, who batted .283 with 12 homeruns and 31 RBI
- One of the top returning players is junior Macy McCall, who set the program record for stolen bases in a season with 48
- Her 48 stolen bases were also ranked 2nd in the nation (NCAA D1)
- McCall led the Big South Conference in runs with 43 and her .362 average was second-best in the league
- Other returning starters include Kaitlyn Tucker, Lauren King, and Bailey Warren
- Tucker was 1-of-3 players on the team in 2021 to appear in all 50 games (49 starts) as she made 48 starts at short
- King made 27 starts at second, 16 at third and was 1-of-5 players with 21 or more RBI (21)
- Warren spread out her 44 starts between catcher, left field, right field and the designated player
- Tucker and Warren were both named to the Big South All-Freshman Team
- Warren was second behind McCall in stolen bases with 14 (14-for-15)
- The Eagles were voted 4th in the Big South Conference Preseason Poll
HEAD COACH WINDY THEES
- Head coach Windy Thees is in her third season at Winthrop and in her 17th season as head coach of a collegiate softball program
- Spent five seasons at Georgia State & College compiling a 163-92 record followed by six years at Memphis (172-151) and three seasons at Ole Miss (69-94)
- In her 17 seasons she's compiled an overall record of 471-400 and a record of 309-310 at the helm of a D1 program
- In her first season with the Eagles the team earned 30 wins, which are the second-most for a first-year head coach in program history
- In her first season she also guided the team to the Big South Conference Tournament Championship game, falling in the if necessary game to Longwood
- Led Ole Miss to five wins over nationally-ranked opponents that included a 2-0 victory at #1 Florida in 2014
- In 2003 she led Georgia State & College to a runner-up finish in the Division II National Championship
- Thees was a four-year starter at Florida State as both a catcher and second baseman
NEW FACES
RECORD BOOK WATCH
- McCall's single-season record of 46 stolen bases in her first year with the Eagles puts her tied for 6th all-time in program history
- McCall now has 51 career stolen bases as an Eagle
- The program record for stolen bases is 71 by Charlene Smith (1989-92)
- If McCall can match her run total of 43 from last season, she'll pull within 25 runs of the program's all-time Top 10
UP NEXT
Following their five games at home during the Winthrop Eagle Inv., the Eagles will travel to St. George, Utah for the Dixie State Tournament Feb. 25-27. Winthrop will open play Friday, Feb. 25 at 2:30 p.m. against Weber State.
For everything Winthrop softball visit
www.winthropeagles.com or follow us on social media @Winthropsoftbal, winthropsoftball (Instagram) or
www.facebook.com/Winthrop-Softball.
