Rock Hill, S.C.— Off to its best start since 1994, Winthrop softball is set to host the Winthrop Eagle Classic Feb. 16-19.
WINTHROP EAGLE CLASSIC
WHERE: Rock Hill, S.C. |
Terry Field
WHEN: Thursday - Sunday (Feb. 16-19)
PARTICIPATING TEAMS: Queens (NC), Marist, Nevada, North Carolina A&T, Winthrop
FOLLOW: @Winthropsoftbal
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
WINTHROP SCHEDULE
Thursday, Feb. 16
Queens at Winthrop, 6 p.m. |
Live Stats
Friday, Feb. 17
Marist at Winthrop, 5 p.m. |
Live Stats
Saturday, Feb. 18
Nevada at Winthrop, 3 p.m. |
Live Stats
N.C. A&T at Winthrop, 5 p.m. |
Live Stats
GLANCE AT THE EAGLES
- Winthrop is off to a 4-0 start, the best start by an Eagle team since 1994 when the team opened up 6-0
- Opened the season recording back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 2006
- Macy McCall is 2-for-2 on the year stealing bases and is now tied with Charlene Smith for the most steals in program history for a career (71)
- McCall is also tied for the most hits so far with six as KaDedra Temple also has six
- Temple had a hit in each of her first four at-bats as an Eagle
- Reese Basinger and Sydney Boulware are each 2-0 on the season and lead the staff with just an ERA of 1.20 through four games
- Basinger tossed a 3-hit shutout in the opener behind a career-high 13 strikeouts
- Boulware then tossed a 6-0 hit shutout with one walk and six strikeouts
- Kaitlyn Tucker leads the team in RBI with five over the first four games
- Ella McGalliard is second with four while Temple has three
- Outscoring opponents 5.3 – 2.3 over the first four games
- Tucker, Chelsea Roberson and McCall each have three-game hit streaks
- Tucker and Temple are the only ones to reach base in all four games
- Eagles return four starters with 50 or more starts and five with 35 or more starts last season
- Led by McCall (two-time All-Big South selection) and Paige Rivas (All-Big South selection)
- Junior Kaitlyn Tucker led the team with 24 RBI and tied McCall for the team-lead in doubles (10)
- Vanhouse was second on the team with a .309 average and third in runs with 22
- This year's squad is made up of five freshmen, four sophomores, 10 juniors, four seniors and a graduate student
- Eagles were voted 6th in the Big South Conference Preseason Poll
LOOKING BACK AT 2021
- Eagles are coming off an 18-37 campaign in which the majority of the key players were underclassmen, including a 1-2 pitching staff of freshmen
- The Eagles featured a ton of speed on the bases, finishing second in the Big South in steals with 100
- The 100 steals were the third most in program history for a single-season
- For the first time in program history the Eagles had three different players steal 20 or more bases in a season
- Red-shirt junior Paige Rivas led the team with 25 swipes while Macy McCall had 23 and Ashton Vanhouse snagged 22
- McCall is a two-time All-Big South selection, who set the program record for stolen bases in a season with 48 in 2021
- That season her 48 stolen bases ranked 2nd in the nation (NCAA D1)
- McCall set career-highs in doubles while tying her career-best of 17 RBI
- Paige Rivas led the team with a .354 average, ranking 8th in the Big South (9th in on-base percentage)
- Winthrop as a team set a program record for being hit by a pitch (41)
- Reese Basinger and Sydney Boulware led the pitching staff in their freshman season
- The duo combined for 259 strikeouts and the staff finished with 328 which ranks 4th in a single-season at Winthrop
- Eagles led the Big South in walks in 2022 (160), led by McCall with 27
HEAD COACH WINDY THEES
- Head coach Windy Thees is in her fourth season at Winthrop and in her 17th season as head coach of a collegiate softball program
- Has a record of 86-93 overall and 35-34 in the Big South in her time with Winthrop
- 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 18 seasons she's compiled an overall record of 494-434 and a record of 331-342 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
RECORD BOOK WATCH
- McCall's single-season record of 46 stolen bases in her first year with the Eagles put her 3rd all-time in program history
- She is now about to become the all-time leader in steals at Winthrop as she's tied Charlene Smith with the most at 71
- McCall now has 86 total stolen bases in her collegiate career
- In two seasons McCall drawn 61 walks with the Eagles, moving into 10th on the program's all-time list
UP NEXT
Winthrop remains at home as it will host the Winthrop Garnet & Gold Classic Feb. 24-26. Winthrop will open on Feb. 24 against Harvard at 3 p.m. and then face North Carolina Central at 5:30 p.m.
For everything Winthrop softball visit
www.winthropeagles.com or follow us on social media @Winthropsoftbal, winthropsoftball (Instagram) or
www.facebook.com/aWinthrop-Softball
