SCF Softball Welcomes Palm Beach State for Doubleheader

The SCF softball team (20-8) continue their 12-game homestead as they welcome Palm Beach State (3-19) to the SCF Softball Complex on Thursday, March 7 at 4 and 6 pm.

Last Time Out:
The Manatees are coming off of a sweep over NJCAA DII Region 12 Kalamazoo Valley Community College where they won 9-1 via mercy in game one and 7-3 in game two. They enter their next series on a three-game winning streak, which includes the win against College of Central Florida (CCF) that got SCF head coach Mandy Schuerman her 150th career win as head coach.

Key Players:
At the plate, the Manatees are led by a impeccable squad of sophomores Cheyenne Nunez, Haley McFadden and Nicci Palumbo and freshmen Madi LoCastro, Makalya Benavidez, Lauren Bostwick, Sabrina "Sas" Long and Madelyn Graham.

Mainly the speedster on the team, Nunez is batting .301 with 25 hits and 16 RBI while leading the team in runs scored (23) and stolen bases (16). Nunez returned to the lineup in the series against Kalamazoo Valley finishing 4-for-7 with three RBI and two stolen bases.

McFadden is batting .241 with 13 hits and seven RBI. McFadden went 1-for-3 with an RBI in game one of the series against Kalamazoo Valley.

Palumbo is batting .391 with 25 hits and 10 RBI. Palumbo was 3-for-6 at the plate against Kalamazoo Valley with a run and a stolen base.

One of two hybrid players, LoCastro is batting .352 with 26 hits, four home runs and 19 RBI while going 3-3 with a 2.25 ERA and 12 strikeouts on the mound. LoCastro threw a five inning complete game in game one against Kalamazoo Valley while at the plate she went she was 1-for-4 with a run scored overall

Benavidez is batting .391 with 25 hits, five RBI, 18 runs and eight stolen bases. Benavidez was 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Following the footsteps of Nunez, Bostwick has also been hot running the bases. Bostwick is batting .245 with 13 hits, six RBI and 15 stolen bases. Bostwick was 1-for-4 with two runs, an RBI and two stolen bases against Kalamazoo Valley.

Long follows behind LoCastro in power as she is batting .333 with 25 hits, two home runs and 19 RBI. Long was 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored against Kalamazoo Valley.

A wild card in the lineup, Graham is batting .382 with 13 hits, two home runs and 10 RBI. Graham had one of her best outing as she went 4-for-7 with a double, a home run and seven RBI against Kalamazoo Valley, which included the three-run shot in game one and a two-RBI sac fly in game two.

Meanwhile, freshman Kailey Christian continues to stay consistent on the mound and at the plate. Like LoCastro, Christian is a hybrid player on the team. On the mound, Christian is 11-1 with a 1.75 ERA, 112 strikeouts and four shutouts while at the plate she is batting a team-leading .403, 29 hits and 20 RBI. In fact, Christian is one of four Manatees under the Schuerman era to throw at least 100 strikeouts (2015: Devon Morrison [122] and Jill McElderry [112], 2017: Carlee Lucas [104]). Against Kalamazoo Valley, Christian was 3-for-7 at the plate with two RBI and three runs scored while on the mound in game two, she threw 3.2 scoreless and hitless innings with 11 strikeouts.

Scouting Palm Beach State:
The Panthers will play Lake-Sumter State College March 5, prior to playing SCF. They are coming off of a split against St. Johns River State losing the first game 8-7 before winning the second game 9-1 via mercy rule.

In the beginning of the season, the Panthers lost 15 straight games before ending their losing streak with a 9-8 win over ASA Miami. Their 15-game losing streak passed their longest losing streak in program history (12, 2018 season).

Sophomore Ashley Booker leads the way with a .310 batting average and eight RBI. Booker did not play against St. Johns River State.

Sophomore Andrea Granados leads the team with a .346 batting average and five RBI. Granados also did not play against St. Johns River State.

On the mound, freshman Destiny Cornelius is 2-5 with eight strikeouts. Cornelius threw a five inning complete game against St. Johns River State with three strikeouts.

Series History (2012-present):
The Manatees hold a 16-1 overall record against Palm Beach State. Last time both teams met was on January 28, 2017 where the Manatees won 4-2 in the JUCO Kickoff Classic. The Panthers lone win against the Manatees was on March 13, 2014 where they won 7-6 in eight innings.

How to Keep Up:
Livestats will be provided for fans that want to keep up with both teams if they are unable to attend the game.

Fans can also keep up on the teams' Twitter pages:
SCF: @SCFSoftball
PBSC: @PBSCPANTHERS

*Livestats Link: https://gc.com/t/spring-2019/state-college-of-florida-softball-5c4617fc03d69700218c16d3

*account needed