Posted: Apr 29, 2014

SLIAC Softball Tournament Preview

The Tournament
This weekend is the 19th St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Softball Tournament. Fontbonne University earned the top seed in the tournament and will be seeking their fifth consecutive tournament title. This weekend's tournament will include Fontbonne, Greenville College, Spalding University and Westminster College.

The tournament will be held in Elsah, Illinois on the campus of Principia College and run Thursday, May 1 through Saturday, May 3. The 2014 Softball Tournament schedule is listed below:

Thursday, May 1
Game 1 - #1 Fontbonne vs. #4 Westminster, 4 p.m.
Game 2 - #2 Greenville vs. #3 Spalding, 6 p.m.
Game 3 - Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2, 8 p.m.

Friday, May 2
Game 4 - Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2, 5 p.m.
Game 5 - Winner of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 3
Game 6 - Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5, 1 p.m.
Game 7 - If Necessary immediately following Game 6

Broadcast Info
You can listen to this weekend's tournament games on CollegeCasts broadcast at:
http://www.prepcasts.com/collegecasts/

Tournament Tidbits

Fontbonne has won seven tournament titles while Westminster has won two and Greenville has one title.
Fontbonne has won four consecutive SLIAC Tournament titles, the longest consecutive streak in tournament history.
Fontbonne had a school record 20 game winning streak earlier this season and had a streak of 36 straight conference wins; both snapped in a loss to Spalding.
Greenville is making a return appearance to the tournament after missing last year's field.
Spalding is making their second consecutive tournament appearance. After winning their opening round game against Westminster last year the Golden Eagles fell to Fontbonne and then Westminster.
Westminster is making their second straight tournament trip. The Blue Jays fell to Fontbonne in the championship game last year.

	FONTBONNE UNIVERSITY GRIFFINS Fontbonne secured the top spot in the tournament with a 17-1 conference record and are 31-5 overall this season. The Griffins are powered by three All-Region performers from last year in Marisa Simon, Cassi and Danni Glixman. Simon is hitting .432 this season with 31 runs batted in and 10 stolen bases. Cassi Glixman is hitting .437 this year with four home runs and 40 runs batted in while sister Danni leads the team with a .495 batting average. Sarah Cerutti has exploded offensively this year with a conference high 10 home runs while hitting .358 with 36 RBI. The pitching duo of Lindsay Schaefer and Madison Leonard have split time in the circle this season with Schafer leading the team with a 1.42 earned-run average and Leonard leading the staff with 137 strikeouts.
	GREENVILLE COLLEGE PANTHERS Greenville went 28-12 overall during the regular season and finished conference play with a 15-3 record. Greenville leads the SLIAC in team hitting this year with a .380 batting average and have scored a conference high 306 runs this season. They are led by Bryn McKie, who is hitting .465 while adding a team high 17 stolen bases. The duo of Mattie Fairchild and Tiffany Samsoe have teamed up to drive in 77 runs this year with both hitting over .400 on the season. The Panthers have used several pitchers in the circle with Ashley Woodrome making a team high 12 starts and leading the team with 64 strikeouts in 84.2 innings pitched.
	SPALDING UNIVERSITY GOLDEN EAGLES Spalding was 23-14 overall this season and went 13-5 in SLIAC play. The Golden Eagles are hitting .352 as a team and scored 282 runs this season. They are paced by Pagie French who is hitting .449 with five home runs and 28 runs batted in. Kelsey McDowell is hitting .423 with a team highs in both home runs (8) and RBI (38). In the circle Kelci Flener has taken control of the pitching staff. Flener is 14-8 with a 2.57 earned-run average and 124 strikeouts in 133.2 innings pitched this season.
	WESTMINSTER COLLEGE BLUE JAYS Westminster was 14-20 overall this year and finished SLIAC competition with an 11-7 record. Westminster is hitting .295 this season, scoring a total of 147 runs. They are led offensively by Brittany Lee with a .378 batting average and four home runs and 19 RBI. Allison Biggs is hitting .357 while leading the team with five home runs and 24 runs batted in. Rai'An Harris is also hitting .333 with three home runs and 24 runs batted in. Lee is also the Blue Jays top pitcher with 137.1 innings pitched and holds a 4.64 earned-run average.