With five games remaining in the regular season, a spot in Big East playoffs clinched and only one loss in their last 15 games, the Huskies will look to roll into Boston on Wednesday to claim another one against the BC Eagles.
UConn currently sits atop the Big East standings with an 18-3 record in-conference, while BC’s ACC play this season has not yielded much success, as they currently own a 6-15 record. In non-conference games, however, the two teams are more comparable, as UConn is 14-11 in non-Big East contests, while the Eagles are 14-8 when subtracting the ACC from their schedule.
This weekend was a very good one for the Huskies, with Briana Marcelino leading the offense and receiving Big East honors, with three home runs on the weekend and 11 RBI. Other batters to mention are Aziah James, who had a triple and a double, as well as Reese Guevarra, who had a triple of her own.
Pitching-wise, UConn continues to prove that primary starter Elise Sokolsky is not the only star on the staff, with Meghan O’Neil pitching a complete game in Saturday’s win, and Marybeth Olson pitching three innings in two relief outings, allowing only one run. Sokolsky did have a bit of a rough time of things in Sunday’s game, giving up four runs on 10 hits, but Olson and O’Neil came in in relief, and the offense picked her up as well.
For BC, the team is coming off a 9-6 victory over NC State that saw five separate Eagles have multi-hit games: Ellie Mataya, Abigail Knight, Hannah Slike, Nicole Giery and Kristin Giery. Mataya and Slike lead the team in average, with the latter having a 5-RBI game in the NC State win.
In the circle, BC’s ace is Susannah Anderson, who currently has a 2.86 ERA in 129.2 innings of work. The staff is rounded out by Peyton Schnackenberg and Abby Dunning, who both have above-four ERAs, bringing the team average to 3.84. For reference, UConn currently has a team ERA of 3.02.
After facing the Eagles, UConn only has one game in the upcoming weekend, a home matchup against St. Joseph’s on Saturday. After that, Villanova comes to Storrs the following weekend, for a finale that will likely decide which team gets regular season first place in the Big East. The Huskies’ 18-3 record has an extra series in it, as Villanova is currently 13-4. Before coming to UConn, the Wildcats have three against Seton Hall, so if that goes well for them first place will be in reach if they can best the Huskies.
While that series may loom, UConn still needs to get through BC first. Each team is fighting for its 15th win against a non-conference opponent, and while the Huskies have one more chance to get that afterward, this will be the Eagles’ last attempt due to a cancellation with Dartmouth.
First pitch from Harrington Athletics Village is set for 4 p.m, with live broadcast on ESPN.
