FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 3-27-00

This Week In Armstrong Atlantic State Athletics

Monday, March 27
No Events Scheduled

Tuesday, March 28
• Softball vs. Eckerd, 2:00 p.m.

Wednesday, March 29
No Events Scheduled

Thursday, March 30
• Men's and Women's Tennis vs. North Florida, 2:00 p.m.
• Baseball at Newberry, 2:30 p.m.

Friday, March 31
No Events Scheduled

Saturday, April 1
• Baseball vs. Kennesaw State, Noon (DH)
• Men's Tennis vs. Lander, 2:00 p.m.
• Track and Field at Emory Classic (Atlanta, Ga.)

Sunday, April 2
• Baseball vs. Kennesaw State, Noon
• Men's Tennis vs. Valdosta State, 1:00 p.m.

Baseball (25-10, 6-9 PBAC)

Head coach Joe Roberts' AASU baseball team closed out the 2000 Savannah Invitational with two wins over Kutztown, but dropped three games to North Florida in its PBAC weekend series.

The Pirates' Ryan Armstrong pitched his first collegiate complete game in AASU's 12-3 win over Kutztown on Monday, then Bryan Beckmann's squeeze bunt plated Kevin Bullard with the winning run in the bottom of the tenth inning to give AASU a 4-3 win over Kutztown on Thursday.

Over the weekend, the Pirates hosted No. 2-ranked North Florida and lost a couple of heartbreakers, 4-1 and 4-3, in Saturday's doubleheader, then watched 1999 PBAC Freshman of the Year Matt Incinelli limit the Pirates to three singles and no runs in Sunday's 7-0 loss.

AASU managed just one extra-base hit in the three-game series against the Ospreys and were swept in a PBAC series at home for the first time since Columbus State came to Savannah and swept the Pirates on March 1-2 of 1997.

This week, the Pirates travel to Newberry, S.C., to take on Newberry on Thursday, March 30 at 2:30 p.m., then host No. 21 Kennesaw State for a three-game PBAC series on the weekend. AASU and the Owls will play a doubleheader on Saturday, April 1 at Noon, then a single game on Sunday, April 2 at Noon.

Softball (32-3, 8-0 PBAC, No. 3 – NFCA Coaches' Division II Top 25)

The AASU softball team swept two midweek doubleheaders from West Virginia State and Lander, before splitting four games at the Kennesaw State Invitational over the weekend.

The Pirates swept the Yellow Jackets on Wednesday, 5-0 and 9-1, then traveled to Greenwood, S.C., on Thursday to face the Lady Senators of Lander. Annie Sells two-hit the Senators in game one as AASU won 7-0, then the Pirates and Senators played 11 innings to settle the second game as AASU prevailed, 4-3. Julie King pitched 7 1/3 innings of shutout relief to get the win for AASU, who improved to a perfect 8-0 in PBAC play.

The weekend saw the Pirates travel to Kennesaw, Ga., to participate in the Kennesaw State Invitational on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday, the Pirates shut out Longwood, 2-0, behind a two-hitter from Julie King. The nightcap saw the Pirates fall to No. 5-ranked Alabama-Huntsville, 4-0.

Sunday, King fired a three-hit shutout over Presbyterian, 6-0, then the Pirates and Longwood went extra innings in the second game, with Longwood prevailing, 6-4, in nine innings.

AASU returns to action on Tuesday, March 28 as the Pirates host Eckerd College at 2:00 p.m., in its only action of the week.

Men's & Women's Tennis (13-4, No. 3 (W), 12-3, No. 4 (M) - NCAA Division II Coaches' Poll)

Head coach Simon Earnshaw's women's tennis team remained perfect in Peach Belt Athletic Conference play with a 6-3 win at UNC Pembroke on Wednesday. AASU is now 10-0 in the conference and can clinch the No. 1 seed in the PBAC Tournament with a win this week over the University of North Florida on Thursday, March 30.

The men's squad did not fare as well, losing to No. 15-ranked Drury, 7-2, on Sunday. The Pirates were playing without two of their six top singles players and it showed as Drury won all three doubles matches, then picked up wins at four of the six singles positions. Only Christopher Petersen at No. 2 and Frederic Heitz at No. 3 picked up wins for the Pirates, who had their 11-match winning streak snapped.

This week, the men's and women's tennis teams host the University of North Florida on Thursday, March 30 at 2:00 p.m. The men's tennis team then hosts a big weekend when they entertain No. 1 Lander on Saturday, April 1 at 2:00 p.m., then No. 5 Valdosta State on Sunday, April 2 at 2:00 p.m.

Track and Field

The AASU men's and women's cross country teams competed at the UNC Pembroke Braves Track Classic on Saturday. The men finished sixth in the team competition with 34 points, while the women finished fifth with 44 points.

AASU women's runners captured three events, highlighted by Rebekah Mackie's meet-record performance in the 3000 meters. Mackie finished with a time of 10:19.79, nearly eight seconds ahead of her teammate Nikki Garland, who finished second in a time of 10:27.25. Jillian Charles won the 5000 meters in a time of 20:36.56 and Garland won the 1500 meters in a time of 4:49.31.

Robert Crenshaw captured the 800 meters in a time of 1:57.16 to pace the men's team. Gary Ginn placed second in the 5000 meters, finishing in a time of 16:01.50.

Also on Saturday, AASU freshman Paul McRae competed in the 1500 meters at the Florida Relays in Gainesville, Fla., and provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships with an eight-place finish in a time of 3:53.30.

This week, the Pirates will travel to Atlanta, Ga., to compete in the Emory Invitational on Saturday, April 1.

- Pirates -