USC travels to Chapel Hill on 3-game skid
Coach Beverly Smith returns to a familiar site today in Chapel Hill at 5 p.m., as she brings her team to release some frustration against No. 24 North Carolina and snap its current three-game skid.
Amid their second such slide of the season, the Gamecocks will step out of conference for a single-game matchup against the head coach’s former team.
This will be Smith’s first trip back since taking the reins in Columbia, and she’s still familiar with some of the current players.
“I’m excited to head back to Chapel Hill, and certainly I’m familiar with the girls on the roster there,” Smith said. “Seniors Ally Blake and Kelli Wheeler are having big seasons for the Tar Heels and leading them. Lori Spingola is their pitcher on the mound that has done an excellent job.”
Smith is right to spotlight the performance of North Carolina pitcher Spingola. The sophomore was just named the ACC Pitcher of the Week Tuesday after pitching two complete games, one of five innings and one of nine innings, in UNC’s recent series against Virginia Tech.
South Carolina owns a significant lead in the 60-game series against its cross-border foe, having gone 48-12 against North Carolina so far. The Gamecocks have done well at Anderson Stadium in Chapel Hill in the past, having compiled a 15-9 record on the Tar Heels’ home turf.
The breather between conference series will need to see improvement from the Gamecocks, both at the plate and on the mound. Scoring runs and pitching have not been issues for most of the season, but that changed in the last week when the Gamecocks were swept by No. 4 Florida. As far as building momentum offensively, Smith has said all season that she likes to see high production from her seniors, and Evan Childs will do her best to keep living up to that expectation.
With nine home runs on the season (including a walk-off series winner against Arkansas), the third baseman has tallied the third-most long balls in a single season at South Carolina. If hits like this continue from Childs, it would equal a win for the Gamecocks, who are 13-3 this year when hitting at least one ball over the fence.
In the most recent matchup against North Carolina, junior Audrey Broyles pitched a strong game, going five innings in which she allowed one hit, one walk and three strikeouts. While she did not pick up the win, Broyles put her team in a position to win, which it did, defeating the Tar Heels at Beckham Field, 1-0.
Defensive errors have been the demise of the Gamecocks in many games this year, since they have led to a plethora of unearned runs for the pitcher in the circle. Going up against ranked opponents will become more regular as the SEC schedule heats up in the coming weeks.
“North Carolina has been ranked 24 or 25 all season,” Smith said. “They’re a very good opponent, so any time we’ve got the opportunity to go in and play a top-ranked team, we’re excited about it. So, we’re looking forward to heading into Chapel Hill.”