University of Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols Declared Champions of Rain-Shortened Eagle Classic
March 04, 2001 | Softball
Southern Eagle Classic: vs. Florida A&M | vs. Pittsburgh | Playoffs
Jim Beitia and the Lady Vol softball team notched their second tournament title of 2001 by virtue of terrible field conditions that canceled Sunday's action at the Georgia Southern Eagle Classic in Statesboro, Ga. Although Tennessee and Florida had identical 2-0 records, the Lady Vols were named as the winners because of a +7 run differential. UT defeated Florida A&M (6-2) and Pittsburgh (5-2) on Friday before inclement weather washed away the remainder of the weekend's action.
"Having eleven new players on this year's team, the most important thing necessary in our development into a winning team is playing together," said Beitia. "It's unfortunate that we have been rained out of eight games, but I believe that these 23 road games will have prepared us for what should be a very tough Southeastern Conference schedule. Though we don't possess the experience that our other league opponents have, our team has a very positive attitude and I really think that by the end of the season, we will have been the biggest surprise in the SEC, East or West."
Senior second baseman Melissa Radley led the Orange with a .571 (4-for-7) average this weekend, including a pair of RBI singles against the Panthers. Senior center fielder Janette Koshell ripped a couple of doubles on Friday, with a bases-clearing two-bagger the difference in her club's decision over Pitt. The Granite Bay, Calif., native had a .500 (3-for-6, team-high four RBI, .833 slugging percentage) clip for UT, while junior catcher Adrianna Wilson managed a .333 (2-for-6) effort.
At 10-13 overall, the Lady Vols will kick off their 30-game SEC schedule next weekend with a three-game series in Oxford against the University of Mississippi. UT will battle the Lady Rebels in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday and the teams will meet once on Sunday at 3 p.m. CT.
Georgia Southern Eagle Classic Results
W-L Run Differential TENNESSEE 2-0 11-4 (+7) Florida 2-0 13-10 (+3) Georgia Southern 1-1 7-7 (0) Pittsburgh 0-2 2-7 (-5) Florida A&M 0-2 6-12 (-6)
