SOFTBALL

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·The Week Past·
Buffalo 9-13, St. Michael's 4-1
Villanova 10-13, Buffalo 0-0
Bowling Green 9, Buffalo 1
Toledo 10, Buffalo 3
Buffalo 2-9, North Carolina A&T 1-4
Toledo 4-11, Buffalo 3-5
Bowling Green 4, Buffalo 2
Lynn 9, Buffalo 4

·On Deck·
Winthrop Classic (Rock Hill, SC)
3/17 UB vs. Southern Mississippi 2:00 pm
3/17 UB vs. Dayton 8:00 pm
3/18 UB at Winthrop 9:00 am
3/18 Elimination Round 5:00 pm
3/19 Championship Round

Bulls Return to Softball Diamond

The Bulls began their first softball season since 1986 with a Spring Break trip to Orlando where they played 12 games at the Disney World of Sports Complex. UB won their first two contests of the season sweeping Division II St. Michael's 9-4 and 13-1 as UB pounded out 36 hits against the Lady Knights. Kelly Malone (Waterford, MI/Waterford Kettering) homered in both contests for the Bulls. UB also gained their first victories over Division I competition sweeping North Carolina A&T 2-1 and 9-4 on March 8. The Bulls returned north with a 4-8 mark after their week in the Sunshine State.

Malone Becomes All-Time Home Run Leader

Freshman catcher Kelly Malone (Waterford, MI/Waterford Kettering) established herself in the UB record book after just one week. With her four round-trippers during the trip, Malone became UB's single-season and all-time home run champion surpassing Karen Macris' 1985 total of three. When UB previously sponsored softball from 1979-1986, a grand total of 14 home runs were hit by the Bulls. Malone also leads the Bulls with 12 runs batted in and a .758 slugging percentage.

Hitting Shines in Florida

Five Bulls returned from the 12-game trip with batting averages better than .360 including junior Danielle Haynes (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca) who leads the team with a .484 average. Her 15 hits is second on the team behind Kim Coon's (Belding, MI/Belding) 17. Coon is second in batting at .425. Also among the hit parade are Jennifer Moore (Williamsville, NY/Delhi District) at .382 and a team-best four doubles, Stacee Madden (Corning, NY/East) at .366 and Kelly Malone (Waterford, MI/Waterford Kettering) at .364. As a team, the Bulls are hitting .331.

In the Pitching Circle

Highlighting the Bulls pitching efforts during the week was the complete game turned in by freshman Jessica York (South Dayton, NY/Pine Valley). York allowed just four hits and an unearned run securing UB's first win over Division I competition as the Bulls downed North Carolina A&T 2-1. Jessica Kensy (Cheektowaga, NY/Maryvale) picked up two of the Bulls' four wins during the week for a 2-3 mark and 5.72 earned run average. Freshman left-hander Andrea Sage (Depew, NY/Depew) appeared in eight of the 12 games pitching a team-high 37 innings.

Up Next

The Bulls travel south again this week to Rock Hill, SC where they will be among 29 teams competing in the Winthrop Classic. The Bulls will begin play with a round-robin slate against 1999 College World Series participant Southern Mississippi, Dayton and host Winthrop. Elimination rounds are scheduled for Saturday with the championship culminating on Sunday.