UMBC

Jessica Vetock's .397 on-base percentage ranks third on the team.

BALTIMORE—The UMBC softball team (15-7) opens America East Conference play this weekend with a three-game series against Stony Brook (10-8) at UMBC Softball Stadium. The teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m., and a single game on Sunday at 12 p.m.

Welcome Back: The Retrievers will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the 2000 team that won the Northeast Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history, honoring all team members between games of Saturday’s doubleheader. Under head coach Michelle Neveling, UMBC posted a 30-28 record, including 13-7 in the NEC. The team included UMBC Athletics Hall of Famers Lisa Boone and Deanna Vecchio, who both earned All-NEC honors that year, as well as NEC Player of the Year Crystal Ray and all-conference members Bonnie Nevin, Jessica Graziano and Stephanie Happel.

Last Time Out: UMBC split a doubleheader at Temple on Wednesday, dropping a pitchers’ duel in the first game, 2-1, before winning the nightcap, 10-7. Junior hurler Stephanie Weigman (Elkridge, Md./Archbishop Spalding) allowed just two runs on six hits and struck out nine in the tough-luck loss in game one, while the Retrievers rallied for seven runs in the seventh inning in the second game for the comeback win. Senior third baseman Amanda Fefel (Baltimore, Md./Catonsville) tied UMBC’s single-game record with three home runs, while junior center fielder Julia Culotta (Street, Md./North Harford/Tennessee) smashed a grand slam and senior right fielder Emily Thompson (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls) also belted a home run.

On the Seawolves: Stony Brook is 10-8 on the season and had won six in a row before falling to Rutgers in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday. Alyssa Struzenberg and shortstop Vicki Kavitsky are the reigning America East Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively. Kavitsky is leads the Seawolves in nearly every offensive category, including batting average (.396), doubles (6), runs (12) and steals (7), while Struzenberg has posted an 8-4 record with a 1.18 ERA and 89 strikeouts in 71.1 innings of work. The defending America East regular-season champion, Stony Brook was picked to finish third in the America East preseason poll.

Inside the Series: The Seawolves hold an 11-10 advantage in the all-time series and has won five of the last seven meetings, including three of four in 2009. Stony Brook won the regular-season series a year ago, 2-1, and also defeated the Retrievers, 3-1, in the first game of the America East Championships. Weigman has posted a miniscule 0.99 ERA in 35.1 career innings against the Seawolves spanning seven appearances, but she is just 1-4 in those games. Thompson is 7-for-22 (.319) with two home runs and six RBIs in seven career games against Stony Brook.

Comeback Kids: In each of the Retrievers’ last four wins, they have been trailing in the sixth inning or later and have rallied for the victory. Twice – in the sixth inning on March 21 against Mount St. Mary’s and in the seventh on March 24 at Temple – UMBC has scored seven runs in a single frame late in the contest, and its 3-2 win over Rhode island on March 23 came on a walk-off single by sophomore third baseman Angela Yannone (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake).

Streaking: Sophomore Kaela Mason (Bel Air, Md./Harford Tech) is batting .625 (10-for-16) with two doubles and three RBIs during her current six-game hitting streak… Fefel has a hit in nine of the last 10 games and is batting .467 (14-for-30) and slugging .933 with 10 RBIs and six extra-base hits, raising her average 80 points (from .282 to .362) during that stretch.

Power Surge: Fefel tied UMBC’s single-game record with three home runs in the second game against Temple on Wednesday, equaling the mark set by Deanna Vecchio in 2002 and matched by Kristie Pickeral in 2004. She now has 36 round trippers in her career, just four shy of Pickeral’s career record.

UMBC Career Home Runs

1. Kristie Pickeral, 40, 2002-05
2. Amanda Fefel, 36, 2007-Present
3. Melanie Denischuk, 30, 2006-07

Reilly Ward, 30, 2004-07

Milestone Watch: Fefel is just nine hits away from becoming the eighth Retriever ever to collect 200 in her career.

Climbing the Charts: Fefel also ranks among UMBC’s all-time leaders in a number of other categories, including slugging percentage (4th, .590), RBI (T-4th, 132), extra-base hits (6th, 65) total bases (7th, 331), on-base percentage (8th, .399) and walks (10th, 56).

Weigman’s Whiffs: With eight strikeouts against Delaware on March 20, Weigman became the first pitcher in UMBC history to fan 500 batters in her career, and she now has nearly 100 more strikeouts than any other Retriever. Her closest competitor, Crystal Ray, had 422.

UMBC Career Strikeouts

1. Stephanie Weigman, 517, 2008-Present
2. Crystal Ray, 422, 1998-2000
3. Lauren Nicholson, 387, 2003-06
4. Amanda Fefel, 240, 2007-Present

Winning It All: Weigman is tied for second all-time at UMBC with 43 career wins, 14 behind current Retriever pitching coach Lauren Nicholson. In addition, Fefel became the eighth Retriever ever to win 30 games when she earned the victory against Mount St. Mary’s on March 21.

UMBC Career Wins

1. Lauren Nicholson, 57, 2003-06
2. Amy Sadowl, 43, 2003-06

Stephanie Weigman, 43, 2008-Present

Climbing the Charts: Weigman also ranks among UMBC’s all-time leaders in a number of other categories, including innings (T-2nd, 489.0), complete games (3rd, 50), games started (4th, 69), appearances (4th, 91), saves (T-5th, 3), ERA (8th, 2.29) and shutouts (9th, 7).

Closing It Out: Fefel is UMBC’s all-time saves leader with eight in her career, and she has already broke the school mark for saves in a single season with four in 2010.

French Gets 500: UMBC’s second victory at Delaware on March 9 was the 500th of head coach Joe French’s career. French has coached for 17 years at three different schools, winning 95 games in four seasons at Mansfield University, 119 in four years at SUNY-Geneseo and 292 in nine years at UMBC. The Retrievers’ all-time winningest coach, he is just eight victories shy of 300 in black and gold.

Extra, Extra: The Retrievers have played five extra-inning games this season, the most since playing seven in 2005. UMBC is 3-2 in contests lasting longer than seven frames this year.

Hot Start: At 15-7, the Retrievers are off to their best start since 2006, when they were 17-5 after 22 games.