Pitt baseball, softball each face crucial series this weekend

Pitt’s softball team’s five-game homestand came to an early end when Wednesday’s doubleheader against St. Bonaventure was canceled because of rain. Next, the team travels to Tallahassee for a weekend series against Florida State.

The baseball team will also begin a weekend road series, as it travels to face North Carolina State for a three-game series.

Here is a preview of Pitt’s baseball and softball matchups this weekend:

Baseball

The Panthers (11-12, 4-5 ACC) rebounded from a series loss to Duke with a definitive 8-4 victory over Youngstown State on Wednesday. Sophomore pitcher Sam Mersing and junior catcher Alex Kowalczyk carried the squad in the win.

Mersing threw five innings and allowed two runs, improving his season record to 2-0. Kowalczyk provided all of the run support that Mersing needed, driving in a career-high four runs on three hits.

Next, the Panthers travel to Raleigh to face North Carolina State (14-9, 3-5 ACC) in an effort to bring their record over .500.

Sophomore first baseman Preston Palmeiro leads the Wolfpack with his team-high .398 batting average. He also ties for the team lead with three home runs on the season.

On the pitching side, Pitt may face freshman Brian Brown on the mound. Brown posts a 2-1 record with a 3.63 ERA.

The first game is scheduled to begin on Friday with the first pitch at 3 p.m.

Softball

Pitt softball (24-7, 6-3 ACC) unexpectedly had a week off to prepare for Florida State after a doubleheader rainout on Wednesday.

In their last outing over the weekend, the Panthers took two out of three games from North Carolina State, including one win on a dramatic walk-off home run, capping off a big seventh inning.

Freshman Giorgiana Zeremenko hit a two-run blast over the scoreboard on Saturday to overcome what began as an 8-3 deficit in the final inning to win.

This weekend, senior pitcher Savannah King will likely factor into at least one of the contests. She leads Pitt in nearly every significant pitching category, including innings pitched (101) and ERA (2.76). She boasts a 14-3 record and has held batters to only a .238 batting average against her this season.

But Pitt may find itself in a pitching duel over the weekend. Florida State’s senior pitcher Lacey Waldrop could match King on the mound. Waldrop holds an 18-3 record with a 1.11 ERA this season, and she has amassed 149 strikeouts in 126 innings pitched. Whichever offense breaks through and scores on the opposing pitcher will likely be the one that comes out on top.

Offensively, the Seminoles will look to sophomore Ellie Cooper in that effort. Cooper leads the team with her .337 batting average and ranks second on the team with 19 runs scored.

For Pitt, Shelby Pickett leads the Panther offense with her .422 batting average. The redshirt junior also holds a team-high 46 hits and 14 doubles, and she ranks third on the team with 26 runs batted in. She and King will likely play a factor if Pitt is to succeed against the ACC’s top team this weekend in Florida State (27-8, 8-1 ACC).