Cobras Ranked Seventh in NCAA Division II Southeast Region

Cobras Ranked Seventh in NCAA Division II Southeast Region
Posted: Apr 18, 2018

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - The Coker College softball team has been ranked seventh in the Southeast Region, as announced by the NCAA on Wednesday, April 18. The Cobras are currently tied for second place in the South Atlantic Conference with a record of 32-14 and 11-7 in conference play.

This is the first regional recognition for the Navy and Gold in 11 years, also the first for Coach Travis McCall, and first since Coker joined the South Atlantic Conference.

The No. 1 team in the region, North Georgia, was handed their first loss of the season by the Cobras in March. Coker split their series with No. 3 Queens (N.C.) and No. 9 North Greenville. Next, the Navy and Gold went on to sweep No. 10 Carson-Newman by scores of 5-2 and 8-0 (5).

In the friendly confines of Saleeby-Stokes Field, Coker is an impressive 15-3 on the season. To start 2018, the team went 14-0 and most recently won ten of their last 12 games.

The Cobras are led offensively by 65 hits off the bat of first baseman Maria Williamson, who also leads the team with 10 homers, 48 RBI, 25 walks, and .721 slugging percentage. Anna Gluhosky is also having a solid sophomore season with 38 hits, 30 runs, four doubles, two triples, and a home run, alongside 19 RBI, 20 walks, two stolen bases on a .302/.404/.389 slashline.

In the circle, Christine Carver (15-6, 1.92 ERA) heads up the staff in 131.1 innings pitched, giving up 36 earned runs and 94 hits, while striking out 100 batters. Nikki Linthicum (7-2, 4.57) and Taylor Forehand (8-4, 2.74) have been impressive as of late, combining for 110 strikeouts, five saves, and only 72 earned runs.

As of April 17, the Coker pitching staff is second in the conference in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 2.04. Individually, Forehand leads the SAC with four saves, good for 13th nationally. She is also second in the conference in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 2.95, while Carver is just behind in third at 2.94. Williamson tops the SAC in four different categories: hits (65, sixth nationally), batting average (.464), on base percentage (.536), and total bases (101). She also claims second with 48 RBI and third with a slugging percentage of .721.

The Cobras will close their regular season schedule at Lincoln Memorial on April 21.

Full rankings can be found at https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/softball/d2.