George Washington University Athletics
GW Softball Hosts Blue Ribbon Game on Wednesday
4/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
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April 14, 2015
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WASHINGTON - After a weekend series win over Atlantic 10 foe Saint Louis, the George Washington softball team hosts Coppin State on Wednesday afternoon for a Blue Ribbon game to raise prostate cancer awareness alongside Ed Randall's Fans for the Cure.
Founded in 2003 by prostate cancer survivor and long-time baseball broadcaster Ed Randall, Fans for the Cure largely utilizes baseball as a vehicle for spreading the non-profit's message of early detection and the importance of educating loved ones of the dangers of prostate cancer. Among other events, Fans for the Cure partners with Minor League Baseball and Major League Baseball, as well as with unaffiliated minor league ballclubs, to engage fans and players at nearly 175 games over the course of the baseball season.
Wednesday will mark the first time Fans for the Cure has partnered with a softball program.
"Women are a segment of the population that we want to familiarize with the dangers of prostate cancer and how to spread life-saving awareness to their friends and loved ones," said Randall. "We see our opportunity to work with GW softball as a jumping-off point to get more involved with women's sports."
Randall will throw a ceremonial first pitch prior to the start of the game.
The Colonials (20-17, 4-8 A-10) took two of three games from Saint Louis at home over the weekend, as GW outscored the Billikens, 19-6, in the final two games of the series. Coppin State (3-21) looks to snap a seven-game skid after being swept in a MEAC matchup with Delaware State.
Junior Carlee Gray leads GW's offense with a .371 average and a team-high four triples, while senior Victoria Valos (.365) has a team-best 36 RBIs, good for second in the A-10. Valos sits just two hits away from reaching 200 in her career, a mark met previously by only one Colonial - Olympic bobsledder Elana Meyers Taylor ('07), who finished her Hall of Fame career with 202 hits.
Sophomore Megan Linn is atop the A-10 in stolen bases with 20, while classmate Bradleigh Breland is in a close second with 19. As a team, GW leads the conference with 78 swipes, 37 more than the next highest team total.
Sophomore Paige Kovalsky improved her record to 8-1 in the circle over the weekend, holding opponents to a team-best .235 average, while freshman Sarah Costlow leads the staff with 12 wins. Costlow needs just one more victory to tie the record for most triumphs by a rookie currently held jointly by Amanda Gabriel ('09) and junior Meghan Rico.
For Coppin State, Danielle Smith brings an 11-game hit streak into Wednesday's game, batting .348 on the season with a team-high 23 runs scored. Candice Van Horn leads the Eagles with a .383 average and a team-leading 16 RBIs and seven stolen bases.
Van Horn claims two wins in the circle for Coppin State, as a trio of hurlers share the pitching duties for the Eagles.
GW leads the all-time series with Coppin State, 4-2, most recently falling in a close 5-4 decision in 2011.
First pitch is slated for 3 p.m. at the GW Softball Field on the Mount Vernon Campus.
