Upstate Leads the Nation in Defense
4/23/2013 12:00:00 AM | Softball
NCAA Upstate Statistical Ranking Report
Spartanburg, S.C. – Having gone another week without committing an error, the USC Upstate softball team has moved to the top of the class as the nation's top defense in the latest statistical ranking report released by the NCAA.
Upstate owns a .983 fielding percentage to lead the nation. The Spartans were second last week with a .982 percentage, but after not committing an error in four games, moved to .983 to overtake the top spot from Ole Miss. Ole Miss is now second at .981.
Upstate has now moved to the first place in two team categories this season. Two weeks ago, the Spartans owned the nation's top batting average at .358 and is still in the Top 10 at No. 10 while hitting at a .338 clip. Upstate has committed just 18 errors in 1,070 chances this season. The Spartans have been even better during A-Sun play, owning a .996 fielding percentage while committing just two errors on the year.
In addition to its fielding percentage and batting average standing in the nation, Upstate ranks in the Top 15 in six total statistical categories. The Spartans are 11th with a .841 winning percentage, 12th with 1.64 doubles per game, 14th with a .531 slugging percentage and 15th with 6.57 runs per game. Individually, Jamie Ujvari (Niceville, Fla.) ranks 21st in the nation with 4.6 hits allowed per game, 45th with 17 wins and 57th with a 1.82 ERA. She and Hannah Alexander (Lexington, N.C.) are tied for 44th in the nation with five shutouts. Shellie Robinson (DeLand, Fla.) ranks 39th with 0.32 doubles per game and 38th with 1.0 runs per game, while Ericka Harris (Piedmont, S.C.) is the 41st-toughest batter to strikeout in the nation.
Upstate continues to receive respect in the national polls. After vaulting into the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll at No. 24 two weeks ago, Upstate has suffered four losses in A-Sun play. However, the losses have not diminished the respect garnered by the Spartans as Upstate has received five votes in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 poll and three votes in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll.
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