Cullowhee, N.C. – Entering the week winners of 10 of its last 12 games overall, the Western Carolina softball team begins a season-long 13-game homestand on Tuesday with a visit from in-state foe North Carolina Central in a nonconference doubleheader. The Catamounts and Eagles are set for a 2 p.m. first pitch of game one from the Catamount Softball Complex, with live stats available through a link on CatamountSports.com.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHAT: N.C. Central (1-19) vs Western Carolina (12-11)
WHERE: Catamount Softball Complex (Cullowhee, N.C.)
WHEN: Tuesday, March 11 - 2 p.m. (Doubleheader)
LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats (Both Games)
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TWITTER: @CatamountSB
About the Catamounts:
The Catamounts return home after a successful 5-2 week on the road in the Palmetto State, splitting two against Presbyterian before taking four of five wins in the Eagle Classic hosted by Winthrop in Rock Hill. WCU was led by sophomore Lily Bell, who hit 11-of-21 (.524) for the week with four doubles and seven stolen bases. She garnered SoCon Softball Player of the Week honors on Monday, the first of her career. Senior Natalie Henry added a 6-of-16 (.375) performance as sophomore Sydney Dirks went 8-of-23 (.348) with three doubles, three home runs, and eight RBIs, which led the offensive attack.
Bell and Maya McPherson garnered back-to-back weekly honors to mark the first since April 3 and 10, 2017, when Madison Armstrong and Hunter Gibbons claimed consecutive weekly awards.
In the circle, senior Tessa Juett led the way with a 1.17 ERA in 18 innings with 22 strikeouts and a 2-1 record over four outings. Freshman Amanda Fulton tossed three more complete games with three victories and 18 strikeouts over 21 innings.
A Woodstock, Ga. native, Bell finished in a three-way tie for the top spot in the nation last week with her seven stolen bases and was tied for second in the NCAA for hits with 11. Bell begins the week second in the SoCon in batting average (.478) while ranking in the top spot in stolen bases (14). She also ranks second in on-base percentage (.550) as she's first in the league in hits (32). Bell carries an 18-game reached base streak into Tuesday's doubleheader. She's recorded hits in 17 games including 11 multi-hit games. She also has reached base in 21 of 22 games for WCU to begin the 2025 campaign.
McPherson starts Tuesday's action first in the league in runs batted in (27) and has 24 RBIs in her last 14 games, including six against N.C. A&T last week in home action.
Fulton is third in the league with six shutouts, sitting in sole possession of third as she's tallied five straight complete games with 36 strikeouts in those five CGs. She also begins the midweek tilt in fourth in strikeouts per seven innings (6.6), tied for second in walks allowed per seven innings (1.52), tied for third in wins (6), fourth in strikeouts (52), and first in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.33). Juett is third in the league in strikeouts per seven innings (7.2) and sixth in strikeouts (43).
Following four complete games in Rock Hill, WCU is tied for second in the league with 14 complete games, even with Wofford (14) and just behind Chattanooga (15). The Catamounts have 10 complete games in the last 12 contests.
Scouting the Opposition – NC Central Eagles:
NC Central (1-19) comes to Cullowhee off a challenging four-game weekend that saw it drop all four games to UNCG & Michigan in Greensboro. The Eagles have lost their last 15 games with the lone victory coming in a 4-2 triumph over Southern on February 14. The Eagles have been road warriors to begin 2025 with 12 true road games and eight neutral site contests to open the season.
Junior infielder Makiya Graves leads the Eagles with a .282 average. She's tallied two extra-base hits with a double and a triple and has scored three runs with four RBIs. Sophomore outfielder Tyler Suttles sits at a .265 mark with five runs scored, two triples, and four stolen bases. Sophomore outfielder Kendall Smith has a .387 average in limited time for NCCU (12-of-31) as she's tallied five doubles and scored six runs. Sophomore infielder Samaria Jackson has a pair of homers for the Eagles to lead the way.
Senior Jaden Davis leads the squad in the circle with 30 strikeouts over a team-high 46.2 innings as she carries a 7.35 ERA into play on Tuesday, carrying a 1-8 record. Davis and freshman Elana Krupey have pitched 10+ times in 2025 to pace the Eagles pitching staff.
N.C. Central was tabbed fourth in the eight-team MEAC preseason poll, led by Tyler Suttles, Jaden Davis, Takia Nichols, and Makiya Graves, who was named to the league's two teams for preseason all-conference honors. The Eagles are under the direction of Now-Allah James, who is in his first season with NCCU after spending 10 seasons at Lehman and NYU before making his way to Durham.
Series History:
WCU holds a commanding 12-2 lead in the all-time series with NCCU ahead of Tuesday's action in Cullowhee. The Catamounts won a pair of games in Cary in 2024 over the Eagles, 9-1 and 7-5. WCU has won each of the past three meetings in the series. WCU is 4-1 in the series in games held in Cullowhee.
In the 2024 wins, Mattie Mentel led the way with six hits, posting multi-hit games in two of the three wins. Lily Bell and Sydney Dirks both had five hits with Bell swiping six bases. In the circle, Tessa Juett was strong, going 3-0 with a 2.33 ERA as she tallied 16 strikeouts in 15 innings with a pair of complete games and a relief outing that saw her tally six strikeouts.
On Deck for Western Carolina:
Following Tuesday's doubleheader in Cullowhee, the Catamounts are off for a week, not returning to action until Tuesday, March 18. WCU plays a pair of nonconference doubleheaders beginning with in-state foe Gardner-Webb on Tuesday and then playing host to Tulsa the next afternoon. Tuesday's doubleheader with the Runnin' Bulldogs is slated for a 3 p.m. start, followed by a 2 p.m. first pitch against the Golden Hurricane. All four games will have live stats available through links on CatamountSports.com.
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