Cullowhee, N.C. – For the final time in the 2025 regular season, Western Carolina softball returns to the friendly confines of the Catamount Softball Complex for a three-game series with chromatic rival Furman beginning on Saturday afternoon. Saturday's doubleheader is slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch with a 1 p.m. start on Sunday afternoon.
Before Sunday's first pitch of the home finale, the Catamounts will recognize the 2025 senior class of Tessa Juett, Imara Harrell, Mattie Mentel, Makenzie Martin, and Natalie Henry for their contributions to the WCU Softball program over the past few years.
All three games are slated for ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live stats provided at CatamountSports.com.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHAT: Furman (14-31, 4-11 SoCon) vs. Western Carolina (20-27, 4-11 SoCon)
WHERE: Catamount Softball Complex (Cullowhee, N.C.)
WHEN: Saturday, April 26 – 1 p.m. (DH) | Sunday, April 27 – 1 p.m.
LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats (All 3 Games)
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+ (Sat. G1) | ESPN+ (Sat. G2) | ESPN+ (Sun.)
FOLLOW THE ACTION
TWITTER: @CatamountSB
GAME NOTES
About Western Carolina:
The Catamounts return to action a week off after coming out on the wrong end of a three-game sweep to SoCon foe Mercer. Freshman Courtney Marks led the team with a .500 (4-for-8) average with a pair of walks and three stolen bases. Sophomore Lily Bell added four hits, including her eighth double and a pair of runs with a stolen base. Sophomore Maya McPherson tallied two doubles and four RBIs.
Bell ranks among the nation's leaders in hits, batting average, and stolen bases. She enters the weekend pacing the SoCon in batting average (.444), base hits (64), and on-base percentage (.515), while she is tied for first in the league with 26 stolen bases. Bell has hits in 15 of the last 19 games with a team-high 23 multi-hit games while reaching base safely in 42 of the team's 47 seasonal games. After setting the program's career record for stolen bases, Bell is also closing in on more milestones, just nine hits away from surpassing her benchmark for hits in a season, looking to surpass her previous record last season with 72 in her debut season.
Infielder Maya McPherson starts the weekend fifth in the league in runs batted in (43), leads the squad with 12 doubles, and is second on the team with six home runs. McPherson's 12 doubles put her in a tie for sixth in the league entering play on Saturday. She begins the weekend tied for seventh in the SoCon in doubles and is tied for the single-season program record in sacrifice flies with five. Sophomore Sydney Dirks has a team-best eight home runs after her most recent homer against Chattanooga. She is tied for seventh in the league in long balls.
Freshman Amanda Fulton is tied for third in the SoCon with 11 complete games and is tied for seventh with nine victories. She also begins the weekend in sixth in strikeouts per seven innings (6.3), fifth in walks allowed per seven innings, and seventh in overall strikeouts (88). Juett is fourth in the league in strikeouts per seven innings (6.3), fifth in complete games (10), and third in total strikeouts (108).
Bell is second in the league with 20 hits in SoCon play, boasting a .435 batting average, third in the conference. She's also tied for third in runs scored with 13 and is ranked second in on-base percentage at .509. The Woodstock, Ga. native is also third in stolen bases with eight over the first five series in SoCon play. McPherson is tied for third in SoCon play with five doubles, and Butler is tied for sixth with four two-baggers. WCU is one of only three teams in SoCon play with three or more players to have multiple league big flies, as McPherson, Dirks, and Becka Wonsick all have two homers in league action.
Juett is fourth in league play with 37 strikeouts, and Fulton sits sixth with 29 strikeouts. Fulton is third in the SoCon with 14 strikeout looking's in her 35 innings of work in conference play.
Scouting the Opposition – Furman Paladins:
Furman (14-31, 4-11) enters the weekend after dropping 2-of-3 to Samford last time out, with a 6-1 win by the Paladins spoiled the Bulldogs chance at the sweep. Last Saturday's win ended a nine-game skid for Furman. WCU and Furman have eight common opponents in 2025: USC Upstate, Gardner-Webb, Presbyterian, Wofford, ETSU, Queens, Chattanooga, and Samford. WCU is 10-11 against these opponents, and Furman is 6-14 against the same opposition.
Senior outfielder Caitlin Goldwait paces the Furman offense with a .333 batting average with 42 hits, including eight doubles and 24 runs scored and she's walked 17 times. Junior catcher/designated player Sylvia Burroughs holds a .331 average with 42 hits, including 14 doubles, tied for second in the SoCon. Burroughs is also tied for fifth in the SoCon with 23 walks and has tagged a team-high five homers. Sophomore infielder Ansley Chiang is tied for fourth in the nation with 15 sacrifice bunts.
Furman is led in the circle by senior Emme Buzhardt (5-10) with a team-best 3.51 ERA and six complete games. Buzhardt has tallied 59 strikeouts to lead Furman over 97.2 innings while also tallying a team-best three saves. Sophomore Angelina Ricciardi holds a 6-8 record with a 4.02 ERA. Buzhardt is 10th in the league in strikeouts and is 12th in earned run average in the SoCon.
Furman was picked seventh in the eight-team SoCon Preseason Poll under the direction of fourth-year head coach Stacey Johnson-Whitfield. Goldwait and Burroughs were named to the league's preseason all-conference team, with Goldwait garnering first-team honors and Burroughs receiving second-team recognition.
Series History vs Furman:
Furman holds a 44-20 edge in the all-time series, as Western Carolina broke a 10-game skid to the Paladins in last year's SoCon tournament with an 8-6 decision in the opening round. The win in last year's tournament was the first victory over the chromatic rival since May 2, 2021, when WCU won 5-1 in Cullowhee. Furman holds a 17-12 edge in the series in games contested in Cullowhee, as Furman claimed the sweep in 2023 from WCU.
In 2024, Tate Stewman tallied six hits and a pair of RBIs as Lily Bell picked up four hits, four runs, and three stolen bases. Taylor Waitley and Sydney Dirks both doubled, while Dirks, Wonsick, and Juett went deep in the four matchups with the Paladins. In the tournament win, Makenzie Martin dialed up 5.1 innings of work, allowing three hits and one earned run to claim the win in the circle for WCU.
On Deck for Western Carolina:
Following the home finale on Sunday in Cullowhee, the Catamounts finish off the 2025 regular season with a trip to Greensboro to battle UNCG beginning on Saturday, May 3. The Catamounts and Spartans open the series with a 1 p.m. doubleheader before a 1 p.m. regular-season finale on Sunday at the UNCG Softball Stadium.
All three games are slated for ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live stats provided at CatamountSports.com.
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