Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

It is playoff time. The stage is set, the intensity will be turned up in Connecticut tomorrow. Just hours remain before the New England Riptide begin their pursuit of a championship Saturday afternoon.

The NPF playoffs are single-elimination and the margin for error is miniscule. The Riptide hope pitching, defense, and a balanced lineup will lead to victory.

Match-up: New England v. Chicago
Jocelyn Forest will most likely be in the circle for the Tide, looking to shutdown the defending champion Chicago Bandits.

Bandits slugger Jamie Clark is the top RBI producer in the NPF and finished fifth in home runs with five. She also hit at a clip of .317 this season. Chicago also sports the runner-up to the batting title, Steffan Anne (.400).

Don’t be fooled by their sluggers. Riptide head coach Sharon Drysdale says one of the main things her squad needs to be aware of is that the Bandits like to play a lot of the short game, moving runners over, stealing bases, and generally putting pressure on the players in the field by making the defense adjust to them.

Be cautious of numbers
Chicago comes in with a record of 30-12 (.714), but as Drysdale pointed out this week, comparing teams on paper is extremely difficult and downright misleading because not everything is equal. For example, Chicago has less games (26) against professional teams than any other squad in the NPF. The next lowest total being 32 from Connecticut. Philadelphia and Akron played 38 professional games, New England played 34.

In the other semi-final
Akron Racers - The Racers hit the playoffs on fire, going 9-2 in the month of August. That stretch was highlighted by five consecutive wins against the New England and the Chicago. Oli Keohohou, Crystl Bustos, Kristen Butler, Caitlin Benyi, and Iyhia McMichael have belted a combined 27 home runs over the course of the season.

Connecticut Brakettes - Connecticut has an astonishingly potent lineup of it‘s own led by former Riptide shortstop Jessica Merchant. With a league-high 12 homers to go with 32 RBI (second in NPF) and a .354 batting average. Merchant has been the big bopper in a lineup of power hitters including Kelly Kretschman, the league’s leading hitter (.410) and a total of four players with three home runs or more.

Pitchers Sarah Pauly (Conn.) and Radara McHugh (Akron) each tied with New England’s Forest for the league lead in wins with 15.

Any softball handicappers out there? Anyone with bold predictions? What are the chances the Riptide come the closest of any pro team in the Boston area to winning a championship?



RIPTIDE QUICK FACTS
2006 Record: 24-17 (fourth place in NPF)
Leaders
Batting: Lyndsey Angus, .346 (4th in NPF)
Runs batted in (RBI): Angus/Tarrah Beyster, 23 (fifth in NPF)
Hits: Lindy Winkler, 42
Home runs: Beyster, 4
Stolen bases: Winkler, 8
Runs scored: Jackie Pasquerella, 19
Wins: Jocelyn Forest, 15 (tied for 1st in NPF)
Strikeouts: Forest, 107 (3rd in NPF)
Earned run Average (ERA): Forest, 1.32 (3rd in NPF)

Against playoff teams in 2006
Against Chicago Bandits: 1-2
Against Connecticut Brakettes: 3-1
Against Akron Racers: 2-6