April 5, 2007

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University softball team will begin a critical three-game Ohio Valley Conference series this weekend as the Bulldogs square off against the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks at Bulldog Field. The teams will play a doubleheader Friday beginning at 4 p.m., followed by the series finale at 1 p.m., Saturday.

Admission is free this weekend and fans not able to attend in person can follow the games live via GameTracker at www.SamfordSports.com.

Samford (19-14, 5-5 OVC) heads into the series with a full head of steam after picking up a 3-0 home win against Mississippi State on Wednesday.

With the Bulldogs' shutout victory versus Mississippi State, they extended their winning streak to three-consecutive games and improved to 6-4 at home this season. Samford has been victorious in five of its previous eight games and has only allowed three runs in the last four contests.

The Bulldogs' pitching staff owns a solid 2.76 earned run average this season and is only allowing 3.5 runs per game.

Tennessee-Martin (18-21, 4-5 OVC) is coming off a doubleheader sweep of Saint Louis on Wednesday.

The Skyhawks have recently seen a burst of power in their last five games as they have hit four home runs in the last week. Tennessee-Martin's Ashton Strode will be eager to face Samford after recording a perfect game against the Bulldogs last season.

Tennessee-Martin enters this weekend's series with five players batting over .300.

The Skyhawks are being led in hitting by true freshman Ashley Benbow who is batting .355 with 38 hits and a conference-leading six triples. Benbow is followed by Brittany Burkett (.333), Brittany Nash (.315), Savannah Roberts (.306) and Laura Roberts (.301).

The Bulldogs enter this weekend's series with a 4-5 all-time record versus Tennessee-Martin.

Samford's first meeting against the Skyhawks occurred during the 2004 campaign as Tennessee-Martin took 2-of-3 games in Martin, Tenn. In 2005, Samford won the annual OVC series with a pair of home wins. Last season, the Skyhawks took 2-of-3 games.

The Bulldogs have already hit 20 home runs this season and are being led by the school's all-time home run leader, Shelley Stanley.

Samford's senior rightfielder has powered seven of the Bulldogs' 20 deep flies and recently increased her career record to 32. Stanley has already surpassed the previous school record of 21 home runs and set the single-season mark last year with 10.

Samford's team record for home runs in a season is 29 and was set during the 2003 campaign.

Junior Emily Deaux is currently second on the team with four homers and is followed by seniors Jenna Dempski and Liz Pearse who have each hit three round-trippers this season. True freshman Amanda Barrs has collected two home runs and is being followed by sophomore Jessica Owens with one homer.

Owens, the fastest player on the team, hit her round-tripper on an inside-the-park home run against Alabama State during the 2007 Samford Bulldog Bash.

Samford is only nine victories shy of tying the school's all-time record for wins with 28. The Bulldogs have 19 games remaining this season and are on pace to reach the 28-win mark.

Samford's current school record total of 28 victories was achieved during the 2004 campaign when the Bulldogs completed the year with a 28-33 overall mark.

The Samford University softball team will look to extend its winning streak to five-consecutive games Friday as the Bulldogs face off against the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks in a doubleheader beginning at 4 p.m.