April 27, 2010
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford softball team will meet up with an old rival in Jacksonville State Wednesday at University Field in Jacksonville, Ala. The meeting will be the first between the two teams since Samford left the Ohio Valley Conference to join the Southern Conference in 2009.
Jacksonville State holds a 30-18 lead in the all-time series against Samford. The last time the Bulldogs and Gamecocks played against one another was in the 2008 OVC Tournament when JSU defeated Samford, 5-3. The Bulldogs have lost four straight to the Gamecocks, with their last win dating back to 2007 when Samford walked away with an 8-6 win.
Samford (14-29, 5-13 SoCon) goes into Wednesday's contest after winning one of a three-game series at Elon last weekend. The Bulldogs dropped the first game of a Saturday doubleheader, 5-3, before bouncing back to win the second one, 2-1. However, Elon would win the Sunday game, 8-4, to take the series win.
The Bulldogs are still led by redshirt freshman Alex Adams who boasts a .266 average at the plate along with team highs in doubles (8), home runs (6) and RBI (23). However, junior Aaren Fisher had an impressive week last week as both hits recorded by her were home runs. She also continues to lead the team in stolen bases with 16, just four shy of tying Jessica Owens' 2008 record.
Senior right-handed pitcher Stephanie Royall leads all active pitchers with a 2.79 ERA and a 7-8 record in the circle. She has pitched five complete games including three shutouts and has recorded 44 strikeouts on the season in 95.1 innings. Junior reliever Kayla Burris boasts a 3.50 ERA in 26 innings and has struck out 16 batters on the year. She has won one game and lost one game but has earned two saves within the last two weeks.
Jacksonville State (23-16, 10-6 OVC) will face Auburn on Tuesday before hosting Samford on Wednesday. The Gamecocks are on a five-game winning streak and have won 10 of their last 12 games. Most recently, JSU swept Eastern Kentucky in league play before having last weekend's road series with Southeast Missouri State washed out by rain.
The Gamecocks are lead by three players who are batting over. 300. Hillary Downs leads the team with a .372 average at the plate while leading in hits with 45 and total bases with 25. She is one of three JSU players to amass seven home runs so far on the season and boasts a .612 slugging percentage. Chrissy O'Neal is just behind with a .336 batting average. She is one of three players to start all 39 games for the Gamecocks and the only one of those three hitting over .300.
AshleyEliasson leads the JSU pitching staff with a 16-7 record and a 2.45 ERA. She has seen the most action for the Gamecocks, pitching 165.2 innings while recording 98 strikeouts. She has also pitched 16 complete games including three shutouts. Hillary Phillips boasts a 3.07 ERA and 7-9 record in the circle. She has earned both saves for the Gamecocks this season and boasts 76 strikeouts in 91.1 innings of play.
Fans can follow the action via live stats through links at the JSU softball schedule page at www.jsugamecocksports.com. A full recap and stats will be posted on www.samfordsports.com upon the completion of the game.
