March 26, 2012
Full Release Notes 
SAMFORD HOSTS HILLTOPPERS FOR DOUBLE HEADER
Samford hosts a mid-week double header against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on Tuesday, March 27 beginning at 5 p.m. CT.
OPPONENT SCOUTING REPORT
Western Kentucky (19-12, 4-2 Sun Belt) - The Hilltoppers are on a bit of a losing skid, as they have lost five of their last six games. Their leading hitter is Mallorie Sulaski, who is hitting .307 with 23 hits in 75 at bats, while Katrina Metoyer leads the team in hits (27) and Amanda Thomas leads the team in doubles (9), home runs (7) and RBI (26). Their leader in the circle is Kim Wagner (9-4), who has pitched nine complete games in 12 starts, pitching 85.2 innings with 90 strikeouts.
LAST TIME OUT: SAMFORD TAKES TWO OUT OF THREE AT ELON
Samford won its first conference series of the season, taking the final two games of the three-game series at Elon last weekend. Three unearned runs in game one helped lift the Phoenix over the Bulldogs, 4-1, as a four-run fourth inning for Elon came back to haunt the Samford as they could not overcome the defecit in the remaining innings.
Samford bounced back in game two Saturday, as they stranded the potential game-tying runner on base in the bottom of the seventh to secure the 4-3 Bulldog victory. Shelby Scott earned her first win of the season, moving to 1-3, while Misha Aldridge earned her first save pitching 3.0 relief innings. Elon scored first, going up 1-0 in the third but Samford answered back in the fourth with a three-run rally, pulling ahead 3-1. Arica Dykes pushed the lead to 4-1 with her first career Samford home run, a solo shot in the fifth inning. Elon scored a run in both the fifth and sixth innings, drawing within one. In the bottom of the seventh, the potential tying run was at second base but a hard lineout to Tessa Frates at third ended the game in Samford's favor.
In Sunday's rubber match, Samford outlasted Elon in a rain-delayed, extra inning game that the Bulldogs eventually won 6-2 in nine innings. The game was delayed four hours from the original start time due to poor field conditions caused by overnight storms, forcing both teams to play at an alternate site. Samford scored first, as a two-run double by Abby Adams in the third inning put Samford up 2-0. The Phoenix chipped away at the lead, eventually tying the game in the sixth inning. Neither team scored in the seventh or eighth innings but the Bulldog offense came alive in the ninth, plating four runs. Arica Dykes got the scoring started, beating out an infield single to put Samford up 3-2. A two-run double by Julianne Surane and a fielding error by Elon gave Samford some insurance runs, as they moved up 6-2, which proved final.
BACKS AGAINST THE WALL
Samford's extra-inning win over Elon on Sunday was a great win, even more so considering how Samford's runs were scored. All six of the Bulldogs' runs in the game were scored with two outs in the inning. Samford was 3-13 at the plate with two outs, but all three of those hits scored runs.
BIG INNING BULLDOGS
Samford's six-run output in the win versus Elon was the team's highest-scoring output since the 13-1 victory over Columbia, and is tied for their third-highest output all season. Their four-run ninth inning is only the fifth time this season the Bulldogs have scored four or more runs in one inning. Two of those five games were in the last week, with Sunday's win over Elon and last Tuesday's win over Memphis in game two of a double-header. The Bulldogs are 5-0 this season when they score four or more runs in one inning.
WEATHER OUTLOOK: TUESDAY, MARCH 27
Birmingham, Ala.
Temperatures in the high 70s
Sunny and Mostly Clear
High: 84, Low: 59
9 mph wind
Precipitation: 0 percent
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs host the UNCG Spartans for a three-game series, beginning with a double-header on Saturday, March 31 at 1 p.m. CT. The series concludes on Sunday, April 1 at 1 p.m.
