FULL GAME NOTES (PDF)

SOCON TOURNAMENT BRACKET (PDF)

SOFTBALL SET FOR SOCON TOURNAMENT
This week, Samford softball will head to Greensboro, N.C., and the campus of UNCG for the 2013 SoCon Softball Tournament.  The Bulldogs will open action on Wednesday, May 8 at 9 a.m. ET against Elon with the winner advancing to face top-seeded Appalachian State at approximately 5 p.m. the same day.

OPPONENT SCOUTING REPORT
Elon (21-30, 8-14 SoCon) - The Phoenix finished the season on a strong note, winning five-straight games including a sweep over Chattanooga last weekend.  Earlier this season, Samford took two out of three games from Elon, including a five-inning no hitter from Shelby Scott as the Bulldogs went on to win 10-0.  Outfielders Tomeka Watson and Carleigh Nester both earned spots on the All-SoCon First Team, with Watson leading the SoCon with a slash line of .414/.506/.763 and Nester ranking among the top-five in hits (59), doubles (14) and home runs (11).  The pitching staff has struggled for most of the season, though sophomore Chelsea White was named the SoCon Pitcher of the Week after going 3-0 last week with a 1.87 ERA over 15.0 innings of work.

THE REST OF THE FIELD
Appalachian State holds the top seed in the touranment after finishing with a 17-7 conference record.  The College of Charleston narrowly earned a second seed by finishing one game ahead of defending champion Georgia Southern.  UNCG and its conference-leading offense holds the No. 4 seed as they will open play against Furman and their conference-leading 2.33 team ERA.  Chattanooga finished with an identical 10-11 conference record to Furman, but the Paladins won the regular season series over Chattanooga to push the Mocs down to No. 6 seed.  Western Carolina avoided the play-in game by finishing with a 9-15 SoCon record.

ALL-TIME AT THE SOCON TOURNAMENT
Since joining the SoCon in 2009, Samford holds a 4-6 all-time record in postseason play.  The furthest Samford advanced in the tournament was during the 2009 season, when the Bulldogs won two games before falling to Chattanooga and Georgia Southern to be eliminated.  Last season, Samford became the first-ever No. 9 seed to win the play-in game when they defeated Furman, 3-2.  This year will be the first time that Samford and Elon have met during the SoCon Tournament.

DOWDY NAMED TO SOCON ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Samford outfielder Megan Dowdy was one of one of ten SoCon freshmen to be named to the 2013 SoCon All-Freshman team, announced by the conference office Monday.
 
Dowdy started in 43 of Samford's 47 games this season, earning her first start at USF on Feb. 9.  Due to offseason labrum surgery, she was limited to a designated player role for the first month of the season before finally making her first defensive start on March 9 in a doubleheader at UNCG.
 
Dowdy is second on the team with a .261 batting average and is tied for the team lead with 36 hits.  As the team's primary leadoff hitter, she holds a .301 on-base percentage and has been one of the toughest Bulldogs to strike out, with only nine Ks in 138 at-bats.  Her marks are even better in SoCon play, holding a .313 average against conference opponents with a team-leading 21 hits.
 
The freshman from Fairhope, Ala., had eight multi-hit games this season, including three-hit performances against the College of Charleston (April 6) and Furman (May 4).  From March 23 through March 30, Dowdy recorded at least one hit in six-straight games, which is the longest hitting streak for any Bulldog this season.  On April 20, she hit the first ever triple at Samford Softball Field in a 10-0 win over Elon and it was one of only three triples Samford earned all year.

SAMFORD CLOSES OUT REGULAR SEASON FACING FURMAN
Samford and Furman closed out the final weekend of the regular by splitting the Saturday doubleheader as the series came down to extra innings in game three.

Samford won the opening game, 5-3, as a three-run sixth inning ultimately made the difference with the Bulldogs holding off a seventh-inning rally to earn the win.  Furman bounced back in game two, with an Ambree Muller grand slam leading the Paladins to a 6-1 victory.

Down to their final out in Sunday's series rubber match trailing by one, Kayla Shaffer hit a clutch double to score Abby Adams from first and tie the game.  Shaffer advanced to third on the throw but was left stranded 60 feet away as a groundout sent it to extra innings.  A two-out Furman RBI double in the top of the eighth would give the visitors the lead and the Bulldogs would go down in order in the bottom-half of the inning as they fell, 4-3.

WEEKLY WEATHER OUTLOOK
Greensboro, N.C.
Wednesday, May 8:
Scattered Thunderstorms, High: 69, Low: 56
Thursday, May 9:
Cloudy, High: 77, Low: 59
Friday, May 10:
Cloudy, High: 81, Low: 63
Saturday, May 11:
Scattered Thunderstorms, High: 73, Low: 62