GAME NOTES: Samford Tournament (02.14-16.14)

TOURNAMENT HOMEPAGE

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University softball team faces off against a trio of opponents this weekend at the Samford Invitational Tournament. The Bulldogs opened the season last weekend at the Mercer Invitational and came away with a 4-1 record; SU fell just short in the championship game with a loss to Mercer University 5-1.

QUICK HITTERS

·  The Bulldogs first face Belmont University on Friday at 4 p.m.; this will be the 13th time the two teams have squared off. SU holds a 9-3 lead in the all-time series category and notchted a 5-4 victory the last time the two met on Feb. 24, 2013 at the Blues City Classic in Mephis, Tenn.

·  Samford will also face the University of Evansville on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.  This will mark only the fifth meeting between the Bulldogs and the Aces with SU never having defeated UE in competition, 0-4 all-time. The last meeting between the two resulted in a 1-3 defeat at the hands of Evansville.

·  SU is already familiar with its' third opponent, Eastern Kentucky University.  The Bulldogs trail in the all-time series 9-12, but cut the margin down on Feb. 7,  2014 after a 5-3 victory in eight innings at the Mercer Invitational.

·  Samford is off to its best start since 2009 when the Bulldogs won four out its first five games under then head coach Beanie Ketchum. Should SU collect a couple of wins this weekend it will be the best start in the program's 27 year history.

·  Sophomore Megan Dowdy is currently riding a five-game hit streak after this past weekend at the Mercer Invitational. The Fairhope, Ala. native is batting .333 on the season with two RBI.

ON DECK
·  Samford continues play at University Field on Wednesday, Feb. 19,  to host Austin Peay for a twin bill at 3 and 5 p.m.

"AA" BATTERY
Sophomore Abby Adams opened the season in the best possible way for the Bulldogs. The Hobart, Ind. native is tied a top the team leaderboard with six RBI and leads the team with two homeruns after going 5-of-16 (.312) at the plate this past weekend at the Mercer Invitational; she is also slugging .750.

HANSON'S HEAT
Junior Mollie Hanson picked up where she left off last season notching two victories in this past weekend's Mercer Invitational.  The Dothan, Ala. native has pitched a total of 16.2 innings with 15 strikeouts and only four walks through two starts.  Hanson currently holds a 3.24 ERA.

THE 9 HOLE
Freshman second baseman Abbie Miranda has proven her worth in the bottom of the batting order for head coach Mandy Burford.  The Vestavia Hills, Ala. native has provided production at the plate in some way every game this season. Miranda 4-of-12 (.333) at the plate has scored three runs, one RBI, a stolen base and a homerun to start the season.

Miranda's best outing came on Feb. 07, against Mercer where she went a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with a solo homerun in a 9-8 victory over the Bears.

GREY MATTERs
Freshman Grey Adams was introduced to the collegiate softball relm on Feb. 08,  against Florida A&M where she tossed a complete-game. The Fairhope, Ala. native only gave up four hits and two earned runs while striking out four and only two walks to pick up her first career victory; she currently holds a 2.16 ERA .

SOPHOMORE SENSATIONS
A trio of sophomores have picked up where they left off in their freshman campaigns. Caitlin Bice, Callie Brister and Hannah Taylor all have contributed to the Bulldogs in a significant way again this season.

Bice is currently 3-for-11 (.273) at the plate with a double, a walk, an RBI and a run scored through the first five games.

Taylor is 4-of-12 (.333) with a homerun, three RBI, three runs scored and has an OBP of .429 and is slugging .583.

Brister has the hottest bat out of the trio right now hitting 5-of-15 (.333) with six RBI, two runs scored, a walk, a double and a homerun. The Tuscaloosa, Ala. native's best game so far came on Feb. 07 in a 9-8 victory over Mecer where she went 3-for-4 at the plate with a homerun and a career-high four RBI.

DICKEY LOOKS TO REBOUND
Junior Madison Dickey wants to put the 2013 season behind her after a devastating season-ending knee injury  on Feb. 23 against SEMO.  The Hoover, Ala. native played in all 56 games her freshman season and started in the first 10 of her sophomore year before going down. Dickey's bat will bring a big boost to the Bulldogs lineup as she has a career .539 slugging percentage with 31 runs and 34 rbi, which 28 of both of those came during her freshman season.

BULLDOGS TABBED TO FINISH 6TH in SoCon

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Georgia Southern Eagles have been voted the preseason favorite to win the 2014 Southern Conference softball championships in voting conducted by the league's head coaches. UNCG sophomore Lindsay Thomas was named the preseason Player of the Year while Georgia Southern senior Sarah Purvis was named the preseason Pitcher of the Year for the second consecutive season.

Georgia Southern, last season's tournament champion, tallied seven first-place votes for a total of 49 points. Purvis, last season's SoCon Pitcher of the Year, was named first-team preseason all-conference, along with teammate Kourtny Thomas. The Eagles totaled three all-conference team selections.

UNCG earned 40 points to take second place. Thomas, who was last season's Freshman of the Year, was one of five Spartans selected to the preseason all-conference teams, which were the most of any team. Appalachian State, last year's regular-season champion, received the final first-place vote and 35 points to earn the No. 3 spot. The Mountaineers placed a pair of players on the all-conference squads.

Chattanooga was picked fourth, receiving 31 points, followed by Furman and Samford, who earned 24 and 20 points, respectively. Elon was picked to finished seventh with 14 points and Western Carolina earned 11 points to take the eighth spot.

Elon, Furman and Chattanooga each placed four players on the all-conference team, while Western Carolina and Samford each had one player make the preseason all-conference roster.

The season begins Thursday, Feb. 6, with Appalachian State competing in the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz.

The 2014 Southern Conference Softball Championship is scheduled for May 7-10 in Greensboro, N.C.

2014 SoCon Preseason Poll

Team (First Place Votes)	Points
1. Georgia Southern (7)	49
2. UNCG	40
3. Appalachian State (1)	35
4. Chattanooga	31
5. Furman	24
6. Samford	20
7. Elon	14
8. Western Carolina	11