BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— The Samford softball team will host Southern Conference-leading UNCG in a three-game SoCon series this weekend at the Samford Softball Field. The teams are scheduled to play a doubleheader Saturday at 1 p.m., and a single game Sunday, also at 1 p.m.
Prior to the start of Sunday's regular-season finale, seniors
Lexie Higgins and
Shelby Maze will be honored in Senior Day ceremonies.
Samford enters the weekend with a record of 17-34 overall and 6-7 in SoCon play. The Bulldogs dropped two-of-three games at Furman last weekend. Samford won the second game, 13-5, but dropped the first and third games by scores of 7-0 and 12-0.
UNCG is currently 41-10 overall and 11-2 in SoCon play. The Spartans won two-of-three games from North Carolina State in a non-conference series last weekend. UNCG took games one and three by scores of 5-4 and 24-2, but fell in game two, 8-1.
The Southern Conference Tournament will begin next Wednesday in Greensboro, N.C. Samford will be either the No. 4 or No. 5 seed in the event. UNCG will own either the No. 1 or No. 2 spot in the tournament.
For Samford this season, Maze leads the team with a .429 batting average with four doubles, three triples, 12 RBI and a team-high 36 runs scored.
Ashlyn Barnes is hitting .300 with two doubles, two triples and 15 RBI.
Kelsey Royalty is hitting .282 with nine doubles, two home runs and 20 RBI.
Whitney Hinton is tied for the team lead in home runs with seven and she leads the squad in RBI with 25.
In the circle,
McKenna Gillespie has a team-best 4.26 ERA, to go along with her 3-10 record.
Taylor DeCelles leads the team in wins with an 8-12 record and a 5.64 ERA, while
Annalyn Yantis has a mark of 4-11, to go along with her 4.79 ERA.
Samford and UNCG have met 33 previous times, with Samford holding a 17-16 lead in the series. Last season, Samford lost two of the three regular-season meetings, but the Bulldogs came back to eliminate the Spartans from the SoCon Tournament with a 3-1 win in the third round.
All three games can be seen live on the SoCon Digital Network. Live stats will also be available for all three contests. Links to follow the games are below.
GAME 1 LIVE STATS
GAME 2 LIVE STATS
GAME 3 LIVE STATS
SATURDAY LIVE VIDEO
SUNDAY LIVE VIDEO
