MOBILE, AL.-The University of South Alabama softball team will travel to take on Western Kentucky on the road in its final Sun Belt Conference series over the weekend. The series opens Saturday afternoon with the first pitch of a doubleheader scheduled for 1 p.m., with the final contest set to start at noon Sunday at Western Kentucky Softball Field.
The Jaguars are 19-22 overall and 6-10 in league play. WKU has record of 27-23 for the season and is 6-13 in the conference.
USA enters the weekend after dropping two games against Florida International by scores of 5-4 and 10-5, before coming back to win 5-4 in the final match-up of the series.
"This is a big series for us and we are looking forward to it," Jaguar head coach Becky Clark said. "Coming from behind and beating FIU in game three last Sunday was a huge momentum boost for us. We have got to carry that confidence over into the weekend and play with that same passion."
The Jags are 3-8 all-time against the Hilltoppers. South Alabama lost the last meeting with Western, falling 3-1 in last year's Sun Belt Conference tournament in Denton, Texas, although the Jaguars opened the event by defeating the Toppers 6-1.
Senior pitcher Beth Pilgrim (14-11) continues to lead the Jaguars in the circle fanning 198 batters in 160 innings of work for the season. The Cantonment, Fla., native is 5-6 in league play and went the distance for the 16th time this season while recording nine strikeouts in Sundays' 5-4 victory over FIU.
Freshman Brittany Fowler has paced the Jags at the plate, hitting .357 with team-leading totals in runs (32), hits (45) and triples (three). Fowler was a combined 6-for-10 at the plate, with three of those hits doubles, in the series against FIU last weekend. In league play she is batting .353, and has recorded18 hits and crossed the plate 10 times.
Centerfielder Britany Campbell hit the first home run of her collegiate career Saturday night against the Golden Panthers. The freshman is batting .417 against SBC opponents and has four runs and ten hits.
Offensively, the Hill Toppers are led by Mallorie Sulaski (.353) and Brooke Reed (.306). Sulaski has scored11 runs and collected 35 hits this year, and Reed has crossed the plate 21 times while recording 34 hits. WKU is led in the circle by Kim Wagner (14-9) with a 1.97 ERA, as she has struck out 91 batters in 145.2 innings pitched.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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