MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama softball team welcomes Western Kentucky Wednesday afternoon for a midweek tilt.  First pitch versus the Hilltoppers is set for 4 p.m. at Jaguar Field.

Game Notes (PDF)

GAME: 25 | VS. WESTERN KENTUCKY
Wed., March 14 | 6 p.m.
Venue: Jaguar Field | Mobile, Ala.

GAME INFORMATION
Television: None
Radio: 99.5 The Jag FM
Live Stats: www.USAJaguars.com
Live Stream: www.USAJaguars.com
Twitter: @WeAreSouth_SB

SCOUTING THE JAGUARS
– South Alabama (13-11, 2-0 SBC) comes into the midweek outing after sweeping a doubleheader over the weekend over UT Arlington and extended the Jaguar win streak to three.
– Both wins over the Mavericks came in dramatic walk-off fashion as Abby Krzywiecki's pinch-hit RBI single gave USA a 1-0 win in the opener and Kamdyn Kvistad's solo home run in game two clinched a 3-2 victory.
– Brittani Reid continues to lead the club offensively with a .333 average.  B. Reid also has seven extra-base hits – doubles (3), triples (2) and home runs (2) – and her 21 hits and 12 runs scored are also most on the Jag roster.  B. Reid also has a .540 slugging percentage, which is just outside the top 10 of the league.
– Kaleigh Todd is second on the club with a .269 average and her six steals pace the Jags to go along with her seven runs scored.  After a slow start, Todd has picked it up as of late as she batted .600 (6-for-10) in her three contest last week.
– MC Nichols (.239) has scored nine runs, while Kristian Foster (.237) is tied with Lyric Cabral for tops on the team with 9 RBI.
– Both Todd and Foster have recorded 18 hits, which is second on the club.
– Kamdyn Kvistad's 13 walks rank fourth in the Sun Belt, while Katelyn Gruich is tied for fourth in the conference in hit-by-pitch.
– Devin Brown (9-6) continues her solid season as she leads the club in earned run average (2.18), complete games (9), strikeouts (95) and opponents' batting average (.208).
– Brown's 95 strikeouts rank 20th nationally entering play this week, and the senior is also second in the SBC in strikeouts looking (32), innings pitched (90.0) and wins.  She is also third in opposing batting average and fourth in ERA.
– Already the program's career strikeout leader, Brown (796) is also just four strike outs shy of becoming the first Jaguar to eclipse the 800-strikeout mark.
– Alexis Reid (2.93) also holds an ERA under three entering play this week, and the junior ranks in the top 20 of the Sun Belt in several statistical categories.  

SCOUTING THE HILLTOPPERS    
– Western Kentucky (17-7, 2-1 CUSA) comes into game versus the Jaguars after taking two of three over the weekend at Southern Mississippi.  The Hilltoppers won the first two meetings (11-3 [5 inns.] and 4-1), but fell 2-0 in 11 innings on Sunday.
– WKU will take on No. 8 LSU in Baton Rouge on Tuesday night before traveling to Mobile.
– South and WKU have two common opponents thus far this season as both have faced Southern Mississippi and Toledo.  The Jags are 1-0 against the Golden Eagles and 1-1 against the Rockets, while the Toppers are 2-1 against USM and 0-1 against the Toledo.
– Western Kentucky sports one of the top offenses statistically in the NCAA through the first five weeks of the season.  WKU enters play this week ranked fourth in doubles per game (1.88), 11th in triples per game (0.42), 23rd in on-base percentage (.405), 25th in scoring offense (5.96), 27th in slugging percentage (.491) and 36th in batting average (.312) nationally.
– As a team, WKU has 196 hits, 71 of which are for extra bases.  The Toppers enter the week with 45 doubles, 10 triples and 16 home runs to go along with their 123 RBI.
– Leading the offensive attack for the Toppers is Paige Carter with a .403 batting average.  Carter has 10 extra-base hits – five doubles, two triples and three home runs – and leads the club with 24 RBI.  She also has a .622 slugging percentage and a .488 on-base percentage.
– Six other players are hitting .300 or better and each have at least 20 hits.  Maddie Bowlds is just behind Carter with a .383 average.
– Eight players in the WKU lineup have scored 10 or more runs, led by Jordan Thomas (20).  Kelsey McGuffin and Kendall Smith have also scored 18 runs each, while Carter, Brittany Vaughn and Rebekah Engelhardt have scored 16 runs apiece.
– Thomas' nine doubles – 10th-most in the NCAA – lead the WKU roster and the freshman outfielder has walked 23 times.  As a team, the Hilltoppers have drawn 94 walks in their 24 games.
– Vaughn paces the team with four home runs, while Carter, Engelhardt and Smith have three apiece.  Vaughn has also driven in 18 runs.
– WKU has also been aggressive on the base paths as it is 38-for-44 in its stolen base attempts.  Carter and Vaughn are a perfect 8-for-8 in that category.
– Kelsey Aikey (5-2) and Shelby Nunn (11-4) each hold an ERA under three.  Aikey enters play at 2.29, while Nunn sits at 2.45.
– Nunn has struck out 62, while Aikey is holding opponents to a .175 batting average.

THE SERIES VS. WESTERN KENTUCKY    
– The meeting between South Alabama and Western Kentucky will mark the 26th in the all-time series between the two clubs.
– The midweek contest will also be the first between the two clubs since the 2014 season, the Hilltoppers' last season as a member of the Sun Belt.
– WKU last traveled to Mobile during the 2013 where the Toppers took 2-of-3.  
– Prior to the 9-5 win in the last meeting, eight of the previous nine meetings had been decided by two runs or less.  In all 16 of the 25 previous meetings in the series have been decided by two runs or less, including nine one-run decisions.

INSIDE THE SERIES VS. WESTERN KENTUCKY    
Series: 14-11 (H: 6-6 / A: 5-4 / N: 3-1)
Sun Belt Conference Games: 11-10 (H: 6-6 / A: 5-4 / N: 0-0)
Sun Belt Tournament Games: 3-1 (H: 0-0 / A: 0-0 / N: 3-1)
Extra-Inning Games: 0-0 (H: 0-0 / A: 0-0 / N: 0-0)
Run-Rule Games: 4-0 (H: 4-0 / A: 0-0 / N: 0-0)
NCAA Tournament Games: 0-0 (H: 0-0 / A: 0-0 / N: 0-0)
First Meeting: 4/27/07
Last Meeting: 4/27/14
Longest South Alabama Streak: 5 ('11-'12)
Longest Western Kentucky Streak: 5 ('07-'08)
Current Streak: 4 by South Alabama
Last 5 – 4-1
Last 10 – 7-3

LAST TIME THEY MET    
– The two clubs last meet during the 2014 season, the last as a Sun Belt member for Western Kentucky.
– The Jaguars swept all three meetings in the series in Bowling Green, winning 9-5, 6-4 and 3-2.
– In the series finale, South Alabama racked up nine runs on a season-high-tying 16 hits led by Blair Johnson who was 3-for-5 hitting with an RBI and pair of runs scored. Chloe Rathburn and Emily Messer each tallied a couple of hits and RBI apiece.
– The Jags jumped out to a 6-0 lead through the first four innings and at least one run in all but the first and seventh innings, with the big inning coming during a three-run third.  WKU scored three runs of its own the bottom of the seventh to narrow the final margin.

THE JAGUARS VS. CUSA    
– South Alabama holds an all-time record of 93-59-1 (.610) against current Conference USA members.
– The 25 meetings versus Western Kentucky are the most by the Jaguars against any CUSA member just ahead of former Sun Belt members Florida International (24), Florida Atlantic (24) and Middle Tennessee (23).
– Charlotte and Texas-El Paso are the only two teams from the league that the Jags have yet to face in program history.
–South Alabama has already faced two teams from the league, defeating UAB 6-4 in Birmingham on Feb. 28 and defeating Southern Miss in Hattiesburg, 10-4 on March 7.
– USA is also scheduled to host USM in Mobile on April 3.

THEY SAID IT
Head coach Becky Clark
-On what stood out to her about her team over the weekend: "I was really happy to see the fight we had in us.  I thought we showed a lot of composure and stayed within ourselves in both games, and then we gave ourselves a chance to win it at the end."
-On what she's looking for out of her club this week as they gear up for week two of conference play: "I would say consistency; that we have a consistent mental approach and that we continue to compete every pitch.  I thought we had great pitching over the weekend and made some good defensive plays, and obviously we had some timely hitting.  Those are things you always want to see out of your team."
-On facing Western Kentucky: "They come in to the game with a good record.  Coach Amy Tudor always does a good job putting a competitive team out on the field.  We know going into the game that we are going to have to play solid softball."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_Jags. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
    
Join the Bullpen Club, the softball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund.  Members have access to purchase parking passes and receive Jaguar Softball gear.  All donations to the Bullpen Club go directly to support the South Alabama softball program.  For more information on how you can join visit:  jaguarathleticfund.com/bullpenclub

—USA—