MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama softball team will host North Texas in its final Sun Belt Conference home series Thursday and Friday at Jaguar Field. The Jaguars are scheduled to play a single-game Thursday at 7 p.m. and conclude the series Friday with a doubleheader that is slated to begin at 2 p.m.
The series will be the final home stand for Jag seniors Carolina Mendoza (Guyaquil, Ecuador) and Jenny Stevens (Jackson, Ala.). USA will honor both seniors prior to Thursday night’s game. Mendoza and Stevens were both apart of the program’s inaugural recruiting class.
The Jags are 30-12 overall and 9-7 in league play, while the Mean Green are 19-26 on the year and 5-13 in SBC action.
USA enters the contest after defeating Southeastern Louisiana 10-2 Tuesday night at North Oak Park. Sophomore outfielder Kamee Vessey and Stevens paced the Jags at the plate with three hits apiece.
Right-hander Morgan Druhan (9-6) continues to lead the Jaguars in the circle fanning 128 batters in 101.1 innings of work. The Spanish Fort native is holding opposing batters to a .201 batting average.
Freshman Hannah Campbell (14-5) is 7-2 in league play and has struck out 40 batters in 53.1 innings pitched against SBC opponents.
USA has five batters hitting over .300 led by first baseman Meghan Collins. Collis has recorded a team-leading .393 average through 42 games this season. She has also tallied 29 runs and 42 hits including a team-leading nine doubles.
Sophomore Brittany Fowler carries a team-high 47 hits and 47 RBI into the series, and is batting .382 on the season.
North Texas holds a 5-3 all-time lead over the Jaguars. The Jags are 2-3 when playing the Mean Green at Jaguar Field and 1-2 when playing at Lovelace Stadium. USA has not faced UNT since 2009 when the Jaguars dropped two games to the Mean Green.
UNT enters the series after dropping a single-game to Texas State Tuesday on the road at Bobcat Field. Offensively, North Texas is led by Mallory Cantler who has recorded a team-leading .317 batting average 45 hits and 28 RBI. Brooke Foster has also notched 37 hits and 19 runs on the season.
Brittany Simmons (10-11) leads the Mean Green pitching staff with 74 strikeouts in 170 innings pitched. Ashley Kirk (8-14) has struck out 135 batters in 112 innings of work. She is also holding opposing batters to a .256 batting average.
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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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