MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama softball team will continue its current road swing with a three-game Sun Belt Conference series at ULM. Games one and two of the series are set for 6 p.m. starts on Thursday and Friday with the series finale scheduled for Saturday at noon.

Series Notes

GAMES 41-43 | ULM SERIES
Venue: ULM Softball Complex | Monroe, La.

SERIES SCHEDULE
Game 1: April 18, 2019 | 6 p.m.
Game 2: April 19, 2019 | 6 p.m.
Game 3: April 20, 2019 | 12 p.m.  

GAME INFORMATION
Television: None
Radio: 97.1 The Prowl FM
Live Stats: www.USAJaguars.com
Live Stream: www.USAJaguars.com
(In-Game Updates) Twitter: @WeAreSouth_SB

South Alabama JAGUARS
NFCA: -- | USA: -- | SA: -- | RPI: 121
Record: 14-26 (4-15 SBC)
Head Coach: Becky Clark (Mobile, '95)
Team Slash Line (AVG / SLG / OBP): .277 / .441 / .370

ULM WARHAWKS
NFCA: -- | USA: -- | SA: -- | RPI: 210
Record: 7-35 (3-14 SBC)
Head Coach: Molly Fichtner (Alabama, '14)
Team Slash Line (AVG / SLG / OBP): .239 / .317 / .319

SCOUTING THE JAGUARS    
– South Alabama (14-26, 4-15 SBC) comes into the series versus ULM fresh off picking up its first Sun Belt series win, taking two of three at Georgia State this past weekend.
– The two clubs split the first two games of the series with USA taking game one (14-8) and the Panthers winning game two (5-2). The Jaguars then picked up the series win with a 14-6 victory in game three on Saturday.
– South's offense carried them in the series as the club batted .410 during the three-game set, twice tying a season high in runs (14) and twice setting new season highs in hits with 16 in game one and 17 in game three.
– For the series, South scored 30 runs, recorded 41 hits; 14 for extra bases – doubles (9) and home runs (5) – and 65 total bases. The Jaguars also only struck out four times, while walking 11 times. USA recorded a season-high four home runs on Saturday in the series finale.
– The Jaguars have hit 39 home runs this season, which are fifth-most in a season in program history. Coming into the weekend, has homered in seven of its last nine, recording 11 home runs during that stretch.
– Eight Jaguars have hit three or more home runs this spring with Kennedy Cronan (.297) leading the club a team-high nine.
– The nine home runs by Cronan are tied for second-most by a Jag freshman and are also tied with three other former South Alabama players for fifth-most overall in a single season.
– Along with the nine home runs – which are tied for fifth-most in the league, Cronan also leads the team with seven multi-RBI outings and her seven multi-hit games are tied for third-most on the club.
– The Daphne, Ala., native has notched 68 total bases this season and her 28 runs driven in lead the team.
– Brittani Reid (.371) and Kamdyn Kvistad (.319) have hit six home runs each, while Katelyn Gruich (.262) has hit five.
– B. Reid leads the team at the plate with 46 hits, 32 runs scored and 13 multi-hit outings this season. She leads the club in all those categories, including batting average, and her 11 doubles are tied with freshman outfielder Victoria Ortiz for the team lead and third-most in the Sun Belt.
– B. Reid has also driven in 20 runs, and in addition to those offensive numbers, the junior outfielder has registered 77 total bases, a .621 slugging percentage and a .487 on-base percentage.
– She ranks among the conference leaders in on-base percentage (T-fifth), walks (25 – sixth), slugging percentage (eighth), hits (ninth) and runs scored (T-ninth).
– Ortiz has been solid at the plate as she is now second on the club with a .323 average. Along with her 11 doubles, her 10 multi-hit outings are second-most on the Jag roster.
– In conference play, Ortiz is batting .354 and nine of her 14 extra-base hits have come against SBC competition.

SCOUTING THE WARHAWKS     
– ULM (7-35, 3-14 SBC) enters into the conference series after falling 9-8 at Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday night. The Warhawks led 8-2 after five, but the Devilettes rallied back with seven unanswered including a three-run home run in the sixth to take the lead for good. The loss was the sixth straight for ULM.
– The Warhawks were also swept over the weekend dropping a pair of one-run, extra-inning decisions – 8-7 [9 inn.] and 3-2 [10 inn.] – and falling 11-7 in the series finale.
– ULM held a 7-1 advantage in the series opener, but allowed six runs in the bottom of the seventh to send the game into extras. UTA used a seven-run fourth in the final game of the series to go out in front.
– Sydney McKay has been outstanding at the plate as she is batting .404 this spring. She has 55 hits this spring, 26 runs scored, 62 total bases and five doubles. Her 19 RBI are second-most on the Warhawk roster.
– The senior ranks third in the Sun Belt in hits and batting average, while her 15 stolen bases rank sixth in the league.
– Jayden Mount (.301) leads the club with 12 extra-base hits. She has eight doubles, four home runs, 20 RBI and 23 runs scored.
– Mount has been even better in league play as her .379 batting average in those 17 games is the highest of any Warhawk.
– Seven of her 12 extra-base hits have come against SBC foes, including three of her four home runs.
– Freshman outfielder Korie Kreps is batting .357 in her 17 Sun Belt Conference outings this season.
– As a staff, ULM holds a 5.93 earned run average and opponents are batting .324 against them.

THE SERIES VS. ULM    
– South Alabama and Troy have met 41 previous times in the all-time series. The Jaguars hold a 34-7 advantage in the all-time series.
– The Jaguars have also taken 17 of the 20 series meetings in Monroe, including the last four and 10 of the last 11.
– Five games in the series have gone into extra innings with USA winning all five of those outings.
– 10 games in the series have been run-rule decisions with South holding an 8-2 advantage in those contest.
– South Alabama swept the series the last time the two teams meet on the Warhawks' home field back in 2017.
– South won 12-straight from 2011-14.

INSIDE THE SERIES VS. THE WARHAWKS    
Series: 34-7 (H: 12-4 / A: 17-3 / N: 5-0)
Sun Belt Conference Games: 28-7 (H: 11-4 / A: 17-3 / N: 0-0)
Sun Belt Tournament Games: 6-0 (H: 1-0 / A: 0-0 / N: 5-0)
Extra-Inning Games: 5-0 (H: 1-0 / A: 3-0 / N: 1-0)
Run-Rule Games: 8-2 (H: 3-0 / A: 4-2 / N: 1-0)
NCAA Tournament Games: 0-0 (H: 0-0 / A: 0-0 / N: 0-0)
First Meeting: 4/6/07
Last Meeting: 4/15/18
Longest South Alabama Streak: 12 ('11-'14)
Longest ULM Streak: 2 ('08)
Current Streak: 1 by South Alabama
Last 5 – 4-1
Last 10 – 9-1

THEY SAID IT
Head coach Becky Clark
- On what the team can take away from last weekend's series: "I think getting the job done on the road is important for us. Last weekend was a challenge for us with the travel issues on the front end and then playing the doubleheader on Saturday, but we pushed through it and competed our way through it. I think it is the same for us this weekend; we just need to compete and work together."
- On the offense's success at Georgia State: "We had a lot of quality at-bats throughout the weekend and there were a lot of places where we got the big hit when we needed it. In game one, we had a lot of gap shots and base hits that gave us the big innings. In game three, it was the home run ball that lifted us to the big inning. Going into this weekend we have an opportunity to keep that momentum going."

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—