SPARTANBURG, S.C. – For the first time in 690 days the USC Upstate softball team will be competing in a Big South regular season game when they travel down Charleston, S.C. on Friday evening for a three game series with Charleston Southern.
 
USC Upstate and Charleston Southern are meeting for the 17^th time in Division I history on Friday afternoon. The Spartans hold a commanding 14-2 advantage in the series dating back to the 2009 season. Since joining the Big South Conference during the 2018-19 academic year, the Spartans are 2-1 against the Buccaneers. USC Upstate has dominated the series on the road, holding a 9-2 record against the Buccaneers in Charleston. However, the Buccaneers won the last meeting 5-4 on a walk-off hit and snapped a 14-game Spartan winning streak.
 
USC Upstate is 8-4 overall on the season and is coming off a 2-3 weekend at the Jacksonville/UNF Spring Break Challenge. The Spartans picked up a pair of wins against Florida A&M and Georgia State in the tournament. Sarah Price (Landrum, S.C.) had a career night against the Rattlers as she tied the school record for RBI's in a game with six. Price also recorded her third four-hit performance of her career and scored four runs in the victory.
 
Bre Cooper (Massillon, Ohio) earned Big South Freshman of the Week honors for her performance on the field over the weekend. Cooper led the Spartans offense with a .529 batting average and recorded nine total hits and seven total runs. Against Florida A&M, Cooper went 3-for-3 at the plate with four runs scored. Cooper, is the third Spartan this season to earn Big South Freshman of the Week honors, Cassie Norris (Powell, Tenn.) and Celeste Delorenzo (Ormond Beach, Fla.) also earned the recognition earlier this season.
 
A few other players to watch for the Spartans is Marisa Soterakis (Miramar, Fla.) is leading the team with a .400 batting average and has an impressive .595 on-base percentage this season. Starting centerfielder Savannah Grigsby (Elgin, S.C.) is batting .361 and is tied for the team lead with 13 hits on the season. In the circle Mallie Brown (Stockbridge, Ga.) and Savannah Brown (Mint Hill, N.C.) still anchor the Spartans pitching rotation. The two have combined to strikeout 82 batters this season in 64.2 innings of work.
 
Charleston Southern has had a difficult time getting in games this season. The Buccaneers are just 1-3 on the season, with their lone win coming against Cleveland State on February 20^th. Charleston Southern has had 10 games consecutive games canceled since their last game against Eastern Kentucky on February 21^st.  
 
Emily Crosby and Ashley Meckley lead the Buccaneer offense this season. Crosby is batting .538 on the season and has a team best 7 hits and 15 total bases. Crosby is also tied for the team lead in homeruns with two on the season. Meckley is second on the team with a .462 batting average and leads the team with a pair of doubles and five RBI's on the year. Meckley is tied with Crosby for the team lead in homeruns with two.  
 
In the circle, Holly Clark leads the Buccaneers pitching staff with a 3.87 era in three appearances this season. Alyssa Heinrich holds the lowest ERA among the group with a 2.33, while Annah Junge has made the most starts with two this season.
 
Attendance Policies
Charleston Southern will not allow visiting fans this season. Spartan fans can follow along with livestats located on upstatespartans.com.
 
JOIN UP
Make a difference in the lives of USC Upstate student-athletes!  Donate to the USC Upstate U Club today!
 
Keep UP with the Spartans
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics
Twitter: @UpstateSoftball
Instagram: @upstatesoftball
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans