SPARTANBURG, S.C. - After spending some time in Alabama, the USC Upstate softball program will pause tournament play to take on the No. 22 ranked South Carolina Gamecocks on Wednesday night in Columbia. The Spartans will then head to Jacksonville to play in the Jacksonville Spring Break Tournament, the final tournament before Big South play, Friday through Sunday.
THIS WEEK'S MATCH UPS
*March 6 | vs. South Carolina | 6:00 p.m.
(!) March 8 | vs. Tarleton State | 2:00 p.m.
(!) March 8 | vs. North Florida | 7:00 p.m.
(!) March 9 | vs. Jacksonville | 7:00 p.m.
(!) March 10 | vs North Florida | 11:30 a.m.
TV: SECN+ | Via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN App (televised games noted with an *)
Location: All games are set to take place at Jane B. Moore Field.
(!) Live stats Only
*Note all games are subject to change due to inclement weather
LiveStats will be available for all games and a recap following the day's action can be found at upstatespartans.com.
Players to Watch:
USC Upstate: The Spartans are coming off a 1-2 record after playing in the Jane B. Moore Memorial Tournament hosted by #15 Auburn. After a first game cancellation, the Spartans downed North Texas 4-0 before falling twice to Auburn but led the Tigers in both games. Denver Lauer leads the Spartans with 12 runs, 18 hits, two doubles, four homeruns (one grand slam), 20 RBI, 32 total bases, and 12 stolen bases. Lauer sits with a .340 batting average, .410 on base percentage, and .604 slugging percentage. Denver Lauer, Cassie Norris, and Abigail Pippen all had homeruns against the ranked Tigers of Auburn this past weekend. Sierra Maness leads the Spartans' pitching staff with a 1.81 ERA, nine game starts, seven complete games thrown, 58.0 innings pitched, and 58 strikeouts.
No. 22 South Carolina: The Gamecocks enter Wednesday night's game against the Spartans with an 18-2 overall record after most recently finishing the Knights Classic with a 4-0 record. Riley Blampied leads South Carolina with 20 runs, 27 hits, four doubles, one triple, two homeruns, 18 RBI, 39 total bases and two stolen bases. Blampied sits with a .403 batting average, .453 on base percentage, and a .582 slugging percentage.
Tarleton State: The Texans start their season with an 11-11 overall record and will begin the UNF Softball Tournament Friday against the Spartans. Tarleton State most recently played in the Longhorn Invitational hosted by #2 Texas and finished with a 1-4 record. Kelci Hill leads the Texans with 22 runs, 34 hits, nine doubles, three triples, two homeruns, 19 RBI, 55 total bases, and one stolen base. Hill sits with a .472 batting average, .500 on base percentage, and a .764 slugging percentage.
North Florida: The Ospreys sit with an 11-8 overall record after going 2-3 at the ASU Invitational last weekend. Hadlee Reichert leads North Florida with 12 runs, 21 hits, five doubles, six RBI, 26 total bases, and two stolen bases. Reichert sits with a .396 batting average, .475 on base percentage, and a .491 slugging percentage.
Jacksonville: The Dolphins start the UNF Tournament with a 7-11 overall record after most recently downing #12 Florida State 6-5 on the road. Jacksonville is led by Allison Bratek with 17 runs, 17 hits, six doubles, two homeruns, eight RBI, 29 total bases, and three stolen bases. Bratek sits with a .347 batting average, .450 on base percentage, and a .592 slugging percentage.
UP NEXT FOR THE SPARTANS
Following this week's games, Upstate will begin Big South conference play as the Highlanders of Radford come to Spartanburg for a 4:00 p.m. Friday game and a Saturday double-header starting at 1:00 p.m.
Connect with the Spartans
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics
Twitter | @UpstateSoftball @UpstateSpartans
Instagram | @UpstateSoftball @UpstateSpartans
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
