VALDOSTA, Ga. - The Valdosta State Blazer softball team returns to their home turf on Wednesday to host Georgia Southwestern in a non-conference doubleheader at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.
The Blazers (37-4, 20-3 GSC) head into the midweek matchup aiming to bounce back from a weekend slip in which they suffered a series loss to the No. 13 ranked Alabama-Huntsville Lady Chargers. Despite the minor setback, Valdosta State has only four losses on the season and remains in first place in the Gulf South Conference.
Valdosta State will welcome the GSW Hurricanes (15-23, 2-12 PBC) to Titletown on Wednesday afternoon and will aim to extend their 24 game winning streak at Steel's Diamond. The streak carries all the way back to just over one calendar year ago, when the Blazers fell to UAH on April 6, 2014. The Hurricanes, meanwhile, have performed well on the road this season with a 10-8 record.
The Hurricanes' lineup features a bevy of dangerous hitters, including Lauren Thrasher, who is hitting .357 on the season, and Keri Tompkins, a senior shortstop from Valdosta, Ga. who is hitting .333 on the year with 12 home runs.
Head Coach
Thomas Macera and the Blazers will be looking for another strong day from current leadoff hitter
Jaime Phillips, who currently leads the GSC in slugging percentage (.919), on base percentage (.587), runs scored (51), home runs (13), and walks (37). In addition, VSU's offense has seen a boost in recent weeks by the efforts of
Fran Johnson, who ranks second in the GSC in runs scored with 43, freshman
Brandy Morgan, who is tied for second in the league with 42 RBI's, and
Chelsea Canara, who stands atop the league rankings with 13 doubles.
As a team, the Blazers lead the GSC in runs (303), hits (310), home runs (62), RBI's (267), total bases (556), walks (191), hit batsmen (46), and sacrifice hits (40). The pitching staff has been equally impressive with conference leads in total wins (37), shutouts (19), strikeouts (252). Additionally, the Blazer hurlers have held opponents to a league low .169 batting average.
The midweek showdown is slated for a 5:00 p.m. start, with live stats and live audio coverage available at www.vstateblazers.com.
