VALDOSTA, Ga. – Coming off a dominating three-game sweep of Shorter this past weekend, the No. 9 Valdosta State softball team opens the 2021 home slate this weekend in a three-game series against Mississippi College at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.
 
Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at vstateblazers.com on the softball schedule page.  The games will be broadcast on 94.3 WJEM FM with Bill Malone having the call and online at foxsportsvaldosta.com. 
 
Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, there will be limited capacity at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park this season.  A hard capacity of 180 (one hundred eighty) fans will be admitted to each home game.  Seating includes 90 marked seats available in the grandstand and 90 marked seats in the lawn outside the outfield fence.  Fans are encouraged to come to Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park early to ensure admittance.  Gates will open one (1) hour before each game, adult general admission tickets are $5 and youth/senior tickets are $3.  Fans are encouraged to bring a lawn chair for seating outside the outfield fence.  No umbrellas or lawn chairs will be allowed in the grandstands.  No further entry will be allowed once capacity is reached.  No pets are allowed, including emotional support animals, except service animals with proper documentation.  Spectators should enter through the front gate of the ballpark.  Masks must be worn at all times while at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.
 
For the first time since March 11, 2020, the Blazers will be playing a regular season softball home game on Saturday at 1 p.m. for a doubleheader with the Choctaws.  The three-game series will conclude Sunday with a game at 1 p.m.  VSU enters with a 5-1 record overall and a 3-0 mark in Gulf South Conference play, while Mississippi College is 3-5 overall and 2-1 in league play.
 
In the series with Shorter, VSU won each game via run-rule with two wins in five innings and one in six.  Sophomore Samantha Richards tossed her second career no-hitter in the opener in an 11-0 victory as she pitched all five innings, walking one and fanning three.  She then pitched five more innings in the finale in a 9-1 victory in six innings.  In that game, she allowed two hits, one unearned run, walked none and fanned seven.  She earned GSC Pitcher of the Week honors and was named one the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top Performances of the Week. 
 
The Blazer staff held Shorter to just a .096 batting average on 5 of 52 from the dish.  VSU allowed just two runs in the series – both unearned, walked one and fanned 18.  Freshman Morgan Hill went 1-0 on the week, allowing three hits, one unearned run, walked none and fanned four.  Senior Avery Lamb pitched two innings of shutout softball with four strikeouts. 
 
Just as dominate as the staff was, the offense equaled as the Blazers hit a blistering .405 for the weekend on 30 of 74 from the plate.  VSU scored 32 runs in just 16 innings, with two doubles, four home runs and drove in 31.  The team slugged .595 for the series and reached base at a .551 clip, drawing 22 walks and two were hit by pitches.  VSU went 17 for 17 on the base paths and had just one error for the series in 64 chances with 48 putouts and 15 assists. 
 
Individually, M. Hill earned GSC Freshman of the Week honors for both her efforts on the mound and at the dish as she was 7 of 11 from the plate for a .636 average.  She scored a team-high six runs, while recording one double, one home run and drove in five.  Hill slugged 1.000 and reached base at a .692 clip with two walks, while going 3 for 3 in stolen bases.  Sophomore Kiley Robb went 4 of 7 from the plate for a .573 average, while scoring four runs and leading the team with two home runs and drove in seven.  She slugged a team-best 1.429, while reaching base at a .727 clip with four walks.  She also was 3 for 3 in stolen bases. 
 
VSU also set a couple of new records against Shorter as it won its 1,200^th career game in the opener of the series and VSU tallied its 500^th GSC victory in the nightcap of the doubleheader.  Head coach Thomas Macera won his 300^th Gulf South Conference game in the finale on Sunday.  Macera now is 666-192-2 in his 16^th season at VSU and 300-101-1 in GSC play.
 
The Choctaws enter after taking two of three from Delta State last weekend.  MC won the opener 6-2, dropped the second game 6-0 and won the rubber-match, 2-1, scoring the eventual winning run in the bottom of the fifth on an infield single and throwing error.  Prior to that, MC dropped four of its first five with losses to a pair ranked teams in then-No. 19 Lubbock Christian and then-No. 6 Young Harris. 
 
For the season, MC is hitting .254 on 54 of 213 from the plate, while scoring 24 runs with 15 doubles, three triples, two home runs and 20 RBI.  The team is slugging .380 and reaching base at a .321 clip with 20 walks and two hit batsmen.  MC is 8 of 9 in stolen bases and has 14 errors on the year leading to eight unearned runs. 
 
Individually, Jordan LaFosse leads the team with a .480 average on 12 of 25 from the plate.  She has scored three runs with a team-high four doubles, one home run and driven in six.  LaFosse is slugging .760 and reaching base at a .519 clip with two walks.  McCall Lee is second in average at a .360 clip with nine hits in 25 at bats.  She has three doubles and one triple for the season. Rayne Minor leads the team with five runs scored and is 4 of 5 in stolen bases.  Minor has nine hits with three RBI for the season.
 
In the circle, Avery Sanders has as 2.60 ERA and a 2-3 record in six appearances with four starts.  She has four complete games in a team-high 29.2 innings of work.  Sanders has allowed 16 hits, 15 runs – 11 earned, walked 29 and fanned 41.  Teams are hitting .160 against her.  Avery Barnett is 1-2 with a 4.34 ERA in four starts with one complete game.  She has pitched 19.1 innings, allowing 28 hits, 15 runs – 12 earned, walked eight and fanned nine.
 
VSU leads the all-time series with Mississippi College 14-9, but dropped the past two meetings on Mar. 19, 2019, in Clinton, Miss.  MC won the opener of the doubleheader 8-0 and took the nightcap 2-1 in ten innings.  VSU owns a 5-3 record against MC in Valdosta, but lost two of three the last time the teams played in Titletown in 2017.  VSU has outscored MC 93-84 in the series.
 
The Blazers moved up to ninth in the latest NFCA Top 25 this week as they were tenth last week.  Southern Arkansas leads the poll this week, followed by North Georgia and Augustana (S.D.) is third.  Rollins, who hasn't played a game yet, is the highest ranked team from the South Region at eighth, followed by VSU at ninth.  Alabama Huntsville moved to 15^th this week, while Tampa is 23^rd.  West Florida is among others receiving votes.
 
For the season, the Blazers are hitting .350 for the season on 56 of 160 from the dish with 48 runs scored, nine doubles, five home runs and 47 RBI.  The team is slugging .500 and reaching base at a .455. clip with 28 walks and three hits batsmen.  VSU is 24 of 24 in stolen bases for the season and has just four errors leading to two unearned runs.  In total, seven batters are hitting .300 or better for the Blazers. 
 
In the circle, VSU boasts a 0.60 ERA in 35 innings with four complete games and one shutout.  VSU has allowed 15 hits for a .130 batting average against on 15 hits.  The Blazers have allowed five runs – three earned, walked six and fanned 36. 
 
M. Hill leads the team with ten hits in 22 at bats for a .455 average for the season.  She has scored eight runs to lead the team, while recording one double and one home run.  She is slugging .636 and reaching base at a .520 clip.  She has five stolen bases in five chances on the year.  Her sister senior Logan Hill is second in average at a .412 clip.  She has seven hits with six runs scored and one double, while driving in six.  Freshman Taylor Macera is third in average at a .357 clip with five hits, one double and two runs scored.  Robb leads the team with two home runs, while junior Nicole Pennington has driven in a team-high 12 for the season. 
 
Richards has a 3-1 record with a 0.61 ERA in four starts.  She has three complete games with one shutout in a team-high 23 innings of work.  Richards has allowed ten hits, three runs – two earned, walked four and fanned a team-high 22.  M. Hill is 2-0 with a 0.70 ERA in 10 innings, allowing five hits, two runs – one earned, walked two and fanned ten.  She has one complete game for the season.
 
Following the series, VSU heads to Montevallo for a three-game Mar. 6-7, before returning home for ten-straight games, Mar. 13-28, beginning with Union for a three-game series.