VALDOSTA, Ga. –The No. 3 Valdosta State softball team is set to travel to Clinton, Miss., for a weekend Gulf South Conference road series at Mississippi College.
Fans can access links to live stats and streaming of the games against MC at vstateblazers.com on the softball schedule page. Check back with the site for complete recaps and stats of each game throughout the season.
The series will begin with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. ET, then will conclude on Sunday with a single game slated to also begin at 2 p.m. ET.
The Blazers (19-4, 11-0 GSC) are coming off a series sweep against Shorter last weekend. The Blazers won 9-1 on Saturday and then defeated the Hawks twice on Sunday, 8-0. All three games were run-rule victories. Graduate Ally Clegg hit three home runs over the weekend while sophomore Mia DeAngelis tossed a no-hitter in game two of the doubleheader.
VSU last faced the Choctaws (13-12, 6-8 GSC) on May 6, 2021, and fell 2-1 in the GSC conference tournament. Prior to the loss, the Blazers picked up a series sweep over MC in the 2021 regular season defeating the Choctaws 3-1 in game one, 8-5 in game two and completed the series sweep picking up a 9-1 win on February 28, 2021, in Clinton, Miss.
MC is coming off a GSC home series against Lee last weekend. The Choctaws fell in game one 9-1, bounced back and took game two 3-2 then finished the series with a 2-0 loss to the Flames on Sunday.
McCall Lee and AnnMarie Peavy lead the Choctaws in RBI with 21 on the year while Lee also has a team-high .380 batting average in 79 at bats. She also leads the team in hits with 30 on the season.
Avery Barnett (9-5) has spent the most time in the circle for M,C and has recorded 55 strikeouts, allowed 90 hits, 29 earned runs, and 15 walks through 88.2 innings pitched. The Choctaw pitching staff has combined for 127 strikeouts, allowed 167 hits, 67 earned runs and 89 walks through 651 at bats for a combined 3.56 earned run average.
For the Blazers, sophomore Aniston Gano has a team-high 26 hits through 62 at bats along with 17 runs, five home runs, 21 RBI and a .419 batting average, while senior Nikki Pennington has five home runs, 19 hits, 18 runs, 14 RBI, and a .311 batting average through 61 at-bats. Proctor has a .400 batting average along with four home runs, 18 hits, six runs and 18 RBI through 75 at-bats. The Blazers have outscored their opponents 156-57 this season.
In the circle, head coach Thomas Macera has utilized his entire pitching staff throughout the season. Junior Samantha Richards (14-1) has recorded 128 strikeouts, good for league best in the GSC and 12th best nationally. She has held her opponents to 27 runs, 64 hits, 17 earned runs and 25 walks for a 1.32 ERA through 90.1 innings pitched. DeAngelis (4-2) has fanned 28 batters and has given up 15 earned runs, 11 walks and has a 2.54 ERA through 41.1 innings. Sophomore Morgan Hill (1-1) has 12 strikeouts on the year and has given up 11 earned runs, 19 hits, nine walks and has a 4.81 ERA through 16 innings pitched.
Following the weekend road series, the Blazers will host Christian Brothers on April 2-3 at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park. For all updates on Blazer softball visit vstateblazers.com or follow Valdosta State Athletics on social media.
