VALDOSTA, Ga. – Coming off the first series victory at Alabama Huntsville during a regular season three-game series since 1997, the Valdosta State softball team returns home to host No. 22 West Alabama, Mar. 7-8 at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.  

The three-game series is set for a doubleheader, beginning at 3 p.m. on Friday, Mar. 7, followed by a single game Saturday, Mar. 8, also at 12 p.m.  Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at www.vstateblazers.com on the softball schedule page.  The games will be streamed on FloCollege with Wade Beale providing audio play-by-play.  The series was moved to Friday-Saturday due to the threat of inclement weather in Valdosta later in the weekend.
 
VSU improved to 8-11 overall and 4-4 in Gulf South Conference play as it won the opener 6-3 this past Saturday snapping a seven-game losing skid overall against the Chargers.  UAH won the nightcap 7-4, before senior Aniston Gano had a pair of RBI singles and senior Saylor McNearney hit a home run to begin the game and then scored on both of Gano's singles, including in the eighth inning for the winner Sunday, 3-2.  Graduate student pitcher Claire Maulding went 2-0 in 15 innings of work improving to 6-6 on the year in the circle.  VSU hit five home runs for the weekend with 22 hits, including 11 extra-base hits with 13 runs scored and one error for a .256 average.  Freshman Krisley Arnold went 5 of 11 from the plate (.455) with two runs scored, five hits, one double, two home runs and three RBI.  McNearney hit .444 with four runs scored, four hits, one double, one home run and two RBI, while going 3 for 3 in stolen bases.  
 
Heading into the week, VSU is 4-4 in league play and tied with Delta State for seventh in the league standings.  Auburn Montgomery owns a one-game lead over West Alabama as AUM is 8-1 in league play, while West Alabama and West Florida each are 7-2. Trevecca, Mississippi College and Alabama Huntsville all are 5-4, a half-game ahead of VSU and DSU.  Montevallo is 3-6, followed by Lee and Union who each are 2-6 and Christian Brothers is 0-9.  
 
The Tigers are 14-6 overall this season and enter following a sweep of Christian Brothers last weekend where they outscored the Lady Bucs 27-2 with two shutouts.  Prior to that, UWA lost two of three to Auburn Montgomery.  
 
UWA enters the week 22^nd in the NFCA Top 25 after being 25^th last week.  The Tigers are 14-6 overall and 7-2 in GSC play following a sweep of Christian Brothers, where they outscored the Lady Bucs 27-2 in the three games last weekend.  This season, the Tigers are hitting .269 with 133 hits, 88 runs scored, 23 doubles, eight triples, 11 home runs and 77 RBI.  The Tigers have a .761 OPS% and are slugging .415 for the season with 54 walks and eight hit batters for a .346 on base average.  UWA is 35 of 43 in stolen bases.  Marissa Mitchell leads the team with a .439 average on 25 of 57 from the plate.  She has scored a team-high 20 runs with two doubles, four triples, five home runs and 18 RBI.  Mitchell has a 1.413 OPS% and is slugging .877, while reaching base at a .536 clip with 11 walks and been hit one time.  She is a perfect 7 for 7 in stolen bases.  Taylor Clegg is second in average at a .333 clip with 20 hits, 13 runs scored, a team-high seven doubles, two home runs and 12 RBI.  
 
In the circle, the Tigers are led by a pair of strong arms in Eleanor De Block who has a 1.87 ERA in 53 innings with a 7-2 record in nine starts and five complete games with two shutouts.  She has allowed 38 hits, with 13 runs – 11 earned, walked 13 and fanned 37 as teams are hitting .197 against her.  Madison Wright boasts a 2.36 ERA with a 7-3 record in 12 appearances with 11 starts.  She has nine complete games and one shutout in a team-high 68.2 innings.  Wright has allowed 60 hits, 19 runs – 18 earned, walked 14 and fanned 54 as teams are hitting .231 against her.  
 
UWA is fourth nationally in fielding percentage at a 0.985 clip, while the team is 17^th in ERA at a 1.92 average and 11^th nationally in shutouts with five.  UWA is 27^th nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio at a 3.32 clip for second in the GSC, while the team is 25^th nationally in triples (8) for third in the league and 17^th in WHIP at a 1.04 average for second in the GSC.  Wright is fourth nationally and second in the GSC in complete games (9), while she is sixth nationally and second in the league in starts (11).  Wright is tenth nationally in innings pitched (68.2) for fourth in the GSC.  Mitchell is third in the league and 29^th nationally in home runs (5), while she is third in the league in runs scored (20).  She sits second in the league in slugging percentage at a 0.877 clip and she is fifth nationally in triples with four for third in the league.  
 
VSU leads the series 31-6 dating back to 2010, and has won four of the last five, including a 2-1 series win last season in Livingston, Ala., on Mar. 10-11.  VSU outscored UWA 30-19 for the series in 2024.  Since 2019, VSU has won seven of 11 in the series.  UWA head coach Stephanie DeFeo is in her fourth season at UWA with a 117-65 record.  She has coached for 17 years as a head coach and is 461-415 all-time. 
 
The Blazers enter following the series win at UAH as Arnold was tabbed GSC Freshman of the Week for her efforts against the Chargers.  Head coach Thomas Macera is in his 20^th season at the helm of the Blazers and is 810-266-2 at VSU and 1,016-340-2 overall during his coaching career.  Senior Aniston Gano leads the team with a .475 average with a team-high 28 hits, seven runs scored, three doubles, four home runs and 17 RBI.  She has an OPS of 1.298 and is slugging .729 for the season with 12 walks and been hit once for a .569 on base average.  Currently, Gano has reached base in 13-straight games for the longest of the season, while she also has a nine-game hitting streak or the second-longest streak of the year.  Junior Saylor McNearney is hitting .375 with 21 hits, a team-high 19 runs scored, five doubles, five home runs and 12 RBI.  She is 7 of 8 in stolen bases and is slugging .732 for the season with 10 walks for a .470 on base average.  Arnold is third in average at a .340 clip with 16 hits, nine runs scored, four doubles, three triples and seven RBI.  
 
As a team, the Blazers are hitting .291 for the season with 85 runs scored, 150 hits, 27 doubles, three triples, 19 home runs and 81 RBI.  The team has an OPS of .841 and is slugging .466, while recording 56 walks and been plunked 17 times for a .375 on base average.  The Blazers are 18 of 19 in stolen bases.  
 
In the circle, Maulding has a 3.14 ERA in 71.1 innings with 13 appearances and 11 starts.  She has nine complete games and is 6-6 on the year.  Maulding has allowed 65 hits, with 40 runs – 32 earned, walked 20 and fanned 66 as teams are hitting .236 against her.  Seniors Madison Lumpp and Savannah Barfield have seen a combined 47.1 innings this season. 
 
The staff has a 4.96 ERA for the season in 122.2 innings, allowing 151 hits, 103 runs – 87 earned, walked 43 and fanned 91 as teams are hitting .294 against it.  VSU has ten complete games with two shutouts and two saves.  
 
Nationally speaking, VSU leads the GSC with 19 home runs for 14^th nationally, while the team is 17^thnationally and tops in the GSC in hit by pitches with 17.  VSU is third in the GSC in doubles with 27, while it is third in walks with 56.  Individually, Maulding is sixth nationally in complete games (9) for second in the GSC, while she is second in the league and 23^rd nationally in appearances (13).  She is 17^th nationally and third in the league in strikeouts (66).  Gano leads the GSC in batting average at a .475 clip, while she is fifth in the league in home runs (4) and tops in the GSC in walks per game at a 0.63 clip.  McNearney is third in the GSC in home runs (5) for 29^th nationally, while she is fifth in the league in runs scored (19).