VALDOSTA, Ga. – Riding a three-game winning streak and a sweep of Trevecca Nazarene in the Gulf South Conference opener last weekend, the Valdosta State softball team opens the 2026 home schedule with rival and No. 24-ranked The University of Alabama in Huntsville Saturday and Sunday at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.  The series is set for a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday, followed by a single game Sunday at 1 p.m.
 
Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at vstateblazers.com on the softball schedule page.  The games also will be broadcast on 94.3 WJEM FM and www.foxsportsvaldosta.com with Wade Beale having the call.  
 
VSU (7-6, 3-0 GSC) put together its best series of the season with a sweep at Trevecca Nazarene this past weekend as sophomore Chloe Eichelberger was named Gulf South Conference Player of the Week, as well as National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) National Player of the Week.  Eichelberger went 6 for 8 from the dish in a designated player/pinch-hitter role for the Blazers in a three-game sweep of Trevecca Nazarene to begin GSC play.  She hit .750 for the series, while reaching base at a .778 clip with one walk and slugged 2.000.  Eichelberger scored three runs with one double, three home runs and drove in seven.

In the opener against TNU, Eichelberger hit a pinch-hit two RBI single giving VSU a 5-4 lead in the seventh as the Blazers went on for a 7-4 win.  In the second game on Friday, she hit two home runs and went 2 for 3 from the dish with two runs scored, three RBI and a walk.  For the finale on Saturday, she went 3 for 4 with a run scored, a double, a home run and two RBI.  Her round-tripper in the third gave VSU a 5-0 lead as VSU went on for a 10-8 win.  The Tampa, Fla., native, Eichelberger became the first Blazer softball player to earn National Player of the Week honors since former Blazers Anniston Gano and Abby Sulte earned the honors during the 2024 season.
 
For the week, VSU returned to its hitting prowess as it blasted 11 home runs for the series and hit .379 against the Trojans with 28 runs scored, 36 hits, six doubles and 28 RBI.  The team reached base at a .450 clip with 10 walks and slugged .789.  Along with Eichelberger, senior Saylor McNearney also hit three home runs for the series as she was 5 of 11 from the plate with four runs scored and three RBI.  Freshman Giselle Portanova went 1-0 in 7.1 innings in the circle in two appearances, while senior Savannah Barfield went 1-0 in 8.2 innings also appearing in two games, while junior Madison VanAllen earned a win in relief.  VSU used five pitchers on the weekend and had a 3.67 ERA in 21 innings as TNU hit .256 with 22 hits, four home runs, 13 runs scored – 11 earned, and four home runs.  
 
For the season, VSU is hitting .296 in 13 games with 76 runs scored on 107 hits, with 28 doubles, three triples, 19 home runs and 72 RBI.  The team is slugging .547 and reaching base at a .384 clip.  McNearney leads the team with a .390 average among everyday starters on 16 of 41 from the dish with 17 runs scored, four doubles, six home runs and eight RBI.  Senior Charlotte Phillips, Eichelberger and senior Jayme Prandine each have 11 hits on the second, while junior Annalise Buncy has ten. 
 
In the circle, Barfield is 3-1 in seven appearances with three starts logging a team-high 22.1 innings.  She has allowed 25 hits, 15 runs – 13 earned, walked seven and fanned 15.  VanAllen also is 3-1 on the year in 18 innings, in seven appearances with three starts.  She has allowed 17 hits, 14 runs – nine earned, walked 12 and fanned eight.  
 
UAH enters with a 17-3 record overall and a 3-0 mark in GSC play as it is No. 24 in the latest NFCA Top 25.  The Chargers have won ten-straight and swept Lee last weekend outscoring the Flames 22-3 in three games with two shutouts.  UAH's last loss came in an 8-3 setback on Feb. 8 in Chattanooga, Tenn., to No. 3 West Texas A&M.  UAH was picked fourth in preseason coaches poll, while VSU was picked sixth.  
 
The Chargers are led by Hannah Temple who leads the team with a .447 average on 17 of 38 from the dish.  She has a 1.184 OPS this season with three doubles, two home runs and eight RBI.  Brittany Slaten is second in average at a .426 clip as four UAH players are hitting over .400 and an additional four are hitting .300 or better.  Slaten has 23 hits for the season as she is tied for second on the team, whie she has four doubles, three triples and 14 RBI.  Alexa Douthitt is third in average at .422 with a team-high 27 hits, while Jill Cockrell (.404) leads the team with six home runs.  
 
As a team, the Chargers are hitting .362 for the season with 189 hits, 146 runs scored, 46 doubles, 12 triples and nine home runs for head coach Melanie Carter who is in her first season at the helm of the Chargers.  She coached Shorter for four seasons from 2006-2010, before heading back to Huntsville as an assistant coach for former head coach Les Stuedman who retired before this season.
 
In the circle, the Chargers have a 2.64 ERA in 122 innings, allowing 100 hits, 52 runs – 46 earned, walked 41 and fanned 138 as teams are hitting .220 against them.  Megan Shurtz is 6-1 in 36 innings with a 1.36 ERA, allowing 20 hits, eight runs – seven earned, walked ten and fanned 43.  Katie Bracken has a 3.09 ERA in 45.1 innings and a 5-2 record.  She has allowed 32 hits, 21 runs – 20 earned, walked 21 and fanned a team-high 71 as teams are hitting .196 against her.  
 
In one of the most storied rivalries in GSC softball, the Chargers lead the all-time series with VSU 80-57, but VSU won the series in Huntsville winning two of three games last season.  UAH won in the conference tournament last season, but the teams have gone 4-4 in the last eight meetings.  VSU is 30-27 in the last 57 meetings in Valdosta.  VSU's series win in Huntsville last season marked the first for the Blazers since 2014 in the NCAA Super Regional and the first in the regular season since Apr. 5-6, 1997.  
 
Following the series against UAH, the Blazers return to the road at West Alabama (Mar. 7-8) and at Columbus State (Mar. 11), before returning home to host Delta State on Mar. 14-15.