ABILENE - ACU Softball is coming off a 1-4 weekend and will have another tough test ahead of them as they head to Austin to participate in the Lone Star State Invitational. ACU will be a part of a field that features ninth-ranked Texas and 10th-ranked Virginia Tech, the first time they have faced multiple ranked programs in a single weekend. The Wildcats bats have been hot this season and the team is hitting .348 as a unit with 31 extra-base hits on the season. As a team, ACU is ranked in the top 40 of the NCAA for doubles (12th), team batting average (21st), slugging percentage (25th), runs per game (31st), and homeruns per game (39th).
The Wildcats will face Texas Southern and Virginia Tech on Friday at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., respectively. The team will see TSU again at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday before taking on the host Longhorns at 6:30 p.m. Saturday evening. ACU will close the weekend with another matchup against Virginia Tech on Sunday morning at 9:30.
Sophomore
Miranda Lista leads the way offensively with a .484 batting average and both
Mercedes Eichelberger and
Sammie Shelander are hitting at least .400 on the year as well.
Avery Miloch already has four homeruns through two weekends of action and leads the team with a .794 slugging percentage. Transfer pitcher
Talia Nielsen leads the Wildcats with innings pitched, 27.1, and ERA, 5.89, and holds a 2-1 record in eight appearances.
Texas Southern comes into the weekend with an 0-6 record. The Tigers went 0-5 opening weekend, dropped a midweek at Houston Christian, and did not compete the second weekend. The team is led by Jazmine Dodd who is hitting .333 on the season.
Virginia Tech is coming off a 2-3 week at the TaxAct Clearwater Invitational where they dropped games to second-ranked UCLA, fifth-ranked Oklahoma State, and 10th-ranked Arizona. The Hokies are hitting .308 as a team and are led by Jayme Bailey who is hitting .483 on the season with an .894 slugging percentage and a team-leading 11 RBI. Their pitching staff has a collective 3.05 ERA and are led by Emma Lemley with a 2.33 ERA and a 4-1 record.
The Longhorns are hosting for the second-consecutive weekend and sit at 8-1-1 on the season. Their lone loss came at the hands of then eighth-ranked Northwestern and they tied with Kentucky after their game passed the travel cutoff time. UT is hitting .389 as a team and are led by Leighann Goode and Viviana Martinez who are hitting .576 and .516, respectively. Mia Scott leads the team with 16 RBI on the year. The pitching staff holds a 2.15 ERA and are led by Estelle Czech with a 1.40 ERA.
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