ACU (9-28, 5-7) at Utah Valley (11-21, 4-7)
Wolverine Softball Field | Orem, UT
Friday Doubleheader - 3 p.m. & 5:30 p.m. CT
Saturday - 1 p.m. CT
Video Stream (ESPN+) | Live Stats
OREM, Utah - Following a strongly competitive showing against nationally ranked Texas Tech, the ACU softball team kicks off a 5-game road swing with a WAC series at Utah Valley on Friday and Saturday.
The Wildcats lost 7-3 to No. 14 Texas Tech on Wednesday night in Abilene. A new Poly Wells Field attendance record was set with 1,261 fans witnessing
Miranda Lista blast two home runs - the first multi-HR game for an ACU player since 2023.
Utah Valley (11-21, 4-7) is just 2-5 at home this season. The Wildcats lead the Wolverines by 0.5 games in the conference standings. Entering the weekend, ACU is tied for 6th place while Utah Valley is 8th.
"We've got to be aggressive from the get-go, and make plays right off the bat," said Jo Koons, who is in her first season as the Wildcats' head coach.
"I think if we can get some runs early instead of having to play from behind, it would be an advantage for us."
Koons is spot on with her team's trends. ACU is 8-10 when scoring first this season, but just 1-18 when its opponent scores first. The Wildcats also own a 7-0 record when leading after 5 innings. But, when ACU is down after 5 their record is 0-19.
In 2024, Utah Valley took two-of-three games against the Wildcats in Abilene. ACU did outscore UVU in the series 16-14.
Elizabeth Schaefer drove in two runs in that series. Schaefer is the only ACU player to start all 37 games this season (each start coming at first base). Russo -- who has become the Wildcats' No. 1 pitcher -- appeared in the circle in all three games of last year's series with the Wolverines. Altogether she threw 10 strikeouts in 11 innings of work.
Friday's doubleheader in Orem, UT begins at 3 p.m. CT. The teams finish the three-game set on Saturday with a 1 p.m. CT first pitch.
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