The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Softball Concludes 11-Game Road Trip At Chattanooga
3/19/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 19, 2004
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The UAB softball team is set to play the final two games of its 11-game road trip on Saturday as the Blazers face off against the Chattanooga Lady Mocs in a non-conference doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m., at Jim Frost Stadium.
"We're really looking forward to playing such a high-caliber team as Chattanooga," said UAB head coach Marla Townsend. "They've been to the NCAA regionals a couple of times and they are a very talented team. Hopefully, we will be able to use this as a good opportunity to get things rolling again and our bats will come alive."
UAB (13-16) heads into Saturday's matchup looking to snap its current four-game losing streak. After defeating Bowling Green, 1-0, on March 14, to advance to the championship game of the 2004 Cougar Classic, the Blazers have slumped for four straight losses, all against the East Carolina Pirates.
In the championship game of the Cougar Classic, UAB lost in dramatic fashion to East Carolina, 4-3, and then fell in three, hard-fought Conference USA contests against the Pirates on the road in Greenville, N.C. With the trio of C-USA losses, the Blazers dropped to a 2-4 conference record on the season.
Saturday's doubleheader will mark UAB's 10th and 11th consecutive road games. The Blazers began their marathon road trip on Friday, March 12, at the 2004 Cougar Classic in Charleston, S.C., and finished with a 3-3 overall record at the highly competitive event.
With its performance, UAB earned second-place honors at the three-day competition and fell just one game shy of winning its third-consecutive weekend tournament. Earlier this season, the Blazers took the championship titles of both the Holiday Inn Select-Tulsa Festival and the 2004 Magic City Classic.
On Monday, UAB traveled from Charleston, S.C., to Greenville, N.C., to begin its C-USA series against East Carolina. The three-game set was held at the ECU Softball Field and was completed on Wednesday.
"When we originally scheduled this trip it was supposed to be spring break, but the university changed its schedule prior to this season," Townsend said. "We don't mind playing on the road and I think that it has actually been a good learning experience for us, but we will still be glad when it is over. Hopefully, we can end it on a good note against Chattanooga."
Chattanooga (20-17) enters Saturday's non-conference duel with a bit of momentum after the Lady Mocs defeated Jacksonville State in the second game of their midweek doubleheader on Thursday. The 4-2 victory snapped Chattanooga's four-game losing streak and allowed the Lady Mocs to win their 20th game of the 2004 season.
Last week, Chattanooga played in a weekend tournament held at Birmingham-Southern and finished the competition with an impressive 4-1 overall record. During the four-day event, the Lady Mocs defeated Tulsa, 1-0, Louisiana-Monroe, 7-1, Alabama A&M, 5-0, and Birmingham-Southern, 1-0. Chattanooga's lone loss of the weekend came against ULM, 4-3, on March 14.
UAB and Chattanooga have only met once in the history of the two softball programs. On March 2, 2001, the Blazers scraped by with a 4-3 win at the Frost Cutlery Tournament held in Chattanooga, Tenn.
The UAB softball team will look to extend its winning streak against non-conference opponents to three-consecutive games on Saturday as the Blazers challenge the Chattanooga Lady Mocs in a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m., at Jim Frost Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn.
