The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Set To Host Jacksonville State Tuesday
3/5/2012 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 5, 2012
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The UAB softball team will play host to Jacksonville State on Tuesday at the UAB Softball Field. The Blazers (8-8) and Gamecocks (3-12) will square off at 6 p.m. CT.
Last weekend, UAB went 1-2 in the Easton Alabama Classic hosted by Alabama at Rhoads Stadium. The Blazers downed UMass, 19-0, and fell to Maryland, 4-2, and No. 1 Alabama, 4-1.
Three Blazers batted over .400 at the tournament in seniors Mandy Lowman (.444), Kayla Orr (.429) and Catherine Crawford (.429). Lowman led the Blazers offensively with four hits in nine at bats. She smacked two doubles and scored two runs. Orr had three hits, knocked in three runs and collected seven total bases.
Pitcher Lannah Campbell went 1-1 on the weekend with a 2.62 ERA, fanning 15 batters in 10.2 innings of work. She tossed a complete-game shutout against UMass and collected nine strikeouts against Alabama.
On the season, Lowman leads the Blazers with a .410 batting average. She has nine runs batted in and has scored eight more. Crawford has a team-high 10 runs scored, while Kristen McGrath leads the team with 10 RBI.
In the circle, senior Amber Torres owns a 1.50 ERA and a 1-2 record. She has recorded 16 strikeouts and allowed just four earned runs to cross the plate in 18.2 innings. Campbell (3-3) has an overall ERA of 2.19. She has fanned 38 batters in just 32.0 innings, holding the competition to a .186 hitting clip.
Media
GameTracker, live video via Blazer Vision and a free live in-game chat will be available by logging on to www.UABSports.com.
Scouting Jacksonville State
Jacksonville State went 1-3 at the Georgia Tech Buzz Classic in Woodstock, Ga. last weekend, defeating UNC Greensboro and falling to Western Kentucky, Western Carolina and Furman.
Currently on an 11-game hitting streak, freshman Shelby Holley leads the Gamecocks with a .408 batting average, 10 home runs and 16 RBI. Senior Kaycee Crow is batting .319 with a team-high 12 runs and 10 RBI.
The Gamecock pitching staff has a collective 6.29 ERA. Senior Sam Snow (1-3) has made 11 appearances in the circle and owns a 4.50 ERA. In 34.0 innings pitched she has allowed 21 walks, 17 earned runs and 32 hits. Fellow hurler Savanna Hennings (2-5) has fanned 18 batters in 43.1 innings pitched with 59 hits, 35 earned runs and 22 walks.
Series History
The Gamecocks lead the all-time series against the Blazers, 15-12. Last season, Jacksonville State and UAB met three times, with the Blazers going 2-1 in those contests. The Gamecocks defeated UAB, 5-4, in the All-Alabama Classic (Feb. 11) before the Blazers won the next two contests, 7-0 (April 4 in Jacksonville, Ala.) and 1-0 (May 5 in Birmingham, Ala.).
Easton Alabama Classic All-Tournament Team
Sophomore pitcher Lannah Campbell and senior infielder Catherine Crawford were named to the Easton Alabama Classic All-Tournament Team.
Campbell fanned the first six batters in a row against No. 1 Alabama, matching her career-best of nine strikeouts for the game. On the weekend, the Satsuma, Ala. native, fanned 15 batters, held opponents to a .184 hitting clip and tossed a complete-game shutout in 10.2 combined innings of work over two appearances.
Crawford started all three games of the tournament at shortstop and batted .429 (3-for-7), slugged .714, smacked two doubles and crossed the plate three times.
Outscoring Opponents
The Blazers are outscoring opponents 62-55 so far this season. Furthermore, UAB is outhitting the competition 109-95.
Home Run Hitting
In the 19-0 win against UMass at the Easton Alabama Classic last weekend, four Blazers went yard. Designated hitter Kristen McGrath got things rolling with her fifth homer of the season, already matching her season total from a year ago. In the next at bat, freshman Hayley Davis hit her first collegiate home run. Senior Kayla Orr laced her first of the season in the third inning, and junior Lauren Webster roped a three-run homer in the fourth for her first as a Blazer.
The Blazers were just one long ball away from tying the school’s single-game record of five, which was set on Feb. 24, 2002 vs. Alabama A&M.
Townsend’s 350 Wins At UAB
Head coach Marla Townsend is in her 14th season with UAB and has built and guided the program since its very beginning. She earned her 350th win at UAB when the Blazers defeated Kennesaw State, 4-0, on Feb. 28.
