MONROE, La. – The Warhawks are on the hunt for their seventh straight win this week, playing host to both Southeastern Louisiana (Apr.3) and Alcorn State (Apr.4) in mid-week non-conference play. Tuesday's game against the Lions is slated for a 6 p.m. start, while Wednesday's double-header against the Lady Braves will begin at 4 p.m.
ULM is an indisputable hitting power among the Sun Belt Conference, with junior
Sydney McKay leading the pack with a .414 batting average. McKay is ranked 75
th in division I, joined by teammate,
Jayden Mount, who's .402 puts her at 99
th.
The Warhawks just wrapped up their first conference series win, a three-game sweep against Coastal Carolina over the weekend (Mar.30-31).
ULM's senior pitcher,
Paige Murray controlled the circle exceptionally well over the course of the series, earning the win for the Warhawks in all three games. Murray's work was crucial in the Warhawks 12-9 win over the Chanticleers in game two, as Murray entered late in the game and pitched a scoreless 6th and 7th inning to keep the game within reach give ULM the opportunity to get the win.
Southeastern (20-14) is headed to Monroe after dropping a Southland conference series to Lamar (2-1). The Lions were trailing 2-4 headed into the 7
th inning and despite scoring one, their attempt to take the lead fell just short as the final out came with two left on base.
SLU's Maddie Edmonston is one of the top Lion batters and base runner. Edmonston leads the SLC in stolen bases, stealing 23 on 27 attempts.
Tuesday's most probable starter is Rachel Hayes; the senior out of Ocean Springs has pitched in 21 games for Southeastern, striking out 39 and boasting a 2.72 ERA.
The last time ULM and SLU met, the Warhawks fell 11-3 in Hammond. Senior
Cheyanne Lyon finished the game 3-for-3 but the Lions posted 10 runs in the second inning, putting the game out of reach for the Hawks.
The Warhawks will then take on Alcorn on Wednesday, the double-header was rescheduled after inclement weather pushed it off the schedule earlier this year.
Alcorn State (5-21) is looking ahead to its 6
th consecutive road game, most recently facing Memphis in a double-header on Tuesday (Mar.27).
Before matching up against the Tigers, the Lady Braves faces SWAC conference foe Southern- taking the series from the Jaguars (2-1) after dropping game one to SU.
At the plate, Alcorn is led by senior infielder Taylor Hughes. Hughes has compiled a .400 batting average, finishing 6-for-11 against Southern last week; she has been walked a team-high 12 times and earned a team-high 15 RBI as well.
Tuesday and Wednesday's games will be available via live stream and stats; fans can find access to those links at ULMWarhawks.com or follow along on Twitter at @ULM_softball.
