MONROE, La. – The Warhawk softball team puts its three-game winning streak on the line this weekend when it hosts Sun Belt Conference foe Troy for a three-game series at the ULM Softball Complex beginning on Saturday, April 17 at 1 p.m.
The Warhawks (13-20, 4-7 Sun Belt) are 7-10 when hosting Troy at the ULM Softball complex since the 2008 season, winning two home series in the last 14 seasons. The first home series victory by the Warhawks came in 2012 when they rebounded from a 4-3 setback in the series opener to come away with a 2-1 win in game two and a 5-3 victory in game three.
The second home series win by ULM came two years later, in 2014, when the Warhawks claimed a 1-0 nine-inning victory in the first game and followed with a 4-3 win in eight innings in the second game.
A series win against the Trojans would mark the first time in five seasons that ULM has won three Sun Belt Conference series in a single season. The last time the Warhawks achieved three Sun Belt Conference series victories in a season was 2017 when they took two of three against Georgia Southern (March 17-18), completed a sweep of Appalachian State (April 8-9) and won two of three in a series with Troy (April 14-15).
ULM opened the conference slate by winning two of three games against Coastal Carolina on March 13-14. The Warhawks followed up that series win by claiming a pair of victories against Georgia Southern after the third game of the series was canceled due to poor field conditions.
The Warhawks, who own the fifth-best batting average in the league, .263, have four players who are hitting .300 or better on the season with at least 10 at bats.
Rylee Lara leads the way with a .421 batting average with eight hits in 19 at bats. She is followed by
Kennedy Johnson (.361),
Jayden Mount (.327) and
Korie Kreps (.323).
Lara, who is in the midst of the longest hitting streak of her career, three games, began the streak by going 1-for-3 at the plate against Louisiana Tech on April 13. In the doubleheader clash with Jackson State, on April 15, Lara was 2-for-3 in the first game with a double to her credit. She followed that with a 1-for-3 outing that resulted in a run scored.
Lara is one of four ULM sluggers with a three-game hitting streak including
Andie Edwards,
Kennedy Johnson and
Korie Kreps. Edwards, who has the longest current hitting streak on the unit (four games), began the streak with a 1-for-4 outing in the finale of the series against Appalachian State on April 11.
On the mound, ULM has three pitchers—
Adrianna Chavarria,
Amber Coons and Gianna Hulett—with at least 30 strikeouts this season and teammate
Kelsey Giddens needs just three strikeouts to become the fourth. Chavarria and Coons are tied for the team lead in strikeouts with 36 apiece. Coons, who has notched 19 strikeouts in her last three outings, moved into a tie with Chavarria for most strikeouts by a Warhawk pitcher this season after fanning 11 Jackson State batters on Thursday evening.
Hulett moved into third in strikeouts (34) after combining for nine in her last three outings for the Warhawks. She fanned five Appalachian State sluggers on April 11 and followed with two more in the second game of the doubleheader.
Troy (26-9, 10-3 Sun Belt) last took the field on April 11-12, when they were swept by the No. 14 Ragin' Cajuns. Katie Webb, who is hitting .371 on the season, is one of five players with a .300 batting average on the Trojans. Teammate Jade Sinness has the most hits, 44, connecting on 12 doubles and seven home runs. Kelly Horne leads all Trojan hitters with 14 doubles.
Leanna Johnson (15-4) is responsible for the lowest ERA on the team at 1.30. In 21 appearances she has tossed 118 2/3 innings, surrendered 65 hits, 31 runs and 22 earned runs while making 192 strikeouts.
