ULM Warhawks

ULM Softball Notes: Series vs. Georgia Southern

MONROE, La. – The ULM softball team (13-5) opens Sun Belt Conference play vs. Georgia Southern (5-11) at the ULM Softball Complex this weekend. The Warhawks and Eagles meet Fri., March 11 at 2:30 p.m. CT with first pitch on Sat., March 12 at 1 p.m. CT and the series finale set for 11 a.m. CT on Sun., March 13. All three games this weekend will be available on ESPN+.
 
For ULM head coach Molly Fichtner and the Warhawks, this weekend's conference games begin "phase two" of their season. In the first segment of the 2022 campaign, ULM captured 13 wins with several highlights that offer glimpses at the potential for success ahead.
 
"We break our season into phases because it's a marathon and anything that you did on phase one, which was preseason, it's irrelevant when you get to conference play because it's a clean slate for everyone," said ULM head coach Molly Fichtner. "The goal was to learn at this point forward so that we can be ready for conference competition. When we get to the conference tournament, that's phase three, because nobody cares what your stats are when you get to the conference tournament, it's about who shows up, and postseason is phase four."
 
The Warhawks started the season with seven-straight wins and have a team ERA of 2.17 to lead the Sun Belt Conference and rank 39th in the NCAA. ULM currently averages 5.83 runs per game, third in the league and good for 43rd in the country. Centerfielder Lourdes Bacon, who extended her hitting streak to 10 games with a single in the game at Jacksonville State, leads the Sun Belt with 24 hits. She ranks in the top 10 in five total offensive categories.
 
Warhawk pitchers Kassidy Giddens (0.97) and Kinsey Kackley (1.11) rank first and second in the Sun Belt Conference in ERA, and are 35th and 44th, respectively, among the nation's leaders. Gianni Hulett's two saves place her at the top of the league leaders and she is ninth in the country. Giddens and Victoria Abrams are both 4-0 for the Warhawks this season.
 
Kackley (3-1) fired a career-best 12 strikeouts, including two in the bottom of the eighth inning, to help guide ULM over Alabama State in a 4-1 (8 inn) win last week. Kackley allowed two hits through six innings and was praised, along with catcher Kelsey Giddens, for the great outing from the circle.
 
The Eagles are 5-11 under new head coach Sharon Perkins who coached for seven years at Georgia Tech prior to arriving in Statesboro. Georgia Southern returned 15 players to the squad for 2022, including first baseman and preseason All-Sun Belt honoree Faith Shirley. Shirley had the lone hit, a double, in the Eagles' 3-0 loss to Nebraska-Omaha and an RBI in the 9-8 (8 inn.) loss to Middle Tennessee in Sunday's games. Rylee Waldrep picked up the win in the Eagles' 1-0 victory over Rhode Island last weekend and is now 3-2 in eight appearances with an ERA of 4.63. Kastin Belogorska (1-5) has the most innings pitched on the Georgia Southern staff at 41.1, just ahead of Waldrep, with a 4.23 ERA. Belogorska is 1-5 so far in 2022.
 
Georgia Southern was selected as the No. 8 team in the 2022 Sun Belt Conference softball preseason poll with 32 points, just ahead of ULM at No. 9 with 27 points. ULM won both meetings on the road in 2021 with the third game canceled due to weather and field conditions.
 
In addition to coverage on ESPN+, live stats are available for this weekend's home games with links for each game on the softball schedule page at ULMWarhawks.com.