CLEVELAND, Mississippi – Coming off a 4-1 finish at the Montevallo Falcon Frenzy, the Delta State softball team is set to open Gulf South Conference play against the University of West Alabama in Livingston, Ala., on Feb. 18-19.
 

LADY STATESMEN SOFTBALL GAME DAY INFO

DATE | OPPONENT | TIME	Feb. 18, 2017 | UWA | 12:00 p.m. (DH) Feb. 19, 2017 | UWA | 1:00 p.m.
LIVE VIDEO	Watch Here
GAME NOTES	DSU@West Alabama Game Notes
SOCIAL MEDIA UPDATES	@DeltaStateSB

 
INSIDE THE SERIES: PREVIEWING THE FIRST PITCH

• This weekend's series will be the Gulf South Conference opener for both Delta State and West Alabama.
• The Tigers enter the series coming off a two-game losing streak, including a 10-4 loss to the University of Montevallo on Feb. 12. The 10 runs are the most the Tigers have given up all season.
• West Alabama finished the 2016 season 17-32 overall and 7-26 in the GSC. They have added 10 newcomers to this year's squad, but return pitchers Ashley Stassin (0-2, 5.49 ERA) and Andrea Edmonds (3-4, 4.75 ERA), along with first baseman, Aurdrey Diekmann (14 hits, nine runs, eight RBIs).
• Casey Charles is 8-14 against the Tigers, including a 6-3 mark in the last three seasons.
• Last season, the Lady Statesmen swept the Tigers taking all three games in Cleveland, Miss. Delta State opened the series winning game one, 3-2, in walk-off fashion, and won game two, 9-1, and game three 9-2.  
• In their last trip to Livingston, Delta State took two of three from the Tigers.  

 
QUICK HITS

• Delta State enters the series riding a two-game winning streak.
• The Lady Statesmen went 4-1 at the Falcon Frenzy this past weekend. They defeated No. 16 UIndy 3-1 before shutting out Tuskegee (7-0) and Truman State (1-0) and concluding the tournament with a 14-1 upset over Tournament hosts, the University of Montevallo.
• The Lady Statesmen continue their 17-game road stance before hosting their first home series of 2017 on March 4-5 against Union University.

 
TUCKER LEADING THE WAY IN THE CIRCLE

• Senior starting pitcher Taylor Tucker will anchor the Lady Statesmen's pitching staff this season. In 2016, she pitched in 30 games, making 19 starts. She posted a 13-7 record with 40 strikeouts, a 3.18 ERA and nine complete games in 127.2 innings. Tucker finished the season with a team-best three saves. Tucker currently boasts a 1-2 record with 2.33 ERA. Overall, Tucker currently ranks ninth in school history in career wins (29) and 10th in games pitched (78).

 
GIBSON LEADING AT THE PLATE

• Sophomore Abi Gibson has reached base safely in all 11 contests and enters this weekend's series on a six-game hitting streak. She ranks eighth in the GSC in batting average (.485) and sixth in on base percentage (.575).

 
EARLY AND OFTEN

• The Lady Statesmen are 6-0 when scoring the first run of the game. Delta State has scored a combined 50 runs so far this season, 32 of which came within the first four innings.  

 
WE'RE ONLY FRESHMEN

• The 2017 DSU roster includes eight incoming freshmen (P/OF Mari Alex Sandridge, INF Hannah Salmon, INF Colben Patin, INF Shelby Newsom, C Carlie Vice, INF Miranda Smith, INF/P Bailie Springfield and OF Olivia Dick) and two transfers (P Brittany Taylor and OF Austin Pruitt).
• In her first start in the circle, Springfield led the Lady Statesmen to their first win over a nationally ranked opponent this season on Friday, Feb. 10, when Delta State defeated No. 16 the University of Indianapolis 3-1 at the Montevallo Falcon Frenzy Tournament. The freshman right-handed pitcher from Mantee, Miss., pitched the entire seven innings, sacrificing only one run on one hit.
• Sandridge pitched the 7-0 shutout against Tuskegee on Feb. 11, tying junior LHP Taylor Johnson for the team lead in strikeouts with eight. At the plate, she is second on the team in batting average (.429).
• Dick, Newsom, and Vice have all collected hits.

 
WHERE THEY'RE FROM

• The 2017 Delta State softball team features 22 players from six different states. Fourteen players are Mississippi natives. Four players call Louisiana their home, while four states are home to one player (Alabama, Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee).  

 
CHASING 250

• Head coach Casey Bourgoyne-Charles is only 29 games away from her 250th career win. Last season, she elcipsed most wins in a season with 34. Under Charles, the Lady Statesmen are 98-74 at University Field, 63-90 on the road, and 60-65 at neutral sites.

 
DELTA STATE PICKED TO FINISH FIFTH IN GSC

• For the first time since 2011, the Delta State University softball team has been picked to finish in the top five of the Gulf South Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. 
• Jumping one spot from last year, the Lady Statesmen were picked to finish fifth in the conference with 72 points.
• Defending GSC and national champion, the University of North Alabama was picked unanimously to finish first with 121 points. Alabama Huntsville was picked second with 105 points, followed by Valdosta State (98) and West Florida (92). 
• Delta State received three fourth place votes, five fifth place votes, one sixth place vote, one seventh place vote and one 10th place vote. Mississippi College (68 points), Shorter (64), West Georgia (54), Lee (51), West Alabama (32), Union (21) and Christian Brothers (14) rounded out the poll.
• The GSC Preseason Coaches' Poll is voted on by League's head coaches.

 
TWO LADY STATESMEN TAPPED 2017 GSC TOP NEWCOMERS

• Freshmen Olivia Dick and Mari Alex Sandridge were named to the GSC 2017 Top Newcomers list.
• Dick is an outfielder from Brandon, Miss. She played at Northwest Rankin High School under the direction of Britt Bennett and Taylor Hughes. She was named The Clarion-Ledger's Best of MS Preps in 2015. She holds the season record for most hits (54) and stolen bases (51).
• Sandridge is a pitcher/outfielder from Hernando, Miss. She lettered in softball and basketball at Magnolia Heights High School. 
• Dick and Sandridge highlight Delta State's 10 newcomers. The Lady Statesmen also return 12 letterwinners from last year's squad. 

 
UP NEXT

• Delta State will travel to Cleveland, Tenn., for a Gulf South Conference weekend series against the Lee University Flames. The Lady Statesmen will play a doubleheader at 1 p.m. (CST) on Saturday, Feb. 25, followed by a single game on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 1:00 p.m. (CST).