Troy University Athletics
Troy University
University of South Alabama
Troy to Host South Alabama In A Midweek Contest, Receive Votes in National Polls
3/27/2012 3:01:00 PM | Softball
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TROY, Ala. – Coming off a week where the Troy softball team defeated two ranked teams, the Trojans welcome another tough opponent to the Troy Softball Complex, Wednesday night, as the South Alabama Jaguars come to town for a midweek conference matchup.
Last week, Troy (20-9, 2-4) took down no. 21 Auburn, 7-1, last Wednesday, and also defeated the eighth-ranked Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns, 9-4, Saturday afternoon.
Despite dropping the final two games of the series to Louisiana-Lafayette, Troy's performance on the field last week resonated well among the voters, as the Trojans are now garnering votes both the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Poll and the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 Poll.
The Trojans recceived two votes in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Poll, while Troy picked up one vote in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 Poll
For her performances against Auburn and Lousiaina-Lafayette, freshman pitcher Ashley Rainey picked up her league-high third Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Week Award of the season. Rainey shares this week's honor with FIU Mariah Dawson.
South Alabama (19-9, 7-2) enters the midweek contest in second place in the Sun Belt. Last weekend, the Jaguars traveled to
Boca Raton, Fla., and took two of three games from Florida Atlantic to win the series over the Owls.
Statistically, the Jaguars boast the best pitching staff in the Sun Belt. Led by southpaw Hannah Campbell, USA's 2.20 ERA leads the conference. Campbell has been the anchor of the South Alabama staff this season, as the junior's 103.1 innings pitched and 100 strikeouts are the second-most in the conference this season.
Collectively as a team, the Jaguars are hitting .288. Freshman Blair Johnson is second on the team with a .351 batting average and has scattered a team-leading 33 hits in 28 games. Brittany Fowler leads the club in seven home runs and five doubles leads the Jaguars in those categories.
First pitch from the Troy Softball Complex is set for 5:00 p.m. Wednesday night. Troy closes out the eight-game homestand this weekend with a three-game series against the FIU Golden Panthers.
Check back with TroyTrojans.com with live video and live stats of tomorrow's midweek conference matchup. For live in-game updates and news on Troy Softball follow @TroySBall on Twitter.
For more information on Troy Athletics, be sure to visit TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter at @TroyAthletics. Troy softball can be found at @TroySBall. You can also follow Troy on Facebook by visiting www.Facebook.com/TroyAthletics.
Gameday Storylines
- Troy continues with its season-long eight-game homestand as the South Alabama Jaguars visit the Troy Softball Complex for a midweek conference showdown.
- Last week, the Trojans defeated two ranked opponents by defeating no. 21 Auburn, Wednesday night, 7-1, and no. 8 Louisiana, 9-4, Saturday afternoon.
- After picking up its first two wins of the season over ranked opponents, head coach Melanie Davis and her squad are now recieveing votes both the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Poll and the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 Poll.
- The Trojans defeated no. 21 Auburn, 7-1, Wednesday night to give the Trojans their first win over a ranked team since 2010 and their second win over an SEC opponent this season.
- Against no. 8 Louisiana-Lafayette, Troy belted two home runs off reigning Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year, Ashley Brignac, in Troy's 9-4 comeback victory over the Ragin' Cajuns.
- Sun Belt Co-Pitcher of the Week Ashley Rainey picked up both wins with complete game performance against Auburn and Louisiana. The honor by the Sun Belt was the third time this season Rainey had been named Pitcher of the Week, the most by any hurler in the conference.
