Troy University Athletics
Troy University
Alabama State
Troy Softball Hosts Alabama State and Trojan Classic
2/13/2024 2:02:00 PM | Softball
TROY, Ala – Troy softball continues its homestand this week by hosting Alabama State in the midweek and continuing tournament play with the Trojan Classic, which welcomes Florida A&M, Indiana and Gardner-Webb.
Troy (4-2) plays at 4 p.m. on Wednesday against Alabama State (1-2) in its first midweek of the season. After the conclusion of Wednesday's game, the Trojans have a quick turnaround, opening the Trojan Classic against Florida A&M (0-5) on Thursday at 5 p.m.
Troy plays at 2 p.m. (Gardner-Webb) and 5 p.m. (Indiana) on Friday and 3 p.m. (Florida A&M) and 6 p.m. (Indiana) on Saturday, with the final game slated for 1 p.m. on Sunday against Gardner-Webb (4-1). All of Troy's games will be streamed on ESPN+ except for Saturday's games.
Offensively, the Trojans are off to a hot start behind D'Aun Riggs and Taylor McKinney, hitting at .455 and .429 clips, respectively. Riggs put together 10 hits over the weekend, tying her for the ninth most in the country. McKinney was on Riggs' heels with nine hits, tying her for 19th nationally.
Haley Pittman had a great showing in the circle for the Trojans with four appearances and one start. Through 9.1 innings of work, she posted a 0.00 ERA.
Troy's freshman class saw action on the weekend, with both Savannah Money and Alyssa Faircloth earning starting nods and appearing for relief in the circle for the Trojans. Faircloth leads the Trojans pitching staff with seven strikeouts while posting a 3.00 ERA.
Scouting Report
In the Hornets' Nest
Last weekend Alabama State won 5-2 against Purdue Fort Wayne before dropping games against Hampton at 0-4 and Houston Christian 4-3.
In the preseason, the Hornets were picked to win the east division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The SWAC Preseason Player of the Year Kindall DeRamus led the Hornets offensively, on a .455 clip with five hits, one triple and two RBIs through opening weekend.
Diving into the Rattlers
Florida A&M comes to Troy on a five-game losing streak after competing in the Florida State Tournament. The Rattlers battled against two power-five competitors in Texas Tech and No. 4 Florida State.
The Rattles are led by Nyomi Jones and Lauryn Peppers, who picked up Southwestern Athletic Conference weekly honors this week. Jones finished the weekend with a .313 batting average, recording five hits and two RBIs. Meanwhile, in the circle, Peppers pinned opposing batters to a .267 with two strikeouts.
Northern Folk
Defending runners-up in the Big 10 Tournament with a 44-18 record, Indiana heads to Troy after competing at the NCFA Leadoff Classic, where it defeated No. 15 Oregon, 7-5, before falling to No. 5 Clemson 3-2. After the lone loss to Clemson, the Hoosiers won over Army in five innings at 11-3 before wrapping up the tournament with a 2-1 win over Kansas.
Two-way player Brianna Copeland led the Hoosiers defensively with 15.1 innings of work and 18 strikeouts in the NCFA Leadoff Classic. While at the dish, she is hit at .333 with four hits and five RBIs.
Into the Bulldogs
Gardner-Webb opened the weekend at the Runnin' Bulldog Classic, taking on Delaware, East Tennessee State and Youngstown State to finish 4-1. The Bulldogs' only loss of the weekend came from Youngstown State at 3-1. Through four games, Taylor Dreher led the Bulldogs at a .462 clip with a team-high of six hits, three doubles and a trio of RBIs.
In the Big South Conference, the Bulldogs were picked to finish fourth in the league, with two players selected to the All-Big South Preseason Team, Adrienne Visintine and Annicka McLaughlin.
