Racers Trek to Mobile for Jaguar Invite

Dates: Feb. 19^-21, 2021
Site (Venue): Mobile, Ala. (Jaguar Field)
Live Video: None
Live Audio: JagNationTV (Games against South Alabama only)
Live Coverage Links: goracers.com/coverage
MSU Record (Streak): 1-3 (L1)
Racers All-Time vs. The Field: 4-8 (3-0 vs. Butler, 0-4 vs. Lipscomb, 1-4 vs. South Alabama)
Butler Record (Streak): 1-4 (Lost 4)
Lipscomb Record (Streak): 0-0 (-)
South Alabama Record (Streak): 1-2 (Lost 1)
MSU Next Game: Feb. 26-28 at Tiger Invite (Auburn, Ala.)
MSU Next Home Game: March 13^th vs. Eastern Kentucky

Murray State softball will hit the road for its second week of competition as the Racers are slated to play five games over three days at the Jaguar Classic in Mobile, Alabama. The Racers (1-3) are set to have two contests against both South Alabama and Butler, and a single competition against Lipscomb. Live video for this weekend's games will not be available, but an audio broadcast for the Racers' outings against USA in addition to live stats for all games will be provided. Check out goracers.com/coverage for all live coverage links.

Last Time Out:
The Racers went 1-3 in their opening weekend of 2021 at the Black and Gold Invite in Hattiesburg, Mississippi in their last time out. While the Murray State bats got off to a slow start, they exploded for nine runs in the sixth inning in Sunday's contest against North Dakota to bring the game to an early end as the Racers earned their first victory of the new campaign with a 9-1 score line in six innings.

Individually, Sierra Gilmore crushed the first Racer home run of the season while driving in three runs and recording a stolen base on the weekend. Freshman Kamryn Carcich also collected two hits in just three opportunities, while also driving in a pair in her first appearances in a Racer uniform.

In the circle, the Racer pitching staff surrendered just eight earned runs over the four games, holding the opposition to a .211 average at the dish. Hannah James (1-1, 1.17 ERA, 8 Ks) earned her first win of the season in the triumph over North Dakota – allowing just one hit in the complete-game outing.

All-Time Series:
Beginning with Butler, the Racers have triumphed in all three previous meetings with the Bulldogs, with the most recent clash coming in 2019 when Murray State emerged victorious in a 5-0 contest in Madeira Beach, Florida.

Murray State will try to get its first win against Lipscomb this weekend, as the Lady Bisons have gotten the best of the Racers in each of the four previous meetings. The most recent came in 2016, when the Racers fell 6-0 on the road in Nashville.

Finally, the Racers will meet the host Jaguars of South Alabama for the sixth time in their history, with USA holding a commanding 4-1 lead in the all-time series. South Alabama prevailed in the most recent contest, a 3-1 competition in Starkville, Mississippi in 2018.

Scouting Butler:
The Bulldogs are coming off a 1-4 opening weekend at the Doc Halverson UNI-Dome classic in Cedar Falls, Iowa where a 2-1 victory in the opener was the highlight of the trip. Butler batted .240 with three home runs while averaging 2.8 runs per contest on the weekend. Individually, the Bulldogs saw strong play from 2019 All-BIG EAST selection Lauren Fey, who started off the season by leading the team with a .533 batting average, featuring eight hits and four walks. Fey batted .421 during the shortened campaign a year ago.

In the circle, Butler pitchers posted a 4.81 ERA while allowing opposing hitters to notch a .286 average at the dish, but they did see a strong showing from Karli Ricketts, who picked up the win over Omaha, striking out 10 in the outing. She leads the Bulldogs pitching staff with 17 strikeouts in 12 innings, and has also gotten it done at the plate - belting one home run, a double, and leads the team with six RBI thus far.

Scouting Lipscomb:
The Lady Bisons saw their opening weekend get washed out due to inclement weather. Lipscomb returns much of last year's roster that saw them go 12-10 during the abbreviated campaign. They hit .273 while averaging 4.37 runs per contest to go along with 34 stolen bases in 36 attempts. Sophomore Presley Leebrick posted a .350 average and a .435 on-base percentage a year ago.

The Lipscomb pitching staff posted a 3.79 ERA last season, while allowing a .276 average to opposing hitters. Katie Turner (5-1, 2.94 ERA in 2020) returns, but is sidelined until March with an injury. The Lady Bisons will lean on sophomore returner Emily Yakubowski, and grad transfers Maddie Siemer (Appalachian State) and Breana Burke (UNLV). Freshman Laine Barefoot will also grab some innings for the Lady Bisons.

Scouting South Alabama:
South Alabama (1-2) enters the weekend after opening the season at the Red & Black Showcase hosted by Georgia. The Jaguars split a doubleheader with the 14th-ranked Bulldogs on Friday, falling 8-3, but bouncing back to take game two, 9-8. They also lost a hard-fought game to Virginia.

Newcomers Belle Wolfenden and Meredith Keel led the club at the plate at the tournament, with Wolfenden batting .556 with multi-hit outings in each of the Jags' last two games. She led the team with five RBI and reached base safely eight times – five hits and three walks – and a three-run home run. She earned Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week Honors for her performances. Keel recorded a pair of hits in all three contests, while also scoring a team-high four runs. Four of her six hits went for extra bases, including three doubles.

From a pitching perspective, Allie Hughen didn't allow an earned run in the circle in either of her appearances to guide a pitching staff that surrendered 19 earned runs on the weekend while allowing opposing hitters to muster a .275 average at the dish.

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Players Mentioned

Kamryn Carcich

Sierra Gilmore

Hannah James

Murray State University Athletics