RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Winners of 10 of its past 12 games, the Arkansas Tech softball team finds itself just a game out of first place in the Great American Conference with a four-game series against Southwestern Oklahoma on tap this weekend at Chartwells Women's Sports Complex.

The Golden Suns (21-7, 10-4 GAC) have won six of their past seven against conference foes after sweeping Southern Arkansas last weekend, and are wrapping up a 14-game homestand that has seen them go 8-2.

Tech's offense continues to do some big damage against opponents, as the Suns are third in the nation in home runs per game, sixth in slugging and 21st in batting average. They lead the GAC in slugging percentage (.570), RBIs (173) and home runs (48). The Suns lineup still features 10 hitters batting .300 or better, led by the .393 mark of Samantha Herweck, who went 4-of-7 with four RBIs in the weekend series against SAU. Whitney Robinson is hitting .385 with five home runs, 18 RBIs and 23 runs scored, and Courtney Colunga adds a .374 average with seven home runs and 25 RBIs. Kambri Hill, Shanna Davidson and Ashley Savage each have put up eight home runs, which puts them in a tie for 29th nationally.

The Tech defense has been nearly as impressive, allowing less than four runs per game for the season. The Golden Sun pitching staff is second in the GAC with a 3.46 ERA, and have allowed less than two earned runs per game over the past 13 contests. The Suns' top four pitchers all post sub-3.60 ERAs. Morgan Vaughan is 6-1 with a 2.83 ERA, striking out 34 and walking 20 in 54 1/3 innings, while Victoria Huie is 7-3 with a 3.36 ERA, tossing six complete games and striking out 29 batters in 56 1/3 innings of work. Sydnee Clark is 5-2 with a 3.59 ERA and hasn't allowed an earned run in her past three outings, including tossing a no-hitter Sunday against Southern Arkansas.

The Bulldogs (5-19, 1-11 GAC) picked up their first conference win Tuesday, splitting a doubleheader Tuesday against Northwestern Oklahoma. Maci Brown leads the GAC with a .481 batting average, and has smacked two home runs and five doubles while knocking in 11 runs. Adrienne Martinez bats .357 and leads the team with five homers, six doubles and 21 runs scored, while Ashley Jones is batting .347 with four home runs and a team-high 19 RBIs. Rileigh Ricken is SWOSU's top pitcher, tossing 65 1/3 innings over 17 appearances with a 4.50 ERA.

The series is scheduled for a pair of doubleheaders, starting at 4 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday, with live statistics available at www.arkansastechsports.com.