RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. - Coming hot off a mid-week doubleheader sweep over Harding, the Arkansas Tech softball team hits the road to take on Arkansas-Monticello in a three-game conference series. The series will kickoff with doubleheader action on Sunday as first pitch is set to go at 1 p.m. that afternoon, with the second game to directly follow. The final game of the series against Arkansas-Monticello will be played on Monday with first pitch slated for 1 p.m. that afternoon.

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SCOUTING THE COTTON BLOSSOMS

Arkansas-Monticello enters the weekend at 11-10 overall with a 6-2 record against conference opponents and are coming off a 1-2 series loss against Southern Arkansas on the road. So far this season in conference play, the Cotton Blossoms have picked up a series sweep against Northwestern Oklahoma State and a doubleheader sweep of Henderson State.

As a team, the Cotton Blossoms are hitting .306 so far this season (160-for-523) with 114 runs scored, 22 doubles, six triples and 10 homeruns. Entering the series, the Cotton Blossoms have five players hitting .300 or better and are led by Madison Morrissey with a .423 average (22-for-52).

In terms of power numbers, the Cotton Blossoms have four total players that have hit at least one homerun and are led by Grace Neal who has five on the season. Following Neal are Haley Cornell and Christa Lannon each with two. Closing out the list is Caroline Tedder who has hit one homer this season. Neal also leads the team in RBI's with 22 and is followed by Cornell with 17 and Tedder with 15.

In the circle, the Cotton Blossoms have a 6.93 team ERA and have struckout 62 in 122.0 innings.

Eight total pitchers have made an appearance for the Cotton Blossoms. Jamie Franks leads with 10 starts, while Sam Stephens has five starts. Franks is 6-4 with a 5.23 ERA and has 10 strikeouts in 43.0 innings of work. Stephens is 1-1 with a 5.88 ERA and has struckout 15 in 26.0 innings.

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TECH TIDBITS

The Golden Suns enter the series with a 14-10 overall record and a 5-3 record among Great American Conference opponents and are coming off a solid doubleheader sweep over Harding. A 2-1 series win over Southern Arkansas and the sweep over Harding account for the big conference wins so far this season for Tech.

Offensively, the Golden Suns are hitting .277 as a team this season (171-for-618) with 131 runs scored, 35 doubles, three triples and 32 homeruns. Entering Sunday, the Golden Suns have four batters with at least 50 at-bats hitting .300 or better and are led by Tymber Riley's .419 average (31-for-74).

In terms of power numbers, the Golden Suns boast 10 players who have notched at least one homerun on the season. Leading the charge in homers is Riley and Caitlyn Wells who have each crushed seven bombs. Holly Crutchfield has hit five, while Shelby Chavers and Makenzie Goins have both launched four homers each to round out the list of homerun leaders so far this season. Leading the team in RBI's is Wells with 25. Following behind Wells is Riley and Goins at 23 and 18 RBI's on the season, respectively.

In the circle, the Golden Suns have a 2.66 team ERA and have struckout 139 batters in 158.0 total innings.

Eight total pitchers have made at least one appearance in the circle so far this season for the Golden Suns. Bailey Buffington has eight starts, while Maddy Prough has seven. Shannon Lasey leads in starts with with nine. Buffington is 5-3 with a 1.95 ERA and has 37 strikeouts in 43.0 innings of work. Prough is also 5-3 with a 2.76 ERA and has struckout 38 hitters in 45.2 total innings. Lasey is 4-4 with a 2.95 ERA and has collected 38 strikeouts in 40.1 innings. Against East Central, Lasey threw the sixth perfect game in Golden Sun program history.

In relief, Kaila Cartwright leads the Golden Suns with 13 total appearances and has a 1.91 ERA. Cartwright has managed to pick up 20 strikeouts in 22.0 relief innings and leads the Golden Suns in saves with two so far on the season. Prough and Lasey have each picked up one to account for the rest of the saves for the Golden Suns.