SERIES INFORMATION
ARKANSAS TECH GOLDEN SUNS 28-14 (18-6 GAC)	SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE BULLDOGS 9-24 (8-16 GAC)
Thursday, April 14 | 2 p.m. (DH) SWOSU Athletic Complex | Weatherford, Okla. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO Friday, April 15 | Noon SWOSU Athletic Complex | Weatherford, Okla. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. - Coming off a perfect 4-0 record last week in a crucial road win against Harding and a dominant 3-0 home series sweep of Henderson State, the Arkansas Tech softball team hits the road for one final three-game conference series matchup in Weatherford, Okla. against the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs. This weeks conference series will be a little different as the series will begin with doubleheader action on Thursday with first pitch set to go at 2 p.m. and the second game of the afternoon will follow shortly after the conclusion of the first. The series against SWOSU will wrap with a single game on Friday with first pitch slated for noon.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS

Entering the weekend, Southwestern Oklahoma State is 9-24 overall with an 8-16 record in conference play and are coming off a 1-2  series loss against Southeastern on the road. Against GAC opponents the Bulldogs have picked up series wins against Oklahoma Baptist, Ouachita Baptist and East Central.

As a team, the Bulldogs are hitting .250 so far this season (214-for-857) with 132 runs scored, 56 doubles, six triples and 14 homeruns. Coming into the series, the Bulldogs have three hitters with at least 100 at-bats hitting .300 or better and are led by Maddie Rahon with a .346 average (36-for-104). The other batting average leader for Southwestern Oklahoma is Breanna Simmons with a .305 average (32-for-105).

In terms of power numbers, the Bulldogs have five total players that have hit at least one homerun on the year. Jordyn Wadley leads the team in total homeruns with six on the year, while Simmons follows behind with four. Closing out the long bomb leaders is Rahon with two. Jewell Lee and Skye Tilley make up the rest of the list of homerun hitters. The leader in RBI's is Simmons with 23 followed by Wadley with 20, while Rahon and Lee close out the leaders with 16 each.

In the circle, the Bulldogs have a team ERA of 8.22 and have struckout 92 in 212.1 total innings.

Three total pitchers have made at least one appearance in the circle this season so far for the Bulldogs. Brianna Cryer leads in starts with 17, followed by Alisa Friesen with 16. Cryer is 3-12 with a 9.44 ERA and has struckout 48 in 88.2 innings. Friesen is 6-11 with a 6.61 ERA and has 38 strikeouts in 99.1 total innings.

In relief, Kaylee Barkley leads with 13 appearances and holds an 0-1 record with the only save of the season for the Bulldogs so far this season. She has a 10.36 ERA and has struckout six hitters in 24.1 relief innings pitched.

TECH TIDBITS

The Golden Suns enter this weekends three-game conference series against the Bulldogs at 28-14 overall with an 18-6 record among Great American Conference opponents. Tech is coming off a perfect week where they picked up a crucial 2-0 single mid-week game victory on the road at Harding and earned the season series sweep to move up to the No. 2 team in the GAC as well as a home series sweep against Henderson State. The Golden Suns are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have won seven straight conference series against Southern Arkansas, Harding, Arkansas-Monticello, Southern Nazarene, Oklahoma Baptist, Ouachita Baptist and Henderson State.

Offensively, the Golden Suns are hitting .289 as a team this season (317-for-1097) with 246 runs scored, 66 doubles, four triples and 54 homeruns. Entering the weekend, the Golden Suns have four batters with at least 100 at-bats hitting .300 or better and are led by Tymber Riley's .454 average (59-for-130). Caitlyn Wells also holds a solid average at the plate hitting .426 on the season (52-for-122).

In terms of power numbers, the Golden Suns boast 13 total players who have notched at least one homer on the year. Leading the charge in homeruns for Arkansas Tech is Riley who has launched 13 on the season. Wells follows behind Riley with nine busted homers, while Makenzie Goins has whacked eight and Shelby Chavers has six. Rounding out the list of homerun leaders for the Golden Suns is Holly Crutchfield with five and Brooke Prewitt with four. Leading Tech in RBI's on the season is Riley with 42 and Goins who has collected 39. Closing out the list for the Golden Suns is Wells with 35 RBI's on the season.

In the circle, the Golden Suns have a 2.21 team ERA and have struckout 242 batters in 275.2 total innings.

Eight total pitchers have made at least one appearance inside the circle for Arkansas Tech so far this season. Shannon Lasey leads the team in starts with 20. Bailey Buffington has 14 starts, while Maddy Prough has started seven games. Lasey is 12-5 when starting in the circle and holds a 1.69 ERA, the best among the Tech starters. The sophomore pitcher has also recorded 85 strikeouts in 95.1 innings pitched and has held opposing bats to just a .181 average at the plate. Buffington is 9-5 with a 2.48 ERA and has collected 68 strikeouts in 79.0 innings of work. She is also holding opposing bats at the plate to just a .207 average. Prough is 5-4 with a 2.88 ERA and has struckout 41 in 48.2 innings. Like the other two starters, Prough holds hitters to a low average of .230 at the plate.

In relief, Kaila Cartwright leads the Golden Suns with 21 total appearances, that includes a start and is 2-0 while boasting a 1.17 ERA. Cartwright has managed to log 40 strikeouts in 42.0 innings and leads the Golden Suns in saves with four. Lasey has two saves on the year and Prough has one to round out the group with saves.