Softball heads to Auburn

FAYETTEVILLE— The University of Arkansas softball team will look to secure their spot in the 2010 SEC Softball Tournament this weekend when it travels to Auburn, Ala., for a three-game weekend series against Auburn.

The two teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday. First pitch for Saturday is 1 p.m. while Sunday’s game starts at Noon.

The series finale will be televised regionally on SportSouth, Sun Sports, FOX Sports Southwest, FOX Sports Houston, FOX Sports South in Kentucky. Dave Neal and Cheri Smith will provide play-by-play and color commentary in the booth.

The Razorbacks (28-25, 10-15 SEC) wrapped up its regular-season home schedule last weekend with a three-game series against Ole Miss at Bogle Park. Arkansas picked up wins in the first two games of the series to earn its first SEC series win since taking two of three games from Georgia in early March. Pitchers Hope McLemore and Layne McGuirt threw 12 shutout innings on Saturday to lead team to a sweep of the doubleheader.

Reigning SEC Freshman of the Week, Arkansas second baseman Courtney Breault is batting .285 this season with 41 hits, six doubles, six home runs and 31 RBIs. The Roseville, Calif., native finished the Ole Miss series with a team-high .714 batting average, five hits, seven RBIs and two home runs.

Auburn (27-23, 8-17) comes into the weekend having won four of their last five games. The last time they took on SEC competition, the Tigers won a three-game series against Ole Miss in Oxford. Auburn is 14-8 at home this season.

Auburn leads the all-time series between the two teams, 22-20. Last season, Auburn took two of three games from the Razorbacks in Fayetteville. Arkansas batted .215 as a team while the pitching staff boasted a 3.18 team ERA. The Tigers also won a shortened two-game series the last time the teams met in Auburn.

At the plate, Auburn is led by junior infielder, Kyndall White. White has a .315 average, 35 hits, nine doubles and a team-high 10 home runs. Sophomore infielder Amber Harrison leads the team with 29 RBIs. The Tigers are batting .247 as a team with 33 home runs and 163 RBIs.

In the circle, Auburn is paced by senior right-hander Anna Thompson, who has a 1.64 ERA and a 15-8 record in 149.0 innings pitched. She has recorded 252 strikeouts while walking only 48.

Auburn has a 2.33 staff ERA with 383 strikeouts and 117 walks in 339.1 innings. Opposing batters are hitting .219 against the Tigers.

This weekend’s games will also be broadcast on KXUA Fayetteville (88.3 FM) and ArkansasRazorbacks.com, which will also carry live stats for the Auburn series.

Download: 5-8 Auburn.pdf