April 8, 2008

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University softball team will play its final game of a seven-game Ohio Valley Conference road swing Wednesday as the Bulldogs travel east to Jacksonville, Ala., for a 6 p.m., matchup against in-state rival Jacksonville State.

Samford (13-22, 5-9 OVC) heads into the midweek conference game with aspirations of building upon its recent 1-0 win against Eastern Illinois on Sunday.

In the Bulldogs' shutout victory, their second of the 2008 season, sophomore Amanda Barrs only allowed one hit in four innings en route to the win. Samford's improved pitching limited Eastern Illinois' potent offense to three hits and snapped its five-game home winning streak.

Jacksonville State (23-9, 12-1 OVC) enters Wednesday's showdown as the first-place team in the conference.

The Gamecocks have been victorious in 11-straight OVC games and have not been defeated by a conference opponent since March 16. Since then, Jacksonville State has earned three-game sweeps against UT Martin, Tennessee State and Eastern Kentucky.

Earlier this season, the Gamecocks played a pair of games at Bulldog Field and registered wins of 9-0 and 12-1 (5), against Samford. The losses were the Bulldogs' two worst defeats of the 2008 campaign.

Jacksonville State holds a three-and-a-half game lead in the conference standings and is on pace to win its second OVC title in four years.

Samford currently sits in ninth place in the league's standings, but has played its previous six OVC games on the road. The Bulldogs are 3-6 on the road this season and have compiled a 2-4 mark during their present road swing. Recently, Samford turned in identical 1-2 records in three-game series against Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Illinois.

The Bulldogs have played in a number of close games this season.

Following last weekend's trio of OVC nail-biters, a total of 20 of Samford's 35 contests this year have been decided by two runs or less. The Bulldogs own a 6-8 record in one-run games this season and hold a 3-3 mark in contests decided by two runs.

Despite its 1-3 record last week, Samford's pitching staff only allowed five earned runs in 26 innings. The Bulldogs' Barrs led the way with a 0.75 earned run average, while the entire pitching staff finished with week with a solid 1.35 ERA.

Jacksonville State boasts two of the conference's top-10 hitters this season.

The Gamecocks' Nikki Prier leads the team with a .360 batting average and has already powered 10 home runs this year. She is also leads Jacksonville State with 36 hits and is followed by her teammate Rachel Fleming, who is batting .355 this season. As a team, Jacksonville State is ranked third in the conference with a .303 batting average.

In one of its most extensive rivalries in school history, Samford trails Jacksonville State 18-28 in the all-time series. The Gamecocks have won eight of the previous 10 games between the teams and hold an 8-6 record against the Bulldogs since both teams joined the OVC in 2004.

Last year, in a pair of games held at Jacksonville State's University Field, the teams split a midweek doubleheader with the Gamecocks winning the first game 9-8, before Samford rallied for an 8-6 victory in the nightcap.

Margaret Carter, the Bulldogs' freshman pitcher who sustained an injury to her face Sunday when a line drive hit her under her eye, is recovering nicely in Birmingham and actually attended class Tuesday. She is in good spirits and the coaching staff expects her to return to game action at some point this season.

"I just wanted to let everyone know that Margaret is doing better and her injury has really improved," said Samford head coach Beanie Ketcham. "She is not in serious condition at all right now and she's actually been here on campus all day. We are thankful for everyone's prayers and thoughts, and we fully expect her to rejoin the lineup as soon as she gets cleared by the doctors."

Following Samford's matchup against Jacksonville State on Wednesday, the Bulldogs will return home to Birmingham for a three-game OVC series against the Southeast Missouri Redhawks. The team will play a series-opening doubleheader Saturday beginning at 1 p.m., followed by a single game Sunday at 1 p.m.

GameTracker - Samford at Jacksonville State