April 22, 2008

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University softball team will square off against its highest ranked opponent in school history Wednesday as the Bulldogs travel to Tuscaloosa for a non-conference matchup versus the No. 1-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide at 6:30 p.m., at the UA Softball Complex.

Fans unable to attend Wednesday's game in person can listen live to Samford's radio broadcast on WVSU 91.1 FM or via the internet at www.samford.edu/groups/wvsu/sports.

Samford (18-25) heads into the in-state matchup having won four of its previous five games.

Last week, the Bulldogs extended their season-high winning streak to four-consecutive games and earned a key Ohio Valley Conference series victory against the two-time defending champion Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles.

Samford has been victorious in six of its last nine games and has moved into striking distance of the fifth-place team in the OVC standings.

Heading into the final two weeks of the regular season, the Bulldogs are only a game-and-a-half behind the Southeast Missouri Redhawks for fifth place in the conference. The top six teams in the final standings will qualify for the 2008 OVC Tournament.

Samford is scheduled to conclude its regular season with seven-consecutive road games.

Following Wednesday's in-state matchup, the Bulldogs will travel to Nashville, Tenn., for a three-game OVC series against Tennessee State this weekend. Samford will then conclude its regular season with a critical three-game set at UT Martin, May 3-4.

Alabama (44-3) heads into Wednesday's matchup as the consensus No. 1-ranked team in the nation. The Crimson Tide is in the midst of a 23-game winning streak and has not been defeated since an 8-4 loss to No. 4 Florida on March 12.

Last week, Alabama turned in a perfect 5-0 record and didn't allow a run in five Southeastern Conference games. The Crimson Tide outscored its competition 29-0 and picked up consecutive shutouts against Arkansas 4-0 and 3-0, and South Carolina 8-0, 8-0 and 6-0.

Alabama's five-consecutive shutouts were the second-most in school history and the most in a single season by the Crimson Tide against SEC competition.

Junior centerfielder Brittany Rogers became Alabama's all-time leading base stealer on Sunday against South Carolina as she swiped the 134th base of her career, passing current USA team member Kelly Kretschman (1998-2001). Rogers also tied her own single-season record with her 48th steal of the year

Samford's all-time stolen-base leader Jessica Owens has also been having a great season in 2008. The Bulldogs' junior leftfielder from Fort Walton Beach, Fla., currently leads the team with a .350 batting average, 50 hits, three triples and 12 stolen bases.

Last week, Owens continued her torrid hitting by turning in a .357 mark at the plate. The Bulldogs' speedster went 2-for-2 in stolen-base attempts and increased her all-time school-record total to 46.

Samford's Katie England and Aaren Fisher also turned in stellar offensive performances last week.

England, Samford's starting third baseman, led the team with a .455 batting average and drove in three runs. She hit a solo home run against Tennessee Tech on Sunday and also scored three times.

Fisher compiled a .444 batting average in four games last week and slammed a pair of home runs versus Tennessee Tech on Saturday. The Bulldogs' true freshman from Henderson, Nev., scored three runs and tallied two RBI.

Wednesday's game will be the second matchup between Samford and Alabama this season.

On April 2, the teams squared off at Bulldog Field in Birmingham and the Crimson Tide used a stellar pitching performance from Chrissy Owens to earn a 4-0 victory. In the win, Owens came one out shy of finishing with a perfect game. With two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, Samford's Fisher ripped a double to center field to end the no-hit bid.

Alabama owns a 14-2 advantage in its all-time series against Samford and has been victorious in its previous 14 games against the Bulldogs.

Samford's two wins in the series occurred in the first games between the teams in 1997. In a doubleheader sweep, the Bulldogs earned victories of 5-1 and 8-6.

Following Wednesday's midweek matchup, Samford will return to OVC play for a key three-game series at Tennessee State this weekend. The teams are scheduled to play a series-opening doubleheader Saturday at 5 p.m., followed by a single game Sunday at 1 p.m.

All three games will be played at Tennessee State's Tiger Field (500) and Samford will broadcast Saturday's doubleheader live on WVSU 91.1 FM or via the internet at www.samford.edu/groups/wvsu/sports.

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