CEDAR CITY, Utah - The Southern Utah Softball team will host its first true home series this weekend. The Lumberjacks of Stephen F. Austin are coming to Cedar City for a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 1:00 p.m. MT. The T-Birds will then welcome SFA back to the Berg on Saturday for a single game that will begin at noon MT.
The Thunderbirds are coming off a tough road series against Abilene Christian. Southern Utah had opportunities in each of the three games but was ultimately swept in the series. The Lumberjacks are coming off a 1-2 home series with Seattle University. In the series, the Jacks lost both the first and last game of the series by two runs each, while winning game two 2-1.
GAME INFORMATION
Southern Utah vs SFA
Friday, March 31, 2023 - Saturday, April 1, 2023
SUU vs. SFA: 1:00 p.m. MT Friday
SUU vs. SFA: 3:00 p.m. MT Friday
SUU vs. SFA: 12:00 p.m. MT Saturday
Stream: ESPN+
Stats: suutbirds.com
SOUTHERN UTAH
The Thunderbirds will look to improve this weekend, sitting at 4-17 on the season. The Thunderbirds picked up their first conference victory as a member of the Western Athletic Conference defeating UT Arlington in the opening weekend.
Southern Utah has been led on offense by Freshman infielder Emily Gonzalez. Gonzalez is batting an impressive .407 with two doubles, four home runs, and 12 RBIs. Junior outfielder Allie Laub has raised her average over the last few games to .300 picking up four doubles in the process. Sophomore second baseman Jayne Sepulveda is also swinging the bat well with a batting average of .292.
Freshman Riley Nielsen has earned significant time in the circle for Southern Utah with a team-leading 5.98 ERA. Sophomore pitcher Keimon Winston leads the team with 18 strikeouts on the season. Winston has started several games for the Thunderbirds but has also pitched in relief, throwing her way to a 2-5 record with a save.
SFA LUMBERJACKS
The Jacks have played a tough preseason with games against some power five programs. SFA has done well over the season with a 15-14 record including a 4-2 conference start.
The Lumberjack offense has been anchored by Makenzie Bennet and Mikaelah Burkland who are batting .333 and .305 respectively. Bennett leads the team in RBIs with 21 on the year. The home runs leader for SFA is Gabby Garcia who has nine on the season. The Jacks have been very aggressive on the bases with 45 steals this year.
SFA has relied heavily on Alexis Telford and Brooke Gainous in the circle. Telford has pitched 71 innings and accumulated a 7-7 record this season. Telford also leads the team in strikeouts with an impressive 59. Gainous has a 3.07 ERA limiting opposing teams to a .300 batting average this year.
LAST TIME OUT- SUU vs ACU
The Southern Utah Softball team wrapped up the weekend series at Abilene Christian on Sunday afternoon. The T-Birds finished the series with a 5-1 loss.
The Thunderbirds were led at the plate this weekend by junior outfielder Allie Laub and sophomore second baseman Jayne Sepulvedawho each collected three hits on the weekend. Freshman Riley Nielson also stepped up in a big way this weekend with a pinch-hit two-run home run that helped spark the offense in the first game of the series.
GAME RECAP
The Thunderbirds started the game well loading up the bases but failing to score in the first inning. The Wildcats bounced back right away, scoring a three-run home run in the home half of the first inning.
The next three innings passed quickly and quietly with no runs scored by either side. In the top of the fifth inning, Sepulveda stepped to the plate and smashed a solo home run to make the score 3-1. ACU would answer quickly, picking up two more runs in the bottom half of the inning.
After a quick sixth inning, the Thunderbirds were down to their last three outs. Despite a solid double by junior shortstop Miranda Lopez, the T-Birds were unable to score, ending the game 5-1 in favor of the Wildcats.
Southern Utah outhit Abilene in the game picking up six hits. The key however was timing as the Thunderbirds stranded seven runners in the game. The loss went to sophomore Keimon Winston who started the game but only went 1.1 innings giving up three runs.
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