SB: Mavs travel to Atlanta looking to cage Panthers
4/21/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball
UT Arlington (27-12, 6-9 SBC) at Georgia State (24-23, 7-8 SBC)
April 23-24 | Robert. E. Heck Softball Complex | Atlanta, Ga.
By Brooke Ortale | UTAMavs.com
ARLINGTON, Texas - Following its second Sun Belt Conference series win on the season, UT Arlington softball travels to Georgia State for a pivotal three-game slate.
"If we go out there and do what do best, work as team and fight then I think we will have a good outcome," sophomore Sandra Mendoza said.
Georgia State leads the all-time series 4-3 after taking two of three from UTA at Allan Saxe Field last season.
To keep up with the Mavericks, follow @UTASoftball on twitter.
Notes
Last Week Recap: UTA took two of three from SBC foe ULM over the weekend, both wins coming via the walk-off fashion.
"The girls did a good job competing in all three games," UT Arlington coach Kristie Fox said. "There were definitely some tight situations and a lot of adversity over the weekend and they handled it very well and found a way to win those two games on Saturday."
The Mavs dropped a pitcher's duel in Game 1, 2-1. UTA jumped to a 1-0 lead in the sixth before the Warhawks stormed back to score two in the seventh.
UTA took Game 2, 4-3, in 11 innings with Mendoza scoring the game-winner on an error by the Warhawks' shortstop. Both teams got on the board early, each scoring a run in the first. With the Mavs trailing by two in the sixth, Laura Curry drilled a triple to score two and tie the game up.
Both teams went scoreless through the next four innings, before Kacey Everett's groundball squeaked past the shortstop to score Mendoza.
The Mavs claimed the series with a 4-3 win in the rubber match. UTA took the early lead, scoring three in second. The Warhawks battled back to tie it at three late in the game. In the bottom of the seventh, Mendoza drilled a double to left center to score Rude from second base.
Mendoza finished the weekend, 6-for-10 with four walks, three runs and a RBI, reaching base in 11 of her 14 plate appearances.
Conference Standings: UTA sits sixth in the Sun Belt standings at 6-9 with the final three SBC series coming against teams within a game of the Mavs in the standings. Georgia State sits fifth in the conference with a 7-8 record. Next weekend's opponent Troy is fourth in the standings, also with a 7-8 conference record. UTA wraps up regular-season play at Texas State, who is 6-9 in SBC play and eighth in the standings.
Mavericks in the Rankings: The Mavs sit 40th in the nation and second in the Sun Belt in winning percentage at .692. UTA ranks 36th in Division I and leads the conference in triples per game with 0.26. They sit third in the SBC and 79th in Division I in batting average at .301. The Mavs 1.36 doubles per game is good for the best in the conference and puts them 90th in the nation.
The Mavs are just as good on the defensive side of the ball, sitting second in the conference and 76th in Division in double plays turned per game with 0.36 and third in the Sun Belt and 64th in the nation in fielding percentage at .966.
Mendoza's .469 batting average is the ninth highest in Division I softball and third best in the SBC. She leads the SBC in doubles per game with 0.28 and sits second in the conference and 21st in the nation in on-base percentage at .539. Mendoza and Curry are tied for third in the Sun Belt and 23rd in the nation in triples with four, averaging 0.10 a game, good for third in the conference and 32nd in Division I.
Everett leads the conference and is 12th in the nation in sacrifice flies with four, while Rebecca Stokes leads the Sun Belt and is 23rd in the Division I in sacrifice hits per games with 0.27.
Samantha Clakley's three saves on the year tops the Sun Belt and is good for 34th in the nation. Her 16 victories are the fourth most in the conference and 33rd most in Division I.
Underclassmen Lead the way: The underclassmen have played a major role in the team's success this season. Mendoza (sophomore) leads the team in most offensive categories. Mendoza is a team leader in batting average (.469), hits (61), triples (4), RBI (34), slugging percentage (.615) and on-base percentage (.539).
Krista Rude (freshman) and Curry (freshman) are second and third on the team in batting average, hitting .388 and .345 respectively. Curry leads the team in runs, scoring 31 times on the year, while Rude is the team's stolen base leader, swiping 11 so far this season. Brianna Burchianti (freshman) has also played a major role in the team's success hitting .270 primarily as the designated player for the Mavericks.
Kayci Moore (freshman) and Cy'Andria Newton (freshman) have played vital roles off the bench for the Mavs scoring a combined 21 runs and stealing nine bases in pinch running situations.
Clakley (freshman) has been dominant in the circle, recording a team-low 2.48 ERA with 101 strikeouts and 16 wins in 152.1 innings thrown.
Record Watch: Curry is two runs shy of breaking into the Mavericks single-season runs list, scoring 31 times so far this season. Katie Jones sits at the top, scoring 44 runs in 2007.
Compiling 61 hits on the season, Mendoza sits in a tie for 8th on the Mavericks single-hits record, also chasing Jones at the top with 70 in 2007. Her 15 extra-base hits this season are four shy of a tie for 6th on the single-season extra-base hits list. Mendoza is tied for 10th on the Mavericks single-season RBI list with 34. Shelbi Sikes set the single-season RBI record with 45 in 2015. Mendoza is on pace to break the single-season batting average record of .417, hitting .469 with three regular-season weeks left.
Sikes' 26 walks on the season puts her two away from a tie for tenth place on the single-season walks list. Britnea Barilli is five away from appearing on the list for third time in her career with 23 walks this year.
In the hunt for the Maverick all-time walks record, Barilli has 23 walks on the season to give her 117 in her career. She is second on the Mavericks all-time walks list with 117, chasing Jill Garro at the top with 141. Sikes has 66 career walks, putting her 10th on the list.
Milestone Watch: Barilli has started 201 games in her career, playing in every Mavericks softball game in left field over the last four years. Stokes has started 198 games, starting every game but two at first base in her career.
Barilli is three runs away from 100 career runs scored, while Mendoza has scored 80 runs in her young career.
Everett has tallied 97 career hits, only three shy of century mark.
Chasing History: UTA's 19-0 start to the season was the best start of any program in UTA Athletics history, with the 1980's 9-0 start marking the best start prior to this season. The Mavs are chasing the 1983 team's 39 wins for most in school history. The Mavs are currently 22-4 on the year.
Up Next: The Mavericks return home for their last home series of the season, with a three-game slate against Troy. Senior Day will be held May 1, with a ceremony honoring all the series taking place at the conclusion of the game.
Streaming on UTAMavs.com: All home games are video streamed at UTAMavs.com/collegesportslive. Subscriptions are available for $9.95 per month and $99.95 per year.
Can't Make the Game? If you are unable to catch UTA Softball action in person, follow on twitter @UTAMavs or on facebook via UT Arlington Athletics for live in game updates.
Tickets: Single game tickets and season tickets are available at UTATickets.com and by calling 817-272-9595. Parking is free for all games at Allan Saxe Field.
