TROY, Alabama – After defeating their third ranked opponent of the season, the UT Arlington softball team will travel to Alabama in high spirits to take on the Troy Trojans for a three-game Sun Belt Series at the Troy Softball Complex.

MATCHUP: UTA (17-15, 6-3 SBC) vs Troy (22-13, 5-4 SBC)
WHEN: March 29-31
WHERE: Troy, Alabama | Troy Softball Complex
FRIDAY (6 p.m.): WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS
SATURDAY (2 p.m.): WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS
SUNDAY (11 a.m.): WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS
GAME NOTES: UTA GAME NOTES

SERIES HISTORY
UTA leads the all-time series 10-9. UTA took the regular season series in Arlington last season, winning two out of the three games, but the Trojans got the last laugh, defeating the Mavs twice in the SBC Tournament to knock them out.

UTA NOTES
• Junior Reagan Wright has been known for her long ball since arriving at UTA in 2017. With her four home runs on the season, she now sits with 22 career bombs, tying her for the 5th most career home runs in UTA program history. She is just three away from being tied for second all-time, but still has 14 more to go to catch Rebecca Collom for the record.
• When it comes to finishing games, the Mavs have been nearly perfect.  When leading after five innings, UTA holds a 15-1 record on the season. On the flip side, the Mavericks have struggled overcoming late deficits, holding a 1-11 record when trailing after five innings.
• Following Tuesday's win over Arkansas, the Mavericks have now defeated a ranked opponent three times this season - #16 Baylor, twice and #13 Arkansas.
• Junior Whitney Walton hasn't just been a tough out this year, it's been tough to retire the Lake Jackson native her entire career. Entering this weekend, Walton has never gone hitless in a three-game series.  The worst she has done is a 1-for-13 effort in three games against Louisiana a season ago.

KNOW YOUR OPPONENT | TROY
• Allie Miller is tied for third in the Sun Belt with Krista Rude with 16 steals on the season.
• The Trojans are currently on a four game winning streak, defeating North Alabama on Wednesday and sweeping Coastal Carolina last weekend. Their last loss came against Georgia Tech on March 19.
• Leanna Johnson is second in the Sun Belt in strikeouts.  She has punched out 135 batters on the year, which also places her in the top 15 in the nation.
• Troy has the third best team batting average in the Sun Belt, batting .279 on the season. They trail only Louisiana (.352) and UTA (.304).

ON DECK
The Mavs will return to Allan Saxe Field on Wednesday, April 3 to host No. 21 Oklahoma State for a 5:00 p.m. weekday tilt.

LAST TIME OUT | Softball Splits with #13 Arkansas (March 26)
For the third time this season, a ranked opponent fell to the UT Arlington (17-15) softball team as the Mavericks split a double header with No. 13 Arkansas on Tuesday afternoon at Allan Saxe Field. Arkansas took game one 4-1 before the Mavericks defeated the Razorbacks 7-4 in game two.
 
The Mavs pitching staff was finding their spots all afternoon, allowing just seven earned runs over the two games, while striking out eight Razorback batters.  Randi Phillips (9-8) picked up a season-high six strikeouts in game one.  Laura Henriksen (3-1) earned her second career start in the circle in game two and did not disappoint, allowing just two earned runs in 5.1 innings pitched.
 
UTA finished with 14 hits on the day, including a nine-hit performance in the game two win. Aileen Garcia went 4-for-6 at the plate with two RBI, including her third home run of the season.
 
GAME ONE RECAP
The Razorbacks took an early 1-0 lead, scoring off an RBI double in the first inning. Arkansas had runners on second and third, but Phillips got out of the jam, forcing two pop outs to end the inning.
 
In the bottom of the second, Garcia jacked a solo shot to center field to tie game at one.
 
With both pitchers settling down, the game became a dual for the two players in the circle, until the Razorbacks took advantage of a ball left over the plate, hitting a two-run home run to take a two-run lead.
 
Arkansas went on to extend their lead in the seventh with a bases loaded walk. UTA was unable to get anything going, falling 4-1 in the game one.
 
GAME TWO RECAP
The Mavs got things rolling in the second game, taking advantage of Arkansas mistakes to clinch the win.
 
In the bottom of the second, a Razorback error kept the inning alive, while allowing a run to score on a Brittany Wyllie hit to third base.  Avery Grimes delivered a sac fly with the next at bat to give the Mavs a 2-0 lead.
 
The scoring was halted until the fifth inning when the Razorbacks tied the game with a two-run home run, but the tie didn't last long.  The Mavs scored two more runs off another Arkansas error to keep a two-run lead.
 
The Razorbacks scored one in the sixth coming off a Maverick error, cutting the lead to one.  UTA answered, just as they had all game, this time with three runs in the bottom of the inning.  Laura Curry knocked home the first two with a single up the gut of the defense, before Garcia followed suite with another RBI.
 
A solo home run by Arkansas in the top of the seventh cut the Maverick lead to three, but Phillips was able to prevent the momentum from growing any further, forcing a flyout to end the game to give the Mavericks a 7-4 win.
 
The win marks the first time since April 2018 that UTA defeated a ranked opponent at Allan Saxe Field.


BARK IN THE PARK…ALL SEASON LONG
UT Arlington Department of Athletics officials announced that all 2019 home baseball games at Clay Gould Ballpark and softball games at Allan Saxe Field will be dog-friendly, thanks to a generous partnership with upstart Lone Star Friends of Animals to create 'Casey's Corner.'

April 16th games (Softball vs. Texas, Baseball vs. TCU) no dogs will be allowed on that date only.
 
Dogs which are leashed, at least six months old and with the proper vaccinations will be permitted at all UTA baseball and softball games throughout the season.
 
Casey's Corner is a grassy area between the baseball and softball fields, along the 3rd-base line of the baseball stadium. Multiple pet waste stations have been set up, and the space provides fans and dog owners an opportunity to walk and sit with their canine companions while taking in all the Maverick action.

TICKET INFORMATION
Individual and season tickets are now on sale for the 2019 UT Arlington softball season. All seating is general admission, and tickets can be secured by logging on to UTATickets.com.

FOLLOW THE MAVS
For the latest news on UTA Softball log on to UTAMavs.com or stay connected to the Mavs on social media. Follow the Mavericks on Twitter @UTASoftball.