Coming off a season-opening weekend in College Station, the UT Arlington softball team will host their home-opener at the Maverick Classic this Friday through Sunday at Allan Saxe Field.
 
The Mavericks – who topped the Texas A&M Aggies two games to one and split their series against Abilene Christian at one contest a piece – commence action in the Maverick Classic on Friday at 7 p.m. against Texas Southern.
 
UTA will then make a quick turn around with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 4:30 p.m. against Stephen F. Austin before squaring off versus Kansas City (formerly known as UMKC) will an approximate first pitch of 7:00 p.m.
 
The Mavs will wrap up its home-opening weekend with a matchup against Kent State slated for a 1:00 p.m. first pitch. All UTA games will be live streamed, with live stats being provided on UTAMavs.com for all other games. Links to streams and live stats can be found below.
 
TOURNAMENT: Maverick Classic
OPPONENTS: Texas Southern (1-3), Stephen F. Austin (4-0)
                            Kansas City (0-0), Kent State (3-1)
WHEN: February 14-16
WHERE: Arlington, Texas | Allan Saxe Field
GAME 1 vs. Texas Southern (Friday, 7:00 p.m.): LIVE STATS | VIDEO
GAME 2 vs. Stephen F. Austin (Saturday, 4:30 p.m.): LIVE STATS | VIDEO
GAME 3 vs. Kansas City (Saturday, 7:00 p.m.): LIVE STATS | VIDEO
GAME 4 vs. Kent State (Sunday, 1:00 p.m.): LIVE STATS | VIDEO
TICKETS: BUY HERE
 
UTA NOTES

• The Mavs are coming off a win after Allie Gardiner shut down Abilene Christian by throwing 13 strikeouts and a complete-game shutout helping UTA achieve a 2-0 victory.
• In the decisive game three against Texas A&M, UTA stormed back from a four-run deficit to win 5-4 in extra innings.
• Senior second baseman Avery Grimes and the aforementioned sophomore Allie Gardiner won Sun Belt Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week honors, respectively, for their strong performances this past weekend.
• Grimes finished with four RBI, three runs scored and a .354 batting average and delivered the game-tying and game-winning hits in UTA's extra-inning victory over the Aggies.
• Through three appearances, Gardiner has three wins, 20 strikeouts and an opposing batting average of .140 through 14.2 innings pitched.
• Last season UTA finished with a 3-1 record in its home-opening tournament.

 
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT – Texas Southern

• UTA is 8-0 all-time against the Tigers while the Mavs last defeated Texas Southern back in 2016 with a score of 9-0.
• The Tigers are 1-3 to begin the 2020 campaign after falling to Toledo, Incarnate Word and North Dakota at the H.E.B. Classic.
• Their one win came in the same tournament against Creighton with a score of 5-3.
• The Tigers have tallied at least two runs in every game so far this season and have scored below five runs just once.
• Texas Southern is led by outfielders Zariah Robins and Terren Vinson. Both finished the 2019 season with batting averages above .333 and are two of only three seniors on this year's team.

 
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT – Stephen F. Austin

• The Mavs have won two games in a row against the Lumberjacks and lead the all-time series 55-36.
• UTA defeated SFA 7-0 last season in Nacogdoches, Texas and in 2017 the Mavs won 6-0 at home in Arlington, Texas.
• SFA has begun the season with a 4-0 record by beating both Southern University and Louisiana-Monroe twice in the ULM Tournament.
• The Lumberjacks have tallied at least three runs in every game so far this season and have scored below seven runs just once.
• So far in 2020, offensively SFA has been led by sophomore shortstop Alex Hedspeth and the freshman first baseman Shaylon Govan. Hedspeth is batting .500 while Govan has compiled four doubles and one home run through the first four games.

 
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT – Kansas City

• UTA has a two-game winning streak going against the Roos, both of which came back in 2017 at Allan Saxe Field, the last of which UTA run-ruled Kansas City in 5 innings with a score of 10-1.
• The Mavs lead the all-time series at 9-1. Kansas City's lone victory came back in 2015.
• The Roos have yet to commence their 2020 season and will do so in their first game against Kent State on Friday. By the time UTA faces the Roos, they will have faced the other three teams in the tournament this weekend.
• Kansas City will be led by senior outfielder Sydney Garcia and senior catcher Chyanne Onstad. Both finished 2019 with batting averages above .340 and hit at least five home runs each.

 
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT – Kent State

• The game on Saturday will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
• The Golden Eagles come into the Maverick Classic with a 3-1 record after defeating UNCW and Howard (twice) in the Red & Black Showcase. Kent State's lone loss came to the tournament host Georgia. Its second game scheduled against the Bulldogs was canceled due to snowfall.
• Offensively the Golden Eagles have been led big-bopper Brenna Brownfield who has three home runs already this season to go along with a .364 batting average. She's accompanied by outfielder Maria Cegledy who has hit .333 so far with three doubles.
• The speedy outfielder Kennadie Goth has started 2020 off by getting on base eight times in her eleven attempts to do so, going 6-9 at the plate with two walks. She's also two-for-two on stolen base attempts and has tacked on five runs scored.

 
ON DECK
The Mavs will head to Waco, Texas on Wednesday, February 19 to take on Baylor (2-2) at 6:30 p.m. The Bears received three votes for the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Top 25 Poll released this past Monday.