MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama’s baseball and No. 21 softball teams both play home series this weekend. The softball team hosts North Dakota State at Jaguar Field, and the baseball team welcomes Sun Belt Conference leader Georgia State to Eddie Stanky Field.
Softball: Win Streak Ends at Southern Miss
South Alabama (32-8) returns home after its 11-game winning streak ended Wednesday in a 1-0 loss to Southern Miss. It was the first time the Jaguars had been shut out since a March 24 loss to No. 1 LSU.
The Golden Eagles scored the game’s only run in the fourth inning on an RBI single to right field.
Kalen McGill (14-2) took the loss, ending her personal winning streak. She allowed one earned run on five hits and struck out one. Farish Beard pitched a scoreless inning of relief, allowing one walk.
Chloe Rathburn doubled and Amanda Herron singled for South Alabama’s only hits. Emily Messer reached base on each of Southern Miss’ three errors.
North Dakota State Series
The series against North Dakota State is South Alabama’s final home series of the regular season. Although it is a nonconference series, the Bison bring an RPI of 51. Southern Miss entered Wednesday’s game with an RPI of 221.
North Dakota State is 36-8 after splitting a doubleheader at No. 10 Minnesota on Wednesday. The Bison are 2-2 against ranked opponents this season, including a 6-5 win over No. 17 Washington in February and a run-rule loss to No. 11 Tennessee on March 7.
The series opens at 6 p.m. Friday and concludes with a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Baseball: Georgia State Comes to Stanky Field
The South Alabama baseball team split a two-game road series at Jacksonville State this week and is 26-16 overall and 11-7 in Sun Belt play.
Georgia State (26-15, 13-3 Sun Belt) leads the conference with the league’s best winning percentage. The three-game series begins at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Eddie Stanky Field.
Pitching Matchups
- Friday: Kevin Hill (6-0)
- Saturday: Austin Bembnowski (2-3)
- Sunday: Jared Gates (3-2)
Hill is second in the Sun Belt with six wins and fifth in earned run average at 2.45. He ranks seventh in the league in strikeouts with 51 and in opponent batting average at .231.
