Softball Continues C-USA Play With Rival UAB
4/24/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The Southern Miss softball team continues its long-standing rivalry with UAB this weekend as the Golden Eagles travel to Birmingham, Ala. for a three-game Conference USA series with the Blazers. The two teams will play a doubleheader at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday at the UAB Softball Field before concluding the series with a single game on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.
Live stats, live video and in-game tweets (@SouthernMissSB) will be available throughout the weekend.
The Golden Eagles are coming off of a 1-0 upset victory over No. 21 South Alabama on Wednesday night. Danielle Block pitched a two-hit shutout against the nationally-ranked Jaguars. Mallory Hayden delivered a RBI single to score pinch-runner Peyton Garner from second base for the lone run of the game.
UAB is one of Southern Miss softball's oldest rivals, dating back to the 2000 season. The two teams have met on the diamond 49 times with the Blazers holding a slight 25-24 edge in the series.
Southern Miss is 15-9 overall against UAB in Hattiesburg, but 8-13 against the Blazers in Birmingham. The two teams have met four times at neutral sites in the C-USA tournament with UAB holding a slight 3-1 edge.
Last season, the Golden Eagles claimed game one, 3-1, but dropped the next two games for the Blazers to claim the series.
In the circle, Shelbee Rodgers scattered six hits in 7.0 innings of work with eight strikeouts en route to the victory over UAB last season. She finished the weekend pitching in two, notching 17 strikeouts in 13.1 innings of work.
Offensively, Arielle Pollock, Tori Rouse and Garner each scored runs in the victory over the Blazers. Sarah Evans and Morgan McKeever combined for two of the team's three RBI in the game.
Scouting the Opposition:
The series between UAB and Charlotte ended in a split after inclement weather canceled the final game of the series. The 49ers won game one, 1-0, while the Blazers took game two, 4-3, on Saturday. Sunday's cancelation marked the third of the week after the Blazers' doubleheader at Chattanooga was rained out.