FULL NOTES

PENSACOLA, Fla. – The University of West Florida softball team will start its postseason run with the Gulf South Conference Tournament on Thursday at 10 a.m. against Alabama Huntsville. UWF enters the Tournament as the 6-seed in the league with an 18-13 conference record.
 
All games in the double-elimination tournament will feature live stats and a live video broadcast, and links for those will be available at GoArgos.com prior to the day of the game.
 
A Look at Alabama Huntsville
* Alabama Huntsville enters the Gulf South Conference Tournament as the 3-seed after going 22-10 in the GSC during the regular season. The Chargers are one of the most well-rounded teams in the league, ranking first in scoring (7.9 runs per game) and fourth in ERA (3.13).
* UAH has one of the most prolific offenses in the country this year, ranking in the top 10 in Division II in slugging (6th; .569), scoring (7th; 7.9), on-base percentage (7th; .438), and home runs per game (9th; 1.23).
* Despite those gaudy offensive numbers, UWF held the Chargers well below their season averages in every category during the regular-season series in Pensacola. Grace Gilbert had a 2.10 ERA over 3.1 innings of relief, earning the win in the series finale on Sunday. Gilbert also hit .500 (4-8) for the series, and UWF was led by Callan Taylor offensively. Taylor hit .667 (6-9) with a double, two home runs, seven RBIs and a 1.444 slugging percentage.
* UAH leads the all-time series with a 63-50 record.
 
In the GSC Tournament
* West Florida locked up a bid to the Gulf South Conference Tournament after the Montevallo series, and this week the team will make an appearance in the tournament for the 22nd time in program history. All of those appearances have come since 1995.
* UWF has the fourth-most GSC Tournament wins in conference history (43) and the third-best winning percentage (.606) in league history, with three titles.
* The Argonauts have gone 4-3 over the last two GSC Tournaments, batting .324 as a team in those seven games. Rachel Wright has been UWF's offensive leader across those two tournaments with a .458 (11-24) batting average, three home runs, and five RBIs. Tiona Hill earned All-GSC Tournament honors last year with a 3-7 performance with 2 doubles.
* The Tournament begins on Thursday, May 3 at North Alabama. UWF will start its tourney run against Alabama Huntsville on Thursday, May 3 at 10 a.m.
 
The Very Impressive Sarah Maloney
* For the first time this year and the second time in her career, University of West Florida senior Sarah Maloney has been named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher of the Week. The honor comes after a week in which she posted a 1.11 ERA and a 2-1 record in 19.0 innings against Florida Southern and Valdosta State.
* Maloney struck out eight batters over five innings against Florida Southern last Tuesday in Tallahassee before dominating Valdosta State over the weekend. Between her two starts against the Blazers, Maloney threw 14 innings, allowed just seven hits, struck out eight batters and recorded a 1.00 ERA.
* She has pitched as well as ever since April 8, with a 1.56 ERA, 40 strikeouts over 36.0 innings, and a .165 opponent batting average across four starts and four relief appearances. Maloney ranks third in the GSC in ERA (2.08) and fourth in opponent batting average (.208) and strikeouts (99) for the year, making her one of just two pitchers to rank in the top eight in the league in all three categories.
* Maloney made her first relief appearance of the year against Lee on April 8 and has been outstanding for the Argonauts in her four relief appearances this year. Over 13.2 innings in relief this year, Maloney has struck out 23 batters, allowed 6 hits, walked only 3 batters and has posted a 0.51 ERA.
* Over 55 relief innings since the 2016 season, Maloney has posted a 5-1 record over 25 appearances with a 2.11 ERA and 57 strikeouts.
 
Way to Go, Meghan Toney
* Earlier in the year, second baseman Meghan Toney reached base in 15 games in a row, giving her the longest such streak on the team this year. In those 15 games, she hit .405 with a .560 on-base percentage, 15 hits, 10 walks and 14 runs scored.
* Toney may not have picked up a hit in the Mississippi College series, but she walked and reached base a team-high five times in the rain-shortened series. She ranks second on the team with a .458 on-base percentage and 25 stolen bases.
* She leads UWF in multi-hit games (14), hits (48), and runs (31) this year.
* Toney had three steals in each of UWF's first three series of the year, helping her get to 58 stolen bases in 65 career tries. That efficiency (.899) ranks ninth in UWF career history, and she is West Florida active career leader in runs scored (142), hits (216) and stolen bases (70).
 
Jibrasha at the Plate
* The month of April has belonged to sophomore right fielder Jibrasha Moore, who is leading UWF in batting (.404), hits (19), and stolen bases (13). She is riding a eight-game hit streak dating back to the series opener at Montevallo, and she is batting .483 (14-29) with nine steals and four multi-hit games in that time.
* Moore is second on the team with 13 multi-hit games this year, and she has come through in the clutch as often as anyone. The Pensacola native is hitting .410 with runners on, .366 with runners in scoring position, and .350 with two outs. Her 25 hits with runners on base are the most on the team. She is also hitting .529 (9-17) against left-handed pitchers.
 
Gilbert Doing It All
* True freshman Grace Gilbert has impressed in the batter's box as well as the circle in her rookie campaign at UWF. The Chipley, Florida, native leads UWF in batting (.375) and is seventh in the GSC in ERA (2.62), making her the only GSC student-athlete with a batting average above .350 and an ERA under 2.75.
* Gilbert has been dominant when starting in the circle this year, holding an 8-3 record with 8 complete games and a 2.32 ERA over 11 starts. She has struck out 33 and held opponents to a .255 batting average over 66.1 innings as a starter.
* She recorded a seven-game hitting streak earlier in the year, during which she hit .417 and led UWF in hits (10) and doubles (3), while adding 8 RBIs.
 
Smiley at the Dish
* Kathleen Smiley has hit .346 since March 26, leading UWF with 15 walks in addition to ranking in the top three on the team in doubles (4), home runs (2), RBIs (15), total bases (28), slugging (.538) and on-base percentage (.500) in that time, after finishing the UNA series with a .125 batting average.
* Smiley's 24 RBIs for this year have given her 103 in her career, good for second among active UWF players behind only Rhiannon Sassman (104).