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STATS
 
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Gulf South Conference action starts this weekend for the fourth-ranked University of West Florida softball team, as the squad heads to Montevallo, Alabama, for a three-game series on Friday and Saturday against the Montevallo Falcons. First pitch for the series will be at 3 pm on Friday afternoon at Orr Park, and Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled for a noon start.
 
West Florida is 6-3 after a 4-1 weekend at the Florida Tech Invitational.
 
Fans can follow along with live stats by visiting GoArgos.com/SoftballStats or by clicking on the link above.
 
THAT'S PITCHER OF THE WEEK GRACE GILBERT
After an outstanding weekend at the Florida Tech Invitational, University of West Florida softball junior Grace Gilbert has earned Gulf South Conference Pitcher of the Week honors from the league, as announced Tuesday.
 
Gilbert posted a 0.33 ERA over 21 innings, taking wins over New Haven and No. 25 Saint Leo, before taking a tough-luck loss against Florida Southern on Sunday. The Chipley, Florida, native had a 2-1 record over the weekend and batters hit only .127 against her.
 
The start on Sunday was Gilbert's best of the year – she went the full seven innings and allowed just one unearned run, dropping her season ERA to 1.30. She also allowed three hits and did not issue a walk.
 
She went 4-for-5 with 4 RBIs in the season-opener against Florida Tech in Gulf Shores, and she had another 4 RBIs against Miles on Sunday afternoon. Those were the first 4-RBI games in the junior's career.
 
A LOOK AT LAST WEEK
West Florida responded to the opening weekend with a 4-1 trip down to central Florida, defeating New Haven, No. 9 Florida Tech, No. 25 Saint Leo, and Palm Beach Atlantic at the Florida Tech Invitational. Teala Howard led the team in hitting, going 9-19 (.474) with a pair of triples, five runs scored, and four stolen bases. Grace Gilbert kept up her pace at the plate, too, with a double, an inside-the-park home run, and six RBIs, while hitting .353 and adding three more stolen bases.
 
The Argonauts outhit opponents 37-18 over five games, and the pitching stood out. Gilbert earned GSC Pitcher of the Week honors for her efforts, going 2-1 with a 0.33 ERA over 21 innings, and freshman Megan Warhurst and Kelsey Sweatt pitched to ERAs of 2.00 and 2.62, respectively. That duo stood out against Palm Beach Atlantic -- Sweatt cruised through three of her four innings in the circle with a slight hiccup in the second, and Warhurst earned the win with four hitless innings of relief.
 
STARTING GSC PLAY
Conference action gets started this weekend as UWF heads to Montevallo, Alabama, to face the Falcons in a three-game set on Friday and Saturday. West Florida has been the best team in the GSC over the last three years, holding a .717 winning percentage (66-26) and the second most wins in the conference over that time, behind only Alabama Huntsville (67-27). UWF also won its fourth GSC title last season -- its first since 2005.
 
Outfielder Teala Howard led the league in batting against conference opponents last year, hitting at a .438 clip, and Grace Gilbert and Kelsey Sweatt led the league in GSC wins with 10 each. Sweatt also ranked second in opponent batting average against GSC teams, at .205.
 
SOME NOTES ABOUT MONTEVALLO
It's been a back-and-forth start for Montevallo, with a 5-4 overall record that includes a 1-2 weekend against No. 12 Indianapolis and a split doubleheader on Wednesday at Spring Hill. The team was picked to finish 10th in the preseason Gulf South Conference poll, after finishing in that same spot last year.
 
The start for All-South Region selection Haley Barnette has been no surprise for the Falcons. The senior was a Preseason All-GSC pick and hit .377 with 8 home runs last season, and she's off to as hot a start as there is in the country -- she's batting .520 with 2 home runs, a 1.000 slugging percentage and 5 stolen bases.
 
TEALA HOWARD BACK AT IT AGAIN
Sophomore outfielder Teala Howard has had no trouble over the first two weeks of the 2020 campaign, leading UWF in batting (.485), runs scored (12), hits (16), slugging (.606), on-base percentage (.514), and steals (6). Her numbers with teammates on base have been even better -- she's 10-13 (.769) with runners on and is hitting .857 (6-7) with runners in scoring position.
 
She started the season with an 8-game hitting streak and has multiple hits in 6 of UWF's 9 games this year. She hit .474 with 5 runs scored, 2 triples, and 4 stolen bases over the weekend at the Florida Tech Invitational.
 
WATCH OUT
University of West Florida softball student-athletes Grace Gilbert, Teala Howard, and Kelsey Sweatt have been named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Player of the Year Watch List, the organization announced Thursday. West Florida's three players on the list are the most in the country, tied with Winona State.
 
Gilbert has undoubtedly been one of the top two-way players in the country this year, with a 1.30 ERA and a .172 opponent batting average to go along with her .406 batting average and Gulf South Conference-leading 14 RBIs. The junior was a first team all-conference selection last year, posting a 1.72 ERA across 36 games with a 25-5 record. She also hit .325 at the plate with 5 doubles and earned a place on the NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team.
 
Howard took no time to get back to last year's form, when she tied the UWF single-season batting average record (.464), earned All-America honors from the NFCA and the D2CCA, and was a finalist for both the NFCA Freshman of the Year and the NFCA National Player of the Year. This season, Howard leads the GSC in hits (16) and ranks in the top five in the league in batting (.485; 4th), runs scored (12; 2nd), triples (2; 3rd), and stolen bases (6; 4th).
 
Sweatt also brought home All-America honors from the NFCA and D2CCA last season, and she was named the South Region Pitcher of the Year by the D2CCA and the GSC Pitcher of the Year. Sweatt was also named the Most Outstanding Player at the GSC Tournament after going 2-0 over 14 innings, with 18 strikeouts and a 0.50 ERA in the tournament. This year, Sweatt has pitched to a 2.86 ERA over 22 innings, in which she has struck out 20 batters and picked up two wins over No. 9 Florida Tech.