NOTES
STATS | VIDEO
 
PENSACOLA, Fla. – The University of West Florida softball team will head to No. 7 Valdosta State for its biggest road trip of the year on Saturday and Sunday. The Argonauts and Lady Blazers will play a three-game series beginning with a 2 pm ET doubleheader on Saturday, followed by the Sunday series finale that is slated for a 1 pm ET start at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park in Valdosta, Georgia.
 
West Florida enters the weekend at 18-7 overall and 12-3 in the Gulf South Conference, following a sweep over Christian Brothers at home last weekend. Valdosta State comes in at 16-3 overall and 10-2 at the GSC.
 
All three games will feature a live video broadcast and live stats, which can be found at the links above or by visiting GoArgos.com.
 
Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, there will be limited capacity at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park. A hard capacity of 180 fans will be admitted to each home game. Seating includes 90 marked seats available in the grandstand and 90 marked seats in the lawn outside the outfield fence. 
 
Fans are encouraged to come to Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park early to ensure admittance. Gates will open one hour before each game, adult general admission tickets are $5 and youth/senior tickets are $3.  Fans are encouraged to bring a lawn chair for seating outside the outfield fence. No umbrellas or lawn chairs will be allowed in the grandstands.  No further entry will be allowed once capacity is reached. No pets are allowed, including emotional support animals, except service animals with proper documentation. Spectators should enter through the front gate of the ballpark. Masks must be worn at all times while at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.
 
SCOUTING VALDOSTA STATE
This weekend's matchup at No. 7 Valdosta State will be one of the best of the year for both the Blazers and the Argonauts. The top two teams in the Gulf South Conference standings, UWF and VSU have each been outstanding in the circle and at the plate.
 
It's difficult to know where to start with the VSU lineup, given how deep it is. Nicole Pennington has been one of the best players in the country, hitting .462 with 8 home runs and a .981 slugging percentage, while drawing 16 walks and striking out just 3 times. She's tied for the league lead in home runs and RBIs (27) with teammate Kiley Robb, who has hit .375. The Lady Blazers lead the country with 33 home runs and are ninth in runs scored (145).
 
Samantha Richards has impressed for VSU in the circle, as well. She leads the GSC in ERA (0.56), opponent batting average (.150), and strikeouts (95) over 74.2 innings pitched.
 
UWF and VSU have played just one common opponent this year -- Mississippi College. Both teams swept the Lady Choctaws, while UWF outscored them 18-3 and VSU outscored MC 20-7.
 
Valdosta State's strength of schedule to date is .421 -- ranked 92nd out of 131 teams. UWF's, on the other hand, is .744 -- ranked 13th in Division II.
 
A LOOK AT LAST WEEK
It's tough to have a better weekend statistically than UWF did against Christian Brothers. West Florida hit .443 and slugged .722 against CBU, while scoring 8 runs per game. Mika Garcia was one of five players to hit over .500, batting .778 (7-9) with a home run, four RBIs, and five runs scored. Kayanna Perez had a strong weekend to round out UWF's lineup, hitting .571 with a stolen base, and Ally Merrill hit .556 with four doubles and three RBIs. Teala Howard hit .545 with two triples, and Jacquelynne Poling added 8 RBIs while going 4-for-8 at the plate.
 
WE ARE RANKED
Fresh off a sweep over Christian Brothers last weekend, UWF has moved up to No. 17 in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll.
 
The Argonauts are one of three GSC teams in the top 25, joined by No. 7 Valdosta State and No. 22 Alabama Huntsville. Auburn Montgomery is receiving votes, while fellow South Region members Rollins (No. 5) and Saint Leo (No. 23) are also ranked.
 
North Georgia remains the top-ranked team in the country, followed by Texas A&M-Commerce, Augustana, Lincoln Memorial, and Rollins.
 
This is the highest ranking for UWF so far this season.
 
THIS WEEK'S AWARD WINNERS
Mika Garcia and Montana Young were named the Gulf South Conference Player of the Week the GSC Freshman of the Week, respectively, on Tuesday morning.
 
Garcia went 7-for-9 in the series against Christian Brothers, with five runs scored, a home run, and four RBIs. The senior shortstop slugged 1.111 for the series with an on-base percentage of .800, and she had multiple hits and at least one RBI in each game of the series. Garcia now has a hit in six of her last seven games, and she raised her average by 70 points over the weekend.
 
Young was dominant in 10 innings against the Lady Bucs over the weekend. She earned two wins in series against Christian Brothers, posting a 0.00 ERA over 9 innings, with 10 strikeouts and a .100 opponent batting average. The rookie threw her first career complete game shutout on Sunday, allowing two hits and striking out seven in the win. She also threw two scoreless innings of relief on Saturday in the series-opener, with 3 strikeouts and one hit allowed.
 
JACQUELYNNE POLING, HOME RUN MACHINE
Senior catcher Jacquelynne Poling has been as good as anyone over the last few weeks, hitting .417 with a team-best four home runs in the last eight games dating back to March 9 at Spring Hill. In that time, Poling has raised her batting average by 86 points, up to .349, with 11 RBIs and a 1.000 slugging percentage.
 
EVERYTHING SCHOOL
As it often is, this spring is a great time to be an Argonaut -- all six teams in action for UWF are ranked in their respective national polls. Joining the softball program at No. 17 nationally are the UWF Baseball team at No. 13, Men's Golf at No. 4, Women's Golf at No. 13, Men's Tennis at No. 4, and Women's Tennis at No. 6.
 
Not surprisingly, UWF is the only school in the country with all six of those spring sports teams ranked in their respective national polls.