Softball | 4/1/2019 10:48:00 AM

Surging Lady Braves Bring Winning-Streak to Memphis

Alcorn Game Notes | Live Stats

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – On its longest winning-streak in over 20 years, the Alcorn State University softball program will look to match the school record Tuesday when it travels to Memphis for a 2 p.m. doubleheader at the Tigers Softball Complex.
 
The Lady Braves (10-14, 6-3 SWAC) are riding an eight-game winning-streak which includes conference sweeps over Mississippi Valley State and Grambling State. It's the longest streak for Alcorn since 1997 when the team won a school-record 10 in a row.
 
The Lady Braves swept MVSU for the first time since 2000 as senior Paige Taylor picked up a win in the circle in all three games. Junior Eva Scott hit a walk-off single in game one.
 
Inbetween the MVSU and GSU series', Alcorn swept a doubleheader over Rust College where it scored 17 runs in each game. Freshman Sandrea Hord was 6-for-6 in the two games with two triples, a double, five runs scored and nine RBIs.
 
After sweeping GSU, sophomore Amari Ramsey was named the SWAC Hitter of the Week winner. Against Grambling State, she went 7-for-12 with six runs scored. Of her seven hits, four were doubles and one was a homer. She tallied a 1.167 slugging percentage and also walked and drove in five RBIs.
 
Junior Simone McKinney hoists a team-high .377 batting average including a .515 mark in conference. Also above .300 on the year are Hord (.327) and senior Victoria Tyler (.302). Tyler leads the team in on-base percentage (.507), while Hord is the team's leader in slugging percentage (.469).
 
McKinney is on six-game hitting streak and 10-game on-base streak.
 
Freshman Brooke Roach missed the first 15 games due to injury, but has made an immediate impact since her return. She's homered twice and is hitting .350 from the clean-up position.
 
Alcorn has stuck to a two-pitcher rotation this year. Taylor is 7-6 with a 3.31 ERA in 80.1 innings, while junior Ambria Dorsey is 3-8 with a 3.99 ERA in 73.2 innings with two saves. The duo have combined for 15 complete-games.
 
Tyler ranks 12th all-time in Alcorn history with 111 hits. She also ranks seventh all-time in school history with 73 RBI's, and is approaching the top-10 list in doubles with 17. Ramsey is tied for ninth all-time in career homers at Alcorn with eight. She cranked out six last year and two so far this season.
 
Alcorn has outscored the opposition 24-14 in the first inning and 16-4 in the seventh inning this year.
 
Memphis (18-17, 2-4 AAC) is looking to bounce back from dropping three games at Tulsa over the weekend. The Tigers defeated Mississippi Valley State 9-1 earlier this year in their only game against the SWAC.
 
"Memphis always presents a challenge for us. Coach [Natalie] Poole always has her team playing at a high level. I love going up to play them. Baylee Smith has been swinging it pretty well. Ashley Threatt and Ryleigh Aungst both have some very good power numbers. We have to do a great job of keeping them off balanced and keeping the ball down. We also have to do a good job of controlling the running game if Delaney Smith gets on. I don't believe she's been caught stealing yet," said Alcorn head coach Josef Rankin.
 
Baylee Smith leads the team with a .375 average and .646 slugging including eight doubles, three triples, four homers and 23 RBIs. Threatt hits for a .348 average and .528 slugging with four doubles and four homers.

"We will work on a plan today and tomorrow - we have to execute that plan in order to give ourselves a chance to win. We need to play well. Unfortunately, we have another gap in our schedule. So, we need to keep our confidence high as we head into this break," Rankin said.
 
Alcorn and Memphis will square off in a doubleheader for the seventh time in the last eight years. The Lady Braves are going for their first win over the Tigers since 2012.
 
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