Softball Doubleheader Sunday at 3 p.m.
3/31/2012 7:55:00 AM | Softball
The Bearkats versus Demons matchup was rescheduled for Sunday after the series, which was supposed to be the league opener for both teams, was postponed due to the threat of rain March 9.
Now the two contests are crucial encounters for the Kats who are attempting to keep pace with the league leaders in a tight Southland race.
Sam Houston enters Sunday's action 4-2 in Southland play after sweeping a doubleheader from Stephen F. Austin Wednesday afternoon. McNeese State (5-0), Texas State (8-1) and Central Arkansas (5-2) rank ahead of the fourth-place Bearkats in the league standings.
Northwestern State is in seventh place with a 2-5 conference record and a 13-20 overall mark. The SHSU softball team is 10-15 for the season.
After the Demons complete their Southland series at UTSA Saturday, they will catch the Bearkats Sunday on the way home to Natchitoches, La., for the rain makeup.
"We're fortunate to find a date that we could make up the series," Sam Houston head coach Bob Brock said. "You hate to lose a series to the weather. Every game counts in the race for the playoffs."
Brock is nine victories away from becoming the 22nd softball head coach in NCAA Division I history from totaling 1,000 career victories. The veteran of 28 seasons of coaching ranks No. 12 among active head coaches in total wins with a career mark of 991 victories, 601 losses and a tie.
Northwestern State and Sam Houston rank fourth and fifth in Southland Conference hitting with team batting averages of .263 and .259, respectively.
Sam Houston's top hitter is first baseman Kim Damian (.375) while Northwestern State is lead at the plate by Cali Burke (.353).
Damian, Sarah Allison and Shelbi Tucker of Sam Houston rank as three of the top seven power hitters in the league. Damian and Allison stand second in the Southland, each with six home runs this season while Tucker is tied for seventh with five homers.
