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Sam Houston State Bearkats (20-25, 11-13 SLC) at HBU Huskies (17-23, 8-16 SLC)
May 5-6
Husky Field • Houston, Texas
Live Audio
Live Stats
Game 1 Live Video
Game 2 Live Video
Game 3 Live Video
 
HOUSTON – HBU enters the final weekend of the regular season still alive in the chase for the sixth spot in the Southland Conference Tournament. The Huskies will host Sam Houston State in a three-game series at Husky Field beginning with a doubleheader on Friday, May 5, at 1:00 p.m.
 
HBU (17-23, 8-16 SLC) kept itself in the tournament conversation last weekend by winning two-of-three against Northwestern State. The Huskies will need some help while also needing to sweep Sam Houston State (20-25, 11-13 SLC). A Husky sweep over the Bearkats would leave the two teams tied with identical Southland records of 11-16. Meanwhile, a Central Arkansas sweep of Northwestern State would leave the Lady Demons at 11-16 in the conference for a three-way tie.
 
HBU would hold the head-to-head tie-breaker against both teams in the scenario of a three-way tie. The other result that would be necessary for the Huskies to make the tournament would be for Abilene Christian to sweep Stephen F. Austin. SFA has played three fewer games thanks to a series being rained out earlier in the season. If SFA wins one game against ACU, the Ladyjacks will be guaranteed a higher winning percentage in conference than HBU.
 
Senior Emily Mueller continues to pitch well down the stretch, having earned wins in five-straight series-opening games. Since March 25, when her ERA was at 5.03, Mueller has made 10 appearances with nine starts and lowered her ERA to 3.53. She sports a 5-3 record during that span and has not allowed more than three earned runs in an outing.
 
Libby Brown has been the Huskies' top hitter in conference play, batting .292 against SLC competitions and scoring 15 of her 24 runs scored in those games. The junior boasts a .432 on-base percentage against SLC opponents and for the season, her nine doubles lead the team. Cecilia Bauer has found her power stroke against Southland foes, recording six of her eight home runs this season in conference games.
 
Sam Houston State was swept at Southeastern Louisiana last weekend, getting out-scored 25-14 in the series. Senior Tori Koerselman led the way for the Bearkats, going 9-for-10 in the series. Koerselman is now batting .384 for the season. As a team, SHSU owns a .273 batting average.
 
In the circle, the duo of Tayler Atkinson and Lindsey McLeod lead the way with ERAs of 2.89 and 3.01, respectively. The pair has combined to earn the win in 17 of the team's 20 victories while amassing 230.1 innings pitched with 161 strikeouts.
 
Last season, HBU took two-of-three over the Bearkats in Huntsville including a 16-run outburst in the third game of that series with Demi Janak homering twice.