PITTSBURG– The Pittsburg State University softball team will wrap up the regular season with a pair of road doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday (Apr. 29-30) against the University of Central Oklahoma and Newman University.

The Gorillas will battle the nationally ranked Lady Bronchos at 1 p.m. (CDT) Saturday at Edmond, Okla., and then travel to Wichita for a 1 p.m. twinbill against the Lady Jets Sunday. The weekend action originally was set for Friday and Saturday but the games were pushed back a day due to weather.

Scouting The Opposition
•       UCO enters the weekend with a 39-6 record and a 19-3 MIAA mark. The Lady Bronchos are tied for first place in the MIAA standings with Missouri Southern and ranked No. 5 in the most recent NFCA Division II Top 25 poll.
•       The UCO offense is led by senior infielder Shayla Harper. Harper paces the squad in batting average (.412), RBI (45), home runs (11) and runs scored (45).
•       In the circle, the Lady Bronchos rely on the arms of sophomores Jordyn Pipkin and Terin Ritz. Pipkin enters the weekend with a 17-3 record, a 1.81 ERA, 78 strikeouts and a save in 127.1 innings pitched. Ritz enters sports a 15-1 record with 77 strikeouts, a 2.32 ERA and two saves in 114.2 innings pitched.
•       The Lady Jets are 16-36 overall and 4-18 in MIAA play heading into a Saturday home match-up against MSSU.
•       The NU offense is led by sophomore infielder Gianna Navarro. Navarro enters the weekend with a .374 batting average with 65 hits, 23 RBI and 26 runs scored to date.
•       In the circle, the Lady Jets rely feature junior Jackie Gold. Gold enters the weekend with an 8-10 record, striking out 72 batters and garnering a save in 122.1 innings pitched.

Scouting the Gorillas
•       The Gorillas are 26-18 overall and 11-11 in the MIAA. Pitt State is currently tied for seventh place in the conference standing with Fort Hays State. The Gorillas took three of four games last week in a pair of home twinbills against Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri
•       The Gorilla offense leans on the bats of senior infielder Taylor Lambert, freshman outfielder Heather Arnett, and junior infielder Paxtyn Hayes. Lambert leads the team with a .397 batting average, 43 runs scored, 21 walks and a .482 on-base percentage. Arnett paces the squad in hits (57) and stolen bases (24). Hayes, who has an MIAA-leading 57 RBI to her credit, also paces Pitt State in doubles (15), home runs (12), OPS (1.124) and slugging (.729).
•       Junior Hannah Harrison leads the Gorillas pitchers. Harrison has a 13-8 record with a 2.85 ERA, three saves and 130 strikeouts in 136.0 innings pitched.