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GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) softball team begins a stretch of 17 consecutive games in Greensboro by hosting No. 13 Kentucky in a doubleheader on Friday. The Spartans will also host Appalachian State in a three-game series on Saturday and Sunday.
The Spartans and Mountaineers will play a single game Saturday and conclude with a Sunday doubleheader. Both days begin at 12 p.m.
This is the second meeting in program history against Kentucky. UNCG and App State will battle for the 55th time, with the Spartans holding a slight 29-25 series advantage.
UNCG was rained out last weekend as the Carolina Classic at the University of South Carolina was postponed. Meanwhile, Kentucky enjoyed a three-game series sweep of UNCG's Southern Conference rival Samford in Birmingham, Alabama.
UNCG is the preseason favorite in the Southern Conference after winning 15 games last season. The Spartans had six players earn preseason All-SoCon recognition. Receiving First-Team preseason All-SoCon honors were senior designated player
Kayleigh Willis, junior infielder
Samantha Lagrama, and junior catcher
Delaney Cumbie. Named to the Second Team were senior outfielder
Makenna Matthijs, senior infielder
Jasmine Palmer, and sophomore pitcher
Morgan Scott.
Lagrama enters the season with a four-game hitting streak dating back to last season. Cumbie has reached base in six straight games while Willis and
Katie Stettler have gotten on base in five straight contests. Lagrama and Cumbie combined for 11 multi-hit games. Last season, the Spartans were 9-0 when scoring at least seven runs and 8-0 when they hit at least two home runs.
During the 2020 season, UNCG led the SoCon in slugging percentage (.428), on-base percentage (.364), home runs (28), walks (99), and sacrifice flies (seven). The Spartans were second in runs scored (117) and RBIs (111) and third in total bases (239).
A Look At Kentucky
After one week of action, the Kentucky moved up one spot in both major polls and now sits in the No. 12 position in both national rankings for week two. Kentucky started the season at No. 13 in both the NFCA/USA Today and USA Softball/ESPN.com top-25 rankings.
Erin Coffel was named the D1Softball National Freshman of the Week, the organization announced on Tuesday morning.
Coffel exploded onto the scene, hitting .667 on the weekend with at least two hits in every game and five runs batted in. Coffel had four hits and went 4-for-5 in game two with a double and three RBI in addition to hitting a home run in her first-ever NCAA softball game just hours prior to the 4-for-5 game.
A Look At Appalachian State
The App State softball team split a doubleheader with Charlotte on Tuesday, taking the first game, 12-7 and falling in the second game, 5-3. In their opening game victory, nine different Mountaineers scored in the victory and senior
Baylee Morton tied her career-high with five RBIs. Overall, the Mountaineers are 1-2 on the young season. The top hitters for App State after three games are Emma Jones (.455), Morton (.400) and Kayt Houston (.400). App State defeated UNCG, 2-1, last season.
Up Next
UNCG stays in town and plays on the road next Friday against North Carolina A&T in a doubleheader on Friday, Feb. 26.
