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Southeastern Regional Invitational Durant, Okla. (Multi-Sports Complex) Tournament Homepage SWOSU Weekly Notes SWOSU vs. Washburn (1-2) Friday, February 13, 12:30 PM SWOSU vs. No. 16 St. Mary's (6-0) Friday, February 13, 3:00 PM SWOSU vs. Newman (1-1) Saturday, February 14, 10:00 AM SWOSU vs. Texas A&M-Commerce (6-0) Saturday, February 14, 12:30 PM SWOSU vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville (3-1) Sunday, February 15, 10:00 AM

Setting the Scene
- After a disappointing opening week, the Bulldogs hit the road for Durant, Okla., to take part in the Southeastern Regional Invitational hosted by Southeastern Oklahoma State
- The 18-team field will feature some of the best teams from around the region. It will also give SWOSU a second crack at two teams that featured at the SWOSU Round Robin, Newman and Washburn
 
The Coach
Barbara Burnett (1-4, 1st year)
- Burnett returns to her alma mater to lead the Bulldog softball program for the first time this spring
- She has spent the last four seasons among the junior college ranks at Independence Community College in Independnce, Kan. where she left as the all-time winningest coach in program history with a 112 wins
- While at Independence she led the Lady Pirates to back-to-back regional runners-up finishes while breaking numerous program records and ranking nationally in the Top Five in offensive production
- She has coached two National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-Americans, two National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Americans, 16 NJCAA All-Region selections and 13 All-Conference selections
 
The Opponents
Washburn
- Washburn opened up the season last week in the SWOSU Round Robin, going 1-2
- Lauren Timmesech leads the Ichabods offensively, going .556 from the plate with a slugging percentage of 1.556. She is averaging one home run per game
- Timmesech also leads Washburn in the circle, where she holds a 1-0 record and has pitched 6.0 innings without giving up a run and allowing just two hits
 
St. Mary's
- The No. 16 Lady Rattlers, who have won five straight conference titles, have started the season strong, going 6-0 over the opening week. They claimed  wins over No. 1 West Texas A&M and No. 4 Southeastern Oklahoma State by a combined score of 16-4
- Vianna Gutierrez had a strong week in the batter's box, hitting .625 with five hits in eight at-bats and bombing two home runs
- Gutierrez and Hope Russell have combined for five complete games and Gutierrez holds an ERA of just 0.74
 
Newman
- The Jets were another team that competed at the SWOSU Round Robin, going 1-1 on the weekend
- Of Newman players who featured in both games last week, Courtney Sartin has the best bat. She went .429 with three hits and three RBIs
- Jensen Cromer claimed NU's sole victory in the circle, posting an ERA of 2.00 and allowing five hits
 
Texas A&M-Commerce
- The Lions have opened their inaugural season with a 6-0 record after dropping St. Edward's, Southern Nazarene and Northeastern State twice each
- Luci Ponce has gotten off to a hot start at the plate, hitting .533 with seven hits seven RBIs while also boasting a slugging percentage of .867
- In the circle, Selena Rima and Aundria Romero have three wins each and have given up a combined nine earned runs
 
Texas A&M-Kingsville
- The Javelinas are 2-0 on the season with both games coming against Texas A&M International
- Loren Donaldson boasts the best batting average of TAMU-K players with at least four at-bats. She has two hits and has an on-base percentage of .667
- Both Karri Smith and Carlie Clark have one win on the season, and the Javelinas have yet to give up an earned run
 
Checking the Standings
- The Bulldogs got off to a slow start to the season, going 1-5 during the opening week
- Southeastern, who came in ranked No. 4 by the National Fastpitch Association and was the preseason favorite to win the Great American Conference, sits at 2-4
- Henderson State boasts the best record in the conference at 5-3 and went 3-1 at the HSU/Ouachita Baptist Ronnie Hawkins Invitational
- Arkansas Tech is the only conference team that has yet to play a game, but will take part in the Arkansas-Monticello 8-State Classic this weekend
 
Bulldog Facts
- SWOSU has the fifth-best batting average in the GAC going .288 at the plate. Adrienne Martinez has a team-best batting average of .438 among players who have featured at least five times at the plate
- Martinez is fourth in the GAC in slugging percentage, going .875 and is tied for second in the conference with two home runs. SWOSU is also has the second-most home runs in the league with five. Tori Hawk, Taylor Eaves and Kaity Rash have also gone yard
- The Bulldogs have had a good eye at the plate and have reached base on balls a conference-leading 25 times. Martinez and Maci Brown have eached walked five times and lead the team in on-base percentage at .591 and .550 respectively
- Ashley Dunigan continues to be an aggressive base runner, stealing three bases through the first six games of the season
- Rileigh Ricken recorded six strikeouts in 16.0 innings and is tied for the third-most strikeouts in the conference. She earned the first win of her career against Eastern New Mexico
- Ricken also has SWOSU's best ERA, allowing just 3.94 earned runs. It is the seventh-best mark in the GAC
- Martinez has been a defensive standout through the first week, leading the conference in putous with 52. Dunnigan and Samantha Perry are tied for second in the GAC with 15 assists each
 
Looking Ahead
- The Bulldogs will open conference play by traveling to Arkansas-Monticello for a four-game series on Feb. 21 and 22