---

Arkansas-Monticello (6-3, 0-0 GAC) at SWOSU (4-7, 0-0 GAC) Weatherford, Okla. (SWOSU Athletic Complex) Friday, February 20, 12:00 PM (DH) Saturday, February 21, 12:00 PM (DH) Live Stats SWOSU Weekly Notes

Setting the Scene
- The Bulldogs will open the conference schedule with a pair of home doubleheaders against Arkansas-Monticello. The games were originally scheduled to be played in Monticello, Ark., but the games were moved due to weather
- UAM won the series last year 3-1 in Weatherford and are 9-4 against the Bulldogs since joining the Great American Conference
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Barbara Burnett (4-7, 1st season)
- 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
 
Arkansas-Monticello: Alvy Early (655-346-2, 19th season)
- Alvy Early will lead the Cotton Blossoms onto the field for a 19th season in charge of the program
- He is all the all-time winningest coach in UAM history for both softball and women's basketball, with over 400 wins in each sport
- No stranger to the postseason, Early has lead UAM to the NCAA Regional Tournament four times and the Super Regional once. They finished as the No. 11 team in NCAA Division II in 2010
- Early and the Cotton Blossoms won the inaugural GAC regular season and tournament titles in 2012
- His teams have recorded at least 30 wins in 14 seasons and 40 wins in six seasons while also winning 50 games in a season once
 
The Opponent
Arkansas-Monticello (6-3, 0-0 GAC)
- The Cotton Blossoms went 4-1 at the 8-State Classic this past weekend, claiming wins over Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Kearney, Upper Iowa and Fort Hays State
- Through nine games, UAM has hit .304 as a team, the eighth-best average in the conference. They are led by Holly Wilmarth who has hit .441 on a team-high 34 at-bats and she holds a slugging percentage of .824 with three home runs
- UAM has displayed great discipline at the plate, and are second in the GAC in walks with 38, averaging 4.2 walks per game. Kali Piha is fifth in the conference with seven walks
- McKenzie Ashby boasts a conference-best ERA of 1.35, but has pitched just 10.1 innings in three appearances
- The team has recorded 12 errors through nine games, and are fifth in the GAC in fielding percentage at .954. They have four players who regularly appear with a fielding percentage of 1.000
 
Last Time Out
- The Bulldogs went 3-2 over the past weekend at the Southeastern Oklahoma State Regional Invitational
- SWOSU recorded victories of 17-6 and 6-2 over Washburn and Newman, two teams that had previously beaten SWOSU this season
- They also beat a strong Texas A&M - Commerce side 8-6 after four-run half-inning in the top of the seventh
 
Checking the Standings
- SWOSU moved to 4-7 on the season after being one of just three teams to finish the Southeastern Invitational with a winning record
- Arkansas Tech won all four games last week and have debuted in the most recent NFCA poll at No. 18. Southeastern has opened the season at 4-7 and has slid to No. 24 in the NFCA poll after starting the season at No. 4
- ATU, Henderson State, UAM and Southern Arkansas are the only teams in the GAC that currently hold a record above .500
- HSU is currently riding a conference-best seven game win streak
 
Bulldog Facts
- The Bulldogs recorded only one run rule victory last season, winning 10-1 over in-state rival Northwestern Oklahoma State. They have already matched that output, dominating Washburn 17-6 this past weekend
- The 17 runs put past Washburn set the record for the most runs scored on a Division II opponent in program history
- Ashley Jones set a program record and tied the GAC record for RBIs in a game with eight against Washburn. She hit two home runs during that game, a grand slam and a three-run bomb
- SWOSU is second in the conference in runs scored, plating 76 runners this season. They are third in the GAC in RBIs with 72. Jones is sixth in the conference with 13 RBIs and Adrienne Martinez is right behind her in seventh with 11 RBIs
- The Bulldogs have been swinging the big bats this season and are fourth in the GAC with a slugging percentage of .545. Martinez ranks fifth in the conference, recording a .906 percentage in the category
- Rileigh Ricken is tied for the second-most wins in the conference after earning her second and third wins last weekend. She has struck out eight batters looking, tied for the third-best mark in the conference
- Southwestern leads the conference in bases on balls, walking 44 times so far this season. Maci Brown leads the team and is second in the conference with nine walks
- Ashley Dunigan has been aggressive on the bases, ranking fourth in the conference with five stolen bases. She has a successfully stolen on all five attempts this season
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU hits the road for a four-game series against conference foe Southern Nazarene on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 27-28. First pitch on Friday is slated for 1:00 PM
- The Bulldogs went 1-3 against the Crimson Storm last season when the teams met in Weatherford