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Southeastern Okla. (11-7, 5-3 GAC) at SWOSU (8-10, 2-6 GAC) Friday, March 9, 1:00 pm (DH) Saturday, March 10, 11:00 am (DH) Weatherford, Okla. (SWOSU Athletic Complex) Stats | Video

Setting the Scene
- The SWOSU Softball team will host their first of two straight conference series this weekend when Southeastern Oklahoma State comes to the Athletic Complex for a four-game set
- The teams will open the series with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 pm on Friday before concluding on Saturday with an 11:00 am doubleheader
- SWOSU enters the weekend with a record of 8-10 overall and the Dawgs are 2-6 in GAC play, earning one win in each of their first two series against #23 Harding and East Central
- Southeastern Oklahoma State is currently 11-7 overall with a 5-3 record in league play after a four-game sweep of Northwestern Oklahoma State last weekend
- The series has been dominated by Southeastern in recent years, with the Savage Storm sweeping SWOSU in four of the five years that the teams have been members of the Great American Conference
 
The Opponents
Southeastern Oklahoma State (11-7, 5-3 GAC)
- Southeastern plays their first conference road series of the season this weekend after hosting Arkansas-Monticello (1-3) and Northwestern (4-0) in the first two weeks of league play
- Third-best hitting team in the conference with a .311 batting average while their pitching staff is ranked ninth in the league with a team ERA of 4.15
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Kim Maher (8-10, 1st season)
- Named the fourth head coach in SWOSU Softball history on June 2, 2016, bringing with her a wealth of experience from the collegiate, professional and international levels of softball
- Spent eight seasons as the head coach at Purdue University, leading the Boilermakers to 240 victories and two NCAA Tournament appearances from 2006-13
- Previously coached at California-Berkeley as an assistant coach from 2000-05 following a playing career with USA Softball and the Women's Professional Softball League (WPSL)
 
Southeastern Oklahoma State: Ron Faubion (702-312, 18th season)
- Winningest coach in Southeastern softball history with over 700 wins in 17 seasons in Durant and over 800 wins in 20 years overall as a head coach
- Guided the Savage Storm from 1997-2000 and returned to Durant in 2004, having won better than 500 games since then
 
Checking the Standings
- #2 Southern Arkansas sits alone atop the GAC standings at 8-0 in league play, one game ahead of both #17 Harding and Arkansas Tech at 7-1
- Arkansas-Monticello is in fourth place at 6-2 while Southeastern is fifth at 5-3 before Ouachita comes in sixth with a 4-4 mark
- East Central and Henderson State are tied for seventh at 3-5, one game ahead of SWOSU and Southern Nazarene, who are tied for ninth at 2-6
 
SWOSU Notes
- SWOSU is ranked seventh in the GAC in hitting with a .290 batting average, 19 doubles and 13 home runs on the season
- The Bulldogs have seven players hitting .300 or better this season, led by Kaytlin Donaldson, who is batting .395 with one double, two home runs and eight RBI while playing in 13 games this season
- Tori Hawk is SWOSU's team-leader with four home runs and 15 RBI and she's batting .333 while appearing in all 18 games this season
- Samantha Householder is batting a team-leading .500 in Great American Conference play with six RBI, helping her to hit .341 for the year
- SWOSU is ranked second in the GAC with 32 stolen bases, led by Hawk (9-of-10) and Morgan Swisher (7-of-8)
- The Bulldogs pitching staff is ranked eighth in the league with a 3.93 ERA, allowing 104 runs – 67 earned – in 119.1 innings of work this season
- Miranda Grover has made a team-high 10 appearances in the pitching circle and she leads the team with a record of 4-0 and 1.22 ERA
- Taylor Eaves has started six games in seven pitching appearances and she has an ERA of 4.01 and a 4-1 record to her credit
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU Softball remains at home on the back half of Spring Break as they host Southern Arkansas – currently ranked No. 2 in NCAA Division II – next Friday and Saturday at the Athletic Complex
- The Bulldogs then go on the road for 10 consecutive games, with four-game series at Arkansas-Monticello (March 24-25) and Southern Nazarene (March 31-April 1) before a doubleheader at Northwestern Oklahoma State on April 4