SOFTBALL OPENS SERIES VS. 2ND-PLACE CAMPBELL FRIDAY NIGHT

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RADFORD, Va. – The Radford softball team is set to wrap up its homestand with a key Big South Conference series against second-place Campbell, beginning with a doubleheader Friday night starting at 5 p.m.

The teams, which played six games against each other within a nine-day span at the end of last season, will wrap up the series Saturday at 3 p.m. Friday's doubleheader will air on the Big South Network and Facebook Live.

Campbell, which enters the weekend with one-game lead over the Highlanders in the loss column, won four of the six meetings in 2016 – two of three both at home and in the Big South Tournament. Radford posted an 8-4 victory in the first semifinal game, before the Fighting Camels prevailed 6-3 in the elimination game. Campbell leads the all-time series 29-13, but just 8-6 on the Highlanders' homefield.

HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Records: 20-17, 4-5
Radford improved to 9-3 at home this year with its doubleheader sweep of Western Carolina on Wednesday.
Abby Morrow pitched her second career one-hitter in the nightcap, earning her Big South leading-14th victory of the season and the 45th of her career. She has a 3.56 ERA with 71 strikeouts and 23 walks in 133.2 innings.
Kayla Huffman is now 5-5 with a 2.75 ERA, 84 strikeouts and 46 walks in 79.0 innings. The sophomore is fourth in the conference in ERA and fifth in strikeouts. She is 5-2 with 1.44 ERA in her last eight starts, striking out 61 in 48.2 innings.
Marissa Gagliano is on a six-game hitting streak, with two hits apiece in three straight contests. She is batting 9 for 18 in the span, raising her season average to .306. She is now second on the squad with 33 hits, along with a team-high 28 runs and 19 stolen bases. She is ninth in the league in runs and tied for fourth in steals.
Hunter Mundy saw her reached base streak stopped at 18 games, but she remains first on the team with a .362 average, seventh in the Big South, and 29 RBIs. The freshman still leads all players with a .577 average in conference play.
Mundy (.590), Kayla Bishton (.548) and Brittany Wratchford (.541) rank seventh, ninth and 10th, respectively, in the conference in slugging percentage.
Maggie Rowe is now second on the team with six home runs and tied for second with 23 RBIs.
Wratchford leads with eight homers and also has 23 RBIs, while Bishton is batting .308 with five homers and 21 RBIs.
The Highlanders have now totaled 33 home runs for season, with 17 in the 12 home games, including at least in one in all but two. They are still second in the league in homers, both overall and per game.

SCOUTING CAMPBELL

Records: 23-20, 8-4
Campbell has not played since sweeping a series at Winthrop last weekend, outscoring the Eagles 26-9.
Two of its four league losses came to first-place Liberty, while it won two of three against Longwood and Presbyterian.
Preseason Player of the Year Amber Schisler leads the Big South in slugging (.766) and on-base percentage (.562), while ranking second in home runs (12), runs scored (34) and total bases. The senior is also third in average (.403) and RBIs (38) and fourth in hits (50).
In conference play, Schisler is batting .419 with three home runs, three doubles and 10 RBIs. Against Radford last year, she was 15 for 19 (.789) with three homers and nine RBIs.
For the season, the Fighting Camels are batting .298 as a team, share the league-lead with 63 doubles and are first with 78 stolen bases. In their 12 league games, they are hitting .315 with 22 doubles, seven homers and 21 steals.
Senior outfielder Taesha DuBoise and sophomore Abby Perryman are batting .324 and .322, respectively, while combining for 21 doubles. Perryman, who is tied for second in the conference with 11 doubles, is also second on the team with 23 RBIs.
Sophomore shortstop Caroline Smith is second on the squad with five homers and third with 22 RBIs, while sophomore Madison Herring is second in the conference with 24 steals (on 25 attempts).
Sophomore Rachel McCollum, who hit .335 with 16 home runs and 46 RBIs last year, has missed most of this season due to injury.
Senior pitcher Katie Baker has an 11-7 record and a 3.47 ERA in 135.1 innings, second-most in the conference. She has 72 strikeouts and 48 walks. She appeared in all six games against Radford last year, going 2-1 with a 1.34 ERA over 15.2 innings.
Schisler has logged 55.1 innings in the circle and is 6-6 with a 4.43 ERA. Freshman Megan Richards is 3-2 with a 4.23 ERA in 43 innings, and classmate Holly Brooks is 3-5 with a 5.36 ERA in 62.2 innings.

UP NEXT

Radford heads out on the road for a doubleheader at Hampton on Tuesday before returning to the New River Valley to host a makeup game with Virginia Tech Wednesday at 5 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#20 Kayla Bishton: 1B/OF; 5' 8"; Senior; L/L

#5 Marissa Gagliano: SS; 5' 4"; Redshirt Sophomore; L/R

#22 Kayla Huffman: P; 5' 7"; Sophomore; R/R

#2 Abby Morrow: P; 5' 10"; Senior; R/R

#38 Maggie Rowe: C; 5' 4"; Junior; R/R

#3 Hunter Mundy: 3B; 5' 5"; Freshman; R/R

#11 Brittany Wratchford: INF; 5' 4"; Senior; R/R

Players Mentioned

#20 Kayla Bishton
: 5' 8"; Senior; L/L
: 1B/OF

#5 Marissa Gagliano
: 5' 4"; Redshirt Sophomore; L/R
: SS

#22 Kayla Huffman
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; R/R
: P

#2 Abby Morrow
: 5' 10"; Senior; R/R
: P

#38 Maggie Rowe
: 5' 4"; Junior; R/R
: C

#3 Hunter Mundy
: 5' 5"; Freshman; R/R
: 3B

#11 Brittany Wratchford
: 5' 4"; Senior; R/R
: INF