By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
MARTIN, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech continues the softball slate this weekend as the Golden Eagles travel to UT Martin for an Easter weekend series.
The two teams will play one game on Friday starting at 2 p.m., then will take on the Skyhawks in a doubleheader on Saturday with a noon start time. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
UT Martin comes into the weekend with a 12-17 record, 5-6 in the Ohio Valley Conference, with a two-game losing skid as the Skyhawks dropped an 8-2 contest to close out the three-game series with Southern Indiana and a 1-0 midweek defeat at Ole Miss.
UTM was swept by Eastern Illinois to open OVC play, then took both games against SIUE, took two of three from Tennessee State, while dropping two of three to the league-newcomer Screaming Eagles.
The Skyhawks swept all three games last season in Martin, winning 8-4, 3-2 and 4-3.
As a team, UT Martin is hitting .282 as a team with 117 RBI and 29 home runs. Kaci Fuller leads the team with a .478 batting average with team-highs in hits (44), home runs (six) and RBI (25). Katie Dreiling, the team's top win-producer in the circle, is also a solid hitter, collecting a .319 batting average with three home runs on the year.
Kallie Pickens (14), Annie Gutierrez (12), Avry Blume (12), Kaitlyn Kelley (10), Maddi Long (10) have all reached double-digit RBI totals on the season so far.
In the circle, the Skyhawks have a staff ERA of 3.31, striking out 140 while walking 107. Dreiling has a 6-5 record to go along with her 3.52 ERA, while Brooklynn Linneman has a 5-5 record and 57 strikeouts to go with her 2.38 ERA.
Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles have lost 11 straight games – their second-longest losing streak of the season after a 14-game run from late February to mid-March – with the last victories coming in a doubleheader sweep on March 14, topping Western Illinois 4-3 and 6-3.
Since then, Tech has seen OVC series sweeps against Morehead State, Lindenwood and Southeast Missouri to drop to 0-9 in the conference, with midweek losses to Bellarmine and Lipscomb sandwiched between.
Haeli Bryson leads the team's offensive production with a .298 average, coming home to score 12 times and driving in a team-best 21. She also has one of the team's seven home runs on the season. Jordan Key moved into the No. 2-spot on average with a .296 after collecting two of Tech's three hits against Lipscomb on Tuesday, while Abby Shoulders has a .293 with eight RBI. Carmen Betts (.241) is the only other Golden Eagle batter with double-digits in RBI with 11.
Callie Piper has two wins for Tech in the circle, while Kaylan Cole has one. Gracelyn Woollen, while winless on the season, has seen the best numbers in conference play, collecting a 6.56 ERA in 26 2/3 innings with 20 walks and 10 strikeouts.
The Golden Eagles (3-31) will return home next week for a visit from Eastern Illinois.
Photo | Jim Dillon
