The Chattanooga Mocs softball team hits the road for the Bulldog Slamboree in Starkville, Miss., March 4-6. UTC is 11-5 after a 3-2 showing at the Frost Classic presented by Ruby Falls last weekend.

"There's some really good teams there," head coach Frank Reed stated. "They all have winning records. We know it's going to be a tough tournament for us. The next three weeks will be really hard."

Chattanooga is coming off wins over Eastern Illinois 3-0, Miami (Ohio) 13-5 and Northern Kentucky 8-2, and losses to No. 18 Kentucky 6-2 and Evansville 11-1.

The Mocs are ranked 45th nationally in doubles (1.63) and 39th in earned run average (2.25), as of Feb. 28.

Sophomore pitcher Cori Jennings is first in the league and 26th in the nation with 39 strikeouts and 48th for ERA (1.22). Sophomore Kailey Palazzolo is ranked 53rd for hits allowed per seven innings at 4.59, while freshman Katie Corum is 66th in doubles per game (0.42).

UTC starts the weekend facing Western Kentucky Friday at 4:30 p.m. (E.S.T.), with the Hilltoppers leading the all-time series 2-1.
 
Western Kentucky is 7-6, coming off a 2-3 weekend at its home tournament. The squad split games with Western Carolina, posted a win over Valparaiso and dropped contests to Ball State and Southeast Missouri.
 
Chattanooga squares off with host Mississippi State Friday at 7:00 p.m. In the last matchup between the two teams the Mocs beat the Bulldogs 11-3 in five innings on March 3, 2007.

Mississippi State boasts a 12-2 record, including a 5-0 mark at home. The team went 2-2 at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Tournament last weekend, beating Incarnate Word, splitting games with McNeese State and losing to Baylor.

UTC plays Longwood Saturday at 9:00 a.m. in the first meeting between the two programs.

The Lancers are 7-2, featuring a 5-0 finish at their home tournament. The squad beat Hartford three times and Monmouth twice. In Longwood's first event of the season, it clinched a 9-1 win over UNCG and a 2-0 loss to South Carolina.

The Mocs finish off the second day of the tournament against Northwestern State at 11:30 a.m. In their last matchup, Chattanooga clinched a 5-2 victory on Feb. 21, 2014 at the Frost Classic.

The Demons are 11-4, coming off three wins over Murray State last weekend. UTC and Northwestern State have one common opponent, Liberty. The Demons beat the Flames 4-3 and 10-8 at the Getterman Classic. Chattanooga beat Liberty 3-1 in the first tournament of the season.

The Mocs wrap up the weekend Sunday at 12:30 p.m. versus Central Arkansas. The Bears lead the series 1-0.

Central Arkansas is 9-5. The Bears went undefeated at their home tournament, beating Belmont, South Dakota State, Arkansas Pine Bluff and Middle Tennessee twice.

Links to live stats for all games and video against Mississippi State can be found on the softball schedule page at GoMocs.com.