CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The Chattanooga softball team is headed to Birmingham, Ala., to open Southern Conference action this weekend at Samford. The Mocs are 18-8 overall and the Bulldogs are 6-20 on the year.
 
GAME DAY INFORMATION
Saturday, March 23 (DH)
Time: 2:00 p.m. EDT
Site: Birmingham, Ala. | Samford Softball Field
Sunday, March 24
Time: 2:00 p.m. EDT
Site: Birmingham, Ala. | Samford Softball Field
Follow the game online at GoMocs.com. Links for live streaming on ESPN+ and live stats are available on the softball schedule page.
 
LAST INNING
• The Mocs held off Jacksonville State 3-1 in a non-conference game on Wednesday. The Mocs struck out 11, nine by Taylor Long who entered the game in the fourth, picking up her ninth win of the season. Olivia Lipari drove a single up the middle to score Kailey Snell from second in the first. The Mocs added two more runs on four hits in the third. With runners at second and third, Kaili Phillips drove in the Mocs second run and Addy Keylon drove in Kendall Forsythe for Chattanooga's final run. JSU hit a solo home run over the fence in right center for the Gamecocks lone score.
 
ABOUT CHATTANOOGA MOCS
• The Mocs lead the Southern Conference with a .307 batting average. Kendall Forsythe is fourth overall in the league batting .400. Also in the Top 15 of the league are Olivia Lipari and Kailey Snell both hitting .347. Lipari leads the Mocs with six home runs and 20 RBI. Taylor Long is fifth with a 2.43 ERA and has a SoCon-best 79 strikeouts. Alyssa Lavdis is third with 49 and has a 3.29 ERA.
 
ABOUT SAMFORD BULLDOGS
• The Bulldogs are 6-20 overall. Samford has wins over Troy (2), Southern Miss (2), Detroit Mercy and University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The team is hitting .264 with 180 hits that include 16 doubles, five triples and 15 home runs. Katie Campbell leads the team with eight homers and 28 RBI. McKayla Cothran has a team-best .313 batting average through 26 games. The pitching staff has a 5.01 combined ERA led by Jordyn Partain (4.79) who has a team-best 3-9 record.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
• The Bulldogs swept the Mocs last season winning all three games in the regular season and then once in the Southern Conference Tournament.
 
MOCS VS. BULLDOGS
• Chattanooga owns a narrow 25-24 win margin against the Bulldogs that includes a nine-game win streak for the Mocs from 2010-12.
 
TOP NOTES
• In Tournament play this season, the Mocs swept the Chattanooga Classic (5-0) and the Adam Brown Memorial Shamrock Classic (4-0). UTC won four out of five games at The Spring Games in Madeira Beach, Fla., and are 16-8 in tournament action. The Mocs lone single game was a 4-0 win over Jacksonville State.
• Chattanooga is hitting a SoCon best .304 this season with 197 hits, 110 RBI, 121 runs scored, 20 home runs, three triples and 37 doubles. The Mocs have reached base on balls 75 times and been hit 23 while striking out 123 times in 649 at bats. The team has 32 stolen bases, 10 sac flies and 31 sac bunts.
• The Mocs pitching staff has a 3.78 ERA led by Taylor Long at 2.59. She has 70 strikeouts, Alyssa Lavdis has 47 and Peja Goold has 23. The staff has six shutouts and seven complete games and a .235 opponent batting average.
• Frank Reed has more than 1,200 wins in his 34-year career. He won 476 (11 years) at Chattanooga State and has 733 (23rd season) with the Mocs totaling 1209 career wins. He ranks 38^th among active coaches in the NCAA for Division I wins.
 
FOLLOW THE MOCS
• Live Stats and streaming video links can be found on the softball schedule page of GoMocs.com. For all the latest news, notes and updated stats, log onto the official webpage of Chattanooga Mocs Athletics.
• Live Twitter updates will be available on the official Twitter page of Chattanooga softball, @GoMocsSB.
• Follow Mocs softball on Facebook: /ChattanoogaSB, X (formerly Twitter): @GoMocsSB and Instagram: @gomocssb.