ATLANTA — Coming off an impressive road series win at perennial NCAA Regional qualifier Texas State to open Sun Belt play, App State Softball hits the road again for another conference series at Georgia State.
The three games in Atlanta would mean 24 straight games away from home to open the season for App State, which has had a midweek home opener called off each of the last two weeks. This weekend's games are scheduled for 5 p.m., 1 p.m. and 1 p.m.
The App State-Georgia State games will not be streamed.
App State dropped its Sun Belt opener at Texas State before winning 3-2 in Game 2 and 4-1 in the series finale. The Mountaineers had one all-time win against Texas State entering the weekend but took two of three games against a program that went 25-4 at home last season and has appeared in four of the last five NCAA tournaments.
While Texas State started first-team All-Sun Belt pitcher Jessica Mullins in two games, App State used four total pitchers, with starts coming from Delani Buckner (Game 1), Taylor Nichols (Game 2) and Kaylie Northrop (Game 3). Sejal Neas relieved Buckner in Game 1.
Nichols allowed one earned run on five hits in the 3-2 win. Northrop took a shutout into the seventh and struck out four in the 4-1 win.
App State ranks second in the Sun Belt with a 2.48 ERA, behind just ULM (2.46), and the Mountaineers finished last weekend as the only Sun Belt team with three pitchers who have thrown 30-plus innings: Buckner (2.64 ERA in 45.0 innings), Nichols (1.43 ERA in 34.1 innings) and Northrop (2.90 ERA in 38.2 innings).
App State has the fewest walks issued in the Sun Belt (36) and the league's best strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.93).
Offensively, App State ranks in the top five in the Sun Belt in batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, hits, doubles, triples, homers and walks.
Kayt Houston is eighth in the Sun Belt with a .378 average and first with 28 hits, while Mary Pierce Barnes is 10th with a .343 average. With 22 walks in 21 games, Baylee Morton ranks among the NCAA leaders, and Emma Jones is third in the Sun Belt in runs scored (19).
