HAMMOND, La. – The Southeastern Louisiana University softball team will hit the road for the first time in 2022 this week, traveling to Las Cruces, New Mexico to compete in the Troy Cox Invitational.
 
Fresh off an unbeaten start to the season at this past week's Lion Classic I, SLU (3-0) will open the tournament Friday with the Lady Lions facing Northern Colorado (1-4) at 10 a.m. (all times Central) and Nebraska (2-3) at 12:30 p.m. Southeastern meets UT Arlington (0-4) at 10 a.m. and Iowa State (4-1) at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, before closing the tournament Sunday with a 12:30 p.m. contest versus host New Mexico State (0-3). Live stats for all games will be accessible on the softball schedule page on www.LionSports.net and Sunday's game will be streamed live on the WAC Digital Network.
 
Southeastern carries a .365 team batting average into this week's tournament. Cam Goodman leads the team with a .714 batting average, followed by Maddie Watson (.500), Madison Rayner (.500) and Lexi Johnson (.400).
 
Johnson has a team-high two home runs, as she and Watson share the roster's RBI lead with five apiece. Goodman (five) and Mass (four) are the team's stolen base leaders.
 
In the circle, the Lady Lions have a 3.33 team earned run average. Heather Zumo (2-0, 1.40 ERA) and MC Comeaux (1-0, 4.67 ERA) are the top arms for SLU.
 
Northern Colorado is led at the plate by Jaycen Mercado, who boasts a .500 batting average. Kaileigh Holland has the Bears' lone home run and a team-high five RBI. Isabelle DiNapoli (0-2, 8.38 ERA), Meghan Golden (1-1, 7.71 ERA) and Erin Caviness (0-1, 3.00 ERA) have evenly split the work in the circle for UNC.
 
Later on Friday, Southeastern will face a Nebraska team that is led by Abbie Squier. Squier leads the Cornhuskers with a .500 batting average, while also sharing the team lead in home runs (two) and RBI (four) with Billie Andrews. Courtney Wallace (2-1, 1.62 ERA) is the ace of a Nebraska staff that carries a 3.15 team ERA.
 
Saturday will see SLU open the day versus former Southland Conference foe UT Arlington. KJ Murphy (.400) is the Lady Mavs' top hitter for average, while Jessica Adams (0-2, 4.08 ERA) and Gracie Bumpurs (0-2, 6.46 ERA) have handled the majority of work in the circle.
 
Saturday's nightcap sees Southeastern face off against an Iowa State team with a .267 batting average. Milaysia Ochoa (.389) leads the Cyclones in batting average, while Alesia Ranches paces the squad with two home runs and eight RBI. Saya Swain (2-0, 4.20 ERA), Karlie Charles (1-0, 2.25 ERA, 1 save) and Ellie Spelhaug (1-1, 2.25 ERA) have all seen significant time in the circle for ISU.
 
The host Aggies await Southeastern in Sunday's finale. Yazzy Avila is the top NMSU regular in batting average, hitting at a .375 clip. Laurali Patane (0-0, 15.43 ERA), Felicia De La Torre (0-2, 19.29 ERA) and Jordin King (0-1, 20.77 ERA) have split time in the circle for New Mexico State.
 
Following this week's action, Southeastern stays on the road. The Lady Lions will compete in the 2022 Mardi Gras Mambo Feb. 25-27 in Youngsville, Louisiana.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Softball, follow @LionUpSoftball on Twitter and Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
 
HOME RUN CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the softball program are encouraged to join the Home Run Club. Lady Lion softball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Home Run Club and S Club (softball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern softball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events (softball, baseball, football and basketball), effective with the start of the 2018 football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.