WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – After completing its doubleheader sweep of Southern Virginia the Salem softball team will embark on a four-game road trip that begins with a clash in Danville, Va., on Saturday afternoon against Averett. Game times are set for 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

Salem, which moved its record to 5-17 overall and 2-6 in the USA South with Wednesday's triumph, has not posted a true road win in 2022. However, the Spirits did capture a 5-4 neutral site victory over Centenary (N.J.) in Myrtle Beach, S.C., on March 9th.

SEARCHING FOR A USA SOUTH ROAD WIN: After not being able to play in league contests in either 2020 or 2021, due to COVID-19, the last time the Salem posted a road win in the USA South Conference came on April 7, 2019 against Ferrum.

In that doubleheader clash with the Panthers, Salem opened the series with an 8-1 win, highlighted by a home run and a double from Brittany Morton. The Spirits followed that with a 5-2 victory in the second game, which included a series of doubles by Miranda Barker, Addison York and Breanna Herman.

WARMING UP AT THE PLATE: Through the first eight games of USA South Conference play Salem is led at the plate by Madison Thomas and four first-year sluggers—Carlee McWilliam, Arianna Ryan, Faythe Bowles and Madeline Brown.

Thomas is 13-of-27 (.481 batting average) at the plate in her eight USA South clashes, recording two doubles along the way. The lone Salem slugger with double-digit hits in league play, Thomas is responsible for a .556 slugging percentage and .553 on-base percentage. She has reached base safely in all eight games, collecting hits in seven games and drawing a walk in the first game of a doubleheader with Southern Virginia on Wednesday.

McWilliam is second among hitters in league action, boasting a .316 batting average. She is on a five-game hitting streak for Salem, which began with a 1-for-2 outing against William Peace (March 29), where she connected on a double.

Ryan has the third-best batting average (.259) for Salem in its eight league contests, ranking second to only Thomas in hits versus league opponents. She has also drawn three walks and come through with 19 putouts and 13 assists in the field for Salem.

Bowles, who has seen action in three USA South games, is responsible for a .250 batting average. Bowles has hits against William Peace (March 29) and Southern Virginia (April 6) along with six putouts to her credit.

Brown, rounds out the Top-5 hitters for the Spirits versus league opposition with a .235 batting average, connecting on four hits in 17 at bats. She scored two runs in Salem's 9-1 win over Southern Virginia on Wednesday, drawing three walks and recording an RBI in the process.

Thomas has also made her presence felt in the circle for Salem with a 1-3 mark and a 6.46 ERA in league action. Thomas has tossed 30.2 innings, making 15 strikeouts along the way. She is one of three pitchers to take the mound against USA South competition, along with Kat Price (0-3) and Katie Gerhardt (1-0).

Gerhardt recently claimed her first collegiate win against Southern Virginia on Wednesday afternoon. In five innings of work she allowed just one hit and one run and issued five walks along the way.

HOMECOMING FOR MURPHY: This weekend marks a homecoming for Salem assistant coach Breanna Murphy.

Murphy, who graduated from Averett in May 2020, earned a bachelor of science in psychology with a concentration in clinical and counseling psychology as well as a bachelor of science in criminal justice. She maintained a 3.17 GPA during her four years with the Cougars and served on the student-athlete academic board from 2016-19.

On the field, Murphy was a lifetime .243 hitter with 53 hits, 28 RBI, nine doubles and two home runs to her credit. She capped off her career with a .337 on-base percentage and a .312 slugging percentage.

Her best individual season for the Cougars came in 2019, where she posted a .339 batting average after finishing 19-of-56 from the plate. Murphy ended the campaign with nine RBI, three doubles and home run, which resulted in a .446 slugging percentage and a .433 on-base percentage.

LOOKING AT THE COUGARS: Averett, which is completing its final season in USA South play before heading to the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, is 1-3 to start off the month of April.

The Cougars (14-10, 5-5 USA South) dropped a doubleheader clash at Methodist by scores of 3-0 and 7-6 to open the month on April 2nd. They followed that up by splitting a two-game set at Mary Baldwin by winning the first game 6-0 and faltering 3-2 in the second game. Averett concluded its final week of March by knocking off No. 1 Christopher Newport in the second game of the doubleheader by an 8-5 margin.

The top slugger in the Averett lineup, among those that have played in at least 10 games, is Anna Coleman, who is boasting a .378 batting average. Coleman leads the Cougars in hits (28) and doubles (six) while ranking third in RBI (11). She has a.541 slugging percentage, second to only teammate Hannah Thompson's .577, and has the fourth-best on-base percentage (.403) among Averett sluggers.

Taylor Sullivan (7-3) has been the bright spot for the Averett pitching staff this season with a team-low 2.07 ERA. Sullivan has made 14 appearances, including 11 starts along the way, tossing two shutouts and converting one save. In 81 innings in the circle, Sullivan has allowed just 30 runs (24 earned runs), 16 walks and fanned 76 opposing hitters. Among the 80 hits allowed, only 10 have been for extra bases.

ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS AVERETT
(Averett leads series 8-4-1)