Opinion: Softball looks for a strong finish to end their season

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Dominating the Sunbelt leaderboards, the Warhawks softball team has been on fire lately. Winning seven of their last 10  games, ULM has pushed their record to 22-16 on the season after their 13-1 victory against the South Alabama Jaguars.

ULM now sits in fifth place in the SunBelt standings, only one game behind UTA and five behind ULL. Conference play has hindered the Warhawks though. With a 9-8 conference play record, they will have to perform in their three remaining conference series to make a push for the top spot. But this year’s team is a scoring machine and equipped with all the tools to pull out a big year for this program.

The Warhawks currently hold four of the top five spots on the Sun Belt runs scored leaders list and can be found all over the leaderboards for batting average, hits and even stolen bases. Junior outfielder, Sydney McKay, seems to be everywhere you look on these leaderboards.

She leads the Sunbelt in hits with 57 as well as having the best batting average in the conference at .407. McKay also ranks among the top five in stolen bases, runs scored and total plate appearances. Her big bat has been essential for the team as she has contributed for 28 of the Warhawks total runs batted in this season.

The Warhawks have been so hot lately that the fans and students alike have taken notice. Game attendance has been up this season as compared to last season and it doesn’t look like that’s going to change anytime soon.

The high energy from the team is intoxicating as they seem to never lose hope, even in the deepest of situations. McKay isn’t the only one the fans come out to support though. Freshman infielder Jayden Mount has also made a massive impact on this year’s squad. Mount ranks among the top five in five categories this season, including on-base percentage, batting average and most doubles in the Sun Belt conference with nine.

The ULM Warhawks softball team has 16 more games before the SunBelt Conference Championship kicks off in early May. With the Texas State Bobcats currently boasting a 30-8 record, including staying undefeated in conference play at 11-0, they lead the Sun Belt in regular season play by a long shot.

With first place looking out of reach for ULM, the Warhawks will have to fight for a second or third place spot to finish the regular season in. They will need to perform well in their three remaining series with conference rivals to boost their fifth place rank.

The Warhawks won’t face an easy task though as they kick off the first of the final three conference series with the number one ranked Texas State Bobcats. The first game of the series will get stated on Saturday April 21 at 1 p.m. in the Bobcat Softball Stadium.