LIVINGSTON, Ala. – The West Alabama softball team closes out the regular season this weekend with a pair of Gulf South Conference road swings. UWA (29-19, 13-11) opens at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Apr. 21 at North Alabama and closes out with UAH on Sunday, Apr. 22 at 2 p.m.

The Tigers look to rally from back-to-back conference losses against West Florida earlier in this week. UWA was blanked in both outings against the Argos marking the first time this season that the Red and White was shutout in consecutive games.

UWA outhit the Green and Blue in the first outing 9-5, but couldn't find the timely hit to push anyone across the dish. The setback marked the first time the Tigers have out hit an opponent and fallen. In the second contest, UWA struggled at the dish managing just two hits and a pair of walks.

UNA, fell in its last two outings to Delta State, has dropped five of its last six conference contests. The Lions are led at the dish by Shelby Goodman who is batting .321 on the season and has posted a team-best 24 RBI. Breanna Riley has picked up eight UNA's 18 wins in the circle while recording a team-leading 96 strikeouts.

Winners of its last six, UAH comes into the weekend boasting the best hitting club in the conference. The Chargers have five of the top 10 hitters in the GSC with Stephanie Needham leading the way at .467. Needham also leads the conference in RBI with 53 while Mary Kelley ranks second with 48. UAH hurler Whitney Gilbert ranks third in the conference in ERA at 1.99 – just behind Tiger pitcher Kristen Skinner in second at 1.97. Gilbert's teammate Whitney Toler stands fifth in ERA at 2.17.

DIVISION II SOUTH REGIONAL RANKINGS
The West Alabama softball team held on to its sixth place ranking in the second installment of the NCAA Division II South Region rankings for the 2012 season.
The top seven spots remained the same from the first poll last week. Valdosta State, the top team in the country, sits atop the region rankings followed by three Sunshine State Conference members in Tampa, Rollins and Barry. The Tigers are sandwiched between a pair of Gulf South Conference schools with UAH in fifth while West Florida is seventh. Nova Southeastern and Florida Southern swap spots in the rankings with the Sharks now in the eight slot with FSC in ninth. Newcomer Palm Beach Atlantic moves into No. 10 replacing North Alabama who appeared in the opening announcement.

SHOUP NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Stephanie Shoup becomes the third Player of the Week from the program this season and the fifth overall weekly winner. The junior continued her impressive streak at the plate, hitting .423 with a GSC-high 12 RBI during the eight-game span. Of her 11 hits, six went for extra bases – including three home runs – while walking three times. Her best performance came in the opening game of a doubleheader against Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference-leading Stillman. The Oviedo, Fla., native was a single short of the cycle, going 3-for-4 with six runs batted in. Shoup is among the top 10 in the GSC in batting average (.372), runs scored (38), doubles (12), triples (5) and RBI (37).

FRIENDS OF JACLYN
Saturday's doubleheader will be played in the spirit of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation as the Tigers host Valdosta State. For the only time this season, UWA will charge an admission to enter the UWA softball complex of $5 for adults. UWA students will be admitted free with student ID with children 14 and under admitted free. Donations will be accepted will ALL proceeds going to the FOJ Foundation. FOJ is a non-profit organization that pairs college teams with children suffering from pediatric brain tumors. Last March, the UWA softball team was paired with a little girl named Ella. Ella has become an honorary member of the UWA softball team and a true inspiration to the Tiger family. Ella was the second child paired in the entire state of Alabama at the time.

SENIOR DAY
The UWA softball coaches, players and staff will honor its three seniors prior to Sunday's first pitch against West Georgia. Kristen Skinner (Toxey, Ala.), Nicole Bailey (Saraland, Ala.) and Hannah Griffin (Mobile, Ala.) will be recognized during their final home weekend series along with friends and family.

STELLAR SHOUP
Junior Stephanie Shoup has proven a stellar bat for the Tigers moving to second on the team in batting average at .372. Shoup leads the squad in hitting in conference play – batting .386 with 16 RBI. Shoup is among the top 10 in the GSC in batting average (.372), runs scored (38), doubles (12), triples (5) and RBI (37).

SKINNER AMONG THE STRIKEOUT LEADERS AT UWA
Kristen Skinner has etched her name further into the UWA record book with 284 career strikeouts moving to fourth all-time. The Toxey, Ala., product fanned a season-high 11 batters in a Senior Day win over West Georgia.

FRESHMAN HURLER IMPRESSIVE
Jessica Brock has been spectacular in the circle for the Tigers this season. The Gallion, Ala., product is second in the GSC in wins with 16 and sixth with 92 strikeouts in her first season with the Red and White.

NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP FOR SCHICK
Rebecca Schick has picked up where she left off a season ago. The New Orleans native has cranked out 12 homeruns on the season to bring her career total to 20. In 2011, Schick finished third on the squad in homeruns. The sophomore also leads the Tigers with 47 RBI on the campaign.

ATKINSON GETS CAREER 300TH
In a sweep of Stillman on Tuesday evening, Tiger skipper Will Atkinson picked up his 300th career win. Atkinson logged his 100th victory in Livingston also against the Tigers.

STILLMAN SWEEP
Taylor Beck and Stephanie Shoup each went 4-for-8 at the dish while driving in three runs apiece. Kristen Skinner registered a season-high tying mark of eight strikeouts en route to a 5-2 win. Jessica Brock tossed her third shutout of the season in a 9-0, complete game win with three hits scatters along with three strikeouts.

TOUGH WEEKEND
After posting back-to-back conference sweeps en route to running to a win streak of five games, West Alabama dropped a pair of GSC doubleheaders to North Alabama and UAH. As a team, the Tigers hit just .204 with a total of 20 hits in 98 at-bats. The Tiger hurlers allowed a combined 25 runs in the four losses with a 5.12 ERA.

BACK-TO-BACK GSC SWEEPS
With sweeps of Christian Brothers and Delta State; West Alabama logged its first back-to-back, GSC sweeps under Atkinson. The four wins helped the Tigers to a 7-1 record during the week.

IMPRESSIVE EIGHT GAMES
During the eight-game stretch that assisted helping UWA into the second spot in the GSC, five Tigers hit .400 or better. Tamara Vickers led the way with a .500 hitting clip and registered 11 hits during the span. Stephanie Shoup recorded an eight-game, hit streak during the span while tying Vickers with 11 hits along with Kelsey Cooper. Shoup also tallied seven RBI which was second on the team. Rebecca Schick recorded a team-best 10 RBI during the span with 10 hits.

SWEPT… TWICE
West Alabama swept GSC Player and Pitcher of the Week twice this season. Jessica Brock has claimed Pitcher of the Week on consecutive weeks while Taylor Miller and Taylor Beck have each taken Player of the Week honors.

NO-HITTER
Jessica Brock pitched a complete game, no-hit shutout for the first time in the Red and White en route to her fourth victory of the season. The freshman registered a career-high 10 strikeouts while walking just four batters in a 10-0 victory over Tuskegee.

NEW FACES FOR 2012
West Alabama welcomes 12 newcomers to the 2012 squad. Among the new faces are GSC top newcomers Jessica Brock, Kelsey Cooper and Stephanie Shoup. The total newcomer lists comprises of eight juniors, a sophomore and three freshmen.

SKINNER NAMED PRESEASON ALL-GSC
Kristen Skinner was tabbed as the lone UWA representative following a stellar first season with the Red and White. Last season, the Toxey, Ala., native tossed 179.2 innings while compiling a 20-2 record and a 2.10 ERA. The senior pitcher recorded three, double-digit strikeout performances en route to fanning a conference-best 178 batters and nabbing first team laurels.

TIGERS LOOKING TO CONTINUE SUCCESS FROM 2011
West Alabama finished its 2012 season with a final record of 38-19 along with a berth in the NCAA South Super Regional. UWA has claimed 38 wins the last two seasons. The Tigers have registered 30-plus wins the last three seasons, including 42 in 2009.