KENNESAW STATE (5-2) AT TROJAN INVITATIONAL
GAMES 8-10 | FEBRARY 20-21, 2015
TROY, Ala.
 
GAME NOTES | UCONN LIVE STATS | NIU LIVE STATS | UE LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO | TOURNAMENT CENTRAL | TWITTER
 
THE GAMES:
After opening the 2015 season with back-to-back home tournaments, the Kennesaw State softball team heads on the road for the first time this season and will travel to Troy, Ala., for the 2015 Trojan Invitational, hosted by Troy Invitational on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 20-21.
 
The Owls open the tournament on Friday with an 11 a.m. ET contest against American Athletic Conference member Connecticut, before taking on Northern Illinois at 11 a.m. on Saturday and Evansville at 3 p.m. later that day.
 
THE COVERAGE:
LIVE STATS: Statistical updates will be available from KSUOwls.com for every game at the Trojan Invitational.
LIVE VIDEO: Live video for the Owls' games against Connecticut and Northern Illinois will be available at a cost via TroyTrojans.com.
TWITTER: Follow the Kennesaw State softball team on Twitter @KSUOwlsSB to receive updates throughout the game.
 
THE SERIES:
It will be the first-ever meeting between the Owls and both UConn and Northern Illinois, while KSU and Evansville are tied 1-1 in the all-time record. The Owls took a 7-2 win over the Aces in the teams' last meeting on March 1, 2008.
 
LAST TIME OUT:
Kennesaw State continued its hot start to the 2015 season after coming away with a 2-1 record at the Phyllis Rafter Memorial Invitational, hosted by the Owls at Bailey Park last weekend. KSU opened the tournament with a 4-0 setback to IUPUI on Friday, but rebounded with two wins on Saturday, including a 5-1 victory over Morehead State and a 9-8 come-from-behind win over No. 5/6 Kentucky to wrap the weekend. Junior Megan Veringa led the Owls with a .500 batting average after going 5-of-10 with five hits, including a home run against Morehead State. She also scored a team-high three runs and collected eight total bases in the three games at the KSU-hosted tournament. Her weekend was highlighted by a two-run, 3-of-4 performance against the No. 5 Wildcats that included starting off the seventh inning rally for the Owls with a single up the middle, before scoring two batters later.
 
NEXT UP:
The Owls next take the short trip to Atlanta to take on rival Georgia State in a midweek contest on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. ET, before traveling to Macon, Ga., for the Black & Orange Challenge, hosted by Mercer on Feb. 27-March 1.
 
NEWS AND NOTES:
KSU in the A-Sun Rankings
As a team, the Owls rank in the top three in several categories in the A-Sun, including leading the league in triples (five), ranking  second in slugging percentage (.545), ERA (3.57) and opposing batting average (.257) and is third in batting average (.316).
 
Veringa Leading Owls
Junior Megan Veringa paces the Owls and ranks fifth in the league with a .476 batting average and has collected a team-high 10 hits.
 
Welcome Addition
Joining her in the top 10 is junior Hillary Kartman with a .412 batting average and is tied for ninth in the A-Sun.
 
Triples
Senior Natalie Rhodes leads the conference with four triples on the season.
 
Sikes in the Circle
Morgan Sikes owns the second-lowest opposing batting average in the league as opponents are only batting at a .190 clip against the junior.
 
Chambers Tabbed A-Sun Preseason Co-DPOY
Junior Kara Chambers was named the 2015 A-Sun Preseason Co-Defensive Player of the Year after earning 2014 A-Sun Defensive Player of the Year and second-team all-conference accolades a season ago.
 
To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State softball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsSB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.