The University of Wisconsin Softball (8-1) team will travel to Corpus Christi, Texas, this weekend to compete in the Islander Invitational Tournament — their third tournament of the young season.
After starting out the year 8-1, the Badgers will again look to their heavy-hitting offense and overpowering pitching combinations to propel them past their opponents.
Wisconsin will see two different opponents over a total of five scheduled games this weekend. These teams include tournament host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (1-10) and Texas Southern University (0-4).
The first matchup for the Badgers will take place Friday at 10:30 a.m. against the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders.
The Islanders will look to get their season back on track on their home field after recording just one win on the season so far.
The three matchups against the Islanders should allow the Badgers to assert their offensive dominance at the plate and do damage against the Islanders’ pitchers.
The Islanders have been outscored by their opponents 81-25 this season, giving up just over seven runs on average in each game, including a 21–0 blowout loss to the University of Louisiana-Lafayette in their first tournament.
Game times against the Islanders will be Friday at 10:30 a.m., Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and Sunday at 10 a.m.
The second team the Badgers will face this weekend is the Texas Southern Lady Tigers.
The Lady Tigers are off to a slower start compared to the rest of NCAA softball so far this season, as they have only played in four games and one tournament. They have lost all four of these games.
Sophomore outfielder Zariah Robins is a top offensive contributor for the Tigers. Robins is coming off a freshman season in which she hit at a .425 average at the plate.
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Games times for Wisconsin and Texas Southern are Friday at 1 p.m. and Saturday at 10 a.m.
Badger pitchers Kaitlyn Menz, Haley Hestekin, Caroline Hedgcock and Maddie Schwartz will look to produce another successful outing for the Badgers this weekend in the circle.
Head Coach Yvette Healy has found that different combinations of Badger pitchers have kept the opposing offenses on their toes and guessing on what they will have to face at the plate next.
The final key to securing a successful tournament in Texas is to keep the foot on the offensive gas.
Wisconsin has outscored their opponents by an average of 5.2 runs per game over their last nine contests, and this impressive start will only improve if the Badgers can produce like they are capable of over the weekend.
Tune in to live stats at uwbadgers.com to stay caught up with the Badger Softball team from Texas this weekend.