Troy Softball Travels to No. 3 Auburn to Take on SEC Powerhouse

TROY, Alabama – The Troy softball team will travel to No. 3 Auburn on Wednesday to square off with the Tigers for a mid-week non-conference game at Jane B. Moore Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Troy (23-12) is looking to bounce back after being swept by South Carolina in a non-conference two-game series this past weekend.

Hannah Day enters the game second in the nation in RBIs with 52, behind only Auburn's Kasey Cooper who has 53. In addition to being second in RBIs, Day ranks sixth in home runs with 14 and 10^th in home runs per game with .40.

Troy enters the game 11^th in home runs per game (1.29), 15^th in stolen bases per game (2.11), 16^th in scoring (6.77) and 20^th in slugging percentage (.520).

On the other side, Auburn (33-4) is second in the country in scoring (9.11), fifth in ERA (1.65), home runs per game (1.41) and slugging percentage (.575) and 12^th in batting average (.340). Cooper is fifth in the nation in RBIs per game with 1.43 and seventh in slugging percentage posting .950.

Kate Benton leads the Trojans with a .451 batting average, 51 hits and 38 runs in addition to leading the team, and the Sun Belt, with 29 stolen bases and ranks ninth nationally.

Not to be overshadowed by Day and Benton, sophomore Erica Davis has been consistent at the plate for the Trojans with 30 hits, 35 runs and 26 RBIs. She is perfect on the season in stolen bases with nine on nine attempts and has a .417 on-base percentage.

Freshman Claire Graves (5-2) continues to prove herself in the circle for the Trojans. She owns a 3.66 ERA, has 28 strikeouts and has given up 31 earned runs in 59.1 innings of work. Ashley Rainey (12-9) is the veteran for the Trojan pitching staff. She has given up 54 earned runs and has walked only 22 batters in 94 innings of work.

Auburn comes into the contest after a weekend sweep of conference foe Kentucky. In addition to leading the club in RBIs, Cooper leads the team in batting average (.465), doubles (14) and total bases (96).

Kaylee Carlson (10-0) and Makayla Martin (8-0) lead the way for the Tiger's pitching staff. Carlson has an impressive 0.98 ERA with 51 strikeouts. She has given up only 11 runs on 42 hits in 64.1 innings of work. Martin has tossed 54.1 innings and has only given up 12 runs on 31 hits and has recorded 45 strikeouts with a 1.42 ERA.

Auburn was victorious in both games against the Trojans last season. The then No. 20 Tigers defeated the Trojans, 15-5, in five innings in the first game of the season but Troy kept it close in the second game they played, losing 2-0 at No. 12 Auburn. The Tigers lead the all-time series 15-7-1.

Fans can find Troy softball on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat at @TroyTrojansSB or on Facebook at facebook.com/TroyTrojansSB.

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Players Mentioned

Kate Benton

Erica Davis

Hannah Day

Claire Graves

Ashley Rainey