Heading in the Right Direction

Lady Jaguar field was the place to be as the Southern University Lady Jaguars hosted the University of Massachusetts Lowell River Hawks in a fierce doubleheader that lasted a total of twelve innings. With the sun shining and an ideal temperature of 84 degrees, the weather was perfect for a softball game! Going into the matchup, the Lady Jaguar’s record sat at 3-14 with a onegame win streak.

Offensively, the Lady Jags are led by sophomore infielder Alana Mark, junior pitcher Anabella Valadez, and junior infielder Sydney Wesley. Mark had a .326 batting average, along with three doubles, two home runs, and a total of thirteen runs batted in (RBIs); Mark also reached base safely in eleven straight games. Valadez has earned two doubles, one triple, one home run, and two RBIs in twenty at-bats. Wesley has been producing offensive stats as well, with her lone triple and three RBIs.

Before facing the River Hawks, the Lady Jags were on the heels of a threegame home stretch in which they only lost one game. Despite looking to carry that momentum into the doubleheader, the task would be easier said than done. After being asked what the most daunting aspect of the objective was, Head Coach Brittney Williams explained, “We had a lot of injuries. Four out of five of those are our starters.” The amount of starting players that were injured indubitably affected the outcome of both games.

Trouble for the Lady Jags appeared very early into the start of the first game. As the second inning of game one began, the River Hawks already had managed to put one run on the board, which was accompanied by two hits. The game would start to take a downward spiral for Southern after the start of the third inning. River Hawks batter, graduate student Mya Case, crushed a homerun into left field. This run would spark an onslaught of offensive production that UMass Lowell would

Gone Too Soon: SU Men’s Basketball Out in 1st Round

erIC WhIte, Jr./reggIe allen THE SOUTHERN DIGEST

The famous line says “Third Time’s A Charm,” but would that be the case? The Southern Men’s basketball team would face Alabama A&M for a third time. In the previous two matchups, the Jags have lost. In the most recent matchup, the Jags lost 68-65 for their last game of the regular season. Alabama A&M is not a great offensive team, but when it comes to Southern, they have shot the ball astronomically well against them all year. Southern was the fourth seed, but the expectation was a deep run or a championship. Could the Jags live up to the expectation?

The Southern Jaguars were off to a slow start to begin the game, with eight minutes into the game the Jags made just 1 basket. At halftime, the Jags’ trailed 36-23. The Bulldogs jumped out to an enormous 54-34 lead in the game. The Jags did claw their way back into the game getting within eight points of the Bulldogs with the score being 57-49. However, the Jags couldn’t get it going and the slow start couldn’t be overcome.

maintain throughout both games. The River Hawks would ultimately win the first game, with the final score being 9-0. Most noticeably, UMass Lowell accumulated fourteen hits, while the Lady Jags earned only two hits.

After winning the first game, the River Hawks would continue their ferocious campaign into the second and final match of the day. Starting strongly with three runs, UMass Lowell did not let off the gas until the game was over. The final score of the second match was also 9-0. In addition to the overwhelming offensive effort put forth by the River Hawks, the number of errors Southern committed affected the outcome of both games. According to Coach Williams, “as far as errors, they’re better than where they have been and not quite where I want them to be.”

Heading into the next series against Prairie View A&M, the Lady Jags must produce more hits and runs to achieve victory. Coach Williams elaborated, “I believe that you can hit anybody if your focus is there.” Another key factor to the successful progression of the season is the return of all injured players. Coach Williams also stated, “If it’s not working, then maybe it’s the bat.” The Jags will not have another home game at Lady Jaguar Field until Friday, March 17th, at 5 P.M against Alcorn State. In addition, this will be a warm-up before the double-header against Alcorn State. Saturday, March 18th, the first game is set for noon, and the second game is for 2 P.M.

The Jags were beaten by the Bulldogs in every category besides turnovers. Southern shot 37.7% from the field compared to Alabama A&M 46.8 percent. In addition, Southern got destroyed in rebounding with Alabama A&M having 39 compared to Southern’s 25. Furthermore, Southern never lead in the game, so Alabama A&M dictated the pace. Senior guard Brion Whitley led the game in scoring with 18 points on 6 of 13 shooting. Senior forward Terell Williams Jr. had 5 rebounds as well as junior forward Festus Ndumanya.

This season was confusing for basketball fans because the season started off gunsblazing, including a 7-1 record in the first eight conference games. However, in the second half of the season the Jags became almost unrecognizable and wasn’t playing their best basketball down the stretch. Due to the loss the Jaguars faced this week (65-68), the Jaguar’s Conference Championship Quest will be held off another year and another early exit will be the result of the season.