Ladyjack Softball Set for Weekend Play at 2018 UCA Invitational

NACOGDOCHES, Texas – After weather altered the Stephen F. Austin softball team's weekend schedule and travel plans, the Ladyjacks (6-4) will now play a four-game slate at the 2018 UCA Softball Invitational in Conway, Arkansas. Kansas, Coppin State, Louisiana-Monroe and South Dakota State all appear on SFA's weekend schedule at Central Arkansas' tournament, held Friday-Sunday, Feb. 23-25.

The Ladyjacks will take on the Jayhawks at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, directly followed by the Eagles of Coppin State at 6 p.m. SFA will then match up against the Warhawks Saturday morning for a 9 a.m. first pitch before battling the Jackrabbits Sunday at 8 a.m. Games will be played on the campus of UCA at Farris Field with the Ladyjacks' contest against South Dakota State taking place at Fieldhouse Field, located a few miles off-campus from UCA.

After starting off its 2018 campaign on a high note with a trio of wins over Grambling State, UT Martin and ULM at the Mardi Gras Classic in Monroe, Louisiana, SFA went 3-3 in a challenging stretch last week. The Ladyjacks played six games during a span of 72 hours, including contests in two different states. After dropping a 4-0 decision in a road affair at sixth-ranked Texas A&M, SFA went 3-2 at Northwestern State's Lady Demon Classic in Natchitoches, Louisiana. The Ladyjacks defeated Memphis twice (3-1 and 5-3) and tallied an 8-4 victory over Jackson State. Northwestern State was the lone team to defeat SFA in the tournament, handing the Ladyjacks a 4-1 loss and edging SFA 6-5.

Through 10 games this season the Ladyjacks have accumulated six wins, tying for the fourth-most victories thus far among Southland Conference teams. SFA is a perfect 5-0 in neutral-site games, the most neutral-site wins of any Southland program this season, and looks to continue its unbeaten streak in such contests with the Ladyjacks' four games this weekend.

Freshman infielder Bryana Novegil (Houston, Texas) is off to a strong start to her inaugural collegiate softball season, leading the Southland with a .583 batting average in nine games played. She has totaled 14 hits in 24 at bats, recording five RBI with a slugging percentage of .667 and an on-base percentage of .688. Novegil's batting average ranks 16th in the nation, while her on-base percentage is eighth-best nationally.

Seniors Taylor Fraccastoro (Orange, Texas) and Amber Landry (Ponchatoula, La.) have shown their presence as two of SFA's leaders in the very early part of the season. Fraccastoro, the Ladyjacks' main arm behind the plate, is hitting at a clip of .323 with 10 hits in 31 at bats, 13 RBI and a team-best 10 runs scored. She has knocked in three doubles and two doubles while blasting out two homers. Fraccastoro is slugging at a mark of .742 and is averaging 1.3 RBI per game, which ranks 58th in the nation. Landry has collected nine hits in 32 at bats for a batting average of .281, claiming six RBI, two home runs, and a double already this season. She has also scored eight times and stolen a pair of bases.

"The strength of our team at this point is our two catchers," head coach Nicole Dickson said. "Taylor Fraccastoro is killing it and Amber Landry is just as qualified behind the plate as Taylor, but she has really stepped up at third base. Our two senior catchers are the backbone of this team right now and they are composed and thriving."

Right-hander Makayla Sikes (Gilmer, Texas) has really come into form as of late and leads the Ladyjacks in the circle. The senior posted a 0.89 earned run average in four game appearances last week, pitching 15 and 2/3 innings with seven strikeouts. She claimed her first complete game win of the season and nearly tossed a shutout in SFA's 3-1 win over Memphis, before picking up a save in 2 and 2/3 innings of relief duty during SFA's 5-3 triumph over the Tigers. Sikes owns a 3-3 record on the young season and a 1.52 ERA, giving up just 24 hits in 23 total innings on the rubber.

"The strength of this team is also our senior leadership," coach Dickson continued. They are doing everything we are asking them to do."

KANSAS - JAYHAWKS
· Record: 8-2, 0-0 Big 12
· Went 4-1 at both the Stetson Leadoff Classic and UTSA Softball Tournament to open up the season, owning a 6-2 mark in neutral-site contests and a 2-0 record in true road games. The Jayhawks have earned neutral-site wins over Akron twice (5-3 and 4-1), College of Charleston (6-1), Prairie View A&M {2-1 (8)} and Missouri State twice (6-0 and 7-6). Kansas has also picked up road victories at Stetson (2-1) and at UTSA {(12-1 (6).
· The Jayhawks' only blemishes this season have come against the College of Charleston (6-4) and Southland counterpart Lamar {13-4 (5)}. The Cardinals scored five runs in both the third and fifth innings and got a stellar performance from first baseman Shelby Henderson, who went 3-for-3 with seven RBI.
· Kansas ranks 32nd nationally in home runs per game (1.10).

COPPIN STATE - EAGLES
· Record: 0-0, 0-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
· Coppin State has yet to play a game in 2018 after having their home opening series with Marist canceled due to construction on the Eagles' field.

ULM - WARHAWKS
· Record: 4-4, 0-0 Sun Belt Conference
· SFA split a road doubleheader with the Warhawks as part of the ULM Mardi Gras Invitational over opening weekend. The Ladyjacks took game one 6-4 before falling 9-3 in game two.
· After defeating Grambling State (11-2) and North Texas (12-10) in its opening weekend tournament, ULM picked up a 4-3 victory over Montana at Arizona's Hillenbrand Invitational. In addition to being handed the 6-4 loss to SFA, the Warhawks have suffered losses at LSU {10-0 (5)}, at Arizona (4-0) and versus Bryant (6-4).
· Stealing 1.75 bases per game, ULM ranks 40th nationally in that category.

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE - JACKRABBITS
· Record: 2-3, 0-0 The Summit League
· The Jackrabbits have competed in just one tournament this season over the opening weekend at the 2018 UNI Dome Classic in Cedar Falls, Iowa, after having their trip to the 2018 Courtyard Marriot UNF Invite/Dolphin Invitational canceled last weekend. South Dakota State has not competed in nearly two weeks, since Feb. 11.
· South Dakota State went 2-3 in its opening weekend of play, earning neutral-site wins over the University of Missouri-Kansas City (5-3) and Green Bay (19-12). The Jackrabbits' trio of losses have come versus Southeast Missouri State (4-1), at Northern Iowa (5-2) and versus Drake {10-2 (6)}.
· Averaging two doubles per game as a team, South Dakota State ranks fifth in the nation in that category and 42nd nationally in scoring with 5.8 runs per contest.

Up Next…
The Ladyjacks will return to the comforts of Nacogdoches and the SFA Softball Field for their home opener next Wednesday, Feb. 28 when SFA hosts Texas Southern for a 4 p.m. opening pitch.

For all weather-related SFA softball schedule changes throughout the 2018 spring season, be sure to keep an eye on SFAJacks.com and follow SFA softball on Facebook (SFA Softball) and Twitter (@SFA_Softball).

Stay tuned to SFAJacks.com, as well as SFA's social media platforms, for complete coverage of Ladyjack softball throughout the season.

-SFA-

Schedule

Ladyjack Softball Set for Weekend Play at 2018 UCA Invitational

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Players Mentioned

Taylor Fraccastoro

Amber Landry

Bryana Novegil

Makayla Sikes

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Stephen F Austin

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Murray State College on Sep. 27, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Weatherford College on Oct. 4, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Softball versus University of Louisiana at Monroe on Oct. 4, 2025 at 5:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Galveston College on Oct. 10, 2025 at 1:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Galveston College on Oct. 10, 2025 at 3:30 p.m.

Ladyjack Softball Set for Weekend Play at 2018 UCA Invitational

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Taylor Fraccastoro

Amber Landry

Bryana Novegil

Makayla Sikes

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