Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina softball returns to the diamond on Tuesday, March 24, with a twin bill against Big South counterpart USC Upstate on Betty Peele Field at the Catamount Softball Complex. Tuesday's doubleheader is slated for a 3 p.m. first pitch

Admission to all WCU home games this season is free, presented by First Bank. Coverage of both games is available via the Catamount Sports Network, with live streaming audio and online stats at CatamountSports.com.

Both teams enter the week riding three-game win streaks, as the Catamounts swept Furman and the Spartans swept Radford to open their respective conference slates at home over the weekend.

SOFTBALL MATCHUP: USC Upstate (20-11) at Western Carolina (19-9)

• Date: Tuesday, March 24
• Time: 3:00 p.m. (DH)
• Location: Cullowhee, N.C.
• Site: Betty Peele Field at the Catamount Softball Complex
• Live Stats: Stat Broadcast
• Live Audio: Catamount Sports Network

About Western Carolina:
WCU opened the first weekend of Southern Conference play unbeaten for the first time since 2006, and looks to carry that momentum off into the midweek. As a team, WCU finished with a .403 batting average (31-for-77), with 17 extra-base hits – 11 homers, five doubles, one triple – and scored 30 runs in a perfect opening weekend.

The Catamounts continue their parade through the Big South Conference, already with games against Winthrop, Gardner-Webb, and Presbyterian before Tuesday's action with USC Upstate. The Catamounts are 5-1 against teams from the Big South ahead of Tuesday's matchup, with a rematch against Gardner-Webb slated for April 14th.

Coming off of her second SoCon Player of the Week honor, junior Maya McPherson continues to pace the squad with a .474 batting average, ranking second in the league. Her 45 hits lead the SoCon, while she ranks tied for sixth in doubles (7), tied for first in home runs (10), second in RBIs (38), and first in slugging percentage (.884).

Sydney Dirks continues to hit the long ball, adding two more on the weekend to reach nine, as WCU has 36 as a team, moving to first in the league after 11 on the weekend. The Catamounts have eight hitters above .300, which has pushed their batting average to .320, second in the conference.

Amanda Fulton is tied for first in the league with eight complete games. Her 2.75 ERA is sixth-best in the league, while her 89 innings pitched are second in the conference. Fulton is additionally second in the conference in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.21), third in strikeouts per seven innings (7.3), with her 93 strikeouts third in the SoCon, while ranking inside the top 30 in the nation. Her 15 strikeouts looking are tied for the most in the conference.

AG Batson is fourth with her eight wins, while ranking ninth in ERA at 3.52, and is tied for fifth with nine punchouts of the looking variety.

Additional offensive leaders include:

• Lily Bell – 33 runs scored (1st in SoCon), 17 stolen bases (2nd in SoCon / 29th in NCAA), .320 average, 15-game reached base streak (active)
• Taylor Waitley – .349 average, five doubles, 23 runs, 19 RBIs, 30 hits (fourth on the team)
• Sydney Dirks - .380 average (seventh in the SoCon), 35 hits (3rd in SoCon), nine homers (t-4th in SoCon)
• Courtney Marks - .343 average, 21 runs scored (t-8th in SoCon), 12 walks (tied for team-lead), four stolen bases
• Tate Stewman – .347 average, 15 runs, 20 RBIs, three doubles, seven homers (t-7th in SoCon)
• Batson – .314 average, three doubles, three homers, 11 RBIs
• Becka Wonsick – .300 average, 12 hits, two doubles, three homers, 11 RBIs, two steals
• SoCon team hitting ranks: .320 average (2nd), 198 runs (1st), 245 hits (2nd), 35 doubles (4th), 36 homers (1st), 184 RBIs (1st), 47 steals (2nd), 94 walks (2nd), .397 on-base pct. (2nd), .517 slugging pct. (1st).
• SoCon team pitching ranks: 19 wins (3rd), 4.67 ERA (4th), 131 strikeouts (4th), 120 earned runs (4th), 5.1 strikeouts per seven (3rd)

Scouting USC Upstate:
USC Upstate (20-11) comes to Cullowhee after a three-game sweep of Radford, including a pair of one-run victories at home over the Highlanders. The Spartans have five common opponents with WCU: Youngstown State, Robert Morris, Ohio, Furman, and College of Charleston. Upstate has an 8-2 record compared to a 5-2 mark for WCU. USC Upstate is 2-5 in true road games this season compared to a 15-2 mark in Spartanburg.

The Spartans are led by:

• Taliyah Thomas – team-high .458 average, team-high 44 hits, six doubles, 31 runs, five homers, 25 RBIs, 19 stolen bases (Preseason Big South Player of the Year)
• Ella Christopher – .367 average, 36 hits, 11 doubles (28th in NCAA), three homers, team-best 34 RBIs
• Allyssa Davenport – .358 average, 34 hits, 24 runs, six doubles, 18 RBIs, 10 steals
• Carson Shaw – .345 average, 30 hits, four doubles, three homers, nine hit-by-pitches (Preseason All-Big South Selection)

Thomas, Shaw, Sophia Kardatzke, and Abby Polk were named to the preseason all-conference team.

In the circle:

• Maddie Drerup – team-high 11 wins, 59 strikeouts in team-high 101.2 innings (16th in NCAA), 12 complete games (fifth in NCAA), four shutouts (7th in NCAA) (Preseason All-Big South Selection)
• Chloe Poteete – five victories, 3.94 ERA, 23 strikeouts in 32 innings 

Catamounts and Spartans – All-time Series History:
USC Upstate holds a commanding 30-3 lead in the all-time series with Western Carolina, having won eight straight against the Catamounts, including a 16-3 decision a season ago in Spartanburg. WCU has won just three of the 15 games against Upstate in Cullowhee.

Bell led WCU with a pair of hits in last season's action as McPherson had two RBIs and a double with Dirks adding a two-bagger of her own.

On Deck for Western Carolina:
WCU closes a season-long nine-game homestand on Saturday, March 28, with a visit from the UNC Greensboro Spartans. The two teams open a SoCon series with a 1 p.m. doubleheader from Betty Peele Field at the Catamount Softball Complex before a 1 p.m. series finale.

All three games are slated for ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live stats available on CatamountSports.com.

Fans can follow WCU softball on Facebook, Twitter (@CatamountSB), Instagram, and CatamountSports.com.