GREAT FALLS, Mont. – Home has been a safe haven for Lady Argo softball since the start of Cascade Collegiate Conference play and the team needs that to be true again in its upcoming series against #18 Corban University. The 11-14 (3-12) Lady Argos are 5-3 in home games in 2017, but have gone 0-11 on the road, including an 0-3 series against British Columbia last weekend.

Those loses against UBC, who only had 1 win on the year heading into the series, were a gut punch to UGF's playoff chances. Instead of having a conference record of 6-9, just a few games behind Carroll College (12-15, 7-5) for the last CCC playoff spot, UGF is now 3-12 in conference and tied with Northwest University for eighth in the CCC standings.

While the home field advantage should help, it won't be an easy four-game series against Corban, the current conference leader at 26-6 (12-3). The two teams have only played twice in school history, during a road doubleheader for UGF in 2016. The Warriors won both of those games 6-4, 6-1.

The two doubleheaders will be on Friday, April 7 starting at 2 p.m., and Saturday, April 8 starting at 11 a.m.

Quick Notes:

• UGF is currently on a 4-game losing streak.
• The Lady Argos all-time record against Corban University is 0-2.
• A deeper look into UGF's home success vs. road struggles: At home the Lady Argos are hitting 0.361. On the road the team's batting average has dropped to 0.268.
• In the first two games of UGF's 3-game series against the University of British Columbia, UGF's pitching only allowed 5 runs. In the first game senior Shelby Abeyta allowed 0 earned runs and only 5 hits.  In game two the Thunderbirds only earned 2 runs against sophomore pitcher Mikayla Deigan in 6-innings.
• UGF's power hitting has improved significantly from 2016. After senior Hali Gruntowicz's home run against UBC, the team has a total of 14 home runs this season in 25 games compared to 11 home runs in 43 games in 2016.
• It has been a tale of two seasons for UGF's leading hitter in 2016, Hali Gruntowicz. Through the first 17 games of the season, the senior was hitting 0.200 with 9 RBIs. In the last 8 games, she is hitting 0.434 with 10 RBIs. Against UBC, she had 3 hits, 4 RBI's, and 1 home run in 6 at bats increasing her batting average from a .250 to .279.
• Second baseman, Gabrielle Canibeyaz, is also coming off of her best offensive game of the season. She had 3 hits and scored 1 run in 4 at bats in game three against UBC.
• The Lady Argos are currently ranked 37th in the NAIA in hits per game (6.667).

 
About Corban:

• Corban University is on a 6-game winning streak.
• Offensively, CU is a threat across the board. They rank 1st in the NAIA in total doubles (80) and doubles per game (2.500), and 14th in stolen bases per game (2.250).
• Senior infielder Iris Rodriguez has been important to CU both offensively and defensively. She is ranked 4th in the NAIA in total doubles (15) and 38th in total assists (72).
• Helping Rodriguez at the plate is sophomore Jessie Isham. She is ranked 16th in total doubles (13), 24th in total home runs (8), and 24th in total runs batted in (34). She is also leading the team in RBI's with a total of 34.
• The Warriors are led in the pitching circle by junior pitcher Sabrina Boyd. She is ranked 33rd in the NAIA, and leads the conference, in total earned runs (22). She also ranked 10th in the NAIA for innings pitched per game (6.500).
• Senior Allie Mendez also plays a big role in CU's pitching. She has a total of 10 wins and 3 loss out of 14 games started and an ERA of 2.