GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) softball team begins a four-game road slate, starting with three games against The Southern Conference (SoCon) foe Furman.

Due to potential inclement weather, Sunday's single game has been moved to Friday at 6:00 p.m. The Spartans and Paladins will play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1:00 p.m. The series will take place at Pepsi Stadium in Greenville, South Carolina.

Currently, UNCG is 27-10 overall and 4-2 in the SoCon and Furman is 13-22 overall and 3-3 in the conference. The Spartans swept the 2024 series with scores of 5-3, 5-3 and 6-1. The Paladins last won on April 6, 2023, when Furman defeated the Spartans, 5-4 and 9-8. The third game of the series was canceled.
 

 
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE SPARTANS

• UNCG is coming off four-straight wins, including a three-game SoCon series sweep over Wofford and most recently, a 4-3 victory over Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) foe NC State.
• This was the first victory over the Wolfpack since April 3, 2019, when the Spartans won 2-1 in Greensboro. This is the first ACC win for the Spartans since Feb. 27, 2022, when UNCG beat Virginia, 6-4, in Greensboro.
• Samantha Beck went 2-for-3 with two runs scored, one RBI and one home run.
• She crushed her fifth home run of the season and 10^th of her career.
• Grace Loftin hit 1-for-3 at the plate with one run scored, three RBI and a homer.
• She tallied her 10^th homer of the season and 39^th of her career.
• Jorde Chartrand tossed her second complete game of the season, allowing just three hits and three earned runs with one strikeout.

RUNDOWN ON THE SPARTANS

• Kaylyn Belfield is leading the Spartans with a .448 batting average and has successfully stolen 11-of-13 bases.
• Belfield is 43rd nationally with her hitting clip.
• Loftin is leading the Spartans with 46 hits, swinging .397 at the plate in 37 games played with a team-high 39 RBI. She also paces the team with nine doubles, three triples and 10 home runs.
• Her 46 hits are 61st in the nation and her 39 RBI are 51st.
• UNCG is nationally ranked in the top 25 in home runs (8^th/60), home runs per game (9^th/1.62), RBI (18^th/239), slugging percentage (18^th/.569), hits (23^rd/320), total runs (23^rd/254), walks (24^th/139) and RBI per game (25^th/6.46).
• Jessie Shipley is second on the team with eight homers, while Hadley Gardner, Macy Michael and Rylie Williams each have seven homers.
• Along with Loftin, nine other Spartans have double-figure RBI, with eight totaling 20 or more. Chartrand and Shipley each have 27 RBI, Meredith Harwood and Beck have 22 RBI, Gardner, Michael and Williams each have 20.
• Salem Ward leads the pitching staff with 78 strikeouts. She is second with a 2.43 ERA and has a 12-3 record with three saves in 25 appearances.
• Ward is nationally ranked 18^th in saves, 32^nd in victories and 37^th in pitching appearances.
• Ward earned SoCon Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 17 after going 4-0 in the Spiro Invitational.
• Gardner earned SoCon Player of the Week, while Chartrand was tabbed SoCon Pitcher of the Week after the Spartans' 4-0 weekend at the CSU Round Robin.
• This season, the Spartans have walked off in six games: vs. Toledo (16-14), Iona (5-3), Fairfield (4-2), Radford (2-1), Wofford (2-1 and 9-8).
• The Spartans are leading the SoCon in 13 categories, including batting average, hits, home runs, home runs per game, on-base percentage, RBI per game, RBI, scoring, slugging percentage, total runs and walks.
• Head Coach Janelle Breneman earned her 400^th win at the helm of the Spartans following a 7-2 win over Saint Francis on Feb. 16.
• UNCG was chosen to finish second in the SoCon Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Spartans received one first-place vote.  
• Loftin was named to the SoCon Preseason First Team, while Betsy Eatmon and Chartrand were voted to the Preseason Second Team.
• The Spartans concluded the 2024 season 33-26 overall and 13-8 in the SoCon.
• It was the fifth-straight season with 30 or more wins.
• It was also the ninth year with 30 or more wins under the direction of Breneman, who is in her 13^th year with the Blue & Gold.
• The Spartans reached the SoCon Championship game for the sixth-straight year in 2024, excluding the COVID 2020 shortened season, falling to Chattanooga in the double elimination game.
• UNCG added four freshmen and two transfers.

RUNDOWN ON FURMAN

• Furman finished the 2024 season 24-30 overall and 9-12 in the SoCon.
• The Paladins were voted to finish seventh in the 2025 SoCon Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• Sylvia Burroughs was named to the SoCon Preseason Second Team.
• Furman most recently took a 7-1 win over ETSU after the Paladins took the series two games to one.
• The Paladins have won their last three of four games.
• Caitlin Goldwait is leading the Paladins' offense with a .333 batting average, swinging 32-for-96 with 20 runs scored, nine RBI and six doubles.
• Goldwait is 13^th nationally and leading the conference in toughest to strikeout (48.0).
• Rachel Hawkins is pacing the team with 19 RBI, while Burroughs is second with 18 RBI.
• Kiley Perry has totaled a team-best 11 doubles, while Burroughs is second with 10.
• In 69.2 innings tossed, Emme Buzhardt has struck out 46 batters keeping opponents to a .250 hitting clip.
• Buzhardt is 5-7 in the circle with two saves and four complete games, while Angelina Ricciardi is 5-4 with two complete games and one save.
• Among the nation, Furman is 30^th in total sacrifice flies (14) and 38^th in total sacrifice bunts (26).

PURCHASE UNCG GEAR 
UNCGgear.com is your one-stop shop for all of your official UNCG merchandise! From apparel to accessories, there is something for everyone! 

UP NEXT 
UNCG will take a midweek road trip to Radford, Virginia, to face non-conference foe Radford on Wednesday with a first pitch slated for 4:00 p.m. at Radford Softball Stadium.