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CANYON, Texas – The #9 Lady Buffs of West Texas A&M will finally open Lone Star Conference play this weekend as they host the Tarleton State TexAnns for #TatumTough Strike Out Cancer Weekend presented by Hero Nutrition starting on Friday night at 6 p.m. followed by a Saturday doubleheader with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Schaeffer Park in Canyon.
 
- SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
TARLETON STATE
The TexAnns enter the weekend with an overall record of 15-3 with a 3-3 mark in Lone Star Conference play following a series sweep of Eastern New Mexico last weekend in Stephenville. Tarleton State is receiving votes in this week's NFCA Division II Top-25 Poll.
 
Mark Cumpian enters his second season at the helm of the TexAnns after spending seven seasons at the program's top assistant. He won 35 game in his debut season and earned the No. 7 seed in the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament
 
The TexAnns are led offensively by Tanna Huie who is hitting .447 on the season with two doubles, one triple and three homerun to drive in 18 RBI with 34 total bases for a slugging percentage of .723. In the circle, Haley Freyman leads the way with a 1.69 ERA (4-1) as she has tossed three complete games in six appearances with seven strikeouts in 29.0 innings of work to allow an opposing batting average of .200.
 
TSU is hitting .354 as a team with 32 doubles, three triples and 24 homeruns to drive in 122 RBI for a team slugging percentage of .588. Defensively they've committed 11 errors on 491 chances for a fielding clip of .978. In the circle, they have registered a 2.19 staff ERA with 13 complete games, four shutouts and 113 strikeouts while allowing an opposing batting average of .216.
 
THE SERIES vs. TSU
The Lady Buffs lead the all-time series against the TexAnns, 21-18 in a series dating back to WT's inaugural season in 2006. The two teams split their four meetings last season as WT has claimed the last two including a 7-6 win in the S.C. Regional Tournament last May in Canyon. TSU is 7-16 all-time in Canyon and 1-12 at Schaeffer Park.
 
LONE STAR CONFERENCE PRESEASON POLL
National Runner-Up Angelo State picked up 29 of the possible 33 first place votes for a total of 359 points to sit atop of the poll followed by WT (three first place, 306 points), Texas Woman's (one first place, 267 points), Tarleton State (257), Cameron (250), Texas A&M-Commerce (223), Texas A&M-Kingsville (170), Midwestern State (135), Eastern New Mexico (108), UT Permian Basin (64) and Western New Mexico (39).
 
Angelo State's Brandy Marlett was named the league's Preseason Pitcher of the Year while Mariah Jameyson from Texas A&M-Commerce was tabbed the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. The poll is voted on by head coaches, sports information directors and media representatives throughout the league.
 
NFCA DIVISION II TOP-25 POLL (FEB. 28)
Defending National Champion Minnesota State picked up 14 of the possible 16 first place votes for a total of 398 points to sit atop of the poll followed by North Georgia (two first place, 384), Colorado Mesa (360), Dixie State (357), Angelo State (328), West Virginia Wesleyan (320), Chico State (307), Saint Leo (282), West Texas A&M (257) and Harding (256) to round out the top ten.
 
The South Central Region was represented by Colorado Mesa (3rd), Angelo State (5th), WT (9th), Cameron (18th), Texas A&M-Commerce (21st) and Tarleton State (RV).
 
WT SOFTBALL IN THE NFCA TOP-25 POLL
The Lady Buffs have been ranked inside of the NFCA Division II Top-25 for 58 consecutive polls. The Lady Buffs have been ranked in the Top-5 in 41 polls since the start of the 2014 season while sitting atop of the poll an incredible 29 times.
 
NFCA DII NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCHLIST
West Texas A&M's Kilee Halbert, Allie Smith and Ashley Hardin were named to the NFCA Division II Schutt Sports National Player of the Year Preseason Top-50 Watch List announced on February 8th by the association's offices in Louisville, Kentucky. The three Lady Buffs are part of 10 selections from the South Central Region including three of the six student-athletes selected from the Lone Star Conference.
 
THE LONE STAR CONFERENCE
Entering the week, LSC softball teams were 109-62 overall this season. In the NCAA South Central Region, the group is currently 24-3 combined versus Heartland Conference teams and 21-13 against the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. LSC teams are playing a single round-robin schedule with a three-game series against each league opponent. The overall LSC Champion will be the team(s) with the best winning percentage in regular-season conference games, while the winner of the postseason championship will be recognized as LSC Tournament Champion and receive the league's automatic qualification into NCAA postseason.
 
#TATUMTOUGH STRIKE OUT CANCER WEEKEND
West Texas A&M Softball is proud to announce a partnership with the Tatum Tough Foundation for Strike Out Cancer Weekend on Friday and Saturday at Schaeffer Park as WT hosts Tarleton State in a three-game Lone Star Conference series.
 
Nine-year-old Tatum Lee Schulte died Thursday, October 30th after her almost two-year battle with osteosarcoma. The young hero was beloved by the Canyon community and the surrounding areas as the #TeamTatum message spread across the panhandle region and beyond. Through her constant display of strength and positive attitude, she created and left a legacy of being "Tatum Tough" in every situation.
 
Her parents, Travis and Shawna Schulte, began the Tatum Tough Foundation to keep her spirit alive and to reward others for being tough like Tatum. Community members can make donations through the Tatum Tough Foundation account at any First United Bank. The Lady Buffs will wear yellow ribbons in honor of pediatric cancer and Tatum's sister Shaylin will throw out Saturday's first pitch.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
The Lady Buffs have turned Schaeffer Park into one of the top home environments in all of NCAA Division II Softball. WT is 209-33 (.864) at Schaeffer Park since the facility opened prior to the 2011 season including 85-14 (.859) during regular season Lone Star Conference games in Canyon. 2017 marked the sixth time in the last seven years ('11, '13, '14, '15, '16, '17) that the Lady Buffs hosted NCAA Postseason action in Canyon.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
The West Texas A&M Athletic Communications Department will provide live stats and a webstream for this weekend. Fans can also follow the WT Athletics (@WTAthletics) Twitter account for live updates. For links and more information, visit the Lady Buff Softball schedule page at GoBuffsGo.com.
 
LADY BUFFS IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Lady Buffs made their fifth straight and seventh overall appearance in the NCAA Division II Softball postseason during the 2017 campaign.
 
The Lady Buffs are 26-16 all-time in the NCAA Postseason including 18-10 in games played at Schaeffer Park. WT is 5-2 in the College World Seris as they claimed the 2014 NCAA Division II National Championship.
 
RELOAD NOT REBUILD
The Lady Buffs boast a roster of four All-Americans and eight returners along with talented newcomers. WT will be guided by Kilee Halbert in the circle while Kylee Moore, Allie Smith, Ashley Hardin, Shanna McBroom, Alyx Cordell, Kourtney Coveney and Shayne Starkey all return to the starting lineup for the always powerful Lady Buff lineup.
 
2017 IN-REVIEW
The Lady Buffs continued to prove themselves as one of the top programs in all of Division II Softball during the 2017 campaign as they claimed the program's fourth Lone Star Conference Tournament Championship and hosted the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament for the fifth straight season. The Lady Buffs hit .371 as a team with 120 doubles, 10 triples and 98 homeruns to drive in 401 RBI for an incredible slugging percentage of .667. In the circle, the Lady Buffs registered a 2.47 ERA as a staff with 26 complete games, and 11 shutouts (three combined) to go along with 231 strikeout in 339.2 innings of work to allow an opponent batting average of .268 on the season.
 
HEAD COACH CANDACE ABRAMS
Candace Abrams enters her first season at the helm of the Lady Buffs following three years as the program's top assistant. Since arriving in Canyon, Abrams has been a part of two Lone Star Conference Championships as well as a South Central Regional Title and trip to the DII College World Series. Abrams enters the 2018 season with an overall career record of 202-65-1 (.754).