WKU SOFTBALL ENTERS 2012 SUN BELT SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP AS #5 SEED: The WKU softball team enters the 2012 Sun Belt Conference Softball Championship as the fifth seed after sweeping a doubleheader at Middle Tennessee last Saturday. The Lady Toppers finished the regular season with an 11-12-1 conference record and their highest conference finish since 2009.

GIMME FIVE (RUNS):  The Lady Toppers are 20-2-1 this season when scoring five runs or more in a game. WKU is 5-0 when scoring five runs in a game.  The Lady Toppers have won 11 games this season by five or more runs. WKU has won 23 out of 28 games in which it was leading after the fifth inning.

CRUCE-ING At THE PLATE:  Freshman infielder Preslie Cruce has hit .345 in her last 20 games with five home runs and 13 RBI. Prior to April 1, Cruce had just one home run and six RBI. She has slugged .655 over this 20-game stretch with a .409 on base percentage. She struck out just four times in 48 at-bats in April while having three multi-RBI games. Cruce is sixth in the Sun Belt in runs scored with 40, seventh in on base percentage at .442 and 10th in total bases with 81.

MATTOX MASHES IN APRIL: Kelsie Mattox hit a team-high .455 in the month of April, bumping her batting average up to .314. She had 25 hits in 55 at-bats with six doubles, four home runs, and 13 RBI. Over the last 20 games, Mattox is hitting .444 and slugging .794 with an on base percentage of .500. She has had a hit in 18 of her last 20 games. She is currently second in the Sun Belt in total bases (110) and home runs (14), third in slugging percentage (.621), fifth in runs scored (42), and ninth in RBI (41).

DEW GETTING IT DONE:  Junior catcher Karavin Dew is leading WKU with a .329 batting average this season. On March 17, Dew was hitting .257. Since then, she has hit .392 to increase her overall batting average 72 points. Dew hit .371 in Sun Belt games, leading WKU. She was 4-for-5 at the plate in Saturday’s doubleheader sweep at Middle Tennessee, scoring a career-high three runs in the nightcap.

KNOCKING THOSE HOME RUNS OVER THE WALL:  The Lady Toppers are third in the Sun Belt in home runs with 43. North Texas, WKU’s first opponent in the Sun Belt Tournament, is second with 45. WKU has hit 19 home runs in it’s last 20 games. Kelsie Mattox and Preslie Cruce have each hit five home runs in that stretch. Amanda Thomas has four of those home runs. Thomas has hit a home run in each of WKU’s last three games.