Ray, Panthers Looking Forward to Conference Play

GSU hosts Texas State for a three-game Sun Belt series starting Friday.

ATLANTA -- Caitlin Ray and the Georgia State softball team hosts Texas State this weekend for a three-game series to begin the Sun Belt softball schedule.

Ray, a redshirt junior on the team, said the team is focused on the motto "Stay Ahead."

"We're taking it one game at a time and our goal to to stay ahead. So if we drop one game, we're going to come out the next game and do everything we can to get that win back so we 'stay ahead' in the conference standings," Ray said.

Even with a young team, the Panthers have shown improvement in the early stages of the 2020 season. GSU enters conference play on a three-game win streak after taking down Iowa State last Sunday at the Bob Heck Softball Complex.

"The biggest difference from last year to this year hasn't been the talent. Our energy is more positive this year," Ray said. "We have a lot of fun at practice at during games and I think that allows the game to come more naturally to some of the younger players. It takes some of the pressure off. Our team chemistry is in a good place."

Ray is one of the leaders on the team at the plate with a .273 average, two home runs and 10 RBI. Freshman Daisy Hess has made an immediate impact at shortstop with both her glove and her bat. She leads the team with three homers and also has 10 RBI.

The pitching staff is coming off a strong weekend in which the GSU arms shutout Iowa State, held Penn State to just three runs twice, and shutout Rider. Savannah Freeman's 2.68 ERA is tops on the staff. Freshman Sophie Mooney's 43 strikeouts leads GSU.

Game 1 in the series against Texas State starts at 5 p.m. Friday. Saturday's and Sunday's games are both scheduled for 1 p.m.

For the latest news on GSU softball, follow @GSU_Softball on Twitter.

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Players Mentioned

#55 Savannah Freeman: P; 5' 3"; Redshirt Sophomore; R/R

#22 Daisy Hess: IF; 5' 10"; Freshman; R/R

#10 Sophie Mooney: P; 5' 10"; Freshman; R/R

#12 Caitlin Ray: IF; 5' 5"; Redshirt Junior; L/R

Players Mentioned

#55 Savannah Freeman
: 5' 3"; Redshirt Sophomore; R/R
: P

#22 Daisy Hess
: 5' 10"; Freshman; R/R
: IF

#10 Sophie Mooney
: 5' 10"; Freshman; R/R
: P

#12 Caitlin Ray
: 5' 5"; Redshirt Junior; L/R
: IF