April 8, 2005

Columbia, S.C. – The South Carolina Gamecock softball team (24-17, 7-8 SEC) returns home this weekend to host the No. 15 Florida Gators (29-10, 8-4 SEC) Saturday and Sunday at Beckham Field. Saturday’s doubleheader is scheduled for 1 p.m. and Sunday’s game is set for 2 p.m. and will be televised live on FOX Sports Net South, channel 31 on Columbia Time Warner Cable. Cheri Kempf will provide the color commentary and Bernie Guenther will do play-by-play.

This marks the 34th meeting between the two teams and the Gamecocks lead the series 19-14. In Columbia, USC has an 11-7 lead over the Gators. This marks the 14th meeting between head coach Joyce Compton and former USC standout Karen Johns (Sanchelli), who became head coach at Florida in 2001. Last year, the Gators swept the Gamecocks in Gainesville and Johns now has a one-game lead against Compton, 7-6.

Both the Gamecocks and the Gators are coming off of games against the same opponent. No. 10 Georgia swept USC earlier this week, while Florida went 1-2 against the Bulldogs over the weekend.

USC is hoping to snap a three-game losing streak as well as a four-game losing streak to the Gators. The Gamecocks last win over Florida came in 2003, game three of the regular season series.

Lindsey Cameron and Shelley Stevens lead Florida in hitting with .378 and .353 averages respectively. Stevens also leads in the circle with a 16-9 record and a 2.20 ERA.

Meghan Cornett continues to lead USC with a .400 batting average and Jessica Josker is second with a .368 average. Melanie Henkes is the only Gamecock with at least 10 wins while Aleca Johnson is now USC’s all-time saves leader.