Longwood University Athletics

Games 1-4: Longwood (0-0) vs. #16 Georgia (2-1) and Kent State (0-0)
Date & Time	Game 1 vs. #16 Georgia: Feb. 19, 2021 • 3 p.m. Game 2 vs. #16 Georgia: Feb. 20, 2021 • 11 a.m. Game 3 vs. Kent State: Feb. 20, 2021 • 5:30 p.m.  Game 4 vs. Kent State: Feb. 21, 2021 • 10:45 a.m.
Location	Athens, Ga. (Jack Turner Stadium)
Game Notes	Longwood (PDF) | Georgia | Kent State
Statistics	Longwood (HTML) | Georgia (PDF) | Kent State (PDF) | Big South (HTML)
Live Stats	Games 1-4: Georgia Live Stats
Video/TV	SEC Network+: Game 1 vs. Georgia • Game 2 vs. Georgia

The First Pitch
•    Following last weekend's snowed-out series against NC State, Longwood softball will make its debut under head coach Dr. Megan Brown at the Georgia Classic against No. 14 Georgia and Kent State in Athens, Ga.
•    Brown, whose coaching career has included stints  at Auburn, Boston College and Cal, took over the Lancer program in August of 2020 following the retirement of 820-game winner and three-time Big South Coach of the Year Kathy Riley. 
•    The Lancers enter the 2021 season winners of five of the Big South's past seven conference championships. The Lancers won the league's postseason tournament in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019, along with regular-season titles in 2015, 2016 and 2019. Longwood was picked to finish third in the 2021 Big South Preseason Poll.
•    Longwood returns every member of its starting lineup from a year ago, including a quintet of All-Big South performers in senior pitcher Sydney Backstrom and middle infielders Kasey Carr and Destiny Martinez, and junior utility players Sydney Jacobsen and Alexis Wayland. 
•    This weekend's games kick off a loaded non-conference schedule for the Lancers, who will play a combined six games against Power 5 teams and face five teams that finished inside the NCAA RPI top 64 in 2020. 
•    Three of Longwood's non-conference opponents earned spots in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Preseason Top 25, including No. 14 Georgia, No. 15 Virginia Tech and No. 19 South Carolina. 

By The Numbers
•    Longwood is 122-39 (.758) in Big South play since joining the league in 2013. The Lancers have finished in the top three of the Big South standings every year as a member of the conference, including regular-season titles in 2015, 2016 and 2019.
•    Since making the jump to the Division I level in 2008, Longwood has advanced to five NCAA Regionals. All of those have come by way of the Big South's automatic bid, as the Lancers have won five of the past seven Big South Championship postseason tournaments.
•    Longwood's five NCAA Regional appearances are the second most in Big South history, while the Lancers' five NCAA Regional victories are a league best.
•    Graduate student Destiny Martinez enters her fifth year at Longwood with a five-game hitting streak and a stretch of six consecutive games reaching base safely. An All-Big South selection in 2018 and a 146-game starter in her first four years, Martinez is a .260 career hitter with a .350 on base percentage.
•    Martinez has swiped 52 stolen bases in 62 career attempts. She ranks sixth on Longwood's all-time stolen base leaderboard.
•    Senior RHP Sydney Backstrom has thrown 28 complete games in 62 career starts and is holding opposing hitters to a .217 clip for her career.
•    Longwood returns every members of its starting lineup from a year ago, including the trio of third baseman Mason Basdikis, shortstop Kasey Carr and utility infielder Alexis Wayland, who each started all 21 games in 2020.
•    Since joining the Big South, Longwood players have received league-leading 43 All-Big South awards, including first team, second team and honorable mention honors. The next closest to Longwood is former Big South member Liberty, which has 27.

Quotable
"I have the utmost respect for Dr. Brown, who possesses some of the best coaching and teaching skills of anyone I've worked with. Her knowledge and her overall talent will help the Longwood softball program continue to strive for excellence in the classroom and continue a winning tradition on the field."
 — Former Cal head coach Diane Ninemire, who took Cal to 30 NCAA Regionals, 15 Super Regionals and 11 Women's College World Series

Series History
•    Longwood and Georgia meet for the first time since 2011 in the sixth and seventh games in series history. Georgia is 3-2 in the series and won the last meeting 8-0 in the Lancers' 2011 season finale.
•    Longwood and Kent State meet for the first time since 2010 when they split a two-game series in Conway, S.C. Both games were decided by one run, with Longwood taking the opener 1-0 and Kent State taking the finale 5-4.

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