April 9, 2004

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina softball returns to the road for SEC action this weekend as the No. 21/25 Gamecocks head to Gainesville, Fla. to take on No. 13/16 Florida April 10-11. Saturday’s doubleheader time has been changed to 3 p.m. (ET) while Sunday’s game three is still scheduled for 1 p.m. USC is 4-2 in their last six games and have a record of 21-13 and 10-11 in the SEC.

The Gators are on a three-game losing streak as they lost the series to Georgia 2-1 and a midweek match-up against Florida State. The Gators are third in the SEC east, right in front of USC, and are 35-9 overall and 12-6 in conference play. The only series the Gators have lost so far this season is the one with Georgia.

For the series, the Gamecocks lead 19-11. Last year, USC won the series 2-1 in Columbia but the Gators won 2-1 in 2002, the last time the Gamecocks were in Gainesville. As a team, the Gators are hitting .265 while the Gamecocks have a .240 average. In SEC play, Florida is hitting .253 and South Carolina is hitting .215. On the pitching side, UF has a 1.21 overall ERA and a 1.60 SEC ERA. USC’s staff has a 1.50 ERA and a 2.03 conference ERA.

Head Coach Joyce Compton is also within reach of her 800th win at the helm of the Gamecocks. With a 797-3001-2 USC record, Compton is just three wins away from this milestone. This is more than any other Carolina coach.