COMMERCE – The No. 9 Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team will have an action-packed day on Saturday, celebrating their graduates, seniors who are completing their time with the Lions, and hosting the No. 3 team in the nation as UT Tyler comes to town.
 
WHO: UT Tyler at A&M-Commerce
WHERE: Commerce | John Cain Family Softball Field
WHEN: 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 1
RECORDS: A&M-Commerce is 25-12 overall and 18-6 in the Lone Star Conference. UT Tyler is 31-5 overall and 25-1 in the LSC.
RANKINGS: A&M-Commerce is ninth nationally in the NFCA Division II Coaches' Poll, and UT Tyler is ranked third.

LIVE VIDEO: LSC Digital Network
LIVE STATS: http://statbroadcast.com/events/statmonitr.php?gid=tame
 
The latest… 
The Lions will honor graduates Kinsie Hebler, Kimber Neal, Emily Otto, Cally Pausewang, and Alexis Velasquez prior to the game, as those players will be unable to attend their normal commencement ceremonies on Saturday.
 
Additionally, Hebler, Ta'Lyn Moody, Neal, Kynslee Noriega, Pausewang, Chealsea Slider, and Velasquez will be honored between games for Senior Day.
 
The Lions' team batting average has dropped to .284 for the season and .296 in conference play, and the blue and gold will look to improve on that. Madison Schaefer remains the top TAMUC weapon at the plate with a .564 on-base percentage ranking fourth in the LSC, .761 slugging percentage ranking fifth in the league, and .423 batting average ranking eighth in the conference for games against LSC opponents. She's also drawn 20 walks in LSC action.
 
Alyssa LeBlanc (1.66 ERA in LSC games) and Emily Otto (1.94 ERA in LSC games) will look to neutralize a powerful UT Tyler offensive attack. The duo have struck out 166 batters in league play.
 
Defensively, the Lions have maintained the top fielding percentage in the conference, with a .981 rate in conference play.
 
On the opponent…
UT Tyler is wrapping up its final year of transition to the Division II ranks and has been the top team in the conference despite being ineligible for the LSC tournament and Division II tournament.
 
The Patriots have a 1.18 ERA in conference play and .349 average with 200 runs scored in 26 LSC games. Hanna Fradkin has a .450 average in LSC play to rank fifth, Ashley Perez' .511 OBP ranks seventh, and Amanda Marek's 32 RBIs ranks fourth in the league for a balanced offensive attack.
 
The Patriot pitching has been the cream of the crop with Payton Foster leading the conference with a 0.93 ERA and Erin Hill just behind her at 0.99 in conference play. No other pitchers are within half a run in that category. Opponents have hit .210 with only three homers in 26 conference games.
 
On the series history…
The Lions are 0-2 all-time against the Patriots, losing a pair of one-run games in Tyler in 2020 just before the season shutdown.