FARMVILLE, Va. - Longwood is looking to bounce back after its second Big South series loss of the season against Campbell. 

It took a total of eight extra innings for the Camels to take two victories over the Lancers last weekend. Gardner-Webb also made a dent in the conference rankings, taking two victories over the first place team USC Upstate. 

With the current situation, Longwood looks to potentially finish third or fourth in the conference. The Runnin' Bulldogs sit on the fence of making the tournament currently, but with the Lancers and the Camels left to play they have a chance to stir the final rankings. 

Longwood is having its Alumna Day recognition during the doubleheader this weekend on Saturday April 30. Game three of the series will take place on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Lancer Field. 


LONGWOOD GAME NOTES 
GARDNER-WEBB GAME NOTES 
LANCER LIVE STATS 
ESPN+ LIVE STREAM


The First Pitch:

• The Lancers (24-22) now sits in a three way tie for second place in the Big South after falling 1-2 in the conference series against Campbell.
• Longwood has Gardner-Webb and Winthrop left to play in the conference. With the current situation, the Lancers will more than likely finish in third or fourth place for the conference tournament on May 11-14.
• The Lancers have played 13 teams ranked amongst the countries top RBI rankings including six top 25 teams at the time they played them, with the rest receiving votes.
• Charting one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country, Longwood sits 56^th on the RPI chart, with the closest Big South team being Campbell at 91. Despite its difficult schedule, Longwood still remains third in the conference in scoring total and b/avg on the year.
• Pone sits in second in the conference with a .395 b/avg on the year and first in the Big South with total hits (58). The freshman's total hits rank her 30th in the country.
• Senior Alexis Wayland has started every game for the Lancers, all except one from behind the plate. Wayland is tied for second in the conference with 13 put outs caught stealing - ranking her 15th in the country with the defensive number.
• Following the weekend of extras, Sydney Backstrom sits 1st in the conference, 5th in the country in innings pitched (177.2), and remains 1st in the Big South, 28th in the nation, with runs through seven innings.
• Longwood has won five of the past eight Big South Championship tournaments since joining the conference in 2013 (2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019).

 
By the Numbers:

• Longwood's ace, Sydney Backstrom (17-11), was picked as the Preseason Pitcher of the Year in the conference. Backstrom has earned four Big South Pitcher of the Week honors in the 2022 season. Backstrom has a new single-season best of 212 strikeouts, an 1.89 ERA, and has a personal season best .167 b/avg against her.  
• Backstrom sits ranked on top of the Big South charts up to thie point of the season. Categories including hits through seven innings (4.26), innings pitched (5th int he country, 177.2), and total saves (21st in the country, 3).
• Alexis Wayland has had a stellar senior year. She leads the team with 32 RBI's, six home runs, and 10 doubles. Wayland now has a total of 121 career RBI's. This number puts her 8 RBI's away from cracking the record books top ten.
• Wayland has started behind the plate in all but one game for the Lancers. She has 319 PO's and ranks 15th in the country with 13 PO caught stealing. Wayland has a .313 b/avg on the season and continues to lead Longwood with a .549 slg%.  Wayland hit her first multi-home run game against NC A&T where the senior knocked back-to-back homeruns in game one.
• Standout freshman Jaden Pone, continues to be one of the most reliant, and efficient players at the plate for Longwood. The freshman earned her second Big South weekly honor after going 7-8 from the plate last week, with a slg% .875.
• Pone is 21-29 (sb-sa), tied for second most in the Big South. She leads Longwood with runs (29), b/avg (.397), and total bases (67). Pone leads both the team and the conference in total hits with 58. 
• Lauren Taylor, Korynna Anderson, Sydney Jacobsen, and Kayley Devivi have all made impacts offensively for Longwood.
• Anderson now has 18 RBI on the year, with a .264 b/avg.
• Jacobsen last week hit four RBI doubles in the five games last week. The senior now has .320 b/avg, .508 slg%, five doubles, three home runs, and 189 RBI's.
• Reagan Kanagawa stepped up in the conference sweep over Hampton, in the middle of the season. The transfer grabbed her first ever collegiate no hitter. Kanagawa pitched in the game two 12-1 win in the series over the Pirates.
• With 130 steals last season, Longwood is only the second team in program history to surpass the century mark in that category. Only the 1999 Lancer squad stole more bases in the program's history, swiping 136 in 53 games. On the year, Longwood has collected 74 steals on 95 attempts, over 46 games.

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