HARROGATE, Tenn. -- One of the nation's most productive offensive attacks awaits the seventh-seeded Lady Railsplitters (22-22, 11-11 SAC) in the opening round of the 2015 South Atlantic Conference Softball Championship, as Lincoln Memorial squares off against the second-seeded and No. 23 nationally-ranked Anderson Trojans (35-11, 16-6 SAC) at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday in Hartsville, S.C.
 
After falling to 3-7 in SAC play following a pair of tough losses at Carson-Newman, the league's regular season champion, at the beginning of April, the Lady Railsplitters reeled off wins in eight of their last 12 conference tilts to earn the No. 7 seed for the SAC tournament. Lincoln Memorial ended the regular season on a sour note, though, dropping both ends of a doubleheader to Wingate by scores of 6-5 and 10-3.
 
Despite entering tournament play ranked second-to-last in the SAC in batting average (.254) and on-base percentage (.312) while ranking third from the bottom in slugging percentage (.356), the Lady Railsplitters have turned a bit of a corner since April rolled around. After hitting .229 with 48 runs and 45 RBI through 16 games in March, LMU has batted .267 with 67 runs and 64 RBI over that same timeframe in April.
 
The Lady Railsplitters are paced offensively by two seniors and two sophomores. Senior outfielder Emilee Solomon (Knoxville, Tenn.) leads the team with a .314 batting average, 49 hits, nine doubles and 10 stolen bases, while senior and All-SAC first team pick Amanda Snow (Knoxville, Tenn.) has hit .308 with 11 doubles, seven homers and 35 RBI. Sophomore first baseman Meredith Johnson (Kenly, N.C.) has produced a .303 average, eight doubles, six long balls and 25 RBI, while classmate Jennifer Moose (Statesville, N.C.) finished the regular season with a .264 average, four two-baggers and two dingers.
 
Junior right-hander Samantha Smith (Knoxville, Tenn.) will be expected to bear a substantial load on the mound for the Lady Railsplitters during their run in the SAC Championship, as she enters her third postseason tournament with a 10-11 record and a 3.31 ERA in 154 1/3 innings pitched. Smith finished the regular season convincingly, picking up complete game wins over Catawba, Brevard and Mars Hill in the last week of the season.
 
Looking for a repeat of last year's dominant run to the SAC Championship title, Anderson completed the regular season with a 35-11 overall record, a 16-6 SAC mark (just one game back of Carson-Newman), and the No. 23 national ranking. The Trojans are riding a commanding six-game winning streak into the postseason, issuing a statement to the rest of the league by outscoring Queens, Brevard and Coker by a combined margin of 44-5.
 
The Trojans have been carried by an offense that ranks 21st in the nation in home runs per game (1.04), 28th in scoring (6.43 runs per game), 33rd in on-base percentage (.404) and 42nd in slugging percentage (.489). Anderson trails only Carson-Newman for the SAC-lead in batting average with an ultra-efficient .314 clip.
 
All-SAC selections Jessica Neidigh, Cailah Niles, Molly Child and Chelsea Jones are doing most of the heavy lifting for the Trojans at the plate. Neidigh paced Anderson with a .411 batting average, 65 hits, nine doubles, 11 home runs, 45 RBI and 16 stolen bases, while Niles, the SAC Freshman of the Year, exploded onto the scene with a .379 average, eight doubles, 17 dingers and 60 RBI. Child chipped in 12 doubles and six home runs on top of a .347 average. Jones compiled a .324 mark with six doubles and two homers.
 
Anderson pairs its offensive fireworks with the nation's 24th-ranked earned run average, as Trojan pitchers have compiled a miniscule 2.04 ERA. Jones and Lauren Rudesheim have split time on the mound, with Rudesheim stringing together a 14-6 record and a 2.03 ERA in 127 2/3 innings, and Jones amassing a 14-4 record with a 1.98 ERA in 109 2/3 innings.
 
Lincoln Memorial and Anderson split their doubleheader at Dorothy Neely Field on March 24, as the Trojans captured an 8-5 decision in extra innings in game one and the Lady Railsplitters bounced back with a 6-5 win in game two. Snow went 4-for-7 in the twinbill with five RBI, a double and two home runs, while Johnson was 3-for-7 with a double and a run scored.
 
The two programs are all square at 7-7 in the all-time series, but Anderson has won five of the last eight head-to-head meetings. Thursday marks the first time the two programs will collide in postseason play.
 
First pitch between LMU and Anderson is set for 12:30 p.m. on Thursday in Hartsville, S.C. The winner advances to the face the victor between No. 3 Catawba and No. 6 Lenoir-Rhyne, while the loser of the LMU-Anderson matchup will square off against the loser of the Catawba-L-R contest in an elimination game.  Video and live stat links will be available via www.LMURailsplitters.com.

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