After a six-game road trip, the University of Houston softball team (7-11) is looking ahead to a busy weekend at home with five games in three days at Cougar Softball Stadium.
The Houston Hilton Plaza Classic kicks off for the Cougars on Friday, which is also military appreciation night, against Princeton (0-1) at 4:30 p.m. and then Sam Houston State (7-8) at 7 p.m.
This game will be Princeton’s chance to recover from losing their opening game. UH won the season series 2-0 last year against Sam Houston State, and UH leads the overall series 23-4.
On Saturday, UH faculty and staff can get in free to see the Cougars take on the Wisconsin Badgers (13-2) at 4:30 p.m. and the University of Louisiana at Monroe (12-6) at 7 p.m.
This is the first meeting between UH and Wisconsin. The Badgers are in their 7th season with head coach Yvette Healy who has an impressive 216-133-1 overall record. UH dominated in their last meeting against ULM, winning 13-0 in five innings.
Finishing out the weekend, the Cougars will play Sam Houston State again on Sunday at 12 p.m. Sunday is also elementary school day, so kids 12 and under will receive discounted admissions.
The Cougars are coming off of a 1-0 upset at No. 5 Texas A&M. Sophomore pitcher Savannah Heebner threw her first complete-game shutout of the season, the fourth of her career, and set up the game-winning RBI single. Heebner leads UH with a 3-3 record and 2.56 ERA.
Holding the fifth place spot in the AAC, the Cougars look to continue their success this weekend. Sophomore outfielder Maya Thomas leads the conference with a .427 batting average while freshman second baseman Arielle James, left fielder junior Kaylin Crumpton, and senior first baseman Shelby Miller also rank among the top 20.
Following this weekend, the Cougars will continue their home stand on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. against Georgetown.