DAYTON, Ohio - The University of Dayton softball team moved up the start time of its Wednesday doubleheader against IUPUI. First pitch is now set for 2:30 p.m. at UD Softball Stadium and admission is free.

ABOUT THE FLYERS
Dayton (10-14) split its Atlantic 10 season opening series at Rhode Island, 1-1, this past weekend and also split a pair of games with Ohio Thursday at home. The Flyers currently lead the A-10 with a .285 team batting average and second in home runs/game (0.83), scoring (4.46) and slugging percentage (.422).

Senior Rachel Archer leads the team with a .413 average and 33 hits while senior Kasi Vazquez has knocked out a team-best six home runs and has drawn a team-leading 14 walks. Freshman Gabrielle Snyder holds the team's low ERA at 4.27 while doing double duty at the plate, holding a .327 average. Junior Kayla English has collected a team-best six wins on the season and has tallied 47 strikeouts.

SCOUTING IUPUI
IUPUI (9-12) is coming off a dramatic 14-13 come-from-behind win over Western Illinois on Sunday to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Leathernecks. The Jags trailed 12-4 entering the bottom of the fifth before scoring 10 runs in the frame to go in front, 14-12. IUPUI eventually held on for the 14-13 win. The Jaguars also split a doubleheader earlier in the week on the 18th.

SERIES STUFF
Dayton and IUPUI have previously met 24 times during the all-time series between the two squads with each team having won 12 times. The two last squared off in 2012 in Indianapolis as Dayton won the first, IUPUI the second of a two-game set. The Flyers and the Jaguars were scheduled to meet March 16th during the 2014 Dayton Flyers Spring Classic but the game was canceled due to weather.

LAST TIME OUT
The Flyers claimed a 9-5 win over Rhode Island on Friday to open the Atlantic 10 portion of the 2014 season. The tables turned on Saturday as the Rams were able to get past the Flyers, 4-2, to split the series. Junior Tiffany Ricks belted out a grand slam during Friday's contest to give Dayton what proved to be the winning runs.

FOUR EVERYDAY HITTERS ABOVE .300
Four everyday players for the Flyers are currently hitting above the .300 mark with senior Rachel Archer leading the way at a remarkable .413. Junior Tiffany Ricks is knocking on the door of 400 at .390 and senior Jordan Jennings currently holds a .333 average for the Flyers. Freshman Gabrielle Snyder is not only hitting above .300 at .327 but she also holds the team's low ERA at 4.27.

LEAGUE LEADERS
Several Flyers rank among the top five in the Atlantic 10 Conference in several categories, including junior Natalie Mariano who ranks second in the league and 48th nationally with 0.25 sacrifice hits per game and is the third (53rd NCAA) toughest to strikeout (24.7). Senior Rachel Archer is also second in the A-10 with a .413 batting average while junior Tiffany Ricks ranks second in the league in RBI/game (0.92) and third in doubles/game (0.33) and runs/game (0.83), and fourth in slugging percentage (.671).

RICKS' GRAND SLAM EARNS A-10 PLAYER OF THE WEEK ACCOLADES
Ricks, a junior from Reynoldsburg, Ohio, led the Flyers with a .583 average (7-for-12) at the plate with a home run, seven RBI and two runs scored as the Flyers posted a record of 2-2 last week. Over the weekend against Rhode Island, Ricks went four-for-five with a grand slam, a double and a stolen base Friday in Dayton's 9-5 victory, scoring two runs and collecting six RBI. On Saturday, Ricks was three-for-three with an extra base-hit and a RBI. For the week, she posted an on-base percentage of .615 and a 1.000 slugging percentage.

UD PICKED TO FINISH SIXTH IN A-10
Dayton softball has been chosen to finish sixth in Atlantic 10 play this season, according to the preseason poll conducted by the league's 10 head coaches. Dayton tallied a school-record 12 wins in league action in 2013 and made the program's fifth appearance in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship - coach LaPlaca's second appearance in the post-season tournament in the last three seasons. She guided her team to a 22-24 overall record - the program's best winning percentage (.478) since 2005 - and a 12-9 mark in league action. The Flyers finished the 2013 regular season in sixth place in conference standings.