BOWIE, MD -- The Bowie State softball team welcomes West Liberty University on Thursday, Mar. 7 for the Bulldogs' home opener. The doubleheader will be played at the BSU Softball Field at 12 noon on the campus of Bowie State University.

The doubleheader will be streamed live on Bulldogs Sports Network 

The Series 

• Thursday's twinbill will be the first matchup between BSU and WLU since 2015. 
• The Hilltoppers are 3-0 against the Bulldogs. 
• Bulldogs have scored four runs through the first three meetings. 

About Bowie State 
The Bulldogs (5-10) enter Thursday's matchup after dropping a game against Georgian Court 12-8 but closing out the day with a 3-2 victory over Saint Anselm Sunday during the Chowan Classic. Coreena Dunham led the Bulldogs reaching base eight times throughout the two games. Sydney Edmond scored Dunham on a walk-off sac fly paving the way for BSU's win.  

Edmond leads the team with a batting clip of .366, followed by Dunham (.354) and Jayla Hill (.324). In the circle, Akkira Pullen (2-5) has an ERA of 3.71 with 24 strikeouts through 39.2 innings pitched. Lindsey George (2-4) has started six games with an ERA of 4.03 with 10 strikeouts through 24.1 innings. 

CIAA Weekly Honors
After closing out the Chowan Classic with a split on the final day, the Bowie State University softball team swept the four Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) weekly awards, the conference announced Tuesday afternoon.

Dunham was named the CIAA Offensive Player of the Week, Aliyah Smith was named the Defensive Player of the Week, George was named the Pitcher of the Week and Presleigh Braxton was named the CIAA Rookie of the Week for the Bulldogs.

Dunham, a native of Aubudon, Pa., tallied a total of seven hits during the Chowan Classic last weekend. The sophomore outfielder posted two RBI against Georgian Court highlighted by a double. She was 7-11 from the plate this past weekend. 

Hailing from Stafford, Va., Smith earned her first career player of the week honor after combining for 23 putouts during the Chowan Classic. The senior first baseman recorded a total of 26 catches and just one error for the weekend for the Bulldogs.

As for reigning CIAA Player of the Year, George pitched all seven innings in the Bulldogs win over Saint Anselm, allowing just one hit and a strikeout. The accolade is George's first of the season. 

Lastly, Braxton has seen a lot of action for Bowie State in her freshman campaign. The Charlottesville, Va., native tallied a hit in 3 out of 4 games played at the Chowan Classic last weekend. Braxton also charted a pair of RBI including one against Felician and Georgian Court. The true freshman combined for 4-10 at the plate and recorded seven catches and six putouts from right field and one assist defensively.

About West Liberty  
The Hilltoppers (0-10) are coming off a doubleheader sweep by Lenior-Rhyne, 9-5 and 2-1 on Sunday. Sydney Johnson led WLU, racking up four hits between the two games played. Breena Grace and Carlee Leidy displayed their power both hitting home runs in game one.  

In the circle, Kadence Pettit (0-4) has an ERA of 6.00 with 19 strikeouts through 18.2 innings pitched followed by Madison Angus (0-3) has an ERA of 4.53 with eight strikeouts in 17.0 innings pitched.  

Up Next 
The Bulldogs will spend the weekend in the "Tar Heel State" for the Mount Olive Invitational Saturday, Mar. 9-10 in Mount Olive, N.C., continuing its non-conference slate. A complete game schedule for the UMO Invitational can be found on the athletic website.  

For the most up-to-date information on Bowie State Athletics and its 13 varsity sports teams, visit bsubulldogs.com.