MIAMI (April 1, 2016) -- FIU softball heads back out on the road for a Conference USA series at North Texas this weekend. The series begins with a doubleheader Saturday, starting at 2 p.m. Eastern and concludes at noon Sunday.
 
The Panthers enter the weekend at 18-17 overall and 4-5 in Conference USA. The Mean Green are 18-13 overall, 3-6 in league games.
 
FIU has not played since it suffered a home series sweep by UTEP last weekend. The Panthers lost a pair of one-run games on Friday and a two-run loss on Saturday to conclude the Easter-weekend series. FIU remains the second-best hitting and scoring club in the league, with a .327 batting average and a 5.2 runs-per-game mark. The Panthers are also fourth in earned run average in the league, at 3.30 through 35 games. Despite the losing conference record, the Panthers have outscored their C-USA opponents by seven total runs (47-40) and three of their five league losses have been by one run. The Panthers are 3-7 in one-run games this season, but 6-3 in run-rule games (a lead of eight or more at the end of the fifth or sixth inning).
 
Individually, freshman outfielder Jackie Schoff (Bradenton, Florida / Lakewood Ranch HS) is seventh in the league with a .469 batting average in conference games only. She has been FIUs most consistent player in the nine league games, averaging one run scored per contest in those three weekends. Overall, junior second baseman Ashley Leon (Miami, Florida / Gulliver Prep / Auburn University) is sixth in Conference USA with a .411 batting average. She is also tied with Schoff for the team lead with 11 stolen bases. Junior Stephanie Texeira (Miami, Florida / Gulliver Prep) leads the team with a .482 average, but does not meet the league minimum to qualify for ranking yet after missing 15 games. Amazingly, she is still fifth in home runs in Conference USA, with a team-leading eight, and is tied for the sixth-most RBI in the conference, at 29.
 
UNT got its first series win last weekend against WKU. The Mean Green were shutout at No. 19 Baylor Wednesday evening, 2-0. It was their only loss in three game to the Bears this season.
 
UNT sports the league's Player of the Week in Kelli Schkade, who was 8-for-14 last weekend against WKU. She leads the league with 11 home runs and is third with 32 RBI. The Mean Green ranks 11^th of 123 league teams in earned run average in league games, at 6.24. Only Charlotte and Middle Tennessee have allowed more runs in league games than UNT. Schkade leads the team with a .421 average, the only player batting .400 or better. Three regular players have a .350 batting average or better, but five UNT players boast six or more doubles this season. Jessica Elder leads the pitching staff with a 3.18 ERA and 11-5 record in the pitching circle.
 
Fans can follow the progress of the games on twitter (@FIUSoftball), with live stats and video links posted at FIUSports.com.
 
Following this road trip, the Panthers will host their only weekend series of the month of April, when Florida Atlantic comes to Felsberg Field at FIU Stadium. That series includes the only time FIU is schedule to be on television for the season, a Saturday game on FSN.

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of Conference USA. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and the FIU Football Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.