BATON ROUGE, La. – The Hampton University softball team will kick off the 2013 season this Friday and Saturday in the Louisiana State Tiger Classic Challenge, hosted by LSU at Tiger Park. The Lady Pirates will play in four games in two days.

Hampton will open play on Friday against Tulsa at 10 a.m. EST, before squaring off against Purdue at 3 p.m. On Saturday, the Lady Pirates will take on North Carolina at 3:30 p.m. EST, before taking on host LSU at 8:30 p.m.

LSU is ranked No. 10 in the nation, while North Carolina is ranked No. 22.

“I'm excited to start the season off with a very competitive schedule,” head coach Trena Peel said. “Our girls have put in a lot of hard work during the offseason, and they are ready to play some games.”

The Lady Pirates are entering their third season under Peel, coming off a 2012 campaign that saw them go 25-33 – an improvement of 12 wins over 2011 – and advance to the semifinals of the MEAC Tournament.

Hampton returns five starters and eight letterwinners from last year's squad, even as Peel, an LSU graduate, introduces a new coaching staff for the coming season. Horace Smith and Michael Pelegrino will serve as assistant coaches, while Kendra Knight is the team's graduate assistant.

Highlighting the returnees is redshirt-junior shortstop Margaret Wilkins (Tustin, Calif.), who is the team's top returning hitter after batting .330 last season. She led the team with 58 hits in 2012, while her 26 runs scored were second-most on the team. Wilkins slugged .449 last season, hitting 10 doubles, one triple, and three home runs.

Senior catcher Shine Huwe (Green Bay, Wisc.), who led the team and was second in the MEAC in home runs last season with nine, also returns this season. She was a MEAC All-Tournament selection.

Senior outfielder Nina Ferguson (Plymouth, Minn.) hit .314 and scored a team-high 30 runs last season for the Lady Pirates, also earning MEAC All-Tournament honors. With her 53 hits and 30 walks last season, Ferguson had a .431 on-base percentage.

Sophomore pitcher Jailynn Jackson (Virginia Beach, Va.) is the lone returner on the mound for Hampton, coming off a freshman campaign that saw her go 13-14, leading the team in wins, while striking out 120 batters in 168 innings pitched.

On top of throwing 18 complete games in 2012, Jackson hit .300 on the season.

The Lady Pirates also welcome newcomers Taylor McCoy (Riverview, Fla.) and Jecholia Pratt (Orlando, Fla.), who will likely split pitching duties with Jackson.

In all, there are six newcomers on the Lady Pirates' roster for 2013.

Hampton is 0-2 all-time against North Carolina, having lost both games of a doubleheader last season in Chapel Hill, N.C. UNC won the first game on April 19 of last season 12-2, before taking the second game 12-4.

The Lady Pirates have never faced LSU, Purdue, or Tulsa.

For more information on Hampton University softball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.