PRINCESS ANNE, Md. – The Hampton University softball team will hit the road this weekend for a three-game series against Maryland Eastern Shore at Hawk Field. Saturday's doubleheader will start at 1 p.m., with Sunday's game starting at 12 p.m.

The Lady Pirates (21-21, 8-1 MEAC) have won 10 of their last 13 games after a 9-6 win over Howard on Thursday to complete the three-game sweep. Hampton currently sits second in the MEAC Northern Division behind Norfolk State.

UMES (11-25, 3-6 MEAC) currently sits fifth in the MEAC Northern Division, and the Lady Hawks have lost four straight games after dropping a pair of games to George Mason on Wednesday.

Freshman Taylor McCoy (Riverview, Fla.) leads the Lady Pirates with a .398 batting average, while junior Margaret Wilkins (Tustin, Calif.) is batting .343. Both players have a team-high 49 hits (tied for second in the MEAC), and McCoy has a team-high 13 doubles (tied for most in the MEAC) and 29 RBIs (fifth in the MEAC).

Wilkins leads the team with six home runs (tied for fourth in the MEAC) and 35 runs scored (second in the MEAC).

Freshman Diamond Ponds (Riverside, Calif.) leads the team with 17 stolen bases in 23 attempts, tied for fourth in the MEAC.

Sophomore Jailynn Jackson (Virginia Beach, Va.) is 16-9 so far this season with a 2.90 ERA. She also leads the MEAC with 164 strikeouts in 162.0 innings pitched. After recording 12 strikeouts on Thursday against Howard, Jackson has at least five strikeouts in 20 of her last 26 appearances.

Among pitchers with at least 20 appearances this season, Jackson has the third-best ERA in the MEAC.

The Lady Pirates are 78-9 all-time against UMES, including five wins in all of last season's meetings (the three-game conference set and a pair of games in the Lady Pirates Classic). Overall, Hampton has won 11 of the last 12 meetings.

UMES last beat the Lady Pirates on April 3, 2011.

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.