LAKE CHARLES--  McNeese softball will travel to Hammond this weekend for a Southland Conference series against Southeastern La. beginning Friday.
 
The series will pit the league's top hitting team in Southeastern La. against the league's top pitching staff in the Cowgirls. Southeastern La. has a team batting average of .319 while the Cowgirl have the lowest team ERA at 2.65. The Lions' Katie Lacour leads the SLC with a .489 batting average while McNeese's Emily Vincent has the league's lowest ERA at 1.54 and is allowing opponents to hit .187 against her.
 
McNeese (26-18, 12-5 SLC) enters the weekend in fourth place in the league standings, two and a half games out of first place Northwestern State (14-2 SLC). Central Arkansas is in second place with a 14-4 conference record. Southeastern La. is in third place (19-20, 13-4 SLC).
 
The Cowgirls will look to get back into the win column after having lost their last four games and last two Southland Conference series to Northwestern State and Nicholls. McNeese is coming off a 13-4, five inning home loss to no. 3 ranked LSU on Wednesday.
 
Freshman Erika Piancastelli continues to lead the Cowgirls at the plate with a .421 average, 53 hits, 14 doubles, 48 RBI and 17 home runs. Piancastelli is one home run shy of setting a single season record. She tied the record with her 17^th of the season against LSU on Wednesday. 
 
Senior Lauren Langner and Vincent are also batting over .300. Langner enters the weekend with a .397 average with 52 hits, 32 runs scored and has stolen 18 of 21 bases.
 
Vincent is batting .338 with 46 hits, 11 doubles and three home runs. Freshman Hailey Drew leads the Cowgirls with 20 stolen bases and is second on the team with 21 RBI.
 
Southeastern La. has won seven of their last 10 games and are coming off a SLC series loss at Central Arkansas last weekend.