COLLEGE PARK, Md.- The Maryland softball team (7-20) will begin Big Ten play this weekend at Ohio State.

After playing a 27 game nonconference slate, the Terrapins will open up its 23 game conferece slate this weekend. Maryland is set for its 2016 Big Ten Network debut on Friday night.  

This Weekend On The Diamond

With Big Ten play comes weekend three game series. All of the Big Ten series, beginning this weekend will follow a Friday-Saturday-Sunday format. This weekend, the Terps and Buckeyes will bout on Friday at 6:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:00 p.m., and Sunday at 1:00 p.m. 

The conference opener on Friday night will be broadcasted nationally on the Big Ten Network with Lisa Byington and Garland Cooper on the call. The last two contests of the series will be streamed online via BTN Plus ($).

Games will be played at Buckeye Field on the campus of Ohio State University. The stadium is located at 2450 Fred Taylor Drive, Columbus, Ohio 43210. 

Live stats for each game are available here: Live Stats. Be sure to follow @TerpsSoftball on Twitter all weekend for live in-game updates and behind the scenes content from the first Big Ten series.

Fri. March 25       at Ohio State      6:00 p.m. ET              BTN                   Live Stats

Sat. March 26      at Ohio State      2:00 p.m. ET              BTN Plus ($)      Live Stats

Sun. March 27     at Ohio State      1:00 p.m. ET              BTN Plus ($)      Live Stats

Last time out

• Maryland opened up its home slate last weekend with the Maryland Invitational. Wrapped around two cancellations, the Terrapins dropped its three games in College Park to Massachusetts, North Dakota State, and Binghamton.
• Skylynne Ellazar led the Terps from the plate, batting .500 with a .636 on base percentage. Ellazar cracked four hits including a double and scored three runs. 
• Sarah Calta had her second consecutive impressive weekend, slapping three hits, scoring two runs, and drawing two walks. The Maryland native is batting .379 over the last twelve games while scoring eleven runs and five walks.

quick hits

• On the season, the Terps are hitting .282 with a .350 on base percentage and a .399 slugging percentage. Maryland has cracked 201 hits, scored 100 runs, knocked 34 doubles, and totaled 285 bases.
• Skylynne Ellazar has been a force from the plate all season. Through 27 games, the Hawaii native is batting a team leading .393 by way of 35 hits. Ellazar ranks tenth in the Big Ten in batting average.
• Hannah Dewey leads the Terps in RBI's, slugging percentage, and on base percentage.
• From the circle, Madison Martin has led Maryland. The Edmond, Okla. native ranks in the top five in the Big Ten with a 2.53 ERA in 16 appearances. Martin has struck out 38 batters, and held her opponents to a .257 batting average. In the Sunshine State a few weeks back, Martin was incredible; hurling a 0.90 ERA in 21.1 innings pitched with 23 strikeouts.

ScOUTING ohio state

• Ohio State is coming off an impressive 6-3 spring break trip to California. Out west, the Buckeyes notched a pair of top 25 wins against Arizona State and Fresno State. Entering this weekends Big Ten opener, Ohio State stands at 15-7 overall and is receiving votes in the latest NFCA Top 25 Poll. 
• The Buckeyes are led at the plate by Cammi Pranti who has played all 22 games and leads the team with a .389 batting average. Pranti has an impressive .667 slugging percentage with 20 RBI's. From the circle, Shelby Hursh has been the Buckeye ace, pitching 61 innings to a 1.26 ERA. Hursh is 7-3 with 69 strikeouts.
• Ohio State leads the Big Ten witb a 2.35 team ERA. They are also third in team on base percentage and third in opposing batting average.
• Kelly Kovach Schoenly is in her fourth season as head coach of the Buckeyes in 2016. In her first three seasons, Ohio State has won 94 games including a 30-22 record a year ago. 

Series history

• Last season, Maryland held their first ever Big Ten home series against Ohio State, winning the first game in dramatic fashion before dropping a Sunday doubleheader.
• In the opener, the Terps overcame a 10-2 fifth inning deficit to win the game 11-10. Corey Schwartz blasted a walk-off two run home run in the bottom of the seventh to win the game.
• Ohio State took the two Sunday games, 18-6 and 9-5 in eight innings. Maryland held a 5-3 lead in the seventh inning of game three before a two-out two-run Buckeye homer tied the game.
• Maryland trails the all-time series 3-2. 

wright homecoming

• Head Coach Julie Wright is going home this weekend, as she grew up in Columbus, Ohio. Wright hails from Westerville, which is just 15 miles from Ohio State.
• The Columbus native, in her first year at Maryland, build her softball career in Ohio. Wright played at the University of Ohio before assisting there and then becoming the head coach of the University of Akron from 2004-2006. 

TV TERPS

• A few weeks back, Maryland announced their 2016 television schedule. 
• The Terrapins will play their most games on national television in program history, appearing on the Big Ten Network a minmum of four times including the series opener this weekend.
• The conference opener against Ohio State (3/25), both games of midweek doubleheader against Rutgers (4/20), and the series opener against No. 2 Michigan (4/22) will be broadcasted live on BTN.
• In addition, at least 16 games will be streamed live on your computer, tablet, or phone via BTN Plus. 
• The entire Big Ten Tournament will air on BTN. Penn State will host the Big Ten Tournament from March 12-14.

looking ahead

• This weekend opens up Big Ten road-play for the Terps. Next weekend, Maryland will host its first Big Ten home series of 2016 against No. 24 Nebraska. 

event multimedia

• Live stats for all games can be found here. Also follow @TerpsSoftball all weekend for live updates and behind-the-scenes content of the Terps trip to the Buckeye State.

 -Maryland-