LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State softball team is set to open the season with the Troy cox Classic from Feb. 6-9 at the NM State Softball Complex. The Aggies take on Nebraska in the season-opener on Thursday, Feb. 6, at 4 p.m., before playing Bradley on Friday, Feb. 7, at 4:30 p.m. NM State then face off against Arkansas at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8, before wrapping up the tournament against UTEP on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m.
 
Where to Watch
Thursday's home-opener is set to air live on FOX Sports Oklahoma, FOX Sports Arizona+, FOX College Sports Pacific, Comcast New Mexico and the WAC Digital Network. All Troy Cox Classic games are set to stream live on FLOSOFTBALL.
 
Follow Along
Live stats for every game this weekend are available through StatBroadcast.
 
Quick Hits

• Nikki Butler was picked to repeat as WAC Player of the Year by the league's coaches. The senior catcher hit .386 during conference play.
• Volunteer assistant coach Tobin Echo-Hawk was a 2x All-American at Nebraska.
• Under head coach Kathy Rodolph, the Aggies have ripped-off seven straight winning seasons and seven straight seasons of 27 or more victories.
• NM State has won seven games against Power 5 teams in the last two seasons. Last season, the Aggies defeated UNC 6-2 and Cal 6-5.

 
Scouting the Razorbacks
Arkansas visits Las Cruces as the 24^th ranked team in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll and 20^th in the USA Softball/ESPN Poll. Last season, the Razorbacks played in the Stillwater Regional. Arkansas is picked to finish seventh in the SEC Preseason Poll.
 
The Razorbacks return their top hitter, Hannah McEwen and their top pitcher, Autumn Storms, from a season ago. McEwen hit .386 on the season while notching 73 hits in 58 starts as a sophomore. Storms went 20-9 last season with a 1.63 ERA in 201.2 innings pitched over 43 appearances with 32 starts.
 
As a squad, Arkansas hit .288 on the year with 50 home runs and a .445 slugging percentage.
 
A Look at the Braves
Bradley is becoming a familiar foe as the Braves have made the trip to Las Cruces three times in the last four years. Last season, the Aggies split a pair of games with Bradley at the Troy Cox Classic, losing the first meeting 4-3 before winning the second 8-7. The Braves finished last season 29-21.
 
The Braves return a pair of First-Team All-MVC performers from last year's squad in Stacia Seeton and Allison Apke. Seeton hit .306 last season with 42 RBI and 12 home runs, tied for the team lead. Apke added 39 RBI and 12 home runs while hitting .349.
 
Grace French looks to make a difference in the circle after a strong freshman campaign in which she posted a team-low 1.79 ERA in 15 appearances.
 
Scouting UTEP
UTEP comes to town for the Troy Cox Classic and the Battle of I-10 with a new head coach, T.J. Hubbard. The Miners are coming off a season in which they finished 17-33 and `0-4 in C-USA play. NM State defeated the Miners twice last season and hold a 35-12 lead in the overall series.
 
Despite struggling as a whole, two Miners were named to the C-USA All-Freshman team a season ago in Kasey Flores and Pate Cathey. Flores finished second on the team in batting average, hitting .352 with a team-high 39 RBI while Cathey hit .324.
 
Scouting the Huskers
Nebraska finished 2019 with a 21-31 record and a 9-14 record in the Big 10. The lost to Illinois in the first round of the Big 10 Tournament.
 
Senior outfielder Tristen Edwards returns for Nebraska a year after being named First-Team All-Big 10. Edwards is a formidable hitter who was also named NFCA All-Region. She hit .376 to lead the team and also led the squad with 15 home runs and 50 RBI.
 
The Huskers return three of their pitchers from last season in Olivia Ferrell, Courtney Wallace and Lindsay Walljaspe. Walljaspe led Nebraska in innings pitched with 106.1 while finishing the season with an 11-12 record and a 4.81 ERA,
 
Up Next
The Aggies remain in Las Cruces for a three-game series with Omaha. The Aggies and Mavericks are set to play a doubleheader on Friday, Feb. 14, starting at 3 p.m. and a single game on Saturday, Feb. 15, at noon.