That makes Downing unique among her current teammates. She’s the only Hilltopper that won’t be making a C-USA Tournament debut this week when WKU (27-27 overall, 10-13 C-USA) takes part in the event.
The senior pitcher Downing and her teammates are the 8-seed for the eight-team tournament in Hattiesburg, Miss. They’ll begin play at noon Wednesday against 5-seed UAB.
The 2015 C-USA champion Toppers are back in the tourney after not making the field last season.
“Being on the team in 2015, your expectation is always to win the tournament,” Downing told the Daily News on Monday.