Jennies Continue Road Trip With Doubleheaders in Oklahoma

WARRENSBURG, Mo. - The Jennies look to continue their five-game winning streak in Oklahoma this weekend for a pair of MIAA doubleheaders against Northeastern State and Central Oklahoma.

Quick Hits
Anderson vs. the RiverHawks
Head Coach Susan Anderson has gone 5-4 aginst NSU since they became a member of the MIAA in 2012. The Jennies lost their only two games in Tahlequah back in 2013.

Anderson vs. the Bronchos
Central Oklahoma also joined the MIAA in 2012 and have gotten the better of the Jennies. The Bronchos are 6-0 in conference games since that time and Coach Anderson is 3-7 lifetime against UCO.

Wins Over Ranked Opponents
With their sweeps of No. 9 Emporia State and No. 14 Missouri Western, UCM is now 5-3 in games against ranked opponents this season. This the first time under Coach Anderson the Jennies have five wins over ranked opponents and the last time they defeated a team ranked in the top-10 was March 25, 2011, when they defeated No. 3 Midwestern State 3-1.

The Jennies made their first appearance in the NFCA poll in the receiving votes category, though the poll did not take Tuesday's doubleheader into account.

Quest for 200
Senior Jakki Prater is just three hits away from becomming the third Jennie to join the exclusive 200 hit club. Standing at 197, Prater would join Braylyn Bivens (210), who collected her 200th a season ago and Beth Savage (222) who did so in 1995.

Closing in on 1,100
As Prater is nearing 200 hits, the softball program itself is closing in on a milestone of its own. UCM softball has a chance to capture it's 1,100th win in program history this weekend. The program currently stands at 1,096 wins.

Shockley's Favorite Number - 0
Senior Katie Shockley has been overpowering teams of late. She is 7-0 in her last seven starts improving her record to 11-5 on the season. In that span she's logged 44 innings and allowed just four earned runs - an ERA of 0.64. She's only allowed an earned run in three of those seven starts and has completed all seven. She has lowered her ERA by more than a run and a half. Her last win over Missouri Western was the 30th of her career.

Rogers Ties On-Base Streak
Junior Ali Jo Rogers has reached base in 22 straight games, surpassing Lindsey Dawson's 21-game on-base streak for the longest this season. She has also tied the longest on-base streak in UCM history with Rachel Adams who set the mark in 2006. Note: On-base streak records only date back until 2003.

Rogers is also quickly ascending among the career stolen base leaders. Rogers has 27 this season, two shy of the single-season record and 68 for her career. Her 68 puts her third in UCM history behind Bivens (76) and Heather Whitcomb (81).

.400 Average
Sophomore Lauren Mabe is attempting to do what only six others have done in UCM history. Mabe leads the Jennies with a .420 batting average, which if she maintains will be the third-best single-season average in team history. Only six times has a Jennie batted at least .400, with the last coming from Courtney Opich in 2010. The single-season record for batting average is .457, set by Rachel Adams in 2007.

Alex Leonhart and Rogers are also nearing a .400 batting average. Leonhart is batting .390, while Rogers is hitting at a .385 clip.

Two-Out Success
In the wins over Missouri Western, 11 of UCM's 19 RBIs came with two outs. In their six-run first inning of game one, all six runs were scored after the second out was recorded. For the season, the Jens have 84 two-out RBI and are batting .336 with two outs.

Jennies at Home
The Jennies are a 10-2 at home this season after their sweep of No. 9 Emporia State and split with Washburn last weekend. For her career, Coach Anderson is 87-35 (.713) in home games.

Jennies on the Road
The Jennies are a 6-1 in true road games this season, including Tuesday's sweep of No. 14 Missouri Western. For her career, coach Anderson is 76-71 (.517) away from Warrensburg.

Preseason Ranking
The Jennies were picked to finish fourth in the MIAA Preseason Poll. In 2014, they finished fifth overall and had eight All-MIAA student-athletes.

Jennies in the Postseason
UCM went back to the MIAA Championships in 2014 and have been in 20 of the last 21 conference championship tournaments. The Jennies have won seven MIAA Championships in their history, most recently in 2009 and have made 10 NCAA tournament appearances.

Scouting the Opposition
Northeastern State
Series History: Though the RiverHawks only joined the MIAA in 2012, their rivalry with the Jennies dates back to 1979. UCM has an all-time series lead of 10-7 against NSU and are 4-2 in MIAA contests, with the home team winning all six games.

Scouting Report: Northeastern State enters Friday's doubleheader 10th in the MIAA with a 6-10 conference record and are 16-22 overall. They are coming off of a sweep of non-conference foe Rogers State, but have dropped their last three conference games.

As a team, the RiverHawks have slugged 43 homeruns, fourth-best in the MIAA. They have five in their lineup with at least five homers and three have at least eight. Paige Gann leads the way with nine, tied for fourth in the conference. Alyssa Aguilar and Alli Eales are also in the top-10 with eight. Eales is the RiverHawks leader with a .369/.432/.639 slash line and she's drive in 30 runs.

In the circle is where the RiverHawks have struggled. They have a staff ERA of 5.66 and have allowed 380 hits in 241.1 innings. Kayce Wooldridge leads the NSU staff with nine wins and a 4.51 ERA. She has started 18 of NSU's 38 games this season.

Central Oklahoma
Series History: Like the RiverHawks, the Bronchos also joined the MIAA in 2012. Since then, they have gone 6-0 against the Jens. The Jennies last win over UCO was a neutral-site nonconference game in 2012. UCM still holds a 14-11 all-time edge against the Bronchos.

Scouting Report: The Jennies will have the tall task of facing one of the most prolific offenses in the MIAA. UCO is fourth in the MIAA with a 10-4 record and are 29-12 overall. The Bronchos are riding a seven game winning streak, though only two of those were MIAA matchups.

UCO is in the top-5 in the conference in every major hitting category. They're second with a .330 team batting average and third scoring 6.08 runs per game. All eight UCO batters with at least 100 at bats is batting over .300 for the season. Kaylee Brunson leads the way hitting .425 and has collected 59 hits to lead the MIAA. Ashleigh Tramel's 12 home runs leads the MIAA and is 13th in the NCAA.

The Bronchos enter with a team ERA of 3.64. Nicole Brady leads the team with 11 wins while Kelsey Berlin has a team-best 3.35 ERA and 51 punchouts.  Jessi Walker has a 9-1 record and has 42 strikeouts in 68.1 innings pitched.

The Bronchos also excel at catching the ball. Their .973 is tops in the conference and 13th in Division II.

Last Time Out
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - The Jennies offense carried them to their second consecutive sweep of a ranked opponent. UCM scored 20 runs and collected 26 hits on their way to 12-1 and 8-6 wins over #14 Missouri Western. They slugged four home runs, three in game two, and drove in 11 two-out RBI.
     The wins improve the Jennies to 28-10 on the season and 10-2 in the MIAA.
    The Jennies offense handed Katie Shockley a 6-0 lead before she even went to the circle. UCM did all of their damage with two outs and capitalized on a Griffons miscue.
    Lindsey Dawson and Jakki Prater worked back-to-back one-out walks and with two outs and the inning continued on a Missouri Western error. The Jennies made them pay by collecting six straight hits with two outs to score all six runs in the frame. Carlie Rose, Katie Giacone, Keelia Martin, Ali Jo Rogers and Lindsey Dawson all had run-scoring hits in the inning.
    UCM tallied another run in the second on Lauren Mabe's third home run of the season, a solo shot to left field.
    The Jens offense continued to pour it on, coming up with a five-run fourth. Martin had the biggest hit, a two-RBI single, while Mabe, Giacone and Rogers all picked up an RBI.
    The Griffons spoiled Shockley's shutout bid in the fourth, scoring on a two-out double, but she coasted to her 11th win of the season. For Shockley it was also her 30th career victory. She pitched a five-inning complete game allowing just the one run on six hits while striking out one and walking two. She now has wins in her last seven starts and has allowed just four earned runs in 44 innings during that stretch.
    On the offensive side, eight of the nine Jennies starters tallied a hit and seven crossed home plate. Rose led the way going 3-for-4 while Katie Giacone and Keelia Martin each picked up three RBI. Mabe had a game-high three runs scored.  
    UCM again jumped out to an early lead, collecting three straight two-out hits in the first, the last a run-scoring single from Rose to go up 1-0.
    The Griffons answered in the bottom of the inning, scoring three to take their first lead. Paige Shifflett hit a two-run home run to cap the scoring for MWSU.
    Missouri Western tacked on another in the bottom of the second, leading off the inning with a solo home run from Rebekah Mueller for a 4-1 lead.
    The score remained that way until the fifth when the Jennies launched back-to-back homers from Giacone and Martin. For Giacone it was her team-high tying fourth of the season and for Martin, it was the first in her two-year career.
    The Jennies then took their first lead since the first inning with a three-run sixth. UCM again did its damage with two outs in the inning. After the first two batters reached, MWSU retired the following two. It was Martin again, coming up big with a single to tie the game. Madison Hood came up as a pinch hitter with two on and two out and delivered a double to right center to drive home two more, giving the Jens a 6-4 lead.
     Missouri Western chipped away getting a run back in the sixth on Tiffany Gillaspy's RBI double.
    The Jens added a couple of insurance runs one on Mabe's second home run of the day and the other when Leonhart scored on a Griffon error. They proved to be the difference as MWSU scored one on an RBI single and had runners on second and third with one out. Prater worked her way out of the jam though, getting a strikeout and a flyout to complete the comeback.
    Prater finished the day throwing seven complete innings allowing six runs (four earned) on 11 hits. She struck out six and walked only two in picking up her 11th win of the season.
    The Jennies again enjoyed an offensive explosion. Mabe, Leonhart and Martin all finished with two hits apiece. Martin and Madison Hood finished with two RBI.
    UCM's road trip continues this weekend as they travel for a pair of doubleheaders in Oklahoma. First up is Northeastern State Friday, April 10 at 1 p.m. followed by Central Oklahoma Saturday, April 11 at 12 p.m.