WARRENSBURG, Mo. (April 11, 2017) - Central Missouri Softball wraps up their season-long 10 game road trip with a midweek MIAA contest Wednesday evening.
Opponent: Missouri Western (26-12, 6-6 MIAA)
When: Wednesday, April 11, 4 p.m. (Please note this is the makeup game for the doubleheader originally scheduled for March 31)
Where: St. Joseph, Mo. - Griffon Softball Complex
How to Watch
Live stats will be available at www.ucmathletics.com. The Griffons will also have a radio broadcast of the doubleheader.
Leading Off
• Central Missouri went 2-2 last weekend with a sweep of Northeastern State, both 4-3, before losing two in Edmond at Central Oklahoma.
• Wednesday afternoon marks the end of the Jennies current 10-game road trip. The Jennies are 2-6 thus far through eight games.
• At 9-7 the Jennies are currently sixth in the MIAA standings. The top eight takes make up the MIAA Tournament field in Oklahoma City.
• After Wednesday, the Jennies will began their season-long 10 game homestand this weekend against Washburn and Emporia State.
• Central Missouri was picked to finish fifth in the 2017 MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll. The Jennies tallied 105 points in the poll.
• 2017 will mark the 46th season of Jennies softball. It will also be the 11th season under the direction of Head Coach
Susan Anderson.
Quick Hits
Anderson vs. Griffons
• Central Missouri Head Coach
Susan Anderson has seen the Griffons plenty of times at Central Missouri. She holds a 15-14 lifetime record against MWSU. The Griffons snapped a five-game UCM winning streak last year, sweeping UCM in Warrensburg.
Jennies on the Road
• Central Missouri is 5-8 on the road thus far in 2017, after going 2-2 last weekend in Oklahoma. This doubleheader will mark the final road game of the regular season for the Jennies.
Milestones
• Senior
Lauren Mabe set the new all-time hit record at UCM with her double against Central Oklahoma Saturday. She currently stands at 223 hits, one more than Jakki Prater and Beth Savage. To reach number 10 on the MIAA all-time hit list, she'll need 32 more hits before the end of the season.
• Mabe is also in reach of the all-time runs record (23 away) and doubles (nine). She is climbing up the all-time RBI list and is currently fourth, four away from third. She also needs just two more walks to break her own coach's record. Coach Anderson's 64 walks have been a team record since 1997.
• Mabe isn't the only Jennie moving up the record books.
Makayla Schoonover has moved into fourth-place all-time in stolen bases with 61. She is 19-20 this season, second in the MIAA. Schoonover got a rare caught stealing against Northwest Missouri, just the fourth time in her career. She is 61-65 lifetime on the base paths (93.8%).
• In the circle, Jennies pitching have been locking down saves this season. They have nine as a team, a new single-season team record.
Alexa Bradley has five which is tied for the most in team history while
Katie Giacone has four.
Who's Hot?
• Mabe led the charge for the Jennies offense last weekend going 5-for-13 with two runs and three RBI.
• Schoonover hit .333 and reached base at a 45.5% clip, scoring three runs and stealing a bag.
• During the eight-game road trip,
Courtni Smith has driven in a team-high four runs and has six hits in 22 at bats.
•
Hailey Crabtree reached base in 50% of her plate appearances last weekend and scored three times.
Hold on Tight
• Against Northeastern State the Jennies got out to 4-0 leads in both games of their doubleheader and needed to hold on for a pair of one-run victories. The RiverHawks hit a three-run home run in game one before
Alexa Bradley was called upon for a five-out save. In similar fashion the RiverHawks scored three in the seventh of game two.
Katie Giacone came in for the final out to close out the sweep.
In the MIAA
• Pitcher's
Katie Giacone and
Alexa Bradley sit just outside the MIAA top-10 in ERA. Giacone is 11th with a 2.71 ERA and Bradley is 13th at 2.81.
• Giacone is eighth in the league in opponent batting average, limiting the opposition to just a .238 average. She also has 22 backwards K's, which is ninth while Bradley has 19 punchouts looking, 10th in the league.
• With 121.2 innings, Bradley is up to 10th in the league.
• Bradley is the MIAA leader with five saves while Giacone is tied for second with four.
• At the plate,
Makayla Schoonover is second in stolen bases with 19.
•
Lauryn Deer is tied for second in triples with four. Only two in the MIAA have more.
•
Courtni Smith has been moving runners along, her eight sacrifice bunts are tied for fifth.
Runners On Base
• When it comes to difficult situations,
Katie Giacone has been able to rise to the occasion. When facing runners on base, she is holding opponents to just a .183 batting average. She's also be able to stop rallies, as teams are hitting just .195 with two outs.
• On the offensive end it's been
Courtni Smith who has done the most damage with runners in scoring position. She's batting .364 (12-33) in those situations. In smaller sample sizes
Makayla Schoonover is 10-21 and
Aubrey Daniel is 5-11 with RISP.
Scouting the Opposition
SERIES HISTORY: The Jennies and Griffons reignite one of the longest rivalries in the MIAA. They have met every year since 1989. The Jens hold a 56-30 all time advantage. Last year MWSU swept the Jens in Warrensburg to snap a five-game losing streak.
SCOUTING REPORT: Missouri Western is struggling. After getting off to a 5-1 start in the MIAA, they've flipped the script going just 1-5 in their last six. The Griffons are noticeably better at home with a 7-3 mark. At 6-6, the Griffons have played the fewest MIAA games by far.
The Griffons are one of the top scoring teams in the MIAA. Their potent offense has scored 203 runs in 38 games and is batting .299 as a team. Eight different Griffons have hit a home run and their 30 are the fourth-most in the league. Sydney Washington leads the team with seven homers and 33 RBI. Shelbie Atwell is batting .427 with a .489 on-base percentage. She has slugged four homers and driven in 28. Her 14 doubles are tied for second in the MIAA. MWSU plays some tight defense. Their .969 fielding percentage is third in the MIAA.
On the rubber, MWSU has relied on the arms of Barbara Billingsley and Kenzie Hilzer. They have started all 38 games, 19 each for the Griffons. Billingsley sports a 14-7 record with a 3.05 ERA with a team-leading 74 strikeouts. Hilzer is 12-5 with a 3.53 ERA. She has struck out 37 in 113 innings. MWSU has had problems with walks, issuing 122 in 246 innings with just 111 strikeouts.
