Jennies Host NSIC Competition in Warrensburg

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (March 18, 2021) - Central Missouri Softball will host a portion of games in Warrensburg this weekend as part of Missouri Western's Hy-Vee Classic. The Jennies will host a total of 10 games and compete against three NSIC teams.

Opponent:
Sioux Falls Cougars (3-5, 0-0 NSIC)
Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears (4-5, 0-0 NSIC)
St. Cloud State Huskies (10-0, 0-0 NSIC)

When:
March 19th vs. Sioux Falls - Doubleheader - 3:00 and 5:00 p.m.
March 20th vs. Concordia-St. Paul - 10:00 a.m.
March 20th vs. St. Cloud State - 2:00 p.m.
March 21st vs. Concordia-St. Paul - 10:00 a.m.
March 21st vs. St. Cloud State - 2:00 p.m.

Where:
Jennies Field - South Recreation Complex - Warrensburg, Mo. 

Leading Off:
• Central Missouri hasn't competed since March 10th due to spring weather conditions postponing the Jennies week four MIAA doubleheaders. 
• The Jennies are currently on a four-game winning steak and post an overall record of 8-2 on the young season. 
• In the Jennies last outing, UCM swept Nebraska-Kearney for their first league wins of the season. Central Missouri only played a total of 10 innings against the Lopers, taking game one 8-0 and game two 16-5.
• Due to inclement weather and wet field conditions, UCM is hosting a portion of the teams competing in the Missouri Western Regional Crossover. 
• The annual Hy-Vee Classic hosted by Missouri Western will feature eight teams from the MIAA and eight form the Northern Sun (NSIC). Due to unplayable field conditions, the classic will now be hosted at three separate locations: Missouri Western (St. Joseph, Mo.), Emporia State (Emporia, Kan.), and Central Missouri (Warrensburg, Mo.). 
• Central Missouri will take on Sioux Falls (S.D.) in a non-conference doubleheader on Friday, then face Concordia-St. Paul and St. Cloud State on Saturday and Sunday. 
• Northeastern State will also be competing against NSIC competition at the Warrensburg location. The RiverHawks will also be facing the Golden Bears and Huskins on Jennies Field Saturday and Sunday. 

Jennie Notes: 
• For the fourth consecutive week, Central Missouri's pitching staff and defense continues to lead the MIAA in both categories. 
• Central Missouri's team ERA of 1.53 ranks at the top of the MIAA and 15th in Division II. The Jennies defense ranks at the top of the MIAA and ranks seventh in the nation with a .984 fielding percentage. 
• With only six walks allowed and 65 strikeouts in 64 innings pitched, the Jennies pitching staff ranks sixth in Division II with a 10.83 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Central Missouri's .83 WHIP ratio also ranks eighth in the nation.
• The Jennies pitching staff is currently lead by senior Gentry Wishard and sophomore Paige Petefish. Petefish leads the MIAA with a team-low .169 opposing batting average and her 1.05 ERA ranks fifth. Wishard ranks third in the MIAA with the team-best ERA of 0.57. 
• After putting on an offensive show last week against the Lopers, the Jennies offense now ranks fourth in the MIAA with a team batting average of .335. Central Missouri's .520 slugging percentage also ranks fourth in the league. 
• In total, the Jennies have scored 61 runs scored with 83 hits, 42 strikeouts, 26 walks, 49 RBI and post a team on-base percentage of .398 which ranks sixth in the MIAA.
• Central Missouri's starting shortstop Abbey Fischer continues to lead the Jennies in the box with a team-high batting average (.429) and slugging percentage (.750). The leadoff hitter also leads UCM in total bases (21), hits (12), runs scored (10), walks (6), and doubles (4). 
• First basemen Makenzie McAtee, right fielder Ashlyn Cook, and left fielder Makenzie Cooper are the only other Jennies still hitting .400 or higher on the young season. McAtee posts a .417 batting average and leads the Jennies with eight RBI. 
• Center Fielder Bailey Fowler led the Jennies offense last week against the Lopers hitting .833 in six at-bats. She led UCM with six RBI, five hits, and five runs scored. 
• In their last outing, UCM totaled 24 runs, 23 hits and 22 RBI in 10 innings in two games. The Jennies totaled nine extra base hits with four doubles and five homeruns. They also recorded a season-high 16 runs in game two against the Lopers which is the most single-game runs scored since the 2014 season. 

Scouting the Opposition:
Sioux Falls Cougars (3-5, 0-0 NSIC)
• Sioux Falls last competed in a doubleheader against Missouri Western on March 7th. The Griffons swept the Cougars 7-3 and 3-0.
• One of USF's three wins on the season was a 3-1 victory over the Jennies in the Washburn Invitational. They've also picked up wins over Missouri St.-Louis (3-1) and Pittsburg State (6-0).
• In eight games, USF posts a .228 team batting average and a 3.92 team ERA. The offense has recorded 47 hits, scored 21 runs, and 18 walks while the pitching staff and defense has allowed 66 opponent hits, 30 runs, and 15 walks.  
• Freshman Damaris Cuevas leads the Cougars in the box with a .500 batting average. Cuevas and Kylan Straight share the team-high nine hits while Kaitlyn Van Der Zwaag has driven in the team-high seven runs. 
• Van Der Zwaag also leads the pitching staff with a 3.00 ERA in 21 innings pitched. She's allowed 27 hits, nine runs scored, and six walks while striking out 19. 
• Central Missouri leads the all-time series against Sioux Falls 5-1. The Jennies first lost to the Cougars was during the Washburn Invitational earlier this season. 

Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears (4-5, 0-0 NSIC)
• Through nine games played, the Golden Bears have totaled 69 hits, 43 runs, 37 RBI and 16 walks while allowing 73 opponent hits, 47 opposing runs scored and 38 opponent RBI.
• Concordia's team .309 batting average is led by Clara Heislen with a .448 batting average and 13 hits in 29 at-bats. She also leads the team with nine RBI, four home runs, and is tied for the team lead with seven runs scored. She is posting a .897 slugging percentage, a .484 on-base percentage and a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage and is 3-3 in stolen bases. 
• Freshman Taylor Griffin is second on the team with a .318 batting average, seven hits in 22 at-bats.
• Kali Kaestner leads Concordia's pitching staff with a 2.78 ERA and 22 innings pitched. She's allowed 33 hits, 13 runs, and seven walks while striking out a team-best 18 batters. 
• In Concordia's last outing, the Golden Bears picked up their fourth win of the season with a 13-4 victory over Southwest Baptist. Third basemen Grace Beseman led the Golden Bears with a 3-4 performance in the box while driving in the team-high three runs and scoring the team-high three runs. 
• Central Missouri also leads the all-time series against Concordia-St. Pual 8-3. The last time the Jennies and Golden Bears met was in 2019 which results in a 6-4 Concordia victory. 

St. Cloud State Huskies (10-0, 0-0 NSIC)
• Still undefeated at 10-0, St. Cloud State has begun receiving votes in the latest NFCA Division II Rankings. They are one of two teams in Division II who remain undefeated with 10 games or more games played this season. 
• The Huskies rank in the top-10 in the nation in six categories. 
• Offensively, their team batting average of .441 ranks fourth in Division II, their team slugging percentage of .646 ranks fifth, and their .505 on-base percentage ranks sixth. 
• St. Cloud State's pitching staff posts a team ERA of 1.18 which ranks eighth in Division II. Their strikeout-to-walk ratio of 9.00 ranks one stop below the Jennies at seventh. They also post a .75 WHIP which ranks fifth in the nation. 
• There are six batters in the Huskies starting line-up with 10 or more hits. 
• The Huskies offense is led by Jasmin Estrada whose .600 batting average ranks in the top-25 in Division II. Estrada owns the team-high 15 hits, 13 runs scored, and 12 walks to also lead St. Cloud with a .730 on-base percentage. 
• St. Cloud State is aggressive on the bases with 26 stolen bases on 33 attempts. Megan Conrads leads the Huskies with six stolen bases on six attempts. Conrads also shares the team-high 10 RBI. 
• Lauren Kirchberg leads the Huskies pitching staff with a 0.38 ERA in 18 innings pitched. She's allowed 14 hits, two walks, and just one run scored while striking out 14. Sydney LaPoint leads St. Cloud with 26 strikeouts in 15 innings pitched and posts an ERA of 0.89.
• In the Huskies last outing, St. Cloud swept Southwest Minnesota State in a non-conference doubleheader. St. Cloud won the first game 7-3 then shutout the Mustangs 6-0 in game two.  Brooke Bowlin led the Huskies on the day with a 4-6 performance in the box with four runs and two RBI. 
• Central Missouri leads the all-time series against St. Cloud State 8-3. The Jennies and Huskies met once last season which ended in a 6-4 UCM victory. 

Individual Milestones:
• Head Coach Susan Anderson recorded her 600th career win in the Jennies 3-1 extra innings victory over Truman State in UCM's fourth game of the season. 
• Sophomore Ashlyn Cook is four hits away from her career 100th.
• Junior third baseman Jessica Sader is 11 put outs away from her career 100th and 12 hits away from her career 100th.

Last Time Out: 
WARRENSBURG, Mo. (March 10, 2021) - Central Missouri Softball put up 24 runs in 10 innings in its first MIAA doubleheader of the season against Nebraska-Kearney. Center fielder Bailey Fowler led the Jennies aggressive offense with five hits, five runs, and six RBI on the day. 
• In 10 innings against the Lopers, UCM totaled 52 at bats, scored  24 runs, recorded 23 hits, and 22 RBI.
• On the day, the Jennies offense posted a team batting average of .442 and the pitching staff recorded a 1.40 ERA.
• The Jennies saw a total of nine extra base hits on the day with four doubles and five homeruns. 
• The last time Central Missouri scored 16 runs in a single game was in the 2014 season. 
• Central Missouri hit .533 with runners on, .545 with runners in scoring position, and were a perfect 5-5 with bases loaded. 
• Six Jennies finished the day hitting .500 or better. 
• In total, Bailey Fowler led UCM with five hits and five runs. She also shared the team-high six RBI with Makenzie McAtee. 
• Abbey Fischer, Abby Allnutt, and Fowler each hit their career-first homeruns. 

GAME 1: Central Missouri 8, Nebraska-Kearney 0 (5 Innings)
• Central Missouri scored two runs in the bottom of the first, two more in the bottom of the third, and four in the bottom fifth to defeat the Lopers 8-0 in five innings.
• A single to right field by Bailey Fowler drove home Ashlyn Cook for the Jennies first run of the day. Fowler hit home on a double to left field by Makenzie Cooper to give UCM an early 2-0 advantage.
• Shortstop Abbey Fischer opened the bottom of the third with a homerun over center field. The Cook and Fowler duo drove in the Jennies second run of the inning as Fowler doubled to center field, scoring Cook for the 4-0 lead heading into the fourth inning. 
• It was Fowler again who generated the Jennies offense in the bottom of the fifth. This time Fowler sailed one over the center field fence to score Sydney Wellshear and herself. 
• A single to right center by Aubrie McRoberts brought Cooper home form third, then a game-ending single up the middle by Brenlyn McCoy would score McRoberts and some. Jennies win by run-rule, 8-0. 
• Nebraska-Kearney finished with four hits, no errors, and left four runner on base. Central Missouri left just three runners on base. 
• Ten different Jennies accounted for UCM's season-high 12 hits. 
• The UCM defense recorded its third shutout of the season.

GAME 2: Central Missouri 16, Nebraska-Kearney 5 (5 innings)
How it Happened:
• Central Missouri saw it's best offensive start of the season in game two against the Lopers scoring a season-best seven runs in the first inning. 
• With no outs and two runs already on the board, Makenze McAtee hits the Jennies first grand slam of the season, scoring herself, Makenzie Cooper, Bailey Fowler, and Sydney Wellshear. 
• After a UNK pitching change, the Lopers ended the bottom of the first with three consecutive outs. Central Missouri scored its seven runs off four hits and two Loper errors. 
• The Jennies reached double-digits in the bottom of the second inning. A Loper error scored baserunners Fowler and Bailee Bryant from first and second, then a single up the middle by Jessica Sader scored Cooper to give UCM a 10-0 advantage. The Lopers defense total three errors and UCM recorded just one hit to plate three runs. 
• Nebraska-Kearney scored its first runs of the day in the top of the third off three hits and one UCM error. Sadie Parks and the UCM defense allowed four Loper runs to score to make it a 10-4 game.
• The Central Missouri offense quickly answered UNK's four runs by adding four of their own. With two outs and two runners on base, the Jennies hit three consecutive singles by Fowler, Cooper and McAtee for UCM to lead the Lopers by 10 at 14-4.
• The Jennies added their final two runs in the bottom of the fourth as freshmen Abby Allnutt homered over center field, scoring Fischer and herself. 
• Parks gave up a solo homerun in the bottom of the fifth for the final run of the game. Central Missouri won with a final score of 16-5, earning its second five-inning victory of the day and third on the season. 
• The Jennies totaled 11 hits, two walks, and left just two runners on base while the Lopers totaled seven hits, no walks, and left five runners on. 
• Nebraska-Kearney's five runs is the most runs allowed by UCM this season. 
• Central Missouri's 16 runs, 14 RBI, and three homeruns are all season-highs. 

Season Notes:
• Central Missouri was able to squeeze 17 games in before the NCAA's cancelation of the remaining spring sport season in March 2020. The Jennies went 11-6 overall and 3-1 in MIAA competition. 
• The Jennies were selected fourth in the 2021 MIAA Coaches Preseason Poll with 138 total points. 
• A total of 15 Jennies return from last year's squad which includes eight position starters. Central Missouri graduated four seniors last spring, including center fielder Lauryn Deer who led the Jennies with 24 runs scored and 12 stolen bases last season. 
• Central Missouri welcomed six newcomers to the 2021 Jennies softball team. 
• The 2021 season marks Head Coach Susan Anderson's 15th season leading Jennies Softball. She posts a 415-305 record at UCM and a 596-477 overall record in her 23rd year as a head coach.