April 3, 2001

Softball Team Resumes MIAA Slate With Three-Game Home Stretch This week

The Game: Truman State University Bulldogs (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association/NCAA Division II) vs. Missouri Western State College (MIAA/NCAA DII)
Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2001
Time: 2 p.m. (CDT)
Location: Kirksville, Mo.
Field (Cap.): Truman Softball Field (250)

The Game: Truman vs. Emporia State University Lady Hornets (MIAA/NCAA DII)
Date: Friday, April 6, 2001
Time: 1 p.m. (CDT)
Location: Kirksville, Mo.

The Game: Truman vs. Washburn University Lady Blues (MIAA/NCAA DII)
Date: Saturday, April 7, 2001
Time: Noon (CDT)
Location: Kirksville, Mo.

Broadcast: KIRK 99.9 FM is tentatively scheduled to broadcast the home finale with Missouri-Rolla on April 25, as well as games during the MIAA tournament. KIRK may also broadcast NCAA regional games.

The Truman campus station, KTRM 88.7 FM, is broadcasting the April 4 and April 7 games this week.

Team Line: Live KRES broadcast by calling 1-800-846-4700. Access Code: 6350

Truman: The Bulldogs ended a 21-game unbeaten streak at the University of Nebraska-Omaha tournament last weekend, suffering three straight losses on Saturday. In the first game, Truman lost to South Dakota 5-2, a team the Bulldogs beat 3-0 during their spring break trip to Florida. The 'Dogs were ahead 2-1 heading into the fifth inning when USD tied the score on an over-thrown ball and went ahead on a sacrifice fly. It was the 'Dogs first loss of the season and in the North Central Region.

Freshman shortstop Elizabeth Economon (Affton, Mo./Notre Dame) led the team for the day and the weekend. Against USD she was 2-for-3, and for the two-day tournament she went 8-for-18 for a .444 batting average over the five-game span. Economon smacked the first of three triples for the weekend in the South Dakota game, but was thrown out trying to go home on a fly ball to left field.

Freshman pitcher Breanna Wonderly (Conception, Mo./Jefferson C 123) took the loss after giving up 11 hits and four earned runs, with four strikes.

In game two, Truman fell to the defending national champion and the No. 2-ranked North Dakota State Bison, 2-0. The game was scoreless until the sixth inning when NDSU singled, doubled and reached on a walk leaving the bases loaded. The next Bison batter singled, but advanced to second on the throw, allowing two runs to score. Economon was 2-for-4 in that game, while junior Jennifer Hulsopple (Peculiar, Mo./Raymore-Peculiar) registered her first loss of the year. She struck out six Bison, but gave up four hits and two earned runs in the loss. Hulsopple was also 1-for-2 in the game with five assists.

In the night cap, a weary Bulldog team fell to the host and sixth-ranked Mavericks of Nebraska-Omaha. The Mavs took a 2-0 lead in the third inning and went ahead 3-0 in the top of the sixth. The Bulldogs rallied in the bottom of the sixth, scoring two runs. Economon hit a double with one out, and Bredbenner singled and the shortstop made an error, allowing Economon to score. Senior second-baseman Heather Mackie (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette) then got on base with a hit, advancing senior outfielder and pinch runner Erin Schwada (Shelbina, Mo./South Shelby) to third. Schwada then scored when freshman first baseman Leann Paul (Olathe, Kan./Olathe North) singled to left field. Paul led the team in the game, going 2-for-3, and was second for the weekend with a .429 batting average, going 6-for-14.

On Sunday, Truman broke the three-game skid with a 3-2 win over Morningside. Five 'Dogs had hits, while senior all-America catcher Kristi Bredbenner (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) had a double. Hulsopple put the Bulldogs on the board first in the top of the second inning, driving in Bredbenner on a sacrifice fly after Paul singled.

However Morningside answered with a home run in the bottom of the second, and took a 2-1 lead in the third inning after stealing home. Economon hit the game-winning single in the fifth inning with two outs, driving in senior outfielder Angela Ligouri (Clive, Iowa/Dowling), who got a hit, and freshman center fielder Katy Mueller (Affton, Mo./Cor Jesu), who got a free ride with base on balls.

Hulsopple garnered her ninth win of the year in the contest, allowing four hits and one earned run, while striking out two batters.

In the tournament finale, Economon clicked her third triple of the tourney with one out in the first inning. Freshman outfielder Stephanie Cepicky (St. Louis/Lindbergh) came home on the three-bagger after reaching on an error in the first at bat of the game. Economon then scored on a passed ball.

SDSU put two on with a single and a walk to lead off the bottom of the first, and advanced both runners on a wild pitch before driving the two in with a double, tying the score at two apiece.

Hulsopple singled in the second inning and Mueller drove her in with a sacrifice, giving the Bulldogs the lead for good. Hulsopple had another hit in the fourth inning, advanced on a wild pitch and scored when Schwada singled.

The Bulldogs put the icing on the cake in the fifth frame. Economon got on base with two outs, advanced on a passed ball, and Bredbenner sent her home with a double. Paul then got an RBI single to put the final score at 6-2 in Truman's favor. Paul and Hulsopple were 2-for-3 for the game and Economon was 2-for-4.

Clean Sweep of MIAA Awards: It's been a clean sweep so far for Truman when it comes to MIAA athlete of the week honors. Economon and Hulsopple grabbed the first two weekly honors. And last week, sophomore pitcher Britni Bu-ford (Kahoka, Mo./Clark County) and Bredbenner received the honors.

Buford was picked for the honor after posting two complete-game wins and a 0.50 ERA. She allowed one run and struck out five in an 8-1 win over Missouri-St. Louis. The next day, Buford followed up with a three-hitter in a 5-1 win over Quincy (Ill.). She also struck out six batters and allowed just one unearned run. Unfortunately, Buford's season came to an abrupt end in her next appearance. On the last out of a 2-1 win over Southwest Baptist on March 27, Buford sustained a broken thumb to leave her record at 6-0 for the year.

Bredbenner was chosen MIAA hitter of the week last week after getting a hit in all six games for an average of .565 (13-of-23) with three homers and eight RBIs.

Bulldogs in the MIAA: Truman leads the MIAA in fielding (.970) and is second in batting (.293), pitching (0.93 ERA) and scoring (4.92 ppg).

Economon leads the league with a .483 batting average, an on-base percentage of .535, in doubles (.462 pg), in triples (.231 pg) and in runs scored with 1.04 a game. She is second in slugging percentage (.820), third in RBIs (.85) and tied for ninth in home runs (.077 pg).

Bredbenner leads the MIAA with .192 home runs per game and is second in doubles (.38 pg) and RBIs (.92 pg), third in slugging percentage (.702), fourth in on-base percentage (.480) and fifth in batting (.405).

Paul is 13th in batting average (.338), 10th in slugging percentage (.512) and tied for ninth with Economon in home runs (.077 pg). Schwada is seventh in runs scored (.60 pg).

Hulsopple is tied for the lead in the conference in victories with 10, is third with an 0.85 ERA and is sixth with a walks per seven innings average of 1.15.

Buford is tied for sixth in victories with Wonderly and two others with six wins for the year. Buford posts the second-best ERA (0.75), while Wonderly is seventh (1.29). Wonderly is also sixth in strikeouts per seven innings (5.00), while Buford is second in walks per seven innings (0.88).

Missouri Western: The Lady Griffons travel to Kirksville for their first MIAA encounter with a record of 5-12. They are led by junior Trina Denison with a .426 batting average to rank third in the MIAA. Junior pitcher Jodie Garrett is hitting .400 in seven games, while sophomore catcher Annie Lindgren and senior Jamie Florance are batting .304. Freshman Mary Kate Sexton has two home runs and seven RBIs to lead the team in those categories. Junior pitcher Renae Shaw is 3-5 with a 1.64 earned run average, while Garrett is 2-7 with a 3.78 ERA.

Emporia State: ESU heads into its first MIAA game at Northwest today with a record of 9-10. The Lady Hornets have dropped their last three games, including a 1-0 loss to MIAA foe Pittsburg State in the Missouri Southern Tournament on Friday and Saturday. Emporia was 1-3 for the tourney, beating Park University 3-2 in the opener. Sophomore shortstop Jan Farwell leads the Lady Hornets with a .326 batting average and is ranked 17th among MIAA leaders. Sophomore catcher Megan Beattie has team bests with two home runs, two triples and 15 RBIs, along with a .323 batting average. Four pitchers have wins for the team this year with sophomore Stephanie Miller leading the pack with a 4-2 record and 1.94 earned run average, while sophomore Kara Elsasser is 3-2 with a 2.05 ERA.

Washburn: The Lady Blues also attended the Nebraska-Omaha tournament and posted a 2-3 record. They lost their first game to Augustana (S.D.) 5-4, but rebounded with a win over North Dakota 3-0. WU lost to the host 4-0, and beat South Dakota State 7-1 before losing the final game to North Dakota State, 6-2. The Lady Blues play Missouri Southern at home today and travel to Central Missouri on Friday before facing the 'Dogs on Saturday. WU is 15-10 overall and 0-2 in the MIAA after a doubleheader loss to Pittsburg State by 3-2 and 7-5 scores.

Sophomore catcher Julie Blaufuss is hitting at a .469 clip with three round-trippers and is ranked second to Economon among MIAA batting average leaders, one of six Lady Blues rated among the top 20 in the conference this week. Senior first baseman Stacie Carpenter has a team-high of four home runs and 23 RBIs, and is seventh in the MIAA with a .365 batting average. Senior pitcher Amy Heiman is 6-6, freshman hurler Holly Reichel is 5-2 and junior Sandy Erickson is 4-2 on the hill with the lowest ERA (1.37).

Series Record: The Bulldogs will be looking to go ahead in the series with Missouri Western as they are just one win behind at 18-17. Truman has taken the last four meetings, including two 3-2 victories in St. Joseph exactly one year ago.

Against Emporia the series is tied at 13 games apiece. The Bulldogs have a five-game winning streak going against ESU and registered 10-3 and 4-3 wins in Emporia on April 7 last year.

Washburn has a 20-12 advantage in the all-time series with Truman. Last year, the 'Dogs lost three straight games to WU before beating the Lady Blues 2-1 and 2-0 in the final two games of the MIAA tournament to claim Truman's first conference title since 1986.

Head coach Kristy Schroeder: Kristy Schroeder is the winningest coach by percentage at Truman after going 113-26-1 (.811) over the last two-plus seasons. She tallied the 100th win of her career in a 5-0 shutout of Division I Drake University on March 13. Schroeder led the 'Dogs' to their second consecutive appearance in the final game of the South Central Regional tournament last season, and coached the team to its first MIAA title since 1986 last year.

National Poll: Despite starting the season ranked 17th in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association preseason poll and going undefeated through 21 games, the Bulldogs dropped to 23rd in the NFCA top 25 bi-weekly poll of March 28.

In the first set of NCAA Division II regional ranking which determine postseason qualifiers, the Bulldogs were listed at fourth. However, they dropped to fifth early last week.

Bulldog Academic Success: Senior second-baseman Heather Mackie (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette) was named the University's outstanding student in business administration-finance this past week. Mackie has maintained a 4.0 GPA as a business major, while remaining the teams starting second baseman.

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