May 8, 2001
Softball Team Makes Third-Straight Trip to NCAA Division II Regional Tournament
The Tournament: NCAA Division II North Central Regional Tournament
Date: Friday & Saturday, May 11-12, 2001
Location: Fargo, N.D.
Broadcast: KIRK 99.9 FM will broadcast the NCAA regional games. Kevin White, Truman's Assistant Director of Athletics for Facilities and Operations will give the play-by-play.
Team Line: Live KIRK broadcast by calling 1-800-846-4700. Access Code: 6350
Truman: The Bulldogs (41-9-1 and 13-4 in the MIAA) have tallied the third-most wins in school history, just behind the 46 wins of 1999 and last season's 44 victories. Despite losing the MIAA regular season and tournament crowns to Missouri Southern, the Truman women are making their third-straight trip to the NCAA Division II regional tournament.
The Truman softball team was one of four teams to earn a bid to the NCAA Division II North Central regional championships in Fargo, N.D., on Friday and Saturday, May 11-12.
The Bulldogs will be making their third consecutive trip to the regional tournament, and will be looking to advance to the DII World Series after finishing as the South Central region runner-up the last two seasons.
The No. 1 seed and defending national champion North Dakota State, will host the two-day tournament. The No. 2 seed was University of Nebraska-Omaha, while Missouri Southern State College was third and Truman was fourth.
This is the first season both Truman and Missouri Southern have competed in the North Central region, after moving there from the South Central region.
The 'Dogs lost to NDSU at the UNO tournament on March 31, 2-0, when the Bison scored two runs in the sixth. Truman also fell to Nebraska-Omaha, 3-2, in the next game.
In the MIAA postseason tournament this past weekend, MSSC beat the Bulldogs twice by 2-1 scores to take the tourney crown. The Lions also swept the 'Dogs in the regular season, 4-0 and 2-0.
NDSU heads into the DII regional tournament with a 52-4 record, while UNO is 46-5 and MSSC is 52-10. In 2000, North Dakota State claimed its first championship title by defeating Kennesaw State, 3-1, at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga.
The winner of the North Central Region tournament will face the winner of the South Atlantic regional tournament in game 2 of the 2001 World Series on Thursday, May 17, in Salem, Va., at the James I. Moyer Sports Complex.
Series Records With Regional Tournament Teams: Truman is 7-3 all-time vs. Nebraska-Omaha, and is 2-4 against North Dakota State and 8-17 in the all-time series with MIAA foe Missouri Southern.
NCAA North Central Regional Tournament Bracket
(Double Elimination)
Friday, May 11, 2001
Game 1-No. 2 Nebraska-Omaha vs. No. 3 Missouri Southern, 10 a.m.
Game 2-No. 1 North Dakota State vs. No. 4 Truman, 12:30 pm
Game 3-Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser
Game 4-Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 5:30 pm
Saturday, May 12, 2001
Game 5-Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 loser, 12 pm
Game 6-Championship, Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 2:30 pm
Game 7-If needed, second championship game, 5 pm
Earlier This Year vs. North Dakota State: In game two of the Nebraska-Omaha Tournament on March 31, Truman fell to 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.
Earlier This Year vs. Nebraska-Omaha: In game three of the UNO tournament on March 31, 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.
All-MIAA Team Announced: For the second-consecutive season two Bulldogs earned first-team all-MIAA honors from the conference coaches. Both senior all-America catcher Kristi Bredbenner (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) and junior pitcher Jennifer Hulsopple (Peculiar, Mo./Raymore-Peculiar) repeated at first-team all-MIAA choices.
Truman is led by Bredbenner with a .391 batting average, while Hulsopple leads the 'Dogs on the mound with a 21-6 record and 0.82 ERA. Hulsopple banged out a three-run homer in the bottom of the 10th inning to beat Washburn 6-3 in game two of the MIAA tournament last weekend.
Freshman shortstop Elizabeth Economon (Affton, Mo./Notre Dame), who is second on the team and in the MIAA in hitting with a .386 average, was named the MIAA's freshman of the year.
Freshman right fielder Stephanie Cepicky (St. Louis/Lindbergh) rounds out Truman's .300 hitters with a batting average of .318, and was Truman's only second-team all-MIAA pick.
Honorable mention all-MIAA honors went to senior third baseman Missy Kane (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette), and three freshmen, Economon, pitcher Breanna Wonderly (Conception, Mo./Jefferson C123) and center fielder Katy Mueller (Affton, Mo./Cor Jesu).
Missouri Southern placed four on the all-MIAA first-team, including MIAA MVP Britany Hargis, a pitcher, and Ron Faubion of MSSC was named coach of the year.
On The Record: Truman was undefeated at home this season with a 15-0-1 mark. On the road, the Bulldogs went 26-9 and were 19-4 in neutral site games.
In NCAA postseason tournament games, the 'Dogs are 13-15 with appearances in the final four in 1982, '86 and '88.
Bredbenner Making Final Run at Conference Records: Bredbenner tied the MIAA record for career home runs when she smacked out her 32nd in game two of a doubleheader at Pittsburg State on April 21. One more will swipe the record from Chris Torrez of Washburn who set the standard from 1993-96.
Bredbenner broke the MIAA record for career RBIs when she surpassed the old record of 134 set by Diane Miller of Missouri Southern from 1989-92. She hit into her 135th in the fourth inning of a game with Lincoln University on March 28. The total for her career currently stands at 162.
Bredbenner, with 55, is three doubles away from the MIAA career mark of 58 set by Melissa Grider of Missouri Southern from 1995-98.
Truman Records Fall: Along with the Truman record for career shutouts that senior pitcher Jennifer Hulsopple (Peculiar, Mo./Raymore-Peculiar) set this year and that now stands at 31, she is also now the school record-holder with 79 complete games, 81 starts and 101 appearances on the mound.
The shutout over Southwest State was the 29th of Hulsopple's career, passing Trish Kongable (1983-6) to move to the top of the school's career list.
No. 30 came the next day when she posted her second collegiate no-hitter in a 2-0 win over St. Cloud (Minn.).
She tied the school single game record for innings pitched when she went the distance in 16 for the 'Dogs in a 4-2 win at SIU-Edwardsville on March 19.
Hulsopple also set the school record this season for career innings pitched (now 631), and is two shutouts away from her own single-season mark of 12 set in 1999.
Freshmen Hitting the Mark: Four freshman have started for the Bulldogs this season and have hit .307 as a group so far this season. They have accounted for 46.1 percent of the team's hits this year and 40.4 percent of the squads RBI production. The group is led by Economon is second on the team with a .386 batting average. She had been hitting .400 or better for most of the season until going 4-for-16 in the MIAA tournament last weekend.
Cepicky is third on the squad with a .318 batting average and leads the Bulldogs with 10-of-15 stolen bases.
Freshman first baseman Leann Paul (Olathe, Kan./Olathe North) has 43 hits for the season, while freshman center fielder Katy Mueller led the team with a batting average of .386 in MIAA only games.
Freshman hurler Wonderly is also making her mark in the Bulldog record book. She is currently ninth in career shutouts (7) and tied for 15th in complete games, and is among the top 25 Bulldog pitching leaders in several other categories.
Bulldogs In The MIAA and NCAA: Truman is second in MIAA batting (.288), pitching (0.91 ERA), fielding (.967) and scoring (4.35 ppg). The 'Dogs are sixth among NCAA Division II leaders in pitching, 11th in fielding and 13th in won-loss percentage (.814).
Senior all-America catcher Kristi Bredbenner (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) is fourth in the MIAA in batting average (.391) and slugging percentage (.609), but leads the conference with a a .483 on base percentage and with .84 RBIs per game. She is also second in home runs (.137 pg) and 10th in doubles (.235 pg).
Freshman shortstop Elizabeth Economon (Affton, Mo./Notre Dame) leads the league with a .627 slugging percentage and .373 doubles per game. She is also second in runs scored (.84 pg), third in on base percentage (.440) and triples (.118 pg) and fifth in batting average (.386) and RBIs (.69 pg). Economon is ranked 15th in the nation this week in doubles.
Freshman right fielder Stephanie Cepicky (St. Louis/Lindbergh) is ninth in runs scored (.56 pg) and 19th in batting average (.318).
Junior Jennifer Hulsopple (Peculiar, Mo./Raymore-Peculiar) leads the conference in victories with 21, is fourth with an 0.82 ERA and is seventh with a walks per seven innings average of 1.31. She is also now ninth in the league with .071 home runs a game. Hulsopple is ranked 17th in DII ERA this week.
Freshman Breanna Wonderly (Conception, Mo./Jefferson C123) is fifth with 14 wins and is sixth with a 1.12 ERA and tied for sixth with 4.20 strikeouts per seven innings. Wonderly comes in at 50th among NCAA DII leaders this week in earned run average.
Despite a season-ending injury (broken thumb) sophomore hurler Britni Buford (Kahoka, Mo./Clark County) is still second in the MIAA in ERA (0.75), 10th in strikeouts per seven innings (3.75) and fourth in walks per seven innings (0.88).
Head coach Kristy Schroeder: Kristy Schroeder is the winningest coach by percentage at Truman after going 131-32-1 (.802) overall and 45-10 (.818) in MIAA games over the last three 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. Schroeder is a 1994 graduate of UCLA where she was an all-Pac 10 decade team shortstop and part of two national championship and two runnerup teams.
Seniors
Kristi Bredbenner became Truman's eighth first-team all-America last season, and the first for the 'Dogs since 1988. She owns nearly every Truman hitting record, including single game records for home runs (3) and RBIs (8), and she tied the single game mark for walks (4). Last year, Bredbenner set new single season standards for hits (75), doubles (20), home runs (16), total bases (143), RBIs (51), batting average (.469) and slugging percentage (.894). She tied the Truman single season record for games played with 57 in 1999.
Bredbenner owns Bulldog career records for batting average (.406), at-bats (588), hits (239), doubles (55), home runs (32), total bases (394), RBIs (162), walks (71) and games played (199).
Her single game marks for home runs and RBIs, along with her single season record for homers, are also MIAA records.
A first-team all-MIAA selection the last two years, as well as the MIAA MVP in 2000, Bredbenner also earned second-team all-conference status as a freshman and sophomore. She was named MIAA hitter of the week four times.
Bredbenner was the league's batting champion a year ago, and also led the MIAA in on base percentage (.550) and slugging percentage (.894).
She has ranked among NCAA Division II batting leaders the last three seasons.
Bredbenner was named to the all-South Central Region tournament team the past two seasons, and earned first-team all-South Central region honors en route to her first-team all-America selection last year. She is one of three captains for the team this season.
Missy Kane began her career with the Bulldogs in 1988 and has played in 193 total games. She was an honorable mention all-MIAA pick at third base the last two years. Kane was also a pitcher her first two seasons, making 32 appearances and posting a 13-10 record with a 2.55 ERA as a hurler.
Among all-time Bulldog batting leaders, Kane is ranked seventh in hits (132) and runs (78), 16th in total bases (144), 13th in RBIs (53) and third with 28 stolen bases. Among career pitching leaders, Kane is 15th in wins, 14th in innings pitched (156.3), 13th in shutouts (4), and tied for 15th with 15 complete games on the mound.
She shares the school record for games played in a season with five others after seeing action in 57 contests in 1999.
Kane was chosen to the South Central Region all-tournament team a year ago, and was named the co-most inspirational player by her teammates.
She is a three-time member of the MIAA commissioner's academic honor roll.
Kane also serves as a team captain for the Bulldogs this year.
Heather Mackie is a two-time honorable mention all-conference choice at second base, and was also named honorable mention all-league as a pitcher her freshman campaign. She has played in 196 career games and also ranks among the school's most prolific hitters.
Mackie is second all-time at Truman with 573 at bats, and is third with 177 hits and 104 RBIs, while also ranking seventh in batting average (.309), eighth in runs scored (73), tied for sixth in doubles (22), tied for eighth in home runs (5) and is fourth in total bases (216). Among career pitching leaders, she is 19th in innings pitched (114.1), tied for 14th in shutouts (3), tied for 18th in appearances (22), 19th in starts (19) and 16th in wins (11).
Mackie also shares the school record for games played in a season (57 in 1999).
She earned MIAA hitter and pitcher of the week honors once each, and is a three-time MIAA presidential scholar after maintaining a 4.0 GPA.
A 2001 team captain, Mackie was recently named First-Team Verizon Academic All-District, and will advance to the academic all-America ballot. She was named to the Verizon Academic All-America second-team last year after earning second-team all-district honors as a sophomore. She is a two-time academic all-MIAA pick and a three-time member of the MIAA commissioner's academic honor roll.
This semester, Mackie was named the University's outstanding student in business administration-finance, and received the Dean's Recognition of Academic Excellence.
Erin Schwada transferred from Culver-Stockton College in 1999 and has seen action in 1251 games for the Bulldogs. Utilized for her speed as a pinch runner, Schwada is sixth among Truman career stolen base leaders with 23 and has scored 55 runs for the 'Dogs to rank 22nd all-time at Truman.
For her career, she has 23 putouts to her credit in the outfield and 11 assists, along with 87 at bats, 20 hits, three RBIs and 20 total bases.
Vicki Viefhaus has served as another valuable pinch runner for the Bulldogs the last four seasons. She is currently 14th among Truman career leaders with 17 stolen bases. Viefhaus has played in 105 total games at Truman and has scored 36 runs during that time.
At the plate, she has had 11 at bats, three hits, one RBI and three total bases. In the outfield, Viefhaus has two putouts. She is three-time member of the MIAA commissioner's academic honor roll.