April 4, 2002
Softball Team Returns Home for MIAA Games on Friday and Saturday
The Friday Doubleheader: Truman State University Bulldogs (Mid-America
Intercollegiate Athletics Association/NCAA Division II) vs. Pittsburg State
University Gorillas (MIAA/NCAA DII)
Date: April 5, 2002
Time: 2 pm
|Location: Kirksville, Mo.
Field: Truman Softball Complex
The Saturday Doubleheader: Truman State University Bulldogs (Mid-America
Intercollegiate Athletics Association/NCAA Division II) vs. MIssouri Southern
State College Lady Lions (MIAA/NCAA DII)
Date: April 6, 2002
Time: 12:30 pm
Location: Kirksville, Mo.
Field: Truman Softball Complex
Broadcast: The Truman campus radio station, KTRM 88.7 FM, is slated to broadcast all Bulldog home softball games this season.
No. 16 Truman (14-7 overall, 0-0 MIAA): The Truman softball team is ranked among the North Central region's top 10 teams this week, according to the NCAA Division II softball committee, which determines postseason participants. The rankings are alphabetical this week with the next poll scheduled to be released on April 17 (see page 2 for complete list of teams). Six teams are chosen from each of the eight regions for a total of 48 teams in the postseason tournament.
The Bulldogs went 2-2 at the Nebraska-Omaha tournament last Friday and Saturday, and swept Southwest Baptist yesterday in the conference opener.
The Bulldogs lost the UNO tournament opener to the defending national champion and host 8-0, but came back in the second game to beat Minnesota State Univ, Mankato 7-2, the 'Dogs' second win of the year over the MSUM Mavericks. In the night cap, Truman beat Nebraska-Kearney, 7-4. On Saturday, the Bulldogs faced their second conference foe of the season, losing 3-2 to Central Missouri.
Yesterday, Truman opened MIAA play at Southwest Baptist, bringing home 4-1 and 4-2 wins. The 'Dogs open the MIAA home slate with a doubleheader against the Pittsburg State Gorillas on Friday, followed by a league doubleheader on Saturday with the Missouri Southern Lady Lions.
Against UNO, sophomore shortstop Elizabeth Economon'(St. Louis/Notre Dame) led the team, going 2-for-2, while four other 'Dogs had one hit apiece. The Mavericks scored one run in the first followed by 3- and 4-run innings. Senior pitcher Jennifer Hulsopple (Peculiar, Mo./Raymore-Peculiar) took the loss after pitching two innings and giving up four earned runs.
MSUM GAme: Both Economon and junior second baseman Shelby Ortwerth (Hannibal, Mo.) scored after hitting doubles in the first inning of the MSUM game, and Ortwerth scored two runners on a double in the second inning to give the Bulldogs a 4-1 lead. Truman also manufactured three runs in the top of the sixth inning, off of hits by sophomore pitcher Britni Buford (Kahoka, Mo./Clark County), freshman catcher Holly Kessler (Blue Springs, Mo.), sophomore outfielder Krystl Brown (Olathe, Kan./North) and Economon. The Mavericks managed one run in the bottom of the seventh but could not hold off the 'Dogs.
Ortwerth and Brown were 2-for-3 for the game, while Economon, Kessler and Holland were 2-for-4. Buford got the win after throwing all seven innings and striking out 11 batters, giving up two earned runs on seven hits.
In the Nebraska-Kearney contest, Economon was a perfect 4-for-4 from the plate with three RBIs and two doubles.
Sophomore center fielder Katy Mueller (Affton, Mo./Cor Jesu) was 2-for-5 and sophomore first baseman Leann Paul (Olathe, Kan./North), Kessler, freshman catcher Courtney Strubel (Olathe, Kan./St. Thomas Aquinas), freshman third baseman Amanda Holland (Omaha, Neb./Millard North) and senior outfielder Cathy Monroe (Kirkwood, Mo./Lutheran South) all had one hit apiece. Mueller, Paul and Monroe also had RBIs. Truman scored one run in the first, third, fourth, sixth and seventh innings and two in the fifth, while UNK scored one run in the first and three runs in the sixth inning.
Sophomore Breanna Wonderly (Conception, Mo./Jefferson) got the win after throwing all seven innings with nine strikeouts and giving up seven hits, four runs, three earned runs and walking five batters.
Versus Central Missouri, the Bulldogs took a 2-1 lead with a pair of runs in the third innings, but were held scoreless after that while the Jennies scored runs in the fifth and seventh innings for the 3-2 win. Mueller, Ortwerth, Economon, Paul and Brown all had one hit, while Orthwerth had both RBIs on her third double of the tourney.
CMSU tied the score in the top of the fifth inning and tallied the winning run in the top of the seventh. Hulsopple took the loss after pitching one inning and giving up the winning run, as well as three hits.
The Bulldogs began conference play yesterday at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar. In game one, the Bulldogs put up two runs in the first inning after Economon singled, driving in Mueller who reached with a base hit. Economon later scored an unearned run after an error by the third baseman. Holland hit her first collegiate home run to lead off the fifth inning and Mueller drove in the fourth run on an RBI single.
Mueller was 2-for-4 and seven other 'Dogs had one hit each. Hulsopple picked up the win, moving her record to 5-4 for the year. She struck out eight batters.
In game two of the SBU doubleheader, The Bearcats scored their only two runs in the first inning, but it would not be until the fourth inning when the 'Dogs got on the board after Economon scored on an RBI single by Holland. Economon also hit a two-run homer in the fifth inning and had a double in the seventh that she scored on after Buford drove her in with a single. Economon was 3-for-4 in the game and Mueller was 2-for-4. Wonderly claimed the win, pitching all seven innings and striking out five batters and giving up no earned runs.
Big Wins: Truman has tallied three top 25 wins so far this year, beating both No. 3 Bloomsburg (Pa.) and No. 4 Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville on the Bulldogs' spring break trip. In addition, the 'Dogs beat American International prior to that teams' departure from the USA Today/NFCA top 25. Truman has also garnered wins over several teams receiving votes for the national poll, including Merrimack (Mass.), Wayne State (Mich.) and Northern Kentucky. Key regional wins have so far been over Minnesota State, Mankato (7-6 and 7-2) and Missouri Western (2-1).
Big Bats: Elizabeth Economon, who is now hitting .512 after going 9-of-12 at the UNO tournament last weekend and 4-for-8 in the SBU doubleheader, leads the team with six home runs this year, not including a grand slam and a two-run homer in a game with Maple Woods Junior College. Currently riding a 15-game hitting streak, she had a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh to give the Bulldogs a 5-4 win over Merrimack (Mass.) on Mar. 11 in Florida. She then returned to Kirksville to send one over the fence in the bottom of the seventh vs. Division I Drake, scoring two runs in the 5-4 win. Economon put the 'Dogs ahead for good with an RBI triple vs. No. 4 Southern Illinois Univ.-Edwardsville and has three three-baggers for the year so far.
Economon has seven, while Mueller and Orthwerth have six doubles apiece this year. Mueller also has two triples to her credit this year and is second on the team with a .349 batting average, followed by Buford at .324.
'Dogs among MIAA Leaders (Before SBu Doubleheader): Truman is currently ranked second in the MIAA in batting (.305) and is fifth in pitching with a team ERA of 1.79. The Bulldogs are also rated eighth in fielding (.941) and fourth in scoring (4.62 rpg).
Economon leads the MIAA in batting (.514), slugging percentage (.851), on base percentage (.543) and RBIs (1.19 pg). She is also second in home runs (.238 pg), third in runs scored (.90 pg), tied for ninth with Orthwerth and Mueller in doubles (.286 pg) and is eighth in triples (0.95 pg).
Ortwerth is fifth among MIAA stolen base leaders with .38 a game (8-of-9).
Buford is tied for fifth in the league in victories (.875, 7-1), fifth in ERA (1.09) and second in strikeouts per seven innings (7.18). Hulsopple is 10th in ERA (1.63) and third in strikeouts per seven innings (7.18). Wonderly is third in strikeouts per seven innings (7.00).
Bulldogs on the Leader lists: In the midst of just her second season, Economon has already placed her name on several Truman career leader lists. She is now tied for fourth in home runs (10) and doubles (28), sixth in triples (9), tied for seventh in RBIs (64), eighth in total bases (181) and is 15th in hits (112).
Hulsopple already holds school records for career wins (81), innings pitched (699.1), shutouts (31), appearances (115) and games started (91). She is second all-time in strikeouts (424), just 37 away from the record, and is ranked among career hitting leaders as well. Hulsopple ranks tied for seventh in RBIs (64), eighth in home runs (6), tied for 14th in doubles (15), 25th in at bats (346) and 24th in total bases (122).
Paul is tied with Hulsopple for 14th in doubles (15) and tied for 19th with three home runs.
Buford already ranks fifth in wins (33), sixth in strikeouts (168), tied for fifth in shutouts (9) and is 10th in appearances (44) and starts (39).
Wonderly is also making her mark among Bulldog career pitching leaders, coming in tied for 13th in wins (18), 10th in strikeouts (113), tied for fifth in shutouts (5) and 13th in appearances (33) and games started (28).
Coach: Kristi Bredbenner took over for the Bulldogs this season after graduating in December from Truman. She was an all-America catcher for the Bulldogs the previous four seasons and owns nearly every hitting record at Truman.
Series vs. Pittsburg State: Both Truman and PSU have 11 wins in the 22-game series between the teams. The squads have split the last two seasons with Truman winning 7-0 in game one of a double-dip last year, before coming up short, 2-1, in game two.
Series vs. Missouri southern: The Lady Lions hold a 17-9 advantage in the all-time series with Truman. However, Truman claimed the win in the last meeting on May 11, 2001, in the NCAA Division II North Central region tournament. MSSC handed Truman four other losses last year, including two in the MIAA tournament, the later in the championship game, 2-1.
About Pittsburg State (12-13 overall, 0-0 MIAA): The Gorillas dropped out of the Nebraska-Omaha tournament last weekend, and is on a three-game losing streak since falling to Northwest Missouri 6-0 on March 23, followed by a pair of losses to Missouri Southern on March 26, 7-4 and 7-2. PSU swept doubleheaders vs. Briar Cliff, South Dakota State and Northeastern State (Okla.) this year.
Mandy Frasco is 13th in the MIAA in batting average (.360) and Brigette Hull is 20th in batting average (.337), 15th in slugging percentage (.512) and 10th in triples (0.80 pg). Morgan Overman is ninth in MIAA stolen bases (.29 pg, 7-of-7)
About Missouri Southern (20-4 overall, 0-0 MIAA): The Lions also attended the Nebraska-Omaha tourney last weekend, going undefeated, including a 4-3 win over the host and defending DII champion UNO. The Lions also registered wins over Nebraska-Kearney 6-1, Central Missouri 4-2 and Minnesota State, Mankato, 6-1.
The Lady Lions MIAA begin action today at Missouri-Rolla and will face Central Missouri on Friday before taking on the 'Dogs on Saturday. They split in the season-opener with Central Arkansas, taking game one 7-0, but dropping the second game, 10-1. MSSC has also lost to Arkansas-Monticello 4-0, Northeastern State (Okla.) 3-2 and No. 6 North Dakota State, 2-1.
Erin Turner is fifth in the MIAA with a .433 batting average, while Lisa Roe is 12th with a .365 average. Turner is also 12th in slugging percentage (.567), ninth in on base percentage (.480) and second in stolen bases (.57 pg).
Hailey Stanley is tied for seventh in doubles (.292 pg) and Tasha Beaty is 10th in stolen bases (.29 pg).
Stanley is also ranked first in victories in the MIAA (.895, 17-2) and is third in ERA (0.63) and sixth in walks per seven innings (1.26).