Fort Hays State Softball rides a six-game win streak into its MIAA doubleheader with Nebraska-Kearney in Hays on Saturday (Mar. 25). The doubleheader is set to begin at 12 p.m. The Tigers enter at 19-10 overall, 2-2 in the MIAA, while the Lopers are 12-16 overall and 3-1 in the MIAA.
FHSU will celebrate Tiger Stadium officially changing to Fleharty Family Field with a ceremony between games. The venue has held the name of Tiger Stadium ever since it was built and opened for play in 1999, which was the first year of softball for Fort Hays State at the NCAA Division II level.
Live stream and stats will be available for the games at the links above.
The Opponent
Nebraska-Kearney (12-16, 3-1 MIAA)
-Fort Hays State leads the all-time Division II series with Nebraska-Kearney 40-38.
-The home team has been victorious in the last eight games of the series. UNK swept last year's doubleheader in Kearney, FHSU swept the 2021 meeting in Hays, UNK swept the 2020 meeting in Kearney, and FHSU swept the 2019 meeting in Hays. A 10-0 win by UNK in 2018 in Hays was the last time the visiting team won in the series.
-The Lopers are 3-1 in MIAA play after sweeping Northwest Missouri State and splitting with Missouri Western.
-UNK had nine games on its schedule since its doubleheader with Missouri Western on March 13, but had seven of those nine canceled due to weather or field conditions.
-Sydney Thomason and Katie Gosker have 13 of UNK's 27 home runs as a team this season. They have also combined for 42 of UNK's 116 RBIs on the season.
-Sydney Thomason leads UNK pitching in ERA (3.50) and wins (6). Faith Gaynor leads in innings pitched (73.1) and strikeouts (53).
Tiger Notes
Tigers Sweep Orediggers and Thunderwolves
Fort Hays State is coming off a three-game sweep of Colorado School of Mines on March 21-22. The Tigers allowed only one run in the three-game series. They held the Orediggers scoreless in a doubleheader on Tuesday by scores of 8-0 (5 inn.) and 2-0. CSM scored a run in the top of the first of game three, but went scoreless the final six innings. Prior to the three-game sweep of Colorado School of Mines, the Tigers swept a doubleheader from CSU Pueblo in Colorado. The Tigers enter this weekend on a six-game win streak and went 6-1 in a seven-game stretch against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams.
When the Tigers Score Four
Fort Hays State is 11-2 this season when scoring at least four runs in a game. The only losses when scoring four or more were on walk-off home runs, a 7-6 loss to Southern Nazarene and a 13-11 loss to MSU Denver. FHSU is 8-8 when scoring three or less runs this season.
Nine Shutouts
Nine of Fort Hays State's 19 wins this season have been by shutout. The 9 shutouts are tied for the MIAA lead with defending national champion Rogers State. It ranks 9th in NCAA Division II. The national lead is 16 by Saint Leo, led by former FHSU head coach Erin Kinberger. The 9 shutouts are already the most by a Tiger team during Adrian Pilkington's tenure as a head coach. The 2013 team, led by Kinberger, set the record for most shutouts by a Tiger team with 19. The 2002 (10) and 2009 (11) squads were the only others in the program's NCAA Division II history to reach double figures in shutouts for a season.
Shepard of Speed
Peyton Shepard ranks among the top 10 players in the MIAA in batting average (9th), stolen bases (T-3rd), on-base percentage (10th), hits (3rd), runs (T-9th), and hit-by-pitch (T-8th). She has 15 stolen bases, 41 hits, a .436 batting average, a .509 on-base percentage, 23 runs, and has been hit by a pitch five times. She is a perfect 15-of-15 on stolen base attempts this season.
Efficient Running
Peyton Shepard and Sarah Tiffany have combined for 24 stolen bases so far this season. They are both perfect in their attempts, Shepard with 15 and Tiffany with 9. Carly Stuke is 2-of-2, while Sydnee Hoffman is the only Tiger to be caught stealing this season at 1-of-2. The Tigers are 27-of-28 as a team.
Tiffany Heating Back Up
Sarah Tiffany has hit safely in eight of the last nine games. She is hitting .323 (10-for-31) in that stretch, bringing her season batting average back up to .315. She had a 1-for-19 stretch at the plate prior to the last 9 games. Tiffany ranks second on the team in RBIs with 21 this season.
Pierce Has Strong Series
Madison Pierce started to find her groove at the plate once again in the three-game series with Colorado School of Mines, going 5-for-9 (.556) at the plate. She recorded her team-leading 10th and 11th doubles of the season. She was 2-for-3 in two of the three games, which were her third and fourth multi-hit games of the season. She is still seeking her first RBI(s) in 12 games.
Tough to Strikeout
Lilliana Ramirez-Johnson has just one strikeout in 70 at bats this season. She ranks 5th in NCAA Division II for toughest to strikeout. The national leader Jolie Miracle of Florida Tech has struck out just once in 98 at bats.
Beggs Moves Back into RBI lead
Loren Beggs took over the team RBI lead during the three-game series with Colorado School of Mines. She produced three in the first contest of the series and has 22 for the season.
Putting the Ball in Play
Fort Hays State leads the MIAA in fewest strikeouts per game as a team, averaging just 3.03 per game. Nebraska-Kearney leads the MIAA in strikeouts with 175, averaging 6.25 as a team per game.
Moving Your Teammate Up
Fort Hays State ranks second in the MIAA in sacrifice bunts/hits with 20, only behind Washburn's 22. FHSU is also second in the conference in total sacrifices with 29 when adding on their eight sacrifice flies. Washburn leads the MIAA in total sacrifices with 30. Central Oklahoma leads the sacrifice fly category with 15 for the season.
Solid Pitching
Fort Hays State has a team pitching ERA of 2.62, which ranks fifth in the MIAA. Three of four Tiger pitchers have ERAs lower than 3.10 for the season, led by Savanah Egger at 1.85. The Tiger pitchers rank second in the MIAA in strikeouts with 196, only behind Washburn (226). All four Tiger pitchers have at least 27 strikeouts on the season, led by Egger with 98. FHSU is allowing just a .244 batting average to opponents, which is fourth in the MIAA.
Strong in the Circle
Savanah Egger has allowed two or less earned runs in 11 of her 15 starts in the pitching circle this season. She had four consecutive shutouts from February 24 to March 4, then notched her fifth on March 21 against Colorado School of Mines. She ranks 5th in NCAA Division II for individual shutouts and leads the MIAA. She also leads the MIAA and ranks 16th in NCAA Division II for complete games with 11. She ranks 3rd in the MIAA in strikeouts and 21st in NCAA Division II with 98. She had a 32-inning scoreless streak snapped on March 6 against Northwestern Oklahoma State, but threw 38 shutout innings in a 41-inning stretch from February 24 to March 11. She has held the opposition scoreless in 12 of her last 13 innings pitched.
Three-Straight Complete Games for Carlson
Bailey Carlson threw a pair of complete games last week in Colorado and then tossed another against Colorado School of Mines earlier this week. She went the full seven innings in a 3-1 win at MSU Denver and a 5-2 win at CSU Pueblo. She notched her second shutout of the season against Colorado School of Mines on March 21 in a 2-0 win. The complete game at MSU Denver on March 14 was her first since a 14-0 run-rule win in five innings over Sioux Falls back on February 26. With a 1.00 ERA over the last three games, she lowered her season ERA nearly a whole run from 3.27 to 2.33.
Original source can be found here.
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