Friday, February 15, 2019

MSSU softball back in action at Clinton, Mississippi

(From MSSU Lions Athletic News)

The Missouri Southern softball team will travel down to Clinton, Mississippi and face both Drury and Mississippi College twice due to the uncertainty of this weekend's forecast forcing the cancelation of the AE Memorial Classic in Bentonville, Arkansas that was originally supposed to take place.

The Lions opened the 2019 season with a split (1-1) last weekend as they defeated Ouachita Baptist, 2-1 for the first win of the season on a stellar pitching performance from sophomore Abby Atkin as she registered a complete-game victory while allowing one run on four hits and striking out three. Senior Angel Badalamenti gave the Lions the lead after launching a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth.

MSSU's schedule continues to get interesting down the line that includes facing one team in the NFCA preseason Top-25 - No. 15 Winona State (Mar. 23) among other competitive matchups out of the Great American, Great Lakes Valley, Gulf South, and Northern Sun Conferences before the start of the MIAA play against Pittsburg State (Mar. 8).







The Rundown
Saturday

1:00 pm against Drury
3:00 pm against Mississippi CollegeSunday
11:00 am against Drury
3:00 pm against Mississippi College
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/mc/ (Depends)
Radio: None
Stats: http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=misc

Leading The Hunt (Current stats)
Batting Average: Lexi Ferrari and Angel Badalamenti (.429)
Hits: Lexi Ferrari and Angel Badalamenti (3)
Doubles: Sidnie Hurst (1)
Triples: Emilee Myer
Home Runs: Angel Badalamenti (1)
RBIs: Angel Badalamenti (2)
Stolen Bases: Elizabeth Windsor (8)
ERA: Abby Atkin (1.00)
Wins: Abby Atkin (1)
Strikeouts: Abby Atkin and Makaila Cox (3)
Fewest Walks Allowed: Abby Atkin (0)
Opponent Batting Avg: Abby Atkin (.167)

Touching All the Bases (Three Facets That Opponents Bring to the Diamond!)
Drury Panthers (4-2)


P
icked 12th in the Great Lakes Valley preseason poll
Return ten total players including one of two All-GLVC recipients in junior outfielder Jacy Ummel (1st) who hit .381 and scored 25 runs last season
Searching for the program's first winning season in 2012 where the Panthers went 36-19 under second-year head coach Jerry Breaux; only one since introducing softball as a sport in 2008

Mississippi College Lady Choctaws (9-3)

Picked Third in Gulf South Conference (GSC) preseason poll
Return 12 total players including two All-GSC recipients in junior catcher Carley Crawford (1st) and senior pitcher Cori Cooper (2nd)
The Choctaws have recorded 22 out of 34 total seasons with 20-plus victories with 30 or more seven times since the beginning in 1986, leading towards the program's first GSC championship in 2017 while winning the only game played between them and the Lions during the 2015 season (W, 8-2)
NFCA Coaches Poll (Jan. 30)
RankSchoolPointsRecordPrevious
1Southern Indiana (16)40041-231
2Southern Arkansas36360-113
3North Georgia35462-45
4Saint Anselm35344-13-12
5Saint Leo34139-184
6Angelo State33053-96
7Chico State32055-67
8West Chester27445-158
9Texas A&M Commerce26642-129
10Concordia Irvine23946-1410
11UAH23639-1811
12Illinois-Springfield21140-1912
13Young Harris19435-2114
14Tarleton State18750-1120
15Winona State18245-719
16Grand Valley State15144-917
17Dixie State13642-1013
18Palm Beach Atlantic12336-822
19Lenoir-Rhyne10945-1021
20Arkansas Tech8839-17NR
21Colorado Mesa8248-516
22Valdosta State6141-11RV
23UC San Diego6036-19RV
24Gannon4932-1524
25Augustana4642-15RV
Receiving Votes: Southern New Hampshire (24), Embry-Riddle (10).
MIAA Teams and 2017-18 opponents in Bold; Central Region Teams Italicized.

Next Stretch
The Lions make their annual trip to Emporia, Kansas to take part in the Emporia State 5-State Classic where they will face six programs in three days (Feb. 22-24). Opponents in order include: Sioux Falls, Upper Iowa, Missouri St. Louis, Wayne State, Minnesota-Duluth, and Concordia-St. Paul to round out the weekend festivities.



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