OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU softball team is ready to compete in the Hosea Bell Red Dirt Classic hosted by Langston at the USA Softball Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City this weekend.
GAME SCHEDULE
- Mar. 3 – McPherson (Kan.) – 9 am – OG&E Stadium Field
- Mar. 3 – Hastings (Kan.) – 2 pm – Field 3
- Mar. 4 – Oklahoma Wesleyan – 9 am – Integris Field
- Mar. 4 – Ottawa (Kan.) – 4:30 pm – Field 3
MACU SEASON REPORT
- Record: 6-2
- Last Game: Won at Dallas Christian – 10-2 – Feb. 28, 2023 – Farmer's Branch, Texas
- Top Performers (Hitting):
- Aurelia Holguin – JR – C
- .471 BA (8-17), 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 RBI, 5 R, 5 BB, 1 HBP, .609 OB%, .706 SLG%
- Janessa Larman – SR – 3B
- .409 BA (9-22), 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 4 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, .480 OB%, .727 SLG%
- Mikaylee Allen – SR – SS
- .348 BA (8-23), 2 2B, 5 RBI, 7 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 6 SB, .400 OB%, .435 SLG%
- Top Performers (Pitching):
- Rachel Eggleston – SO – RHP
- 4-1 W-L, 1.96 ERA, 5 APP, 4 GS, 3 CG, 1 SHO, 25.0 IP, 16 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 3 BB, 24 SO, .176 OBA
- Avery Schneringer – JR – RHP
- 2-1 W-L, 4.27 ERA, 4 APP, 4 GS, 2 CG, 21.1 IP, 22 H, 13 R, 13 ER, 9 BB, 15 SO, .275 OBA
- Team Notes:
- Mid-America Christian is coming off a dominant showing at Dallas Christian earlier in the week as the Evangels cruised to a pair of 12-2, 10-2 five-inning victories at Oran Good Park in Farmer's Branch, Texas on Tuesday.
- In the doubleheader sweep, the Evangels got a phenomenal performance at the plate from senior third baseman Janessa Larman, batting .833 (5-of-6) with a double, a triple, 3 RBIs and a pair of runs scored. Mikaylee Allen also produced with the bat for MACU, swatting .429 (3-for-7) with a double, three RBIs and scored three runs.
- As a team, the Evangels batted .434 (23-of-53) in the twin bill while also knocking a .545 team on-base percentage behind 13 walks.
- The Evangels got a pair of complete-game wins from its two starters Rachel Eggleston and Avery Schneringer, as Eggleston allowed just two earned runs on four hits with no walks and five strikeouts while Schneringer dealt two earned runs on six hits with no walks and four punch-outs. All of the runs MACU's pitchers gave up in the contests came on three home runs.
SCOUTING REPORT
McPherson (Kan.)
- Record: 4-2
- Last Game: Won vs. William Penn (Iowa) – 7-0 – Feb. 25, 2023
- Series vs MACU (2004-): MCPH leads 9-7
- Last Game vs MACU: MCPH won 2-1 – Feb. 19, 2022 – Chickasha, Okla.
- Players to Watch:
- Kassidy New – FR – OF
- .500 BA (10-20), 1 2B, 4 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB, 1 SB, .545 OB%, .550 SLG%
- Tatyana Alvarado – FR – INF
- .500 BA (10-20), 3 2B, 1 RBI, 9 R, 4 BB, 2 SB, .583 OB%, .650 SLG%
- Jordyn Johnson – SO – RHP
- 2-1 W-L, 2.00 ERA, 3 APP, 3 GS, 3 CG, 1 SHO, 21 IP, 18 H, 9 R, 6 ER, 4 BB, 18 SO, .225 OBA
- Team Notes:
- McPherson enters the Red Dirt Classic on a four-game win streak as the Bulldogs are coming off a 12-3, 9-1 sweep at Kansas Christian on Feb. 21 and a 3-1, 7-0 sweep over William Penn (Iowa) on Feb. 25.
- Through the first six games, MAC has been hitting the ball well, turning in team batting average of .311 with a .392 on-base percentage. The Bulldogs have also been getting some pretty solid pitching thus far as well, allowing just a 2.87 ERA between its two starters Jordyn Johnson and Raegan Kleppe, who have thrown all 39 innings for McPherson this year.
- Overall, six players on the team are batting .300 or better with three players tallying a .400 or better average, led by a pair of freshmen in Kassidy New and Tatyana Alvarado, who are each slashing .500 on the year.
- The all-time series between the two programs has been tightly contested with McPherson holding a slight 9-7 edge in the all-time series while the last seven contests have been decided by two or less runs. Last season, the two teams played twice at the USAO-MACU Invitational in Chickasha, Okla. on Feb. 18-19 as MACU took the first game 7-6 before the Bulldogs split the series with a 2-1 win in the second game.
Hastings (Neb.)
- Record: 3-7
- Last Game: Lost at Sterling (Kan.) – 7-5 – Feb. 25, 2023 – Sterling, Kan.
- Series vs MACU: HC leads 3-0
- Last Game vs MACU: HC won 9-6 – Mar. 3, 2017 – Wichita, Kan.
- Players to Watch:
- Sydney Schelkopf – SR – OF
- .455 BA (15-33), 1 2B, 2 3B, 3 RBI, 9 R, 1 HBP, 2 SB, .471 OB%, .606 SLG%
- Katyn Kappler – FR – UTL
- .429 BA (12-28), 4 2B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 3 R, .429 OB%, .679 SLG%
- Kyleigh Boever – SR – P
- 3-1 W-L, 2.90 ERA, 5 APP, 5 GS, 29.0 IP, 25 H, 21 R, 12 ER, 19 BB, 33 SO, .212 OBA
- Team Notes:
- After getting off to a 1-5 start to the season, Hastings has split its last two doubleheaders with a pair of games at Kansas Wesleyan on Feb. 19 and Sterling (Kan.) on Feb. 25.
- While Hastings is slashing a solid .285 from the plate, the Mustangs pitching has struggled through the first 10 games, allowing a 4.94 ERA while walking 34 batters to 48 strikeouts as opponents are slashing .295 against them.
- The Mustangs have been getting some strong production from senior outfielder Sydney Schelkopf and freshman Katyn Kappler, as the two players are slashing .455 and .429 respectively. Also, while most of the Mustangs pitching has been suspect, senior hurler Kyleigh Boever has been solid, recording all three HC wins with a 2.90 ERA in five appearances this season.
- Mid-America Christian will be seeking its first ever win against Hastings as the matchup will mark just the fourth meeting between the two in the all-time series. The last time the two teams met came on Mar. 3, 2017 in Wichita, Kan. as the Mustangs rallied in the bottom of the fourth with a five-run inning to pull away with the 9-6 win.
Oklahoma Wesleyan
- Record: 12-2
- Last Game: Won vs. Bacone (Okla.) – 8-0 – Feb. 21, 2023 – Bartlesville, Okla.
- Series vs MACU (2004-): Tied 10-10
- Last Game vs MACU): MACU won 5-4 – Mar. 5, 2022 – Oklahoma City (Red Dirt Classic)
- Players to Watch:
- Raegan Rector – FR – UTL
- .489 BA (23-47), 6 2B, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 16 R, 8 BB, 1 SB, .564 OB%, .745 SLG%
- Lindy Alexander – SR – P/DP
- .478 BA (22-46), 6 2B, 1 HR, 20 RBI, 13 R, 5 BB, .529 OB%, .674 SLG%
- Maddy Wiese – SO – P
- 6-0 W-L, 1.60 ERA, 6 APP, 6 GS, 4 CG, 2 SHO, 30.2 IP, 20 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 16 BB, 42 SO, .175 OBA
- Team Notes:
- Oklahoma Wesleyan is off to a stellar start to the 2023 season as the Eagles only two losses on the year have come in a 9-7 defeat to the reigning NAIA National Champion Oklahoma City on Feb. 10 and a 14-10 loss to MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) on Feb. 20.
- The Eagles enter the Red Dirt as the fifth-best hitting team in the NAIA, slashing a .396 average as a team while boasting the seventh-highest slugging percentage at .593. OKWU has also been solid in the pitching department, recording a 3.07 ERA as a team while striking out 121 batters to only 52 walks.
- All of the Eagles regular starters enter the weekend hitting .333 or better while five players are slapping better than .400 on the year. Leading the team's hitting is freshman Raegan Rector, who is boasting a .489 batting average to go with the second-most runs scored at 16 while Lindy Alexander leads the team with 20 RBIs on a .478 clip. The starting tandem of Maddy Wiese and Salem Liebenthal have been tough on their opponents as the two are tallying a combined 11-1 record in the circle while respectively tossing a 1.60 and 3.19 ERA.
- It will be the second straight year that the Evangels and Eagles will be meeting up at the Red Dirt Classic. The two squads faced each other in last year's classic as the Evangels pulled out a thrilling 5-4 victory on Mar. 5, 2022.
(RV) Ottawa (Kan.)
- Record: 10-2
- Last Game: Won vs. William Woods (Mo.) – 6-0 – Feb. 25, 2023 – Ottawa, Kan.
- Series vs MACU (2008-): MACU leads 3-0
- Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 7-1 – Mar. 4, 2022 – Oklahoma City (Red Dirt Classic)
- Players to Watch:
- Madison Bunfill – JR – INF
- .469 BA (15-32), 3 2B, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 13 R, 9 BB, 6 SB, .571 OB%, .750 SLG%
- Allison Kearney – SR – INF
- .455 BA (15-33), 2 2B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 11 R, 7 BB, 1 HBP, 1 SB, .548 OB%, .697 SLG%
- Ashlynn Mercer – JR – P
- 4-2 W-L, 1.39 ERA, 6 APP, 6 GS, 4 CG, 3 SHO, 35.1 IP, 26 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 18 BB, 30 SO, .205 OBA
- Team Notes:
- A powerhouse NAIA program, Ottawa enters the Red Dirt with a stellar 10-2 record, which includes a blowout 10-1 victory over No. 16 Columbia (Mo.) on Feb. 22.
- While the Braves are slashing a stellar .331 from the plate, Ottawa's biggest strength comes in its pitching as Ottawa is allowing only the 14th-best ERA in the NAIA at 1.40 and allowing just a .206 batting average.
- Junior infielder Madison Bunfill and senior infielder Allison Kearney have been the big bats in the Braves lineup as Bunfill is swatting .469 with a team-high 12 RBIs and 13 runs while Kearney is turning in a .455 average with nine RBIs and 11 runs. The pitching tandem Ashlynn Mercer and Kelcie Kippes have been tough to hit against as Mercer is turning in a 1.39 ERA and Kippes a 1.54 ERA.
- Mid-America Christian has had some success against the Braves in the all-time series as the Evangels are 3-0 against Ottawa. The two teams met in last year's Red Dirt Classic and MACU scored five runs through the first four innings before cruising to a 7-1 victory.
