Featured Five for March 18-20
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Throughout the 2016 softball season, the NFCA will feature some of the sport’s highest-profile contests in our “Featured Five” Games of the Week.
Each weekly installment will be released on Thursday, providing live stat links, game notes, team info, social media accounts and any available broadcast links in hopes of becoming another reason for fans to visit us during the season for information on some of collegiate softball’s best games.
As the year continues, we will attempt to expand our focus to include matchups throughout as many divisions as possible. This week’s featured games come from NCAA Division I, II and NJCAA. This week, the Pac-12 opens conference play with a pair of top-25 matchups, including No. 7 Oregon and No. 8 Washington. The SEC play has two top-25 matchups of its own with No. 1 Florida hosting No. 16 Tennessee, while an old Big 12 rivals clash as No. 13 Oklahoma and No. 23 Nebraska face off at the Easton Tournament in Fullerton, Calif.
Divison II is highlighted by RV Missouri Western hosting No. 16 Winona State at its annual three-day, 48-game Apple Market Classic. Rounding out the five is NJCAA DI No. 1 Central Florida hosting No. 20 Daytona State.
We may not be able to highlight every division or big game each week, but our hope is to provide a spotlight for as many different teams and games as possible throughout 2016.
Make sure you follow the NFCA on our social media (NFCAorg) through Twitter (Periscope), Instagram and on Facebook and let us know what you think of our “Featured Five” segment.
DI – No. 7 Oregon at No. 8 Washington
March 20-22 (Sat.-Mon.) | 3:30 / 7:00 / 7:00 PT | Husky Softball Stadium | Seattle, Wash. | Pac-12 Series | Pac-12 Networks
#7
20-4, 0-0
Statistics | Game Notes | KWVA 88.1 FM
Team BA: .387 | Team ERA: 2.20 | Runs Scored: 205 | Runs Allowed: 56
* Oregon took two-of-three in last year’s series in Eugene and has won seven of the last nine meetings
* The Ducks owns the top batting average and slugging percentage (.690) in the NCAA
* Koral Costa’s team-high .522 batting average is tops and is 11th in the nation ,while Nikki Udria’s .485 average is 22nd
* Cheridan Hawkins leads the NCAA, averaging 12.8 strikeouts per sevening innings… Over her last 24.2 innings, she has allowed just six runs and recorded a whopping 55 strikeouts… She has a staff-best .164 opponent batting average.
* Oregon’s collective .185 opponent batting average leads the Pac-12
#8
19-3, 0-0
Game Notes | Gametracker (G1 / G2 / G3) | Live Audio (Sunday only)
Team BA: .377 | Team ERA: 2.88 | Runs Scored: 211 | Runs Allowed: 67
* Washington leads the all-time series, 51-21
* Washington ranks second in Division I, averaging 9.59 runs per game
* The Huskies’ batting average and .636 slugging percentage rank second behind the Ducks in the Pac-12
* Ali Aguilar leads all hitters in Division I with 42 RBI and ranks third in the nation and leads the league with 11 home runs… Aguular’s .958 slugging percentage is 10th in the country
* In the circle, the Huskies have used Madi Schreyer and Taran Alvelo extensively… Schreyer is 7-0 with a 2.20 ERA, while Alvelo is 10-2 with a 3.00 ERA
DI – No. 13 Oklahoma vs. No. 23 Nebraska
March 20 | 10:00 a.m. PT | Anderson Family Field | Fullerton, Calif. | Easton Tournament | Webcast ($)
#6
17-5
Game Notes | KEBC 1560 |Live Stats
Team BA: .381 | Team ERA: 3.33 | Runs Scored: 172 | Runs Allowed: 69
* Oklahoma heads to California following a 12-10 extra inning loss to No. 22 Minnesota at home on Wednesday… The defeat snapped a nine-game winnning streak and was the first loss at home in eight games this season
* The Sooners lead the Big 12 in batting average, slugging percentage (.615), doubles (43), home runs (29) and runs per game (7.71). They rank third and fifth nationally in batting average and slugging, while they are ninth, 11th and 13th in doubles, home runs and runs per game, respectively
* Lea Wodach and Kelsey Arnold own the top two batting averages in the Big 12… Wodach (.492) has seven doubles, six home runs, 20 RBI and 20 runs scored, while Arnold (.456) is a pair of doubles and 18 runs scored
* In the circle, Paige Parker is 7-2 with a 2.09 ERA with 66 strikeouts in 53.2 innings of work… Her puchouts are third in the Big 12
#4
16-6, 0-0
Statistics | Preview | Live Stats
Team BA: .311 | Team ERA: 3.45 | Runs Scored: 186 | Runs Allowed: 149
* Coming off a 12-8 home win over Omaha on Wednesday after posting a 3-2 showing at the Louisville Slugger Classic at Arizona State in which they defeated No. 9 James Madison, Ohio State and Georgetown
* Nebraska ranks 6th in Division I and leads the Big Ten with 1.43 home runs per game… The Huskers rank second in the league with 32 home runs and third in batting averge
* MJ Knighton’s team-leading .452 batting average and 31 RBI are second in the Big Ten, while she leads the league with 13 home runs and is third in runs scored with 29
* Alicia Armstrong (.358) is third in the Big Ten with 28 RBI
* In the circle, Cassie McClure is 8-2 with a 2.48 ERA and 37 strikeouts, while holding opponents to a .237 average
DI – No. 1 Florida at No. 16 Tennessee
March 18-20 | 7:00 / 2:00 / 4:00 ET | Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium | Gainesville, Fla. | SEC Series | ESPNU (Friday) | SEC Network (Sat / Sun)
#16
21-5, 3-0 SEC
Statistics | Softball Central | Audio (G1 / G2 / G3) | Live Stats (G1 / G2 / G3)
Team BA: .356 | Team ERA: 2.02 | Runs Scored: 225 | Runs Allowed: 66
* Tennessee enters this weekend’s series riding an 11-game winning streak, which included a three-game SEC home sweep of Arkansas last weekend… The Vols defeated North Florida in a mid-week road tilt
* Ten players are batting .310 or better and UT ranks fifth in Division I in scoring at 8.65 runs per game and also ranks in the top-10 nationally in slugging percentage (.602) and on-base percentage (.481)
* The trio of Rainey Gaffin, Lexi Overstreet and Megan Geer have led the way offensively as all three have batting averages of .403 or better
* In the circle, Erin Gabriel leads the team with 11 wins, Gaffin leads the team with four saves and Matty Moss has a staff low 1.28 ERA. Gabriel is also tied for fourth in the SEC with 88 strikeouts, while the staff as a whole is sporting a 2.02 ERA, good for 14th nationally
#1
27-1, 2-1 SEC
Game Notes | Statistics | Audio | Live Stats
Team BA: .361 | Team ERA: 0.89 | Runs Scored: 196 | Runs Allowed: 26
* The Gators rebounded from their first loss of the season, a 5-4 setback at Auburn, with 7-0 victory over Winthrop on Wednesday… Florida did take the SEC series, trumping the Tigers, 6-3 and 8-5 in games one and two
* Florida’s pitchers have surrendered just 26 runs all season, 14 coming in three games against the Tigers
* The Gators currently sport the third-best fielding percentage (.984) and the top earned run average in the nation
* Offensively, UF sits second in the country in on-base percentage (.487), 16th in scoring (7.12) and ninth in batting average
* Kayli Kvistad tops the Gators with a .472 average, 29 RBI, .792 slugging and .586 on-base percentages
* The pitching trio of Delanie Gourley, Aleshia Ocasio and Kelly Barnhill have combined to allow the fewest runs in the SEC (26) and record the most strikeouts (245)
Other Notable Division I Games
March 18
6:30 CT – No. 4 LSU (24-3, 2-1) at No. 11 Texas A&M (25-2, 0-0) | College Station, Texas | Live Stats | Audio (LSU / A&M) | SEC Network
6:30 CT – RV UCF (21-10) at No. 20 Baylor (20-6) | Waco, Texas | Live Stats | Audio | Video ($)
5:00 AZ – No. 18 Arizona (18-8) at No. 21 Arizona State (21-7) | Tempe, Ariz. | Live Stats | Pac-12 Arizona | Arizona Audio
March 19
2:00 CT – RV UCF at No. 20 Baylor | Waco, Texas | Live Stats | Audio | Video ($)
3:00 CT – No. 4 LSU at No. 11 Texas A&M | College Station, Texas | Live Stats | Audio (LSU / A&M) | SEC Network
3:30 AZ – No. 18 Arizona at No. 21 Arizona State | Tempe, Ariz. | Live Stats | Pac-12 Arizona | Arizona Audio
4:00 PT – No. 13 Oklahoma vs. No. 6 Alabama | Easton Tournament | Fullerton, Calif. | Live Stats | Audio (Oklahoma / Alabama) | Video ($)
March 20
12:00 CT – RV UCF at No. 20 Baylor | Waco, Texas | Live Stats | Audio | Video ($)
12:30 CT – No. 4 LSU at No. 11 Texas A&M | College Station, Texas | Live Stats | Audio (LSU / A&M) | SEC Network
5:00 AZ – No. 18 Arizona at No. 21 Arizona State | Tempe, Ariz. |Live Stats | Pac-12 Networks | Arizona Audio
DII – No. 16 Winona State at RV Missouri Western
March 19 | 12:00 CT | Apple Market Classic | Heritage Park Softball Complex | St. Joseph, Mo.
#16
14-4
Northern Sun
Statistics
Team BA: .286 | Team ERA: 1.66 | Runs Scored: 105 | Runs Allowed: 39
* Finished its spring break trip at the NTC Spring Games at 7-3
* This is the Warriors final set of non-conference games before Northern Sun play kicks off on March 23
* Hitting .286, Winona is led by Reed Karsten, who is batting .422 with 27 hits, four doubles, two triples, two long balls, 13 runs and 15 RBI… Jamee Schleis (.364) has 20 hits, 13 runs and 12 RBI, while McKenna Larsen leads the program with 16 RBI
* In the circle, Hanna Lythberg is 6-2 with a 0.83 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 59.1 innings… She also has three shutotus, one save and a .188 opponents’ batting average… The staff as a whole has recorded six shutous and held opponents to a .214 average
RV
17-7
MIAA
Statistics | Live Stats
Team BA: .299 | Team ERA: 2.28 | Runs Scored: 121 | Runs Allowed: 71
* Won eight of its last nine games
* Hosting 15 programs this weekend, eight from the MIAA and eight from the Northern sun in a three-day, 48-game event
* Morgan Rathmann is tops on the squad with a .384 average, 33 hits, 24 runs, .454 OBP and 13 stolen bases… Shelbie Atwell leads the team with 22 RBI, while Katie Klostermann (.333) has a team-best seven doubles and .597 slugging percentage and Kailey Green has launched a team-high five home runs to go along with 14 runs scored and .561 slugging percnetage
* Janie Smith and Shyanne Saladino pace the Griffons in the circle… Saladino is 8-3 with a 1.83 ERA and 54 punchouts in 76.1 innings, while Smith is 9-4 with 66 strikeouts and 12 complete games… The due has a combined opponents’ batting average of .245
Other Notable Division II Games
March 18
2:00 CT – No. 16 Winona State vs. No. 19 Northwest Missouri State (17-5) | Apple Market Games | St. Joseph, Mo.
March 19
1:00 / 3:00 CT – No. 3 UAH (25-4) at RV Delta State (25-6) | Cleveland, Miss. | Live Stats | Audio
4:00 CT – No. 16 Winona State vs. RV Central Oklahoma (19-7) | Apple Market Games | St. Joseph, Mo.
March 20
1:00 CT – No. 3 UAH at RV Delta State | Cleveland, Miss. | Live Stats | Audio
NJCAA (DI) No. 20 Dayton State at No. 1 Central Florida
March 19 | 1:00 / 3:00 ET | CF Softball Complex | Ocala, Fla. | FCSAA Doubleheader
#20
23-9, 5-2
Statistics
Team BA: .258 | Team ERA: 1.98 | Runs Scored: 161 | Runs Allowed: 85
* Coming off a mid-week twinbill sweep against Saint Johns River
* Kendall Arcia leads the team with a .365 average, four doubles, 18 RBI and .412 OBP… China Crocket is batting .323 with a a team-high 30 hits, five triples, 23 runs and 16 stolen bases, along with 12 RBI and a .407 OBP
* Kaylee Allen has tossed almost half the innings on the pitching staff… She is 9-5 with a 1.93 ERA, 73 strikeotus and two saves… Jesse Goddard is 6-2 with a 1.83 ERA and 75 punchouts in 68.2 innings of work
#1
37-1, 6-0
Statistics | Live Stats
Team BA: .404 | Team ERA: 1.46 | Runs Scored: 363 | Runs Allowed: 85
* Remained undfeated in conference play and extended its winning streak to 19 games with a sweep of Seminole State on Wednesday by the scores of 6-0 and 4-3… Kalen McGill twirled a one-hit shutout in the opener… She picked up the win in relief in game two after the Patriots rallied from a early 3-0 deficit
* The Patriots have five starters batting .401 or better and five other regulars batting above .300
* Mariah Wise (.496), Kelsee Cullop (.484), Caeley Nix (.469) and Brooke Barlow (.442) are the top four averages in the lineup… Wise has a team-best eight triples and .567 OBP… Cullop leads the way with nine home runs, 59 runs and a .820 slugging percentage… Nix has five doubles, 21 RBI and 47 runs, while Barlow leads the squad with 14 doubles and 65 RBI
* In the circle, McGill is 21-1 with a 0.58 ERA and 82 strikeouts in 109 innings.. She has allowed just one home runs and recorded 13 complete games
Other Notable Division NJCAA Games
March 19 (DI)
2:00 / 4:00 CT – No. 10 Angelina (25-10) at No. 2 Tyler (32-1) | The Brook Hill School | Bullard, Texas | Video
March 20
1:00 / 3:00 – No. 12 (DII) Kankakee (7-3) at No. 1 (DIII) Rock Valley (14-5)
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