‘Jacket softball starts GNAC with 12 road games in 8 days

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Wednesday, March 1, 2017 ‘Jacket softball starts GNAC with 12 road games in 8 days

Kicking off conference play this weekend, MSUB’s softball team hits the road for a dozen GNAC games over the course of eight days at three different conference opponents.

BILLINGS, Mont. – Set to open its Great Northwest Athletic Conference schedule against three teams over the course of eight days, the Montana State University Billings softball team is back in action starting this weekend in Bellingham, Wash.

MSUB will play four-game series at Western Washington University, Concordia University, and Saint Martin’s University next week, with 12 total games packed into an eight-day period over Spring Break. The series against the Vikings is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday with noon doubleheaders (Pacific time) at Viking Field. MSUB will then travel to Portland, Ore., for noon doubleheaders (PST) on Tuesday and Wednesday against the Cavaliers at Porter Park.

The week wraps up in Lacey, Wash., at Saint Martin’s University for a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Friday, March 10, and a noon doubleheader (PST) the following day at the SMU Softball Field.

Live coverage throughout the week will be available online through MSUB’s Stretch Internet portal here.

The Yellowjackets (4-9) opened their season with 13 road games from Feb. 3-10, and finished the long trip by winning two of their final three games at the Dixie State Easton Classic.

“We are definitely excited to play some games again, and we are just trying to prepare for playing three different teams in a week,” said MSUB head coach Jessica Rayman, whose team will be playing its first games in nearly three full weeks. “It’s going to be a long trip, but it is exciting to get into conference play. I feel like we are really ready for GNAC games.”

TRACY PICKING UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF: After an all-region season as a sophomore in 2016, right fielder Heather Tracy is off to a hot start batting a team-best .451 through her first 13 games of the year. The junior has scored a dozen runs while getting on base at a clip of .453, and is 3-for-3 in the stolen bases department.

POWER IN NUMBERS: After clubbing 45 home runs last year, the ‘Jackets have already hit 14 this spring and three players have Tracy is leading the team with a .451 batting average through multiple long balls. Juniors Cameron Cassinelli and Megan the first 13 games of the year.

Dettling are tied for the team lead with four apiece, and have combined to drive in 29 runs. Three of Dettling’s homers came in a win over UC Colorado Springs, as she set the school record and tied the Great Northwest Athletic Conference record for home runs in a game.

Senior Kelsey Devlin is up to 22 career home runs with three already this season, and she ranks third on the team with a dozen RBIs. ROVENS ROLLING EARLY: Senior center fielder Bella Rovens is batting .357 to start her senior year, and leads the team with 13 runs scored. She has also drawn a team-best nine walks and struck out just four times, holding an on-base percentage of .471. Rovens has climbed to No. 4 in MSUB history with 176 career hits, and up to No. 3 in career stolen bases with 30.

STRINGARI HITS FIRST HR: Junior shortstop Katlyn Stringari notched her first career home run during the Yellowjackets’ road trip, and is off to a 4-for-9 start at the plate.

DEFENSE IN GOOD HANDS WITH PRINCE: Junior second baseman Myrissa Prince has gotten off to a strong start both at the plate and in the field, as she has handled all 53 chances this season without an error. She is also batting .314, with one home run and seven RBIs through 11 games played. She has combined with Stringari and sophomore shortstop Jessica Bagnell up the middle.

STELLAR DEBUT FOR FRESHMAN IN THE CIRCLE: Making eight appearances to start her college career during MSUB’s last road trip, freshman left-handed pitcher Maddy Lincoln progressively improved each time she took the ball. Her week culminated in being one strike away from a shutout, as she tossed a complete game in MSUB’s 12-3 win over UC Colorado Springs. Overall Lincoln had 24 strikeouts in 36 2/3 innings pitched, while holding an earned run average of 5.35.

THE EARLY NUMBERS: As a team, MSUB is scoring 6.7 runs per game and leads the GNAC with 14 home runs. The team holds a batting average of .307, an on-base percentage of .375, and is slugging .474. The Yellowjackets hold a team ERA of 5.35 with 40 strikeouts in 82 1/3 innings pitched.

Western Washington University Vikings Viking Field | Bellingham, WA Saturday, March 4 | 12 PM Doubleheader Sunday, March 5 | 12 PM Doubleheader 2017 Record: 7-3 Head Coach: Amy Suiter, 7th Season 2016 Record: 26-21, 15-13 GNAC (5th Place) Like the ‘Jackets, the Vikings have had a long hiatus having not played since the Dixie State tournament on Feb. 10. WWU has won four of its last six games overall, and is off to a 7-3 start to the year under seasoned skipper Amy Suiter.

Anna Kasner, a freshman right-handed pitcher, has stolen headlines in her college debut and was named the HERO Sports D2 Pitcher of the Week last week. On the season she has 39 strikeouts against just four walks in 24 1/3 innings pitched, while holding a 3.45 ERA. WWU’s staff is bolstered by the presence of Shearyna Labasan, who leads the team with a stellar 2.73 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 25 2/3 innings.

Offensively, reigning first-team all-GNAC pick Emily Benson is batting .567 through her first 10 games, with four home runs and a team-best 13 RBIs. Mackenzie Palmer, Makinlee Sellevold, and Labasan are each also batting north of .350, and WWU’s top-four hitters have combined to strike out just two times in 125 at bats.

The Series: MSUB is 40-27 all-time against the Vikings, and is 14-11 in Bellingham. The ‘Jackets and Vikings have split the last eight games played against each other.

Last Time Out: WWU took 3 of 4 games played in Billings last season, MSUB collecting its lone win in a 20-14 slugfest at Avitus Group Stadium. Tracy drove in a career-high six runs in the lopsided win for MSUB, while Benson had five RBIs in the game for the Vikings.

Concordia University Cavaliers Porter Park | Portland, OR Tuesday, March 7 | 12 PM Doubleheader Wednesday, March 8 | 12 PM Doubleheader 2017 Record: 7-6 Head Coach: Shelley Whitaker, 1st season 2016 Record: 32-23, 17-11 GNAC (2nd Place)

After an impressive second-place finish in the GNAC in its first season in the league, Concordia is off to a 7-6 start this year and split four games at the DSU tournament. The Cavaliers also split a doubleheader with Pacific University (NCAA D3), before beating Southern Oregon 4-1 and University of British Columbia 8-5 at home last week.

Reigning GNAC Player of the Year Meghan Luebbert is batting .478 with an on-base percentage of .547 and a slugging percentage of .739. Taylor Bussey and Courtney Somers are also leading the team offensively, at .436 and .400 in hitting, respectively. Somers has led the early power push, with four home runs and a team-high 15 RBIs. Tori Muir has been the top arm this season on the pitching staff, with an ERA of 2.80 in 10 appearances. She has 10 strikeouts and only four walks in 25 innings pitched, and veteran Mattie Boucher has added 25 strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings. Boucher holds an ERA of 4.16 in 10 appearances this season.

As a team CU is averaging 4.6 runs per game, and is batting .293, slugging .441, and getting on base at .391.

The Series: MSUB is 2-4 against the Cavaliers in a series that started in 2015. The ‘Jackets will be playing their first-ever games in Portland.

Last Time Out: CU took three games in the four-game set at Avitus Group Stadium last spring, with MSUB’s lone victory a 9-6 result in Game 3. Tracy homered in the win, and Dettling had six strikeouts and three runs allowed in five strong innings in the circle.

Saint Martin’s University Saints SMU Softball Field | Lacey, WA Friday, March 10 | 1 PM Doubleheader Saturday, March 11 | 12 PM Doubleheader 2017 Record: 4-2 Head Coach: Rick Noren, 7th Season 2016 Record: 34-20, 16-12 GNAC (4th Place) The Saints have won three games in a row, after most recently defeating Corban University 10-3 and University of British Columbia 8-2 last weekend. SMU is scheduled to play a doubleheader against Northwest University on March 7 before next weekend’s series against the Yellowjackets.

Lauren Diuco and Mary Dettling are both 11-for-21 (.524) through their first six games of the year, and the latter leads the team with 10 RBIs. Lindsay Miller, another returning veteran, is also off to a strong start with a batting average of .444 (8-for-18) with eight runs scored. Miller has doubled as a reliable pitcher, holding an ERA of 3.82 with 11 innings pitched in two appearances.

Kim Nelson has been the ace thus far, walking just one hitter in 18 innings pitched and holding an ERA of 2.33.

The Saints are an elite team defensively, committing just three total errors in their first six games and posting a team fielding percentage of .984. SMU is averaging 7.3 runs per game, while batting .337, slugging .535, and getting on base at a clip of .393.

The Series: MSUB is 33-25 all-time against SMU, and is 17-10 in games played in Lacey. The Saints have held the upper hand recently however, winning 13 of the last 16 meetings dating back to the 2012 season.

Last Time Out: SMU won 3 of 4 in Billings last year, with the ‘Jackets preventing a sweep with a 14-6 win in the finale.

Prince had two home runs, including a walk-off grand slam, and Cassinelli and Tracy also each homered.

--@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--