PITTSBURG – Due to deteriorating weather conditions over the weekend, the Pitt State Softball team has changed its schedule for the weekend.
Pitt State will open the weekend on Thursday, March 9 with a doubleheader at Washburn at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. These games were originally scheduled for Saturday. Friday's games at Emporia State remain as scheduled at 3 and 5 p.m.
Washburn most recently split with MidAmerica Nazarene and swept Maryville in a pair of nonconference series. They stand at 10-11 heading into the weekend. They will kick off MIAA play against Central Oklahoma, Northeastern State and Missouri Southern prior to Saturday's doubleheader.
The Ichabods are led by Erica Harper, who is hitting .383 from the plate with 12 RBIs, six doubles and three homers under her belt. Savannah Moore has crossed the plate 12 times and adds 13 hits on the season. Taylor Kemp drove in 9 RBIs on nine base hits and three doubles. Three Ichabod pitchers are switching off duties in the circle: Kelsey Henree (3-5, 25 strikeouts), Lexi Crabtree (0-3, 16) and Ashley Wills (3-0, 15).
Emporia State opens up conference play at 13-11. The Hornets swept St. Cloud State, split with Sioux Falls and suffered back-to-back losses against Minnesota-Duluth at the St. Cloud Indoor Tournament last weekend.
The Hornets average 4.6 RBIs per game, an MIAA best. Jacie Stephens is the team's top offensive force, hitting .382 from the plate with six doubles and two homeruns. Danielle Sprinkle has driven in a team-high 16 runs on 18 base hits, two doubles and two homers. Katy Rae Nordman records a .611 slugging mark and Sarah glass has eight doubles. The two each have two home runs on the season as well. McKenna Davis stole a conference-high 16 bases. Eryn Stockman and Holly Hinkel combine for 58 strikeouts this season in the circle and an 11-10 record.
Pittsburg State enters MIAA play with a 14-6 record. Most recently the Gorillas went 3-1 in a four-game series against Upper Iowa at the PSU Softball Complex.
Pitt State is hitting .277 as a team with a .395 slugging percentage and a .380 on base percentage. Four players are hitting .300 or better on the season, led by Kala Holder with a .355 average. Tiara Ewy hits .333, Kylie Guthier, .315, and Kaity Kukowski, .300. Holder leads the team with 22 hits on the season. Kukowski leads in runs scored with 15 and has been hit by 17 pitches on the season. Guthier has a team best .556 slugging percentage and leads with four home runs. Nicole Nease is the team's RBI leader with 17. Lawren McKinney leads in doubles with five. Sierra Hall leads with seven sacrifice hits, two sacrifice flies and she and McKinney have each stolen two bases.
Pitt State pitchers have a 2.56 ERA as a group. Emmie Robertson carries the biggest load of the pitching duties with 83.1 innings on the season. She has a 1.01 ERA and a 10-3 record with two saves in 18 appearances. She has struck out 107 batters while walking only 17. Of the 58 hits she has given up, only 12 have been for extra bases and she is holding opponents to a .192 average. Bree Cornett has a 2.73 ERA and a 4-1 record in 30.0 innings pitched. Morgan Myers has thrown 12.2 innings, and Brittany Beaudet has thrown 5.0. They each have an 0-1 record.
