PITTSBURG ‑ The 11th ranked Pittsburg State University softball team will return home to host the University Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State University weekend MIAA action.
The Gorillas and Lopers will meet Friday (Mar. 29) at 3 p.m. (CDT), while Pitt State will entertain the Lady Tigers Saturday (Mar. 30) beginning at 1 p.m.
Pitt State brings a 32-4 overall record (6-2 MIAA) into the weekend action. The Gorillas extended their school record winning streak to 22 games last week with a doubleheader sweep over Northeastern State University on Mar. 22. Pitt State, the first NCAA Division II program to reach 30 wins this season, lost a pair of hard-fought one-run games to No. 3 ranked Rogers State University the next day (Mar. 23) at Claremore, Okla.
Offensively, the Gorillas are led by sophomore outfielder Heather Arnett with a team-leading .481 batting average. Arnett leads Division II in hits (65), runs scored (48) and stolen bases (36) and ranks second nationally in triples (7). Graduate transfer infielder Hannah Burnett is batting .436 with 41 runs scored, 31 RBI and 24 stolen bases. Sophomore outfielder Alleyna Rushing (.392), junior outfielder Courtney Storey (.363), senior infielder Maddie Fernandez (.357), senior utility player Paxtyn Hayes (.333) and senior infielder Kadyn Trochim (.307) round out the qualified batters hitting above .300.
In the circle, freshman Ava Laurent (10-1, 1.86 ERA) leads the team with 98.0 innings pitched and a .204 opponent batting average. He has posted four shutouts on the season and ranks ninth in Division II in strikeouts (134). Senior Kiana Pogroszewski (9-1, 2.92 ERA) has pitched 79.0 innings with 58 strikeouts and issued only 14 walks. Junior Chelsea Beville (6-1, 1.81 ERA) has struck out 35 batters in 27.0 innings with opponents hitting .235 against her. Senior Hannah Martin (6-0, 2.21 ERA) has struck out 29 in 25.1 innings of work this season.
Nebraska-Kearney is 13-16 overall (1-5 MIAA). The Lopers, who are looking to halt a two-game losing streak, are 1-5 on the road this season. Eden McNally and Abbie Jo Gaube lead the team with .333 batting averages with Mary Chvatal (.311) leading the team with 14 runs scored, 14 walks drawn and 10 stolen bases. Rylyn Nelson (.300) leads the team with two home runs and 15 RBI so far this season. In the circle for UNK, Daniella Morillas (3-3, 3.36 ERA), Patia Wolfe (2-6, 4.80 ERA) and Madison Rosenthal (0-2, 21.00 ERA) have started games with Wolfe leading the team in innings (51.0) as Morillas has stuck out 22 in 33.1 innings of work and limits opposing batters to a .252 average.
Fort Hays State enters the weekend with a 16-12 overall record (2-4 MIAA). The Lady Tigers have won three straight; and FHSU is 4-6 in 10 road games thus far. Leading the charge offensively is Peyton Shepard, who is hitting .417 with 40 hits, 19 runs scored and 14 stolen bases. Loren Beggs (.358) and Carly Stuke (.293) are tied for the team lead with two home runs each with Beggs leading the program with 17 RBI. In the circle for the Tigers, Savanah Egger (9-5, 1.78 ERA), Morgan Schmidt (4-6, 3.32 ERA) and Bailey Carlson (2-1, 2.28 ERA) have started games this season. Egger in her 14 appearances has 12 complete games for 90.2 innings of work with 88 strikeouts and opponents hitting .199 against her.
