ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul softball team (1-3) heads south to compete at the Washburn Invitational in Topeka, Kansas. Due to weather conditions, the schedule has been altered for CSP to compete on Sunday, Feb. 23, and Monday, Feb. 24.
The Golden Bears will play Emporia State (6-5) and No. 13 Central Oklahoma (9-2) on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. On Monday, Concordia will face Pittsburg State (6-3) at 9:30 a.m. and Washburn (7-4) at 3:30 p.m. Monday's games will have live stats and will be streamed on the MIAA Network.
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Bears opened the season in the Mankato Dome against Minnesota State and Minnesota Duluth. After falling in the first three games, the Golden Bears finished strong with a 4-1 victory over Minnesota State.
Senior Sydney Pelzer led the Golden Bears with three hits including two doubles and an RBI. Rachel Novak tallied two hits while Alexis Monty, Abi Carter and Ashlyn Peterson each tallied an RBI.
Freshman Tatum Dunlavy pitched the entire game allowing six hits and striking out three batters. She only walked three batters and gave up one earned run, throwing 100 pitches in the game.
SEASON LEADERS
After the first four games, Monty leads the Golden Bears with a .385 batting average in 13 at-bats and three RBIs. She has the best on-base percentage on the team at .400. Pelzer has the second-best batting average on the team at .333. She has five hits with a team-high three doubles. Her .533 slugging percentage is the best on the Golden Bears.
Bryleigh Dana has a .500 batting average with three hits in six at-bats. Carter has a .286 batting average. Novak and Ava Blake each have a .250 batting average.
Dunlavy has pitched the only complete game for the Golden Bears this season and has a 5.25 ERA. She has four strikeouts this season. Carter has a 2.47 ERA in 5.2 innings pitched while appearing in three games. Carter and Emmy Bowne are tied for the team-high in strikeouts with five. Erica McCullough pitched two innings in game three vs. Minnesota Duluth and tallied two strikeouts without giving up any runs.
EMPORIA STATE (KAN.) - Sunday, Feb. 23 at 9:30 a.m. - Silver Lake Field
Series Record: ESU 12, CSP 9
Last season, the Golden Bears went 2-0 vs. Emporia State in the Mankato Dome to open the season. CSP picked up a 7-6 win and an 8-2 win. This snapped a three-game losing streak to the Hornets.
Emporia State enters this weekend after competing at the Alvy Early Memorial Classic in Bentonville, Arkansas. The Hornets went 2-3 in that tournament, but went 4-2 in the Branson Lead-Off Classic in Branson, Missouri the weekend before.
The Hornets have six batters with a .300+ batting average, led by junior Leslie Ramos. Ramos has nine hits, four RBIs, two doubles and a home run this season. Junior outfielder Taryn Burkhardt leads ESU in hits with 13 while batting .371.
Brooke Flewelling has a .300 batting average with a team-high 11 RBIs and a team-high two home runs. Sophomore Juliana De Luna is batting .345 with 7 RBIs. 19 different batters have stepped up to the plate this season for the Hornets.
Senior pitcher Jordan Harrison leads Emporia State with a 2.39 ERA. She has accumulated 25 strikeouts this season while giving up 24 hits and 10 earned runs. Senior Gracie Rabe has a 3.20 ERA in a team-high eight appearances. She also has 23 strikeouts. Jayda VanAckeren has a 4.00 ERA in four appearances.
Head coach April Rosales is in her 10th season coaching the Hornets. She has a 245-227 record at Emporia State.
NO. 13 CENTRAL OKLAHOMA - Sunday, Feb. 23 at 3:30 p.m. - Washburn Rural
Series Record: UCO 2, CSP 0
The Golden Bears faced Central Oklahoma in 2015 and 2016. No. 16 Central Oklahoma defeated CSP, 8-6, in 2015 and then the unranked Bronchos won, 11-0, in 2016.
The Bronchos enter this game as the No. 13 team in the country. Central Oklahoma has three ranked wins this season over Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.), Auburn-Montgomery (Ala.) and Southern Nazarene (Okla.). UCO's two losses are to Oklahoma Baptist and Arkansas Tech.
Central Oklahoma has three batters hitting over .400, led by senior Terin Ritz batting .464. She has a .821 slugging percentage with 13 hits, three doubles, two triples and a home run. Ritz is eighth in the nation with 20 RBIs.
Freshman Ariah Mitchell has tallied 11 hits to post a .423 batting average this season. She also has five RBIs while only striking out once in 26 at-bats. Sophomore Brooklyn Ryan has a .400 batting average with two home runs. Junior Rylee Lemos is slashing .387/.568/.710 with two doubles and two home runs.
On the mound, the Bronchos are led by sophomore Shelby Beard with a 0.46 ERA and a 5-0 record. She's tallied 15 strikeouts and has only given up one earned run this season. Ritz also pitches and has a 2.07 ERA with 15 strikeouts. Senior Sydney Ward has made five appearances posting a 4.12 ERA and a team-high 19 strikeouts.
UCO's team batting average of .384 ranks 11th in the nation. Their .495 on-base percentage is fourth in the country and they rank ninth in the nation in triples with seven on the season.
Cody White is in his 12th season as the head coach of Central Oklahoma. He's guided the Bronchos to nine national tournament appearances and four MIAA Championships. He has a 455-162 record at UCO entering this weekend.
PITTSBURG STATE (KAN.) - Monday, Feb. 24 at 9:30 a.m. - Washburn Complex
Series Record: PSU 5, CSP 3
CSP faced No. 13 Pittsburg State last season, losing both games in the doubleheader including a tight 3-2 loss in game two. The Golden Bears last defeated the Gorillas in 2014 with a 3-2 victory.
Pittsburg State received one vote in this week's NFCA Coaches' Poll. The Gorillas have a ranked win over Southern Nazarene (Okla.), but losses to Angelo State (Texas) and Oklahoma Christian. PSU recently with 3-1 at the Central Oklahoma/Oklahoma Christian Classic.
Senior Courtney Storey leads the Gorillas with a .516 batting average. She has 16 hits with two doubles, one triple and seven RBIs this season. Junior Alleyna Rushing is batting .474 with a home run and five RBIs.
Heather Arnett has recorded 15 hits this season to post a .455 batting average. She leads the team in doubles with four. Kyleigh Lamont leads the Gorillas in home runs with two this season.
Senior Aydenne Brown leads Pittsburg State on the mound with a 2.78 ERA in 22.2 innings pitched. She's thrown two complete games and has tallied 28 strikeouts. Ava Laurent, the reigning MIAA Freshman of the Year, has a 3.04 ERA this season with 25 strikeouts in 27.2 innings pitched.
Head coach Josh Barnes is in his first season as the head coach of Pittsburg State. He replaced Jenny Fuller, who left for Division I Northwestern State. Barnes served the last two seasons at NJCAA Powerhouse Crowder College (Mo.).
WASHBURN (KAN.) - Monday, Feb. 24 at 3:30 p.m. - Washburn Complex
Series Record: WU 8, CSP 4
The Golden Bears have lost the last four games to the Ichabods, with their last win in 2018. CSP last faced Washburn in 2023, losing 6-1. The Golden Bears won the first two games of the series in 2005 and 2006.
Washburn recently went 2-2 in the Alvy Early Memorial Classic in Bentonville, Arkansas. The Ichabods have a ranked win as they defeated No. 12 Mississippi College 10-7 on Feb. 1.
Senior Alexis Tanguma leads the Ichabods slashing .444/.500/.556. She has 16 hits with four doubles and six RBIs. Senior Ellington Hogle leads Washburn with 16 RBIs while batting .333. Junior Erin Boles is batting .406 with 13 hits, three doubles and a home run.
Senior Kaylee Wagner is batting .382 with 11 RBIs. She has a double and a triple this season. Kate Ediger has a .344 batting average with 12 RBIs and a team-high four home runs. She's 10th in the nation in home runs.
Junior pitcher Sadie Walker has a 3.29 ERA in 34 innings pitched with three complete games. She's tallied 34 strikeouts this season and has a 4-1 record. Freshman Ava Bloyd has a 3.73 ERA in 20.2 innings pitched. She has 13 strikeouts while posting a 2-2 record.
Head coach Brenda Holaday is in her ninth season with the Ichabods. She's led Washburn to three NCAA postseason tournaments and an MIAA Championship in 2022. Holaday has a 259-153 record entering this weekend.
