DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University softball team is set to host the Evansville Purple Aces in its home opener of the 2015 season. Drake and Evansville will play a doubleheader on Saturday, March 20 starting at 12 p.m. before closing the series on Sunday with a single game at 12 p.m. Live stats for each contest will be available at www.GoDrakeBulldogs.com.
REWIND
Drake (11-11, 2-1 MVC) took two out of three games at Missouri State in its first Missouri Valley Conference series of the year this past weekend. An adjusted schedule due to a wet playing field and rain in the forecast for Saturday (March 14) pushed the series back to Sunday and Monday, but it didn't slow the Bulldogs as they pounded the Bears, 9-0, in the first game on Sunday. Drake then edged Missouri State, 1-0, in the next game on Monday before the Bears salvaged a game with a 2-0 victory to close the series.
ABOUT TIME
Saturday's games against Evansville will mark the first time Drake has been able to play its regularly scheduled opening home series at Ron Buel Field in three seasons. Due to snow still on the field in late March in each of the previous two seasons, the Bulldogs first home games had to be moved to the opponents' home venue. In 2013 the series against Evansville was moved to the Aces' home ballpark while last season's opening home series against SIU was moved to Carbondale, Ill.
SCOUTING EVANSVILLE
Evansville (7-21, 1-2 MVC) dropped a doubleheader Wednesday night at UT-Martin. The Purple Aces have yet to play at their home field as their opening MVC series against Loyola had to be moved to Chicago, Ill., due to an unplayable playing field. Danielle Freeman leads Evansville with a .500 batting average and five home runs. Mat Mundel is in his first season as head coach of the Purple Aces. He previously coached at the University of Illinois Springfield.
1-2 AT THE TOP OF THE ORDER
Freshman Kelsey Wright (Olathe, Kan.) and sophomore Megan Sowa (Gurnee, Ill.) pace the Bulldogs at the top of the order.
Wright, who has batted in the leadoff spot primarily in her first season, had a 10-game hitting streak snapped in the first game of Monday's doubleheader at Missouri State. Even with the impressive streak snapped, she is batting .277 with a team-leading 17 walks and 18 runs scored. Wright's walks and runs scored totals rank second and fourth, respectively, in the conference.
Sowa currently has a seven-game hitting streak and during that span her average has risen from .216 to .344, which ranks second on the team and 10th in the MVC. She leads the Bulldogs in runs batted in with 17, which is tied for eighth-best in the conference.
CHART CLIMBER
Senior Hayley Nybo (Minnetonka, Minn.) is batting .294 with four home runs and 16 runs batted for the Bulldogs. Earlier this season, Nybo passed former great Dani Tyler (115) for the all-time RBI mark in school history. Nybo is tied for ninth in career doubles with 30 and is second in career home runs with 27. Elena Leon (2007-10) is the school's all-time leader in home runs with 33.
1-2 COMBINATION IN THE CIRCLE
Senior Rebekah Schmidt (Cottage Grove, Minn.) and freshman Nicole Newman (Madison, Wis.) are pitching well in the circle for the Bulldogs. Schmidt is 5-7 with
a 3. 24 earned run average and 72 strikeouts. Schmidt's five wins this season give her 42 for her career, which is eighth all-time in school history. She leads the team in batting average at .356 and has two home runs and 13 runs batted in. Schmidt was named the MVC Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 9.
Newman is 6-3 with a 2.62 ERA and 57 strikeouts. She has struck out eight or more batters in five games, including punching out 11 Memphis Tigers on Feb. 27. Newman garnered MVC Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 16.
The duo is the reason why Drake ranks No. 1 in the league in team ERA (3.18), strikeouts (130), opponent batting average (.241) and fewest home runs allowed (12). They have each tossed one-hitters this year as Schmidt's was against Iowa in the season opener on Feb. 6 while Newman did it against Loyola on Feb. 13.
SENIOR EXPERIENCE
Drake's other two seniors, Laura Brewer (Waukee, Iowa) and Sarah Ryan (Mount Vernon, Iowa) are off to great starts in their final seasons. Brewer, who had an outstanding junior season capped by being named to the All-MVC second team, is hitting .300 with one home run, three doubles and seven runs batted in. Ryan, the Bulldogs' defensive anchor in centerfield, is off to a hot start at the plate. A career .153 hitter coming into the season, Ryan is batting .306 with three doubles, four runs batted in, six stolen bases and has drawn eight walks.
UP NEXT
Drake has a quick turnaround as its game at Kansas originally scheduled for March 16 was rescheduled for March 24 at 6 p.m. to accommodate the switch for the Missouri State series. The Bulldogs will then travel back to Kansas as they visit Wichita State on March 28-29 for a three-game series.
