The Basics
The Drake softball team gets to stay in the state of Iowa for its next four games as it starts its week with a road contest against Iowa State on Wednesday, March 25 followed by a weekend conference series, and home opener, against Evansville, March 27-28.
Bulldogs by the Numbers
The Bulldogs have a current overall record of 7-18 and have gone 1-5 in Missouri Valley Conference play as the month of March comes to a close. Drake put an end to a five-game losing skid this past weekend as it took the series finale against UIC, 9-2, but the Bulldogs did suffer two losses to the Flames to open the series.
The Bulldogs have belted 21 home runs this year, tied for fifth in the MVC, and are led in that department by
Natalee Watts with five. Last weekend against UIC,
Lili Gonzalez and
Maia Bentley both hit their first home runs of their careers. The Bulldogs used three long balls, hit by Bentely,
Ava Curry, and
Anniston Reith, en route to their 9-2 victory over the Flames.
Freshman
Ava Husak earned her second win from the pitchers circle in the recent win over UIC and tossed her first-career complete game. She leads the pitching staff with an ERA of 4.93 over 11 appearances and six starts. Senior
Jayme Scheck leads Drake with 23 strikeouts, which accounts for 40-percent of the teams total strikeouts on the year.
Scouting Iowa State
The Cyclones come into the week with an overall record of 19-10 and are an even 3-3 in Big 12 Conference play. ISU is currently riding a four-game winning streak as it swept Houston from Ames in its home opening weekend and picked up a midweek win over Creighton last week. Iowa State was picked to finish seventh in the Big 12 this season after making it to the conference tournament semifinals and winning 31 games in 2025.
Iowa State has seen great production at the plate this season from Reagan Bartholomew, who currently leads the team with a .444 batting average. She also leads the Cyclones in slugging at .756 and has tallied eight doubles, one triple, and six home runs to go along with 21 RBI. Jessie Clemons, a Preseason Big 12 Team selection, is also performing with a .381 hitting clip and a team-leading 15 doubles and eight stolen bases.
Iowa State's pitching staff has a cumulative ERA of 4.19 and is led by catalyst Lauren Schurman with a record of 10-2 over 22 appearances (nine starts) and 72.2 innings of work. She also leads the team with 41 strikeouts while holding opponents to an average of .278. Ava Mullen has also been a consistent presence in the pitchers circle for the Cyclones with 19 appearances and seven starts. Mullen carries an ERA of 4.42 and record of 3-3.
Wednesday will mark the 37th all-time meeting between Drake and Iowa State as the Cyclones lead the all-time series, 21-15. Drake is 4-9 all-time against Iowa State in road games and is 4-6 over the last 10 meetings with the last Bulldog victory coming in 2023.
Scouting Evansville
The Purple Aces will make the trip to Des Moines with an overall record of 11-17 and are 5-6 in league play. Evansville won their most recent MVC series against Murray State, taking two of three contests, and run-ruled Indiana State twice in a midweek doubleheader last week. In true road games this season, however, Evansville has struggled with a record of 1-11.
At the plate, Niki Bode presents a threat and is slashing .379/.530/.438 at this point in the season. In 23 games played, Bode leads the Purple Aces with 10 doubles, which also is tied for first in the MVC.
Kate Ridgway and Alexis Tucker have been the main pair of arms for the Evansville pitching staff with Ridgway making 18 appearances and 16 starts, while Tucker has made 16 appearances with 11 starts. Ridgway leads Evansville in every statistical category including ERA (3.95), wins (5), complete games (6), and strikeouts (80).
Drake leads the all-time series over Evansville, 41-17, and swept the season series last year. The Bulldogs are 6-4 in their last 10 meetings against the Purple Aces but boast a home record of 22-8 all-time against Evansville.
Up Next
The Bulldogs remain at home and will host the Bradley Braves for doubleheader on Tuesday, March 31. First pitch from Buel Field for game one against Bradley is scheduled for 3 p.m.
