Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Friday, February 17
Hammond, La.
1:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
vs
Southeast Missouri State
Raiders Headed to Louisiana for Lion Classic II
2/16/2017 2:48:00 PM | Softball
Tournament Notes
HAMMOND, La. – The Middle Tennessee softball team heads out on the road for another tournament this weekend. The Blue Raiders will play five games at the Lion Classic II hosted by Southeastern Louisiana State. MT is set to go up against Southeast Missouri State and Morehead State on Friday, Feb. 17, UT Arlington and the hosts on Saturday, Feb. 18 and then cap off the weekend by facing Alcorn State on Sunday, Feb. 19.
The Blue Raiders return to the diamond following a successful opening weekend at the Eagle Round Robin, starting the season 4-1 for the first time since 1999. MT fell to Tennessee 0-4 in the first game of the weekend but came back to win four-straight over Tennessee Tech, [5-3 (8), 8-2] and Georgia Southern [9-3, 11-1 (6)].
Lexi Cushing and Austyn Whaley had standout performances in the five-game tournament. Cushing was named Tennessee Sports Writers Association Player of the Week while Whaley earned Player of the Week accolades from Conference-USA. Cushing went 6-for-14 on the weekend, batting .429 with three home runs and 10 RBI including hitting a two-run walk off home run in extra innings against TN Tech. These marks placed Cushing in the top 10 in the nation for home runs, RBI and RBI per game. Whaley was 8-for-14 on the weekend, leading the team in batting average with an impressive .571. She recorded a hit in every game to go with a pair of doubles, a triple, a home run and eight RBI.
Last weekend, the Blue Raiders also had a strong defensive showing including pitching 25 scoreless innings in 34 innings of play. In the circle, Cori Jennings went 2-1 on the weekend with a 2.56 ERA and nine strikeouts while Gretchen Greer was 2-0 with a 2.15 ERA and 13 strikeouts.
Southeast Missouri State comes into the weekend with an undefeated 3-0 record following winning the Jackson State tournament. This the first time the Redhawks have started the season 3-0 since 2008. The team posted wins last weekend over Tennessee State (9-1), Jarvis Christian College (17-2), and Jackson State (13-2) all in five innings of action.
Rachel Anderson gave the Redhawks a spark on offense. The freshman was named Ohio Valley Conference Co-Player of the Week. She hit .750 (6-of-8) with six runs scored, two doubles, two triples, a home run and seven RBI in the three games. Anderson recorded a 1.875 slugging percentage and a .750 on-base percentage for the weekend.
The Redhawks split pitching time between four different players and as a team recorded a 2.40 ERA. Haley Throgmarten led the team in strikeouts with five, walking none in four innings in the circle.
Morehead State enters the tournament with a 2-2 record following a weekend at the Kennesaw State tournament. The Eagles defeated South Carolina State (15-2), lost to Saint Louis (0-1) and split two games with Kennesaw (6-0, 0-9).
Karly Thompson and Robyn Leighton were the backbone of the offense for the Eagles. Thompson hit .444 (4-for-9) with three doubles and four RBI. Leighton batted .417 on the weekend, going 5-for-12. She recorded a double, a triple, two home runs and eight RBI in the four game stretch.
Chelsea McManaway led the Eagle charge in the circle, pitching 13 innings to go 1-1 on the weekend. She had two complete games, one a shutout win and picked up 21 strikeouts to go with a 0.54 ERA.
Southeastern Louisiana State, the hosts, also hosted a home tournament last weekend, going 3-1. The Lions bested Army, 7-4, Mississippi Valley State, 11-5, and Coppin State, 6-1. The team fell to Nevada, 1-3.
Following the weekend action, Jaquelyn Ramon was named Southland Conference Hitter of the Week. She went 7-for-10 on the weekend, hitting .700 and scoring six runs with one RBI. Kinsey Nichols was also a bright spot on offense by scoring four runs, batting .500 (5-for-10) and recording a team-leading five RBI.
The Lions had seven pitchers see time in the circle with Lacey Hill and Rachael Hayes seeing the most significant time. Hill went 1-0 on the weekend in 8.1 innings of action. She had a 0.84 ERA, allowing just five hits while also striking out five. Hayes ended the weekend with a 2.86 ERA in 7.1 innings of work, also accumulating a 1-0 record. Like Hill, Hayes also struck out five.
UT Arlington is the lone team to come into the tournament with a losing record at 1-4. The Mavericks had a rough go at the Arizona State tournament, falling to UC Riverside [5-6 (8)], Saint Mary's (1-4), Arizona State [0-8 (6)], and Utah [0-12 (5)]. The single win came against New Mexico, 4-1.
Despite the losses, the Mavs were able to muster two batting averages over .400. Aileen Garcia hit .467 on the weekend while Krista Rude batted .412. Garcia was 7-for-15 with two doubles while Rude was 7-for-17 with one double and a team-leading three RBI. Reagan Wright also had three RBI in the five-game stretch to go with a home run.
Pitcher Sam Clakley recorded the lone win in the circle for the Mavs to make her 1-1 on the season. She threw 16 innings on the weekend for a 2.81 ERA. Clakley struck out 12 and walked three in four appearances.
Alcorn State is the only team that didn't play in a tournament last weekend and will instead begin their season tonight, Thursday, Feb. 16 against Kentucky State.
Head Coach Josef Rankin was the 2016 SWAC Coach of the Year as the Braves improved from a 2-31 (0-14 SWAC) record in 2015 to an 18-28 (11-6 SWAC) record and a third-place finish at last year's Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Braves returns 11 players from the 2016 squad including Taylor Hughes and Sametria Collins. Hughes and Collins were named to the Preseason All-SWAC first and second team, respectively, back in January. Hughes led last year's team with a .381 batting average, 45 hits and 26 RBI. She produced a team-high 16 multiple-hit games and committed just three errors. Collins posted the team's second-best batting average (.333) behind Hughes. She recorded 44 hits including three doubles, a triple and a team-high five stolen bases.
HAMMOND, La. – The Middle Tennessee softball team heads out on the road for another tournament this weekend. The Blue Raiders will play five games at the Lion Classic II hosted by Southeastern Louisiana State. MT is set to go up against Southeast Missouri State and Morehead State on Friday, Feb. 17, UT Arlington and the hosts on Saturday, Feb. 18 and then cap off the weekend by facing Alcorn State on Sunday, Feb. 19.
The Blue Raiders return to the diamond following a successful opening weekend at the Eagle Round Robin, starting the season 4-1 for the first time since 1999. MT fell to Tennessee 0-4 in the first game of the weekend but came back to win four-straight over Tennessee Tech, [5-3 (8), 8-2] and Georgia Southern [9-3, 11-1 (6)].
Lexi Cushing and Austyn Whaley had standout performances in the five-game tournament. Cushing was named Tennessee Sports Writers Association Player of the Week while Whaley earned Player of the Week accolades from Conference-USA. Cushing went 6-for-14 on the weekend, batting .429 with three home runs and 10 RBI including hitting a two-run walk off home run in extra innings against TN Tech. These marks placed Cushing in the top 10 in the nation for home runs, RBI and RBI per game. Whaley was 8-for-14 on the weekend, leading the team in batting average with an impressive .571. She recorded a hit in every game to go with a pair of doubles, a triple, a home run and eight RBI.
Last weekend, the Blue Raiders also had a strong defensive showing including pitching 25 scoreless innings in 34 innings of play. In the circle, Cori Jennings went 2-1 on the weekend with a 2.56 ERA and nine strikeouts while Gretchen Greer was 2-0 with a 2.15 ERA and 13 strikeouts.
Southeast Missouri State comes into the weekend with an undefeated 3-0 record following winning the Jackson State tournament. This the first time the Redhawks have started the season 3-0 since 2008. The team posted wins last weekend over Tennessee State (9-1), Jarvis Christian College (17-2), and Jackson State (13-2) all in five innings of action.
Rachel Anderson gave the Redhawks a spark on offense. The freshman was named Ohio Valley Conference Co-Player of the Week. She hit .750 (6-of-8) with six runs scored, two doubles, two triples, a home run and seven RBI in the three games. Anderson recorded a 1.875 slugging percentage and a .750 on-base percentage for the weekend.
The Redhawks split pitching time between four different players and as a team recorded a 2.40 ERA. Haley Throgmarten led the team in strikeouts with five, walking none in four innings in the circle.
Morehead State enters the tournament with a 2-2 record following a weekend at the Kennesaw State tournament. The Eagles defeated South Carolina State (15-2), lost to Saint Louis (0-1) and split two games with Kennesaw (6-0, 0-9).
Karly Thompson and Robyn Leighton were the backbone of the offense for the Eagles. Thompson hit .444 (4-for-9) with three doubles and four RBI. Leighton batted .417 on the weekend, going 5-for-12. She recorded a double, a triple, two home runs and eight RBI in the four game stretch.
Chelsea McManaway led the Eagle charge in the circle, pitching 13 innings to go 1-1 on the weekend. She had two complete games, one a shutout win and picked up 21 strikeouts to go with a 0.54 ERA.
Southeastern Louisiana State, the hosts, also hosted a home tournament last weekend, going 3-1. The Lions bested Army, 7-4, Mississippi Valley State, 11-5, and Coppin State, 6-1. The team fell to Nevada, 1-3.
Following the weekend action, Jaquelyn Ramon was named Southland Conference Hitter of the Week. She went 7-for-10 on the weekend, hitting .700 and scoring six runs with one RBI. Kinsey Nichols was also a bright spot on offense by scoring four runs, batting .500 (5-for-10) and recording a team-leading five RBI.
The Lions had seven pitchers see time in the circle with Lacey Hill and Rachael Hayes seeing the most significant time. Hill went 1-0 on the weekend in 8.1 innings of action. She had a 0.84 ERA, allowing just five hits while also striking out five. Hayes ended the weekend with a 2.86 ERA in 7.1 innings of work, also accumulating a 1-0 record. Like Hill, Hayes also struck out five.
UT Arlington is the lone team to come into the tournament with a losing record at 1-4. The Mavericks had a rough go at the Arizona State tournament, falling to UC Riverside [5-6 (8)], Saint Mary's (1-4), Arizona State [0-8 (6)], and Utah [0-12 (5)]. The single win came against New Mexico, 4-1.
Despite the losses, the Mavs were able to muster two batting averages over .400. Aileen Garcia hit .467 on the weekend while Krista Rude batted .412. Garcia was 7-for-15 with two doubles while Rude was 7-for-17 with one double and a team-leading three RBI. Reagan Wright also had three RBI in the five-game stretch to go with a home run.
Pitcher Sam Clakley recorded the lone win in the circle for the Mavs to make her 1-1 on the season. She threw 16 innings on the weekend for a 2.81 ERA. Clakley struck out 12 and walked three in four appearances.
Alcorn State is the only team that didn't play in a tournament last weekend and will instead begin their season tonight, Thursday, Feb. 16 against Kentucky State.
Head Coach Josef Rankin was the 2016 SWAC Coach of the Year as the Braves improved from a 2-31 (0-14 SWAC) record in 2015 to an 18-28 (11-6 SWAC) record and a third-place finish at last year's Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Braves returns 11 players from the 2016 squad including Taylor Hughes and Sametria Collins. Hughes and Collins were named to the Preseason All-SWAC first and second team, respectively, back in January. Hughes led last year's team with a .381 batting average, 45 hits and 26 RBI. She produced a team-high 16 multiple-hit games and committed just three errors. Collins posted the team's second-best batting average (.333) behind Hughes. She recorded 44 hits including three doubles, a triple and a team-high five stolen bases.
Players Mentioned
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