Missouri State at We Back Pat Tournament, Kansas City
Dates	March 3-5, 2017
Game 1	Friday, 3 p.m. vs. UMKC | Live Stats
Game 2	Saturday, 11 a.m. vs. SEMO | Live Stats
Game 3	Saturday, 5 p.m. vs. Saint Louis | Live Stats
Game 4	Sunday, 1 p.m. vs. UMKC - third place | Live Stats
Location	Missouri 3&2 Complex, (9600 Blue River Rd., Kansas City, Mo.)
Follow	@MSUSoftball

The Missouri State softball Bears (5-5) will take on three Show-Me State rivals, Friday through Sunday, at the We Back Pat Tournament in Kansas City. MSU will take on host UMKC, Saint Louis and SEMO on Friday and Saturday before playing in the championship round on Sunday afternoon.

The Starting Nine

• Erin Griesbauer (Blue Springs, Mo.) earned MVC Newcomer of the Week honors on Feb. 20 after she pitched six inning in relief against No. 17/19 Texas A&M in two appearances and did not allow an earned run. She put out the fire in the second game against the Aggies, entering the game with no outs in the fourth inning and pitching MSU out of a jam and squashing TAMU's rally. She also pitched a third of inning in the tourney finale against New Mexico that clinched second place for the Bears at the tourney. She had a 2.21 ERA in three appearances and one start on the weekend.
• The Bears boast five players from the Kansas City area, including Darian Frost (Lee's Summit, Mo.), Erin Griesbauer (Blue Springs, Mo.), Madison Jones (Overland Park, Kan.), Kyana Mason (Independence, Mo.), and Bethany Sullinger (Kansas City, Mo.).
• The roots of this weekend's We Back Pat Tournament date back to 2005 when the coaches of Missouri's five Division I programs pulled their teams together at one site for the Missouri Coaches Against Cancer Tournament. The event has taken on different names and causes over the years, including benefits for breast cancer, Leukemia and Alzheimer's.
• Sixteen of Missouri State's 18 roster players were recognized on the fall 2016 Athletic Director's Honor Roll after achieving a 3.0 semester GPA or better for the most-recent academic semester.
• In last year's Missouri Cancer Awareness Tournament in St. Louis, MSU's Kaitlin Beason (Webb City, Mo.) went 2-0 in the circle and hit three home runs to help the Bears to a 2-2 finish.
• Kaitlin Beason (Jr., Webb City, Mo.) was one of just three Missouri Valley Conference pitchers to throw a no hitter or one hitter on opening weekend. Beason's one-hit shutout against UAPB in the season opener (Feb. 10) helped push her to a 1.91 ERA and 1-1 record with a team-high 6 strikeouts in 11 inings of work.
•  Juniors Hailee Vigneaux (Ozark, Mo.) and Erika Velasquez Zimmer (Coppell, Texas) share the team lead with 12 hits apiece.
• The Bears rank 29th nationally in double plays per game (0.50) with five twin killings in 10 games. The club's average is second in the MVC behind Indiana State's (0.56).
• Madison Jones (Jr., Overland Park, Kan.) is hitting .409 and leads the team with two triples, which ties her for the MVC lead in three-base hits. Jones is also seventh nationally in triples per game.

Head Coach Holly Hesse
Holly Hesse (Creighton, 1982) is 731-726-2 (.502) in her 29th season as head coach at Missouri State and overall.

She the second-winningest coach in Missouri Valley Conference history and joined the 700-victory club with a 4-0 win at Illinois State on April 18, 2015, completing a doubleheader sweep in Normal, Ill.

She is also the winningest softball coach in Missouri State history. Her tenure includes two regular-season MVC titles, five MVC tournament crowns and five NCAA Tournament appearances. Hesse recorded her 300th win in 2000, her 400th win in 2004, her 500th in 2007 and victory number 600 in 2012.  Missouri State leads all schools with 70 wins in the MVC Tournament and Hesse has the second-most MVC Tournament wins with 49.

Hesse's 2016 squad finished ranked 13th in the country with a .973 fielding percentage. The Bears went 22-30 and earned a spot in the MVC Tournament in a do-or-die series to end the regular season.  Her team rallied to the challenge and carried the momentum to the MVC Tournament quarterfinals.

The Series
The Bears are 37-10 all-time against UMKC, including two wins over the Roos last season. MSU defeated UMKC 11-8 on March 4, 2016 behind an 11-hit attack and three-run homer by Kaitlin Beason. The Bears later defeated UMKC on March 10 by a 5-2 count with Erin Duewel slugging a three-run homer and Bearson going 2-for-3.

MSU is 30-9 all-time against SEMO with victories in four of the last five meetings. Last season in St. Louis, the Bears topped the Redhawks, 9-3, on March 5 with Darian Frost going 3-for-4 and Bearson hitting two homers and driving in five.

Missouri State is 39-6-1 against the SLU Billikens, but have dropped four of the last five meetings, including a 4-1 defeat at Saint Louis last year (March 4). In that game, Madison Jones and Duewel went 2-for-3 with Jones slapping a triple against the host team.

Scouting the Opponents
* UMKC
Off to a slow start, host UMKC enters the We Back Pat Tournament on a four-game losing streak. The Roos fell to MVC rival Wichita State twice at the UTA Invitational, followed by two losses to host UT Arlington. The Roos four wins come from UMBC, Rider and Nicholls State.

Carrying a .286 team batting average, the Roos have collected 105 hits and seven homers throughout the beginning of the 2017 season. Kendra Leach leads the UMKC offense with a .410 batting average, 16 hits, a pair of triples and 23 total bases. The junior has also drawn six walks and is three-for-four in stolen bases.

Three Roos – Lia Lombardini, Andra O'Brien and Lynsey Conner – have seen equal time in the circle. Recording only 16 strikeouts this season, the UMKC staff has given up 78 runs off 127 hits. Tossing only 11.1 innings, Alex Larson leads the staff with a 3.71 ERA, one shutout and perfect 2-0 record.

Head coach Meredith Smith enters her ninth season at the helm for UMKC.  

* SEMO
Only losing two games this season, the Southeast Missouri Redhawks are off to a hot start, entering this weekend's tournament with an 8-2 overall record. Falling to Middle Tennessee and UT Arlington, the Redhawks are on a five-game winning streak, taking down Southeastern Louisiana, Buffalo and Alcorn State.

Freshman Addison Barnouski leads the SEMO offense with a .524 batting average, racking up 11 hits in 21 at-bats this season. Six Redhawks carry a .375 batting average or better as the team combines for a .370 batting average. Racking up 35 extra-base hits, SEMO has out-hit its opponents 101-61 through its first 10 games of the 2017 season.

Junior Madeline Krumrey leads the staff with a near-perfect, 4-1 record. The right-hander has recorded 16 strikeouts over 26 innings of work and has tallied two shutouts, as well as two complete games, on the season. Collectively, the SEMO pitching staff has held its opponents to a .260 batting average.

The Billikens look to head coach Mark Redburn who, in his third season at the helm, has already led the Redhawks to half the number of victories from last season.

* Saint Louis
Riding a three-game win streak into KC, Saint Louis enters the We Back Pat Tournament with a 6-4 overall record. The Billikens latest victims include Farleigh Dixon (9-5, five innings), Northwestern State (20-7, six innings) and Chattanooga (5-2).

In the box, the Billikens offense carries a .316 batting average and has lifted 10 balls out of the park. Alyssa Tarquino and Mackenzie Peter lead the squad with 15 hits apiece while Tarquino leads the team with a .484 batting average. Peter, who carries a .455 batting average, leads the squad with four home runs, 14 RBI, 31 total bases and a .393 slugging percentage.

In the circle, Kaylea Chappelle leads the staff with a perfect 2-0 record and 1.98 while Maddie Baalman has seen the most time out on the field, tossing 25 innings. Baalman has tallied 23 strikeouts through four appearances and has held opponents to a .237 batting average.

The Billikens are led by head coach Christy Connoyer, who is in her seventh year as head coach for the Saint Louis softball program.

Up Next
  The Bears travel to Oxford, Ala., next week for the Ohio Valley Tournament where they will play Tennessee State, Jacksonville State, Alabama State, Samford and Belmont from March 10-12.