SPRINGFIELD – The Missouri State softball team travels to San Antonio, Texas, where they will take on four seperate teams at the UTSA Softball Classic on Feb. 16-18. Friday, the Bears kick off the tournament with inaugural games against Prairie View A&M and Lamar, followed by a pair of games against Kansas and host UTSA on Saturday. The Bears will wrap up the tournament Sunday morning with a second matchup against the Jayhawks.
 

UTSA Softball Classic
Dates	Friday, Feb. 16 | Saturday, Feb. 17 | Sunday, Feb. 18
Site | Location	Roadrunner Field | San Antonio, Texas
Game 1	Friday at 9 a.m. – MSU vs. Prairie View A&M | Live Stats
Game 2	Friday at 11:30 a.m. – MSU vs. Lamar | Live Stats
Game 3	Saturday at 2 p.m. – MSU vs. Kansas | Live Stats
Game 4	Saturday at 7 p.m. – MSU at UTSA | Live Stats
Game 4	Sunday at 10 a.m. – MSU vs. Kansas | Live Stats
Missouri State	Game Notes | Softball Home Page | Twitter

The Starting Lineup

• On February 9, 2018, MSU head coach Holly Hesse eclipsed the 750 career-victory mark thanks to the Bears' 4-0 win over Mississippi Valley State. Only 37 active Division I coaches have reached 750 career victories. Hesse is in her 30th season as MSU head coach and is the second-winningest coach in MVC history behind Illinois State's Melinda Fischer. Hesse was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame on January 28th, 2018.
• After posting a 23-26 overall record and 10-16 league mark in 2017, the Bears were picked to finish fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll.
• Senior hurler Holly Kelley posted a career-high 12 strikeouts in the Bears' 4-0 victory against Mississippi Valley State on Friday, Feb. 9. Kelley threw five multiple-strikeout innings while limiting the Devilettes to just two hits.
• Capitalizing on offense, the Bears posted a season-high 16 runs in the squad's 16-2 victory over Omaha on Sunday, Feb. 11. The last time Missouri State brought in 16 runs dates back to March 12, 2013 when the Bears ground out a 16-5 win at Memphis.
• Led by senior speedster Erika Velasquez Zimmer, the Bears were a perfect 8-for-8 on the base paths over opening weekend. Velasquez Zimmer led MSU, as well as the Missouri Valley Conference, with four steals. Redshirt sophomore Hannah Heinrichs followed closely with two steals while Hailee Vigneaux and newcomer Daphne Plummer both picked up one.
• Making her Missouri State debut at the Bulldog Kickoff Classic, freshman shortstop Daphne Plummer made major contributions to the Bears' offense and defense. Plummer, who rides a four-game hitting streak, leads the Missouri State offense with a .500 batting average, a .615 on-base percentage and six assists.
• The Bears boasted an impressive 3.648 team grade-point average to rank No. 2 among the nation's major programs in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association's annual academic release.
• In total, 17 members of Missouri State's 19-man roster were named to the Missouri State Athletics Director's Honor Roll.
• Two senior Bears are nearing 150 games played in their Missouri State careers. Senior Erika Velasquez Zimmer has seen the most action on the Bears' 2018 squad, making 148 appearances and 140 starts. Following closely behind is Hailee Vigneaux, who is just two starts shy of 130 in her career. The everyday outfielder has appeared in 147 games during her time at Missouri State.

 
Head Coach Holly Hesse
Head coach Holly Hesse enters her 30th season leading the Bears' program as the second-winningest coach in Missouri Valley Conference history with 751 victories. Hesse 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 the winningest coach in Missouri State history with a 751-749-2 record. 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 72 wins in the MVC Tournament and Hesse is tied with the most tournament wins at 50. Hesse was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame on January 28th, 2018.
 
The National Fastpitch Coaches Association has recognized her program four times as a NFCA Division I Top 10 All-Academic Team including 1999, 2000, 2016 and 2017. The 2017 Bears ranked second in the nation with a 3.648 team GPA.
 
In 2017, the Bears finished with three all-conference selections, including first-team pick Bethany Sullinger, and three MVC Scholar-Athlete selections in Kaitlin Beason, Erika Velasquez-Zimmer and Sullinger. Velasquez Zimmer also represented the Bears on the NFCA All-Region Team. Junior Holly Kelley also stood out, earning a spot on the MVC All-Tournament Team after tossing an opening-round no-hitter against Drake, the first at the Valley Tournament in 27 years. Likewise, senior Mary Stephens earned NFCA National Player of the Week on Feb. 14 after a sensational opening weekend.
 
In 2016, the Missouri State University Board of Governors honored coach Hesse with the Staff Excellence in Public Affairs Award in recognition of her distinctive work and accomplishments in support of Missouri States public affairs mission. 
 
Prepping for the Lady Panthers
The Lady Panthers open up the 2018 season at the UTSA Softball Classic after posting a 20-28 overall record in 2017. Prairie View A&M returns 19 letterwinners from last season's squad, while losing just three. On the offensive side of the dish, PVAMU will look to Kylar Ward-Flowers to lead the way. Ward-Flowers ranked second on the team with a .357 batting average while racking up 41 hits, five doubles and five home runs. The Lady Panthers return junior hurler Ashley Higgins, who led the pitching staff with 52 strikeouts a 12-16 record in her sophomore campaign. PVAMU is led by Vernon Bland, who enters his ninth season with the Lady Panthers. This will be the first meeting between Missouri State and PVAMU.
 
Caging the Cardinals
Heading into week two of competition, Lamar enters the weekend with a 1-2 overall record. Their only win this season was a 10-9 thriller against Virginia Tech last weekend at the Sand Dollar Classic. Offensively, Paige Holmes leads the Cardinals with three hits and four RBIS while Shelby Hughston paces the lineup with a .400 batting average. As a pitching staff, Lamar posted a 7.23 ERA on opening weekend. Senior Laura Napoli saw the majority of action and limited hitters to a .294 batting average. Holly Bruder enters her fourth season as head coach at Lamar. This will be the first meeting between the Bears and Cardinals.
 
Jumping the Jayhawks
Off to a hot start, Kansas boasts a 4-1 overall record heading into the weekend.  The Jayhawks, led by Mikayla Warren, combined for 31 hits, five home runs and a .240 team batting average over opening weekend. Warren currently leads the squad with a .500 batting average where she gathered four hits and two RBIs. In the circle, senior Sarah Miller was a near-perfect 2-1 while junior Andie Formby racked up a team-leading 13 strikeouts over 15 innings of work. Entering her ninth season at the helm, head coach Megan Smith has posted a 246-179 record at Kansas. With a series history that dates back to 1975, the Jayhawks hold a 73-19 all-time series lead over the Bears. MSU's last victory against Kansas dates back to the 2010 season when the Bears claimed an 8-7 ball game in Lawrence, Kan.
 
Ruffling the Roadrunners
Hosting the weekend's tournament, UTSA came out of opening weekend with a 2-1 overall record. The Roadrunners broke out a 6-4 win against Valley foe Southern Illinois and defeated MSU opponent Abilene Christian by a score of 4-2. In the batter's box, sophomore Celeste Loughman leads the Roadrunners with six hits, one triple and a .545 batting average. Newcomer Madison Nelson leads the UTSA pitching staff with a 1-0 record and .95 ERA while veteran Lizzy Fox maintains a 1-1 overall record. The Roadrunners are led by Michelle Cheatham, who enters her fifth season as head coach of the program. UTSA holds a slim, 4-1 all-time series lead over the Bears. Missouri State claimed the last meeting between the two teams in 2013, taking the contest 10-2 in five innings.
 
Final Details
Action at the UTSA Softball Classic begins on Friday, Feb. 16, where the Bears will face Prairie View A&M and Lamar University. Live stats and live updates will be available for each game at Roadrunner Field. For all the latest information on the Missouri State softball team, visit missouristatebears.com or follow @MSUSoftball on Twitter.