SPRINGFIELD – The Missouri State softball team (18-12) interrupts Missouri Valley Conference action with an in-state matchup on Wednesday, Mar. 18, at Saint Louis. First pitch at the Billiken Sports Center is scheduled for 4 p.m.
 

Missouri State (18-12) at Saint Louis (16-13)
Date & Time	Wednesday, Mar. 28 | 4:00 p.m.
Site | Location	Billiken Sports Complex | St. Louis, Mo.
Follow Along	Live Stats
Missouri State	Softball Home Page | Twitter

The Starting Lineup

• Erika Velasquez Zimmer and Daphne Plummer both rank in the Valley top-10 with over 30 hits apiece. Velasquez Zimmer ranks sixth in the league and leads the Bears with 32 hits while Plummer ties for seventh in the MVC with 31.
• Senior standout Kaitlin Beason leads the MSU lineup with a .347 average at the plate. She has racked up 26 hits and has tallied nine extra-base hits – six doubles and three home runs. A force to be reckoned with, Beason has been walked a team-high 10 times this season and has been plunked by a pitch twice.
• Senior hurler Holly Kelley ranks 27^th in the nation with four shutouts, 49^th in hits allowed per seven innings, as well as 89^th in strikeouts per seven innings. She leads the MSU staff with a 7-3 record and five complete games. Kelley has fanned 64 batters this season and limits hitters to an impressive .185 batting average.
• Plummer has struck out just once for every 16.6 at-bats this season, which ranks tops on the team and among the nation's top 150 in toughest to strike out.
• The MSU lineup has out-scored its opponents 131-104 this season and has tallied 56 extra-base hits while opponents have gathered 52. Additionally, MSU has out-hit the competition 216-184 and has brought in 20 more RBI.
• With 12 steals under her belt this season, Velasquez Zimmer is now tied for second in the MSU career record books with 58 stolen bases. She recorded a season-high two steals against Mississippi Valley State (Feb. 11) and Omaha (Feb. 11) and has been caught stealing just two times this year.
• The Bears rank fifth in the nation and lead the Valley in triples per game. MSU has tallied an impressive 12 triples this season, where Kyana Mason and Madison Jones lead the lineup – and the league – with three apiece. Velasquez Zimmer has recorded two triples while Darian Frost,  Plummer and Madison Hunsaker have recorded one each.
• Hunsaker unleashed the Bears first grand slam of the season with a monster shot over the center field wall in MSU's 11-5 victory over UMKC. She recorded her first home run of the season on Mar. 16 against Illinois State and now holds two homers on the season.
• 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.

 
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 767-759-2 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. 
 
Battling the Billikens
Saint Louis enters Wednesday's contest with a 16-13 overall record and 2-1 mark in Atlantic 10 play. The Billikens lost to MSU victims Western Illinois, Louisiana Tech and UMass Lowell earlier this season. Sadie Wise leads Saint Louis at the plate with 38 hits, 31 RBI, 10 home runs and a stout .418 batting average. Maddie Baalman leads the Billikens' efforts in the circle with 78 strikeouts in 102 complete innings. The senior carries an 11-8 record and has tossed two shutouts this season. The Billikens are led by Christy Connoyer, who is in her eighth season as head coach for the Saint Louis softball program.
 
Series History
Meeting for the first time in 1977, Missouri State holds a commanding 39-7-1 all-time series lead over Saint Louis. The Bears and Billikens were scheduled to face each other at the Louisiana Tech Invitational earlier this season, but rain washed out the contest in Ruston, La. The Billikens have won the last three meetings and MSU's last victory was a 3-1 decision on Mar. 2, 2012.
 
Final Details
First pitch on Wednesday is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Billiken Sport Complex. Live stats and live updates will be available for the contest. For all the latest information on the Missouri State softball team, visit missouristatebears.com or follow @MSUSoftball on Twitter.