Saturday, May 5
Des Moines, Iowa
12:00 PM
Missouri State University
at
Drake
Softball Bears Travel To Top-Ranked Drake for Final MVC Series
May 03, 2018 | Softball
SPRINGFIELD – The Missouri State softball team (32-16, 17-5 MVC) is set close out Missouri Valley Conference play at Drake this weekend with a three-game series in Des Moines, Iowa. Saturday's doubleheader is set to begin at 12 p.m. and Sunday's series finale is slated for 11 a.m. at Buel Field.
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Live stats, live updates and live streams on ESPN+ will be available for all three contests.
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The Starting Lineup
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. 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.
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She is the winningest coach in Missouri State history with a 781-763-2 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.
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Hesse is 39-47-1 all-time against Drake.
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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.
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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.
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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.Â
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Series History
Drake leads the all-time series, 51-48-1, in a rivalry that dates back to 1979. The Bears are 23-21 all-time in Des Moines and have won two of the last three series there.
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Last year in Springfield, the Bulldogs won both games of a low-scoring series at Killian Stadium, 3-1 and 1-0, on April 28. Hailee Vigneaux went 1-for-3 with an RBI in the first game, while Kaitlin Beason struck out her 100th career batter. In the second game, Vigneaux collected her 100th career hit, and Holly Kelley allowed one earned run in 4.1 innings. MSU avenged the loss at the MVC Tournament in Normal on May 11, 2-1, as Kelley tossed a no-hitter, and Mary Stephens smacked a two-run double.
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Academic Leaders
Missouri State University ranked second among the nation's NCAA Division I softball programs in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association's Academic Team rankings for the 2016-17 academic year. The Bears boasted an impressive 3.648 team grade-point average to rank No. 2 among the nation's major programs in the organization's annual academic release. A total of 143 Division I teams accumulated grade-point averages of 3.00 or higher in 2016-17.
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Young Guns
Missouri State's great crop of young talent has produced five weekly awards from the Missouri Valley Conference this season with freshmen Daphne Plummer (Feb. 19) and Madison Hunsaker (March 19) earning MVC Newcomer of the Week this spring. Plummer was also named MVC Player of the Week on April 30. Sophomore pitcher Erin Griesbauer earned MVC Pitcher of the Week on March 19. Griesbauer also earned MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week honors on March 11.
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Walk-Off Drama
Darian Frost's walk-off grand slam against Southern Illinois on April 17 was her second game-ending home run of the 2018 season. She also hit a walk-off solo homer in the 9th inning of MSU's win over Illinois State on March 17. On April 28, Kaitlin Beason hit a walk-off solo homer to defeat Indiana State on Senior Day at Killian Stadium, 5-4. MSU has won 10 games in 2018 in its final at-bat with six walk-offs.
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Final Details
Saturday's doubleheader is set to begin at 12 p.m. in Des Moines, Iowa. Live stats, live updates and live streams on ESPN+ will be available. For all the latest information on the Missouri State softball team, visit MissouriStateBears.com or follow @MSUSoftball on Twitter.
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Live stats, live updates and live streams on ESPN+ will be available for all three contests.
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| Missouri State (32-16, 17-5 MVC) vs. Drake (38-10, 21-1 MVC) | |
| Dates | Saturday, May 5 | Sunday, May 6 |
| Site | Location | Buel Field | Des Moines, Iowa |
| Game 1 | Saturday at 12 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+ |
| Game 2Â Â | Saturday at 2 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+ |
| Game 3 | Sunday at 11 a.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+ |
| Missouri State | Game Notes | Softball Home Page | Twitter |
The Starting Lineup
- Daphne Plummer (Fr., Lee's Summit, Mo.) hit .478 (22-for-46) during the month of April with 5 doubles and a .630 slugging percentage. The MVC Player of the Week hit .714 (5-for-7) in MSU's series sweep of Indiana State last weekend in Springfield and has a club-high 26 hits this season with 2 outs.
- With 194 career hits, Erika Velasquez Zimmer (Sr., Coppell, Texas) ranks 5th in MSU program history. Only four MSU players -- Barb Gaines (1990-93), Sarah Madden (1997-00), Kate Madden (1993-96) and Diedre Shores (1995- 98) have collected 200 career hits. Zimmer is already MSU's career leader in stolen bases (63), while her 108 runs and 596 at-bats both rank 5th on the Bears' career chart.
- Plummer has matched teammate Velasquez Zimmer's MSU freshman record for hits in a season with 57. Plummer currently leads all Valley freshman in hits and batting average (.375). No Bears' freshman standout has ever hit better than .365 in a season (Zimmer hit .361).
- The Bears were 12-2 in the month of April and have won five straight MVC series. Missouri State batted .277 during that stretch with a team ERA of 2.21.
- Missouri State, which is 17-5 in MVC play this season, is one conference win shy of matching a program record. The Bears, who were 17-9 in 2015, are chasing an 18-4 MVC mark by the 2006 squad.
- In 2018, the Bears are 20-4 when they score first and 23-3 when they out-hit their opponent.
- In the month of April, Madison Jones (Sr., Overland Park, Kan.) was second on the club -- behind Plummer -- with 16 hits, batting .333 (16-for-48). Her 5 career hits against Drake is the most by any current MSU player.
- Holly Kelley (Sr., Cypress, Texas) was 5-0 in the circle during the month of April with a 1.97 ERA. This season, the Bears are 15-3 when Kelley starts.
- MSU was 13-5 (.722) at Killian Stadium this year, marking the highest winning percentage and the second-most home wins in the 10-year history of the 1,200-seat facility. The Bears were 14-9 at home in 2011.
- This year's MSU win total (32) is the second-highest by the Bears since 1997, trailing only the 2006 squad which won a school-record 40 games (40-17).
- All-time Bears' great Barb Gaines (1990-93) was named to the MVC All-25 Year Team on April 26. Gaines, the program's only NFCA Division I All-American, had a career batting average of .403 -- tops on MSU's career list -- and is also the program's career hits leader with 252.
- Darian Frost (Jr., Lee's Summit, Mo.) ranks 4th nationally in sacrifice flies (6), and 29 of her team-high 32 RBI have come in MSU wins this season.
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. 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.
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She is the winningest coach in Missouri State history with a 781-763-2 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.
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Hesse is 39-47-1 all-time against Drake.
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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.
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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.
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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.Â
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Series History
Drake leads the all-time series, 51-48-1, in a rivalry that dates back to 1979. The Bears are 23-21 all-time in Des Moines and have won two of the last three series there.
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Last year in Springfield, the Bulldogs won both games of a low-scoring series at Killian Stadium, 3-1 and 1-0, on April 28. Hailee Vigneaux went 1-for-3 with an RBI in the first game, while Kaitlin Beason struck out her 100th career batter. In the second game, Vigneaux collected her 100th career hit, and Holly Kelley allowed one earned run in 4.1 innings. MSU avenged the loss at the MVC Tournament in Normal on May 11, 2-1, as Kelley tossed a no-hitter, and Mary Stephens smacked a two-run double.
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Academic Leaders
Missouri State University ranked second among the nation's NCAA Division I softball programs in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association's Academic Team rankings for the 2016-17 academic year. The Bears boasted an impressive 3.648 team grade-point average to rank No. 2 among the nation's major programs in the organization's annual academic release. A total of 143 Division I teams accumulated grade-point averages of 3.00 or higher in 2016-17.
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Young Guns
Missouri State's great crop of young talent has produced five weekly awards from the Missouri Valley Conference this season with freshmen Daphne Plummer (Feb. 19) and Madison Hunsaker (March 19) earning MVC Newcomer of the Week this spring. Plummer was also named MVC Player of the Week on April 30. Sophomore pitcher Erin Griesbauer earned MVC Pitcher of the Week on March 19. Griesbauer also earned MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week honors on March 11.
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Walk-Off Drama
Darian Frost's walk-off grand slam against Southern Illinois on April 17 was her second game-ending home run of the 2018 season. She also hit a walk-off solo homer in the 9th inning of MSU's win over Illinois State on March 17. On April 28, Kaitlin Beason hit a walk-off solo homer to defeat Indiana State on Senior Day at Killian Stadium, 5-4. MSU has won 10 games in 2018 in its final at-bat with six walk-offs.
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Final Details
Saturday's doubleheader is set to begin at 12 p.m. in Des Moines, Iowa. Live stats, live updates and live streams on ESPN+ will be available. For all the latest information on the Missouri State softball team, visit MissouriStateBears.com or follow @MSUSoftball on Twitter.
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#MSUBearsÂ
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