Softball Bears Set for Road Test at Indiana State

Friday, April 28

Terre Haute, Ind.

2:00 p.m.

Missouri State University

Indiana State

Softball Bears Set for Road Test at Indiana State

April 27, 2023 | Softball

Game Notes (PDF)Watch (Game 1)Watch (Game 2)Watch (Game 3)Live Stats

Missouri State Bears (28-16, 18-3 MVC) at Indiana State Sycamores (24-23, 12-9 MVC)
Schedule	Friday, April 28 \| 2 p.m. CT Saturday, April 29 \| 1 p.m. CT Sunday, April 30 \| 11 a.m. CT
Location & Site	Price Field \| Terre Haute, Ind.
Watch	Game 1 (ESPN+) \| Game 2 (ESPN3) \| Game 3 (ESPN+)
Live Stats	Sidearmstats.com
Missouri State	Game Notes (PDF) \| Softball Home Page \| Media Guide (PDF)
Indiana State	Softball Home Page
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) \| Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	May 5-7 at Murray State \| Murray, Ky.

The Starting Lineup - Storylines for the Indiana State Series

Missouri State won its sixth straight consecutive MVC series, five of which have been sweeps, with a three-game sweep of Belmont last weekend. The Bears currently sit in second place in the MVC standings with an 18-3 conference record following a midweek win over Southern Illinois on Wednesday afternoon that pushed their current win streak to 10 games.
Head coach Holly Hesse captured career victory No. 900 against the Salukis, becoming just the 18th active NCAA Division I head coach with at least 900 wins.
The Bears enter the weekend with a 20-1 record in their last 21 games. Over that span, MSU is outscoring its opponents, 125-49, and is 51-of-58 in stolen base attempts compared to its oppoents who are 16-of-21 in stolen bases. MSU has nearly doubled its opponents in walks with an 82-45 advantage over the last 21 games.
MSU went unbeaten at home this season (15-0), and the Bears extended their home win streak to 18 games which is a Killian Stadium record that dates back to last season. The home win streak ranks 3rd in the NCAA, trailing only Oklahoma (53) and South Dakota State (24).
Missouri State is 26-2 this season when scoring three or more runs and the Bears improve to 10-0 when scoring six or more runs. MSU is also 20-1 on the season when holding opponents to fewer than three runs.
Olivia Krehbiel (Sr., Lee's Summit, Mo.) and McKenzie Vaughan (So., Bella Vista, Ark.) are leading the way offensively for MSU this season. Krehbiel is the reigning MVC Player of the Week after batting .500 (4-for-8) with 7 RBI, 5 runs scored, 4 extra-base hits (3 HR), and a 1.750 SLG% against Belmont. Krehbiel moved into a tie for second place all-time in MSU history with 22 career home runs and her seven RBI made it 100 runs driven in for her career, which is tied for fourth in MSU softball history.
Vaughan is batting a team-high .415 over the last 21 games with 9 home runs, 24 RBI and a .981 SLG%, and she is leading MSU with a .417 average in MVC games. The sophomore also has a hit in 13 consecutive games.
MSU is led by a trio of arms in the circle in Gracie Johnston (Sr., Augusta, Kan.), Mackenzie Chacon (So., Oologah, Okla.) and Vaughan. Chacon leads the staff with a 2.01 ERA, while Johnston owns the most victories with an 11-6 record and Vaughan leads the team with 62 strikeouts and owns two saves. Freshman Makenzi Swick has also pitched crucial innings in the last few weeks as she owns a 4-0 record on the year in 26 innings, while Shelby Houchlei has two saves on the season.
The Bears continue to show off their speed as they rank 18th nationally and first in the MVC with 96 stolen bases, which is tied for the most stolen bases in a single season by the Bears in their NCAA Division I era (1996). MSU is led by freshman Abby Ford who owns a MVC-leading 25 stolen bases, which also ranks 29th nationally. Ellie McCoy is second on the team and tied for 3rd in the Valley as she is 15-for-15 in stolen base attempts.
MSU leads the Valley in the RPI rankings as the Bears sit at No. 74. UNI (81) and SIU (87) join MSU in the Top 100 heading into this weekend's series against Indiana State.

Series History
Missouri State leads the all-time series against Indiana State, 71-29, including a 29-14 record on the road. MSU is on a four-game win streak against the Sycamores, which includes a series sweep in Springfield last season and a victory in game three in Terre Haute in 2021 to clinch the series. The Bears have won the last seven series against Indiana State.