Softball Closes Out Regular Season at Murray State

Saturday, May 6

Murray, Ky.

1:00 p.m.

Missouri State University

Murray State

Softball defeated Southern Illinois on April 26, 2023. The game marked 900 wins for head coach Holly Hesse. Jesse Scheve/Missouri State University

Softball Closes Out Regular Season at Murray State

May 03, 2023 | Softball

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

Missouri State Bears (29-18, 19-5 MVC) at Murray State Racers (32-18, 16-8 MVC)
Schedule	Saturday, May 6 \| Doubleheader begininning at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 7 \| 12 p.m.
Location & Site	Racer Field \| Murray, Ky.
Watch	Game 1 \| Game 2 \| Game 3
Live Stats	Game 1 \| Game 2 \| Game 3
Missouri State	Game Notes (PDF) \| Softball Home Page \| Media Guide (PDF)
Murray State	Softball Home Page
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) \| Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	MVC Softball Championship \| May 10-13 \| Carbondale, Ill.

The Starting Lineup - Storylines for the Murray State Series

Missouri State went 2-2 last week to move to 29-18 on the season and 19-5 in MVC games. The Bears currently sit in second place in the MVC standings with three games left to play in the regular season. MSU is looking for its first 30-win season since 2019 and its first-ever 20-win conference season.
Head coach Holly Hesse captured career victory No. 900 on April 26 against Southern Illinois to become just the 18th active NCAA Division I head coach with at least 900 wins.
The Bears enter the weekend with a 21-3 record in their last 24 games. Over that span, MSU is outscoring its opponents, 139-65, and is 52-of-60 in stolen base attempts compared to its oppoents who are 19-of-24. Missouri State also owns an 89-56 advantage in walks over the last 24 games.
McKenzie Vaughan (So., Bella Vista, Ark.) leading the way for MSU offensively this season. The sophomore owns a team-leaing .333 batting average, 14 home runs, 33 RBI, .817 SLG% and .475 OB%. Vaughan broke MSU's single-season home run record on 4/29/23 at Indiana State and is currently tied for seventh in career home runs at MSU with 19. Her 14 long balls this season rank 4th in the MVC and 28th nationally. Against Valley foes, her numbers rise to a .407 average, 1.000 SLG% and .544 OB%. She has recorded a hit in 16 consecutive games.
Ellie McCoy (Jr., Hastings, Neb.) is currently MSU's second-leading hitter with a .316 average. Last weekend at Indiana State she paced MSU in hits and average, as she went 7-for-15 (.467) with a double, an RBI and three runs scored.
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 NCAA Divison I, trailing only Oklahoma (56) and South Dakota State (24).
Missouri State is 27-3 this season when scoring three or more runs and the Bears improve to 11-0 when scoring six or more runs. MSU is also 20-1 on the season when holding opponents to fewer than three runs.
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 2.30 ERA and owns a 6-0 record in conference action, while Johnston owns the most victories with an 11-7 record and Vaughan leads the team with 67 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 30.1 innings, while Shelby Houchlei also has two saves on the season.
The Bears continue to show off their speed as they rank 20th nationally and first in the MVC with 97 stolen bases, which is the most stolen bases in a single season by the Bears in their NCAA Division I era. MSU is led by freshman Abby Ford who owns a MVC-leading 26 stolen bases, which also ranks 29th nationally. Ellie McCoy is second on the team and tied for 4th 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. 77. SIU (78) and UNI (86) join MSU in the Top 100 heading into this weekend's series at Murray State.

Series History
Missouri State trails in the all-time series against Murray State, 1-2, all of which were played at neutral site locations. The two teams last met in 2020 at the Mizuno Classic hosted by Oklahoma and Oklahoma State in the Bears' final tournament prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bears and Racers split the two games with each squad earning an 8-0 victory on March 6 and 7, respecitvely. Their first-ever meeting took place on Feb. 20, 2016 with Murray State capturing a nine-inning, 1-0, victory.