Softball Preview: Busy weekend, with EC, WW and Oshkosh

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TODAY'S GAMES: The UW-Eau Claire at UW-Stout softball games for Wednesday, April 26 have been postponed. The games are scheduled for Friday, April 28 at 4 p.m. at UW-Stout's Alumni Field.

The St. Olaf College at UW-Stout doubleheader for Tuesday, April 25 has been cancelled. The games will not be made up.

THIS WEEK'S GAMES: It's a busy week for the Blue Devils (16-16, 5-3 WIAC) as the team wraps up the regular season and the home portion of their schedule with four home doubleheaders, three of them in conference play. The Blue Devils open the week with a non-conference contest against St. Olaf College, (23-11, 12-6 MIAC) Tuesday, April 25 at 4 p.m., followed by a conference doubleheader with UW-Eau Claire, (23-9, 4-6 WIAC) Wednesday, April 26 at 4 p.m. The Blue Devils then get a break until the weekend when they host UW-Whitewater, (29-7, 10-0 WIAC) Saturday, April 29 at 3 p.m. and conclude the regular season by hosting UW-Oshkosh, (25-9, 5-5 WIAC) Sunday, April 30 at 1 p.m. for Senior Day.  Playing their last regular season home games will be McKayla Brunner, Heather Bol, Kim Jablonski and Mariah Diercks. Heading into the week, the Blue Devils are in third place in the WIAC, with at least four games to play for each team.

UW-STOUT:  Kyncaide Diedrich leads the team in average with a .400 (36-90). Diedrich leads the team in runs scored (28), slugging percentage (.600) and stolen bases (19-23), not bad for someone who took last season off to concentrate on basketball in her first year at school. Now, Diedrich plays both sports and was an all-WIAC basketball honorable mention selection. Diedrich has also been effective in the circle, with a team-best 3.19 and a 5-2 overall record over nine starts. Diedrich has notched 24 Ks, behind only Beth Wood who has tossed a career-best 41 strikeouts, eclipsing her total of 35 from her first two seasons. Wood has an ERA of 3.30 over 14 starts, and 16 appearances in a team-high 80.0 innings pitched. Wood wields a pretty good bat, hitting at a .388 clip (38-98) with 14 RBI. Senior McKayla Brunner has found her stride in the pitching circle as of late. Previous to allowing one earned run against UW-Platteville Sunday, Brunner had gone seven appearances, dating from March 26 to April 21 without allowing an earned run, a streak of 20.2 innings. Rachel Thomas is hitting .387 (43-111) with 14 RBI, with four doubles, two triples and one home run. Sophomore Kaylee Francois is hitting .383 (31-81) with 11 RBI and a team-best 10 doubles. Freshman Megan  Hultgren, who plays both third base and catches, is hitting .303 (20-66) with five doubles and 10 RBI. Alicia Meyer leads the team in home runs with five and has 17 RBI.  Senior Heather Bol has 15 RBI. As a team, the Blue Devils have turned up their offense from last year. Stout finished the year with 153 runs and this season has 170. Stout had 273 hits last year, this year 276 and last season punched out 33 doubles compared to 47 for this year. As a team, Stout is batting .318 compared to last year's final of 273.   | 2017 Statistics

BLUE DEVILS LAST TIME OUT:  The Blue Devils grabbed three wins over a six game road stretch over the weekend. Splitting in all three double headers. They won a tight 9-8 game against River Falls, 4-1 vs La Crosse, and finally 9-1 over Platteville. | River Falls Game Story and Statistics  | La Crosse Game Story and Statistics | Platteville Point Game Story and Statistics

CLIMBING THE LADDER: Kyncaide Diedrich has stolen 19 bases in 23 attempts this season, moving her into fifth on the single season stolen base list.

WIAC PRESEASON POLL The Blue Devils were selected to finish fifth, according to a WIAC preseason poll. UW-Eau Claire was picked first, followed by UW-Whitewater, UW-Oshkosh and UW-La Crosse. UW-River Falls, UW-Stevens Point and UW-Platteville were chosen sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively.

ST. OLAF: The Oles are 23-11 and sit fourth overall in the MIAC. Emily Carr is hitting .417 in 96 at bats. She has 12 doubles, six triples and five homers on the season, driving in a team-leading 28 RBI. The Oles have a powerhouse of a pitcher in Julie Graf. Graf has 19 wins, two shy of the school record, and only four losses in 27 appearances. Graf holds a 0.90 ERA in 150 innings pitches, which is good for 13th in the nation. Graf is ranked fourth in Division III in strikeouts with 232 this season alone. That is 1.54 strikeouts per inning.  The Oles, who last year finished the year at 14-19 overall, 8-14 in the MIAC, are coming off narrow 2-0 and 1-0 wins over Gustavus Adolphus Sunday. The Oles did split with crosstown rival Carleton College Saturday, dropping the first game 3-2, but winning the second 1-0.  In six games last week, five were decided by a run and the other was the game one, 2-0 win over Gustavus.  The Oles have nine shutouts this season, with Graf commandeering seven.  | 2017 Statistics

LAST TIME THEY MET: The Blue Devils and the Oles last met during the 2015 season at the Irish Dome in Rosemount, Minn., with Stout taking 3-1 and 10-0 wins. Stout has won the last six games over St. Olaf, with the Oles' last wins over the Blue Devils coming in the 2012 season, a 6-2, 2-1 Ole sweep.  | 2015 Game Story and Statistics


UW-EAU CLAIRE: The Blugolds have won four straight after getting swept by UW-La Crosse, downing UW-Stevens Point and St. Scholastica and sit 4-6 in the WIAC right behind the Blue Devils. Rachel Heffel has been a consistent hitter from the outfield. In 108 at bats, Heffel has a .343 average, with one double, triple, and home run to her name. Lauren Blasczyk has 21 appearances in the circle for Eau Claire, including 18 starts. She has 11 wins in those games, and has struck out 77. |  2017 Statistics

LAST TIME STOUT AND EAU CLAIRE MET: The Blugolds won both games in Eau Claire last season, winning 9-3, 5-4. Stout's last wins over the Blugolds came during the 2014 when Stout swept the doubleheader, 8-6, 8-4 in nine innings.  | Game Stories and Statistics


UW-WHITEWATER: The Warhawks are 10-0 to lead the WIAC this season, are 29-7 overall and are 19-2 in the month of April. Since falling to Illinois Wesleyan April 19, the Warhawks have won their last six games, including a two game sweep of UW-Oshkosh, April 22. The Warhawk are currently 13th in the latest NFCA Top 25 rankings. Whitewater is scheduled to compete at UW-River Falls Friday, April 28 (they moved the game from Sunday to Friday). A sweep over the Falcons will give Whitewater the top seed in the WIAC tournament before coming to Menomonie on Saturday.  Three Warhawks are hitting over .400: Haley Morelli at .453, Mallory Klotz at .453, and Amy Ricci at .407. Morelli, Ricci and Meg Cohrs are 1-2-3 in the WIAC in RBI, with Morelli at 41, Ricci at 35 and Cohrs at 33. Klotz and Morelli lead the WIAC in batting average and Morelli leads the league and is eighth nationally in home runs with 11. Caitlin Catino is perfect in 13 stolen base attempts as is Morelli in nine attempts. Bella Mathias is Whitewater's top pitcher, owning a 1.30 ERA in 107.2 innings. She's also struck out a WIAC leading 99 batters.    |  2017 Statistics

LAST TIME STOUT AND WHITEWATER MET: The Blue Devils played the Warhawks three times last year, winning the first game early in the season, 6-2, in Whitewater, but dropping the second game of the series, 9-8 in nine innings. The teams faced each other in the opening round of the WIAC Tournament for the second consecutive year, with the Warhawks edging out a 3-2 win. | Regular Season Game Story and Statistics | WIAC Game Story and Statistics


UW-OSHKOSH: The Titans are second in the WIAC after dropping two games to UW-Whitewater, but still set well at 25-9 overall and 5-5 in the WIAC. Oshkosh is tied for 18th in the latest NFCA Top 25 poll. The Titans are scheduled to be at UW-River Falls Saturday and are coming off a split at UW-Stevens Point Wednesday. The Titans took the first game, 6-1, but dropped the second, 9-6. All four regular pitchers for the Titans sit with an ERA under 3.00.  Claire PetrusClare Robbe, who has started twice and in come in out of the bullpen 13 times, has an ERA of 1.57 with 21 strikeouts over 35.2 innings. Bailey Smaney has an ERA of 1.97 with 29 strikeouts over 49.2 innings, making 10 starts. Sarah Brunlieb has started 16 games, completed five for 89.0 innings with an ERA of 2.52 and a team-best 84 striketouts over 89 innings pitched. Clare Robbe, who has made six starts and 16 appearances, has an ERA of 2.75 with 29 strikeouts in 51.0 innings pitched. From the plate, Erika Berry is hitting .380 with 21 RBI and five home runs. Berry is not afraid to lay the bunt down, leading the team with eight sacrifice hits. Abby Menting is hitting .376  with 19 RBI. Sophomore Kaitlyn  Krol is hitting .353 with 12 doubles, a team-high 23 RBI and two home runs. Claire Petrus is hitting .338 with 21 RBI.  | 2017 Statistics

LAST TIME STOUT AND OSHKOSH MET: The Titans had the Blue Devils' number last season, winning two shortened games, 9-1 in five innings, and 9-1 in six innings, early in the regular season. The Titans put an end to the Blue Devils' season with a 5-2 win in the second round of the WIAC Championship. | Regular Season Games Story and Statistics | WIAC Game Story and Statistics


NFCA RANKINGS: UW-Whitewater is ranked 13th in the April 26, NFCA Division III poll. UW-Oshkosh is  tied for 18th. Eau Claire has dropped out on the top 25. Stout is scheduled to wrap up WIAC play by hosting all three.  |  NFCA Top 25 poll

BLUE DEVILS LAST SEASON: The Blue Devils were 17-21 overall and 6-8 in league play. The Blue Devils advanced to the WIAC tournament. | 2016 Statistics

AWARDS AND HONORS: McKayla Brunner was selected as the WIAC pitcher of the week April 25 after allowing only one earned run over six games...Kaylee Francois was selected the UW-Stout/DigiCopy Athlete of the Week April 12...Pitcher/infielder Beth Wood and catcher/outfielder Rachel Thomas were 2016 all-WIAC honorable mention selections...2016: Tori Workman was selected as the 2015-16 UW-Stout female athlete of the year...Nicole Rogers received the 2016 WMG Humanitarian Award...Tori Workman was selected the UW-Stout/Northwestern Athlete of the Week, April 26, after notching her school record 54th career win...Tori Workman was the WIAC pitcher of the week after allowing no earned runs in a loss to St. Benedict to open the season and after seeing action in the circle in seven of UW-Stout's final 10 games at the Fastpitch Dreams Softball Classic in North Myrtle Beach, S.C. She started four games in South Carolina, finishing with an ERA of 1.28 and a record of 3-2....Tori Workman was a first team all-WIAC selection in 2015.


COACHES: Blue Devil coach Becky Iaccino (54-55 overall, 33-37 at UW-Stout) is in her second year as the head coach of the Blue Devils. Iaccino played professionally in Italy from 2003 to 2011 and with the Italian National team from 2005-07. She has been the head coach at Marian University where she was selected as conference coach of the year, and has eight years of experience as an assistant coach at Division I and III programs. ST. OLAF: Kayla Hatting is in her first year as the Oles' head coach. Hatting spent the previous two seasons as a graduate assistant at Division II Augustana University in Sioux Falls, S.D. She coached catchers and outfielders, helping the Vikings to a NCAA super regional appearance in 2015 as Augustana posted a 53-11 record, including a 28-2 mark in league play. In 2016, Augustana was 35-19 and 21-8 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. ...UW-EAU CLAIRE: Leslie Huntington is in her 16th season and is the Blugolds' all-time winningest coach and earned her 400th career win on March 20, 2016.  In 2008 Huntington led the Blugolds to an NCAA Division III national championship, the first in program history. In 2007 the team finished third in the nation. Between 2004-2006, Huntington received three WIAC Coach of the Year awards in a row, each year the Blugolds won WIAC titles, the first time in WIAC history a team won three straight. She was also named WIAC Coach of the Year in 2012.She has coached seven All-Americans, 40 recipients of All-Region recognition, 46 named first time All-WIAC selections, and eight Academic All-District selections and one Academic All-American....UW-WHITEWATER:  Brenda Volk is in her 19th year as the Warhawks' head coach.  Volk has led the Warhawks to five Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships, six WIAC Tournament titles and 10 NCAA Tournament appearances. Volk has been named WIAC Coach of the Year five times during her career. Volk, along with her coaching staff, was also recognized as NFCA Great Lakes Region Coaching Staff of the Year in 1999, 2008 and 2014. ...UW-OSHKOSH: Scott Beyer is in his fourth year at Oshkosh and enters the season with a 79-36 overall record. Beyer has coached eight UW-Oshkosh players to 12 total all-region honors and eight players to 13 total all-conference awards, including 2015 WIAC Pitcher of the Year Sara Brunlieb and 2016 WIAC Co-Postion Player of the Year Abby Menting. In 2014, a program record-tying five Titans received all-region accolades. In Beyer's first three seasons at the helm, UW-Oshkosh has established new school records in batting average, doubles, triples, home runs, stolen bases, slugging percentage and fielding percentage.

GRAND APPEARANCE: Alicia Meyer hit a grand slam against the College of Mount St. Vincent, March 14. Meyer had six RBI in the game. Previous to Meyer's grand slam, the last 4-RBI round tripper came March 8, 2013 by Alison Gray against St. Olaf College.

GRAND SLAMS
Alicia Meyer vs. the College of Mount St. Vincent, March 14, 2017
Alison Gray vs. St. Olaf College, March 8, 2013

ON DECK:  The regular season will be over. The WIAC Softball Championship is scheduled for May 5-7 at the highest seeded team.