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The Youngstown State softball team prepares for a busy week with five games in a four-day span when it hosts Dayton before heading to Dayton, Ohio, for a Horizon League three-game series at Wright State.
The Guins host the Dayton Flyers on Thursday, March 31, in a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. The Penguins and Raiders will face each other in a doubleheader on Saturday, April 2, at 1 p.m. and a single game on Sunday, April 3, at Noon.
The Guins are coming off a tough weekend losing three straight Horizon League games to Loyola on March 26 and 27. It marked the first time this season the Guins have lost three straight games.
The Guins have displayed an explosive offensive at times and have two players batting over .400 - junior Jordan Ingalls (.456) and senior Kristina Rendle (.418) - and three others above .300 - sophomores Vicky Rumph (.337) and Sarah Gabel (.328) and junior Haley Thomas (.313).
Freshman Casey Crozier has already recorded nine victories in the circle - the most since Karlie Burnell had 11 during the entire 2007 campaign.
About Dayton
Dayton is currently 11-15 overall and just snapped six-game losing streak with a 10-9 win over George Washington on March 26. The Flyers, who a have a 3-9 road record, are lead by Kathleen Maloof, who has a .354 batting average with six doubles and six home runs. Lauren Nacke leads the team with seven home runs and ranks second on the squad with a .342 batting average. Alysha Isaacson leads the pitching staff with a 6-5 record while Sarah Wedel has a team-best 3.59 earned-run average. The Flyers also dropped two games - both 9-1 - to Wright State on March 22.
About Wright State
Wright State is currently 12-14 overall and 1-2 in the Horizon League after dropping two of three to Cleveland State, March 26-27. Chelsea Archer leads the Raiders with a .370 batting average while Justine Shilt leads the team with six home runs and 16 runs batted in. Krystian DeWitt leads the pitching staff with a 9-9 record and a 3.06 earned- run average. DeWitt has pitched 109.2 of 170 innings for the Raiders.
Streaky Guins
In 2011, the Guins have had three players with hitting streaks of at least 10 games. Currently, junior Jordan Ingalls has an active 11-game hitting streak which she is batting .526 with two doubles, two triples and a home run. She also has scored eight times and driven in 14 runs during that span. Her slugging percentage during her streak is an impressive .763. Earlier this season, senior Kristina Rendle recorded a 17-game hitting streak from Feb. 26 through March 18. Sophomore Vicky Rumph posted a 10-game streak from March 13 through March 26.
Mighty Casey
Freshman pitcher Casey Crozier has been impressive in the circle for the Guins. the Valparaiso, Ind., native leads the team with nine victories and 62 strikeouts. Her nine victories are the most since Karlie Burnell had 11 for the entire 2007 season. At the Rebel Games, Crozier went 4-2 with 22 strikeouts in 37 innings pitched.
Runs Abundant Late
The Guins have had a penchant for scoring runs late in games. Of the 137 runs scored this season, 76 (or 55 percent) have been scored in the fifth inning or later. The Guins have scored 34 runs in the fifth inning, 23 in the sixth, 15 in the seventh, three in the eighth and one in the 10th.
Guins Hold Leads
The Guins have had a great deal of success of holding on to leads in 2011. When leading or tied after four innings, the Guins are 11-3. When leading or tied after five frames, the Guins own a 9-2 mark. When leading or tied after six innings, YSU holds a 9-1 record.
Rendle Steppin' Up
Senior Kristina Rendle is certainly having the best season of her career at Youngstown State. Rendle, who owned a two-year batting average of .254, is currently second on the team with a .418 batting average and ranks second on the squad with a slugging percentage of .532. She is also tied for the team lead with five stolen bases.
Somogyi Improving in Circle
Sophomore Hana Somogyi has shown a lot of improvement from her freshman campaign to now. Somogyi has five wins and 40 strikeouts in 58.1 innings pitched with an earned-run average of 3.84. In 2010, Somogyi won just once and whiffed just 15 in 49.2 innings.
Haley Thomas Inching Up Runs Chart
With 24 runs scored the season, junior Haley Thomas has scored 92 runs in her career. That mark ranks third all-time and she is just the third player in school history to score at least 90 runs. She needs three more to move into second place, eight more to become the second player to score 100 times and 35 more to become the school's all-time runs leader.
Penguin Swipers
In 2011, the Guins have made a conscious effort to get runners into scoring position by attempting to steal. After 25 games, the Guins have stolen 29 bases in 37 attempts, a success rate of 78.4 percent. Last season, the Guins stole successfully just 10 times in 20 attempts. Senior Kristina Rendle and junior Jordan Ingalls are tied for the team lead with five steals each while junior Kristen Philen has four stolen bases.
Guins in the Clutch
The Guins have done a solid job this season at scoring runners when in scoring position. As a team, the Guins are batting .341 with runners in scoring position. Jordan Ingalls leads the team with a .571 batting average in those situations while senior Kristina Rendle is batting .450 and junior Haley Thomas is hitting at a .421 clip. YSU is also batting .314 with two outs and has tallied 50 two-out RBI.
