Youngstown State University
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Purdue Fort Wayne
Penguins Return to League Action This Weekend at Purdue Fort Wayne
3/20/2024 11:09:00 AM | Softball
March 22 at Purdue Fort Wayne – 3 p.m. | Live Stats
March 23 at Purdue Fort Wayne – 1 p.m. | Live Stats
March 23 at Purdue Fort Wayne – 3 p.m. | Live Stats
The Youngstown State softball team (14-10, 3-0 Horizon League) returns to Horizon League play with a three-game series against Purdue Fort Wayne, March 22-23, in Fort Wayne, Ind.
Up Next
The Penguins visit St. Bonaventure in a doubleheader, Wednesday, March 27, at 3 p.m. before hosting Green Bay in a three-game Horizon League series, March 29-30.
The Purdue Fort Wayne Series
Youngstown State and Purdue Fort Wayne have met 12 times previously dating back to 2002. The Penguins own a 9-3 advantage in the all-time series and have won the last six contests. Youngstown State swept a doubleheader from the Mastodons in Youngstown last season, and the Penguins swept a three-game series in 2022 in Fort Wayne.
Bats Came Alive
Youngstown State had a monster weekend at the plate against Detroit Mercy. The Penguins batted .492 as a team and scored 31 runs. YSU collected 32 hits, including five doubles, four triples, and two home runs. The Penguins also had 30 runs batted in.
Howell, Niederkohr Sweep HL Weekly Awards
Senior Sophie Howell was named the Under Armour Horizon League Softball Pitcher of the Week while senior Hailey Niederkohr was named the Under Armour Horizon League Softball Player of the Week. This is the fourth career weekly award for Howell and the second this season, and the first career award for Niederkohr. Over the weekend, Howell went 2-0 with a 0.70 earned-run average while striking out 12 in 10 innings pitched. She gave up just two hits and allowed just one earned run. Howell fired pair of one-hitters against Detroit Mercy on March 16 and March 17, and she limited the Titans to a .061 batting average. Niederkohr was nearly unstoppable last weekend batting .857 with four runs scored, a double, three triples and eight runs batted in. She also posted a 1.857 slugging percentage and an .889 on-base percentage for a 2.746 OPS. Niederkohr went 6-for-7 at the plate with two hits in each game, and she tied the single-game record for with triples with two.
Rinaldi Posted Big Weekend
Fifth-year senior Conchetta Rinaldi also posted a monster weekend at the plate. Rinaldi batted .857 with four runs scored, three doubles and four runs batted in. She slugged at a 1.286 clip and had an on-base percentage of .875.
Imler Goes Granny
Senior Elyssa Imler belted her first career grand slam in the Penguins' 10-1 win over Detroit Mercy on March 16. She became the 21st Youngstown State player to hit a grand slam and the first player to hit a grand slam since Jillian Jakse in 2021. Over the weekend, Imler batted .571 with four runs scored, a grand slam, and seven RBIs.
Howell Climbing Charts
Senior Sophie Howell is climbing the charts in the YSU record book. Howell ranks third all-time with 400 career strikeouts and needs 100 more to become just the third pitcher in program history to record at least 500 career strikeouts. Howell has 36 career victories and ranks tied for seventh all-time. She is also the third pitcher to post at least 35 career wins with at least 400 strikeouts.
Niederkohr Among HL Leaders
Senior Hailey Niederkohr ranks among the Horizon League leaders in several statistical categories. She leads the league in triples (3), tied for the league lead in RBIs (18), and ranks third in slugging percentage (.556) and OPS (.980), fifth in runs scored (13), and 11th in batting average (.315)
Fessler Currently Fifth All-Time
Graduate student Sara Fessler continues to maintain her career batting average in the top 10 in Youngstown State history. Fessler, who is batting .308 this season, currently owns a career batting average of .351, which ranks fifth all-time at YSU.
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