Bluejay Softball Battles Big 12
4/27/2009 6:00:00 PM | Softball
Creighton hosts Nebraska
Tuesday, April 28 ? Creighton Sports Complex ? Omaha, Neb. ? 6 p.m.
Creighton at Iowa State
Wednesday, April 29 ? Southwest Athletic Complex ? Ames, Iowa ? 3 p.m. (Doubleheader)
This Week: The Bluejays conclude regular-season play with six games, including three against Big 12 opponents. CU hosts in-state rival Nebraska on Tuesday at 6 p.m., before traveling to Iowa State for a doubleheader on Wednesday. The Bluejays then host Wichita State for a three-game Missouri Valley Conference series to close out Valley play in search of their third straight conference crown.
Last Week: Creighton posted a 5-1 record last week, while claiming two more MVC season series wins. The Jays started the week with a 2-1 win at Drake last Tuesday to take the series from DU 2-1. CU returned home to sweep a doubleheader from South Dakota State by scores of 14-1 and 5-1. The Bluejays set a school record by hitting five home runs in one inning, including Renae Sinkler and Bailey Dawson twice hitting back-to-back jacks in the frame. The Jays concluded the week by not allowing an earned run to Missouri State in a three-game series, winning 3-0 and 4-0, but dropping a 1-0 decision due to an unearned run.
Scouting Creighton (31-13, 17-5 MVC): Creighton is the two-time defending Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champion and has appeared in five NCAA Tournaments in the last six years ... The Bluejays have won six of their last seven games and are in first place in the MVC ... CU leads the MVC and ranks among NCAA leaders with a .972 fielding percentage ... The Jays lead the MVC with a 1.51 ERA and 0.64 Valley ERA ... Junior Tara Oltman is the all-time winningest pitcher in school history, and with 82 career victories she is just two shy of the MVC record entering the week ... The right-hander leads the MVC in ERA, wins, strikeouts, innings, shutouts and average against, while she ranks in the NCAA top-20 in ERA, wins and shutouts ... Junior first baseman Renae Sinkler is hitting a team-best .361, including .450 (9-20) in her last seven games ... Sinkler leads the MVC with a .697 slugging percentage and tops the team with a career-best 11 home runs and .480 on-base percentage ... Bailey Dawson, who ranks third in CU history with 119 career RBI, has five RBI in her last five games after going without an RBI for 14 games ... Senior Jessica Wakasugi has started Creighton's last 209 games in center field ? every game of her career ? and her .319 career average is ninth in CU history ... Senior catcher Laura Kratochvil suffered a broken leg in practice on April 2 and will miss the rest of the season; at the time of her injury she already had career-highs and led the team in hits, average, home runs and RBI.
Head Coach: Head coach Brent Vigness (Central College, 1988) is in his 16th season at Creighton, owning a record of 512-349-2 with the Bluejays. Vigness also served as head coach at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., for five years prior to coming to Creighton. His career record in 21 years as a head coach is 660-420-3. He has led the Jays to five MVC Tournament titles (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007), five regular-season MVC crowns (1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2008), six NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008) and was named MVC Coach of the Year in 1998 and guided the MVC Coaching Staff of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
Scouting Nebraska (32-15, 8-8 Big 12): The Huskers are 24-7 in non-conference play and are 7-5 record in true road games this spring ... The Huskers split a home doubleheader with Northern Iowa last Wednesday ... NU is hitting .284 as a team, with 230 runs scored and 26 home runs ... The Huskers have stolen 65 bases in 76 attempts this year, led by Meghan Mullin's (.340) 19 swipes ... Mullin also tops the team with 42 runs and 50 hits ... Amanda Duran leads NU with a .374 average and 11 doubles ... Crystal Carwile (.313) leads the team with five home runs and 34 RBI, while Heidi Foland also has five homers this spring ... Molly Hill has pitched 220 of NU's 312.2 innings, compiling a 22-11 mark with a 1.30 ERA and 161 strikeouts.
CU-NU Series: Creighton has won four straight games over the Huskers for the first time in the series history, while the Bluejays are 7-3 in their last 10 against NU ... The Jays trail the all-time series with the Huskers 36-73 ... CU shutout NU 3-0 on April 1 and topped the Huskers 7-2 in Omaha last year on March 26 ... CU has out-scored NU 23-3 in their last three meetings.
Individuals vs. Nebraska: Michelle Koch is hitting .438 in her career against NU, going 7-for-16 with seven runs scored and three doubles in six games against the Huskers ... Sara Loeffelholz went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI in her first in-state contest against NU on April 1 ... Lincoln native Renae Sinkler is hitting .375 (6-16) with five RBI in six games against NU ... Michelle Graner is the only active Bluejay with a home run against NU in her career ... Jessi Jadlowski went 4-for-6 (.667), with two runs and two RBI against NU last year ... Tara Oltman is 5-1 in six complete games against NU, posting a 1.23 ERA with 36 Ks and 28 hits allowed in 40 innings pitched.
Scouting Iowa State (23-27, 5-11 Big 12): The Cyclones are 4-3 in their last seven games, with wins over Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and nationally-ranked Missouri ... ISU is just 3-6 at home this year ... ISU is hitting .250 as a team with 16 home runs and 202 runs (4.1 per game) ... The Cyclones have 43 stolen bases, led by Carleigh Berry's 17 in 18 chances ... Courtney Wray's .301 average marks the only Cyclone hitting better than .300 ... Alex Johnson leads the team with six home runs, eight doubles and 35 RBI ... Rachel Zabriskie (16-22) has hurled 251 of ISU's 335.2 innings, posting a 2.45 ERA and 207 strikeouts.
CU-ISU Series: Creighton leads the all-time series with Iowa State 23-16, including a Bluejay doubleheader sweep of ISU in Omaha last year ... The Jays have not played in Ames since a 6-2 loss to ISU on April 25, 2002 and have not won at ISU since a 3-2 win on April 25, 2000.
Individuals vs. ISU: Creighton went 11-for-44 (.250) against ISU last year, topping the Cyclones 2-1 and 3-1 in Omaha. No Bluejay had more than two hits in the twin bill, as Jessica Wakasugi was 2-for-3 and Michelle Graner was 2-for-5. Tara Oltman appeared in both games, getting a win and a save in 10 innings of work. She allowed six hits and struck out nine, while logging a 0.70 ERA.
Homer Happy: Creighton not only tied a school record for home runs in a game against South Dakota State on April 22, but the Bluejays set a school record for home runs in an inning by hitting all five blasts in the third inning. Renae Sinkler and Bailey Dawson twice hit back-to-back home runs in the frame, while Sara Loeffelholz chipped in with a blast as well. CU tied the school record for home runs in a game initially done against Northern Colorado on April 28, 2004.
Is it a Record?: The NCAA does not keep record of home runs in an inning, while initial research has resulted in two other teams (in NCAA history) hitting five home runs in one inning, including Illinois accomplishing the feat against Penn State on March 21 of this season. UT-San Antonio also homered five times in one inning on April 8, 2004 against Texas Southern.
In a Pinch: Every available player with the exception of game two's starting pitcher Kylie Hovinga appeared in Creighton's 14-1 game one win over South Dakota State on April 22, including five pinch-hitters in the span of six batters during the fourth inning. Freshman Kari Sakamoto walked in her first career plate appearance, while both Jess Stigge and Lau Emmsley-Chang added their first base hits of the season. Additionally Cassidy Nee and Alexa Mackevicius produced RBI in their pinch-hit at bats.
Bring on the Big 12: Creighton plays three games against the Big 12 this week. The Bluejays own a 3-1 record against the Big 12 this season and are 8-2 against the conference over the past two seasons. Renae Sinkler is hitting .381 with 12 RBI in 14 career games against Big 12 foes, including 10 hits and nine RBI in six games against the conference last year. Michelle Koch is 4-for-13 against the conference this year and and 9-for-27 (.333) against the Big 12 in the last two years. Tara Oltman is 9-3 with a 1.28 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 82 innings pitched against Big 12 opponents.
She's a Winner: Junior Tara Oltman is now the winningest pitcher in school history and is rapidly approaching the conference record. With 25 wins this season, she has moved her career win total to 82, moving past Tammy Nielsen's former mark of 76. Oltman is now 82-26 in her career and ranks second in MVC history, just two shy of the Valley record. See the MVC list below and the CU career list on the next page:
Career Wins ? MVC Pitchers
No. Name (School) Wins Years
1. Amy Harre (SIU) 84 2002-05
2. Tara Oltman (CU) 82 2007-pr.
3. Cassidy Scoggins (SIU) 81 2004-07
4. Stacy Birk (ILSU) 77 2004-07
Margo Pruis (WSU) 77 2004-07
6. Tammy Nielsen (CU) 76 2003-05
Appears to be Another TO Record: Junior Tara Oltman has not only established the CU career victories record this season, but she has now appeared in more games as a pitcher than any player in school history. With 128 appearances, she has surpassed CU Hall of Famer Kelly Brookhart's former mark of 122.
1-0 Losses: Creighton has suffered four 1-0 losses this season, the most recent coming at Missouri State on April 25, in which the Bears scored an unearned run for the win. Tara Oltman has been the tough-luck loser in all four 1-0 defeats this year. In fact, in her career the Jays have now lost six 1-0 games and been shutout nine times in games Oltman starts. Oltman has lost 25 starts in her career, in which the Bluejays have scored a total of 28 runs.
Sacrificial Birds: Creighton again leads the MVC in sacrifice bunts this season, with 72 sacs in 44 games. The Bluejays dropped down 16 sac bunts in six games last week. In addition to their bunting, the Bluejays also doubled their sac fly total last week. With three sacrifice flies last week, CU now has six on the season.
Run Bailey-ed In: Senior Bailey Dawson ranks third in school history with 119 career RBI, but recently went through an RBI dry spell. Through Dawson's first 14 games in April ? all of which she batted in the lead off spot ? she did not have an RBI. In her last five games ? all of which she has batted cleanup ? she has five RBI.
Heating Up: In addition to the weather heating up, a few Bluejay bats have warmed up as well. Renae Sinkler is 9-for-20 (.450) in her last seven games to move her average up to a team-leading .361. Jessi Jadlowski went 4-for-4 in CU's doubleheader with South Dakota State and has raised her average 54 points and driven in four of her eight RBI on the season in CU's last five games. Freshman Lauren Larson has raised her average 30 points during her current four-game hitting streak.
Tara Time: Having fun with junior pitcher Tara Oltman's statistics:
? She enters the week on a streak of 24.2 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run, her third streak of 20+ consecutive innings without allowing an earned run this year.
? She has allowed one earned run or less in 28 of her last 29 appearances
? She has allowed more hits than innings pitched in just one of her last 68 appearances.
? She had a 2.42 ERA with 15 earned runs allowed in her first eight appearances this year, but has since allowed just 12 earned runs for a 0.46 ERA in her last 29 appearances.
? She is 22-2, with five saves, a 0.65 ERA, 10 shutouts and two combined shutouts at home over the past two seasons. Opponents are hitting .143 against CU in Omaha since the start of the 2008 season.
? She has appeared in 66 of CU's 70 MVC games over the past three seasons, throwing 45 complete games in 46 starts in that span.
20 HR for Sinkler: Renae Sinkler connected for her 20th career home run in Creighton's 2-1 win over Drake on April 15, becoming the seventh player in school history to reach that plateau. With 24 career home runs, she now ranks sixth in school history.
Battling the Best: Creighton won two of three games against No. 24 Southern Illinois (April 18-19) to improve its record to 3-3 this year against top-25 opponents. The Jays also lost 5-3 at No. 7 Oklahoma on March 1 and split a doubleheader at No. 13 Arizona on March 7, with Tara Oltman shutting out the top-hitting team in the NCAA 6-0, before the UA bats woke up to pound CU in a 19-2 loss. CU was 1-4 against the top-25 last year. The Jays are now 6-2-1 in their last nine home games against the top-25.
Perfection: Creighton is 20-0 when scoring at least four runs this season, but just 11-13 when scoring three or fewer runs. The Bluejays are also undefeated when leading after the first inning this year, with a 12-0 mark.
Omaha Express: Fast-paced, low-scoring games are the norm at the CU Sports Complex this season. Creighton's nine home games this year have averaged a brisk one hour and 36 minutes, while the average score in favor of the Bluejays is 3.4 to 1.2.
Game Starts in the First: While Creighton leads the MVC with a 1.51 ERA, the Bluejays have struggled to get on track in the first inning this year. The 24 runs opponents have scored in the first inning off of CU are the most of any inning against the Jays, while the Jays' first-inning ERA is an inning worst 2.86. The pitching staff has bounced back to log a 0.64 ERA over the second and third innings, including a best 0.16 ERA in the third frame. In fact, Drake's third inning run on April 15 was the first and only earned run a CU opponent had scored in the third inning this season (just the third overall third inning run).
Outfield 200: Senior Jessica Wakasugi has started Creighton's last 209 games, serving as the starting center fielder in every game of her Bluejay career.
Home Numbers: While Creighton is 10-4 at home this year, the Jays struggled to hit at the CU Sports Complex early on, batting just .221 and scoring 29 runs in their first 12 home games before going 22-for-49 (.449) and scoring 19 runs in a doubleheader sweep of South Dakota State on April 22 to raise their home batting average to .256. The Jays have managed success at home due to their slick fielding and tough pitching, as CU's home fielding percentage is .975 and its home ERA is 1.02, allowing just 14 earned runs, while allowing opponents to bat .161 in Omaha and tossing five shutouts.
The 700 Club: Junior Tara Oltman has surpassed 700 career strikeouts, joining Tammy Nielsen as the only two Bluejays to reach that mark. She is one of 13 players in MVC history to strikeout at least 700 in a career and now ranks ninth in league history with 744 Ks.
Career Strikeouts ? MVC Pitchers
No. Name (School) Ks Years
1. Darcy Wood (INSU) 984 2005-pr.
2. Tammy Nielsen (CU) 914 2003-05
3. Carisa Winters (SIU) 896 1997-00
4. Margo Pruis (WSU) 853 2004-07
5. Ashley Birdsong (BU) 800 2006-pr.
6. Nora Cagwin (MSU) 767 1996-99
7. Erin Stremsterfer (SIU) 757 1998-01
8. Melissa Porche (MSU) 754 2005-08
9. Tara Oltman (CU) 744 2007-pr.
10. Katie Markle (UE) 734 2002-05
Home Turf: Creighton is 10-4 at home this year, moving its record to 44-12-1 (.781) over the last three years. The Jays are 7-3 at home in Valley play on the season. After a perfect home MVC mark of 12-0 last year, the Jays are now 30-5-1 (.847) at home in Valley play over the last three years.
Bluejay Home Records since 1994
Year Overall W-L% MVC W-L%
2009 10-4 .714 7-3 .700
2008 19-2 .905 12-0 1.000
2007 15-6-1 .705 11-2-1 .821
2006 8-8 .500 5-5 .500
2005 13-5 .722 9-5 .643
2004 12-5 .706 8-4 .667
2003 5-9 .357 5-8 .385
2002 9-4 .692 9-2 .818
2001 10-8 .556 7-6 .538
2000 9-5 .643 5-3 .625
1999 9-5 .643 7-3 .700
1998 11-3 .786 7-1 .875
1997 10-6 .625 6-0 1.000
1996 6-8 .429 5-5 .500
1995 13-7 .650 7-3 .700
1994 3-7 .300 3-3 .500
Vigness Gets 500: Head coach Brent Vigness picked up his 500th win at Creighton with a 4-0 victory over Bradley on April 4. One of only two coaches in school history, Vigness joins Bluejay Hall of Famer Mary Higgins with 500 victories on the Bluejay bench. Higgins was 564-298 in her 17 seasons at CU.
Sharing Shutouts: Freshman Kylie Hovinga and junior Tara Oltman have combined for a pair of shutouts in April. Hovinga went 4.2 innings and gave way to Oltman with the bases loaded and one out in CU's 4-0 win over Bradley on April 4. Hovinga then went three innings and Oltman four in a 1-0 blanking of the best hitting team in the MVC, UNI on April 7. The pair also combined for a 4-2 win over Indiana State on April 10.
Kratochvil's Career: Laura Kratochvil's career has come to an end early, as the senior catcher broke a bone in her leg in practice on April 2. Kratochvil was enjoying a career-year in her final season, as she already had established career highs for hits, home runs and RBI. She led the team with a career-high .338 average and was tops on the team in home runs and RBI when she suffered the injury. Kratochvil's career batting average entering the season was .223, she raised it to .249. She ends her career with 68 RBI on 88 career hits.
The Streaking Note: Creighton won its fourth straight game over in-state foe Nebraska on April 1 and its fourth consecutive at NU's Bowlin Stadium. CU is 7-3 in its last 10 against Nebraska after losing 15 straight in the series. CU's 1-0 loss to Bradley on April 4 snapped CU's 13-game MVC winning streak (dating to last year). It was also CU's first home Valley loss since May 2007, snapping a streak of 17 straight home conference wins. That loss was also ended Tara Oltman's 19-game home winning streak and nine-game overall winning streak this season.
Jays Sweep Honors Twice: On March 23, the Creighton battery of Laura Kratochvil and Tara Oltman were tabbed the MVC Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively. On April 20, Oltman was joined by Renae Sinkler in earn Valley weekly honors, as Sinkler went 7-for-14 with three home runs in five games.
A First at CU: Creighton won five straight one run games March 21-25. Never before in school history had the Bluejays won five consecutive games by just one run.
Double Your Pleasure: Creighton tied a school record with six doubles in its 4-3 10-inning win over Kansas on March 25. CU had previously recorded six doubles in a game three times, but had not done so in 10 years. The last time CU had six doubles in a game was on Feb. 26, 1999 against Detroit. Bailey Dawson, Michelle Graner, Sara Loeffelholz and Jessica Wakasugi each had one double, while Liz McKewon notched her first two career doubles in the win.
Double the Doubles Notes: Bailey Dawson's leadoff double at Drake on April 21st was the 35th double of her career. With 35 two-baggers, she now ranks seventh on the CU career doubles list.
Three For .300: Three Bluejay upper classmen starters have better than a .300 career batting average, led by senior Jessica Wakasugi's .319 mark which ranks eighth in school history. Renae Sinkler's career mark of .314 ranks ninth in school history and Michelle Koch's career average of .308 is just outside of the CU career top-10.
Something Extra From Liz: Sophomore Liz McKewon has started all 104 games she's played at Creighton and through the first 84 games she had yet to record an extra-base hit. Her 85th game saw her not only hit her first career double, but she had a pair of two-baggers in CU's 4-3 10-inning win at Kansas (March 25). Her bloop double to lead off the 10th inning led to her scoring the game-winning run.
The Run Producer: Senior Bailey Dawson knows how to produce runs, as evident by her lofty career numbers. Dawson ranks third in school history with 119 career RBI, fourth with 29 career home runs, sixth with 118 career runs scored and seventh with 35 career doubles. A starter at shortstop in all 196 of her career games, she has a .291 career average.
Wakasugi Has CLASS: Senior center fielder Jessica Wakasugi has been named one of 30 national candidates for the 2009 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: Classroom, Character, Community and Competition. Wakasugi, a first-team all-MVC performer last year, owns a 3.64 cumulative GPA in business entrepreneurship and marketing.
Same Six Starters: Creighton has started six of the same players in all 44 games this year, with four players starting at the same position in every game. The Jays have had the same left side of the infield in every game, with Liz McKewon and Bailey Dawson starting at third base and shortstop, respectively, each game. Michelle Koch has joined that pair in starting at second base every game. Jessica Wakasugi has pushed her streak of 209 straight CU games started in center field. Renae Sinkler has split starts at first base (32) and designated player (12) and Michelle Graner has shared time in left field (32) and first base (12).
Hovinga Minus Arizona: Freshman Kylie Hovinga is 6-3 with a 2.01 ERA on the season ? that is, if you subtract one game against one of the top offenses in the nation. The Wildcats unleashed an 18-hit, 19-run attack (16 earned) on the Bluejay rookie. If you subtract her UA outing (5 IP, 18 H, 19 R, 16 ER) from her season statistics (6-4, 3.52 ERA), Hovinga's ERA drops dramatically and she moves to 6-3 with a 2.01 ERA, having allowed 59 hits and 18 earned runs in 62.2 innings.
Beating Arizona: For the second straight year, CU went to Arizona and defeated the nationally-ranked Wildcats in March. This time CU crushed Arizona 6-0 on March 7, the first time the powerful UA offense had been shutout at home since UCLA did it in 2005. Tara Oltman scattered five singles to a line up which averaged 17 runs per game in its other five games during the Hillenbrand Invitational. Bailey Dawson and Laura Kratochvil both homered in the win over No. 13 Arizona.
High-Scoring Affair: Creighton blasted Saint Louis 18-5 on Feb. 20 at the Tulsa Select Festival. The 18 runs were the most scored by the Bluejays since setting the school record of 20 runs against the College of Saint Mary's on Feb. 9, 2000. The 18 runs are the second-most scored in a game in CU history and the most ever against a Division I opponent.
Tuesday, April 28 ? Creighton Sports Complex ? Omaha, Neb. ? 6 p.m.
Creighton at Iowa State
Wednesday, April 29 ? Southwest Athletic Complex ? Ames, Iowa ? 3 p.m. (Doubleheader)
This Week: The Bluejays conclude regular-season play with six games, including three against Big 12 opponents. CU hosts in-state rival Nebraska on Tuesday at 6 p.m., before traveling to Iowa State for a doubleheader on Wednesday. The Bluejays then host Wichita State for a three-game Missouri Valley Conference series to close out Valley play in search of their third straight conference crown.
Last Week: Creighton posted a 5-1 record last week, while claiming two more MVC season series wins. The Jays started the week with a 2-1 win at Drake last Tuesday to take the series from DU 2-1. CU returned home to sweep a doubleheader from South Dakota State by scores of 14-1 and 5-1. The Bluejays set a school record by hitting five home runs in one inning, including Renae Sinkler and Bailey Dawson twice hitting back-to-back jacks in the frame. The Jays concluded the week by not allowing an earned run to Missouri State in a three-game series, winning 3-0 and 4-0, but dropping a 1-0 decision due to an unearned run.
Scouting Creighton (31-13, 17-5 MVC): Creighton is the two-time defending Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champion and has appeared in five NCAA Tournaments in the last six years ... The Bluejays have won six of their last seven games and are in first place in the MVC ... CU leads the MVC and ranks among NCAA leaders with a .972 fielding percentage ... The Jays lead the MVC with a 1.51 ERA and 0.64 Valley ERA ... Junior Tara Oltman is the all-time winningest pitcher in school history, and with 82 career victories she is just two shy of the MVC record entering the week ... The right-hander leads the MVC in ERA, wins, strikeouts, innings, shutouts and average against, while she ranks in the NCAA top-20 in ERA, wins and shutouts ... Junior first baseman Renae Sinkler is hitting a team-best .361, including .450 (9-20) in her last seven games ... Sinkler leads the MVC with a .697 slugging percentage and tops the team with a career-best 11 home runs and .480 on-base percentage ... Bailey Dawson, who ranks third in CU history with 119 career RBI, has five RBI in her last five games after going without an RBI for 14 games ... Senior Jessica Wakasugi has started Creighton's last 209 games in center field ? every game of her career ? and her .319 career average is ninth in CU history ... Senior catcher Laura Kratochvil suffered a broken leg in practice on April 2 and will miss the rest of the season; at the time of her injury she already had career-highs and led the team in hits, average, home runs and RBI.
Head Coach: Head coach Brent Vigness (Central College, 1988) is in his 16th season at Creighton, owning a record of 512-349-2 with the Bluejays. Vigness also served as head coach at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., for five years prior to coming to Creighton. His career record in 21 years as a head coach is 660-420-3. He has led the Jays to five MVC Tournament titles (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007), five regular-season MVC crowns (1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2008), six NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008) and was named MVC Coach of the Year in 1998 and guided the MVC Coaching Staff of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
Scouting Nebraska (32-15, 8-8 Big 12): The Huskers are 24-7 in non-conference play and are 7-5 record in true road games this spring ... The Huskers split a home doubleheader with Northern Iowa last Wednesday ... NU is hitting .284 as a team, with 230 runs scored and 26 home runs ... The Huskers have stolen 65 bases in 76 attempts this year, led by Meghan Mullin's (.340) 19 swipes ... Mullin also tops the team with 42 runs and 50 hits ... Amanda Duran leads NU with a .374 average and 11 doubles ... Crystal Carwile (.313) leads the team with five home runs and 34 RBI, while Heidi Foland also has five homers this spring ... Molly Hill has pitched 220 of NU's 312.2 innings, compiling a 22-11 mark with a 1.30 ERA and 161 strikeouts.
CU-NU Series: Creighton has won four straight games over the Huskers for the first time in the series history, while the Bluejays are 7-3 in their last 10 against NU ... The Jays trail the all-time series with the Huskers 36-73 ... CU shutout NU 3-0 on April 1 and topped the Huskers 7-2 in Omaha last year on March 26 ... CU has out-scored NU 23-3 in their last three meetings.
Individuals vs. Nebraska: Michelle Koch is hitting .438 in her career against NU, going 7-for-16 with seven runs scored and three doubles in six games against the Huskers ... Sara Loeffelholz went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI in her first in-state contest against NU on April 1 ... Lincoln native Renae Sinkler is hitting .375 (6-16) with five RBI in six games against NU ... Michelle Graner is the only active Bluejay with a home run against NU in her career ... Jessi Jadlowski went 4-for-6 (.667), with two runs and two RBI against NU last year ... Tara Oltman is 5-1 in six complete games against NU, posting a 1.23 ERA with 36 Ks and 28 hits allowed in 40 innings pitched.
Scouting Iowa State (23-27, 5-11 Big 12): The Cyclones are 4-3 in their last seven games, with wins over Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and nationally-ranked Missouri ... ISU is just 3-6 at home this year ... ISU is hitting .250 as a team with 16 home runs and 202 runs (4.1 per game) ... The Cyclones have 43 stolen bases, led by Carleigh Berry's 17 in 18 chances ... Courtney Wray's .301 average marks the only Cyclone hitting better than .300 ... Alex Johnson leads the team with six home runs, eight doubles and 35 RBI ... Rachel Zabriskie (16-22) has hurled 251 of ISU's 335.2 innings, posting a 2.45 ERA and 207 strikeouts.
CU-ISU Series: Creighton leads the all-time series with Iowa State 23-16, including a Bluejay doubleheader sweep of ISU in Omaha last year ... The Jays have not played in Ames since a 6-2 loss to ISU on April 25, 2002 and have not won at ISU since a 3-2 win on April 25, 2000.
Individuals vs. ISU: Creighton went 11-for-44 (.250) against ISU last year, topping the Cyclones 2-1 and 3-1 in Omaha. No Bluejay had more than two hits in the twin bill, as Jessica Wakasugi was 2-for-3 and Michelle Graner was 2-for-5. Tara Oltman appeared in both games, getting a win and a save in 10 innings of work. She allowed six hits and struck out nine, while logging a 0.70 ERA.
Homer Happy: Creighton not only tied a school record for home runs in a game against South Dakota State on April 22, but the Bluejays set a school record for home runs in an inning by hitting all five blasts in the third inning. Renae Sinkler and Bailey Dawson twice hit back-to-back home runs in the frame, while Sara Loeffelholz chipped in with a blast as well. CU tied the school record for home runs in a game initially done against Northern Colorado on April 28, 2004.
Is it a Record?: The NCAA does not keep record of home runs in an inning, while initial research has resulted in two other teams (in NCAA history) hitting five home runs in one inning, including Illinois accomplishing the feat against Penn State on March 21 of this season. UT-San Antonio also homered five times in one inning on April 8, 2004 against Texas Southern.
In a Pinch: Every available player with the exception of game two's starting pitcher Kylie Hovinga appeared in Creighton's 14-1 game one win over South Dakota State on April 22, including five pinch-hitters in the span of six batters during the fourth inning. Freshman Kari Sakamoto walked in her first career plate appearance, while both Jess Stigge and Lau Emmsley-Chang added their first base hits of the season. Additionally Cassidy Nee and Alexa Mackevicius produced RBI in their pinch-hit at bats.
Bring on the Big 12: Creighton plays three games against the Big 12 this week. The Bluejays own a 3-1 record against the Big 12 this season and are 8-2 against the conference over the past two seasons. Renae Sinkler is hitting .381 with 12 RBI in 14 career games against Big 12 foes, including 10 hits and nine RBI in six games against the conference last year. Michelle Koch is 4-for-13 against the conference this year and and 9-for-27 (.333) against the Big 12 in the last two years. Tara Oltman is 9-3 with a 1.28 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 82 innings pitched against Big 12 opponents.
She's a Winner: Junior Tara Oltman is now the winningest pitcher in school history and is rapidly approaching the conference record. With 25 wins this season, she has moved her career win total to 82, moving past Tammy Nielsen's former mark of 76. Oltman is now 82-26 in her career and ranks second in MVC history, just two shy of the Valley record. See the MVC list below and the CU career list on the next page:
Career Wins ? MVC Pitchers
No. Name (School) Wins Years
1. Amy Harre (SIU) 84 2002-05
2. Tara Oltman (CU) 82 2007-pr.
3. Cassidy Scoggins (SIU) 81 2004-07
4. Stacy Birk (ILSU) 77 2004-07
Margo Pruis (WSU) 77 2004-07
6. Tammy Nielsen (CU) 76 2003-05
Appears to be Another TO Record: Junior Tara Oltman has not only established the CU career victories record this season, but she has now appeared in more games as a pitcher than any player in school history. With 128 appearances, she has surpassed CU Hall of Famer Kelly Brookhart's former mark of 122.
1-0 Losses: Creighton has suffered four 1-0 losses this season, the most recent coming at Missouri State on April 25, in which the Bears scored an unearned run for the win. Tara Oltman has been the tough-luck loser in all four 1-0 defeats this year. In fact, in her career the Jays have now lost six 1-0 games and been shutout nine times in games Oltman starts. Oltman has lost 25 starts in her career, in which the Bluejays have scored a total of 28 runs.
Sacrificial Birds: Creighton again leads the MVC in sacrifice bunts this season, with 72 sacs in 44 games. The Bluejays dropped down 16 sac bunts in six games last week. In addition to their bunting, the Bluejays also doubled their sac fly total last week. With three sacrifice flies last week, CU now has six on the season.
Run Bailey-ed In: Senior Bailey Dawson ranks third in school history with 119 career RBI, but recently went through an RBI dry spell. Through Dawson's first 14 games in April ? all of which she batted in the lead off spot ? she did not have an RBI. In her last five games ? all of which she has batted cleanup ? she has five RBI.
Heating Up: In addition to the weather heating up, a few Bluejay bats have warmed up as well. Renae Sinkler is 9-for-20 (.450) in her last seven games to move her average up to a team-leading .361. Jessi Jadlowski went 4-for-4 in CU's doubleheader with South Dakota State and has raised her average 54 points and driven in four of her eight RBI on the season in CU's last five games. Freshman Lauren Larson has raised her average 30 points during her current four-game hitting streak.
Tara Time: Having fun with junior pitcher Tara Oltman's statistics:
? She enters the week on a streak of 24.2 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run, her third streak of 20+ consecutive innings without allowing an earned run this year.
? She has allowed one earned run or less in 28 of her last 29 appearances
? She has allowed more hits than innings pitched in just one of her last 68 appearances.
? She had a 2.42 ERA with 15 earned runs allowed in her first eight appearances this year, but has since allowed just 12 earned runs for a 0.46 ERA in her last 29 appearances.
? She is 22-2, with five saves, a 0.65 ERA, 10 shutouts and two combined shutouts at home over the past two seasons. Opponents are hitting .143 against CU in Omaha since the start of the 2008 season.
? She has appeared in 66 of CU's 70 MVC games over the past three seasons, throwing 45 complete games in 46 starts in that span.
20 HR for Sinkler: Renae Sinkler connected for her 20th career home run in Creighton's 2-1 win over Drake on April 15, becoming the seventh player in school history to reach that plateau. With 24 career home runs, she now ranks sixth in school history.
Battling the Best: Creighton won two of three games against No. 24 Southern Illinois (April 18-19) to improve its record to 3-3 this year against top-25 opponents. The Jays also lost 5-3 at No. 7 Oklahoma on March 1 and split a doubleheader at No. 13 Arizona on March 7, with Tara Oltman shutting out the top-hitting team in the NCAA 6-0, before the UA bats woke up to pound CU in a 19-2 loss. CU was 1-4 against the top-25 last year. The Jays are now 6-2-1 in their last nine home games against the top-25.
Perfection: Creighton is 20-0 when scoring at least four runs this season, but just 11-13 when scoring three or fewer runs. The Bluejays are also undefeated when leading after the first inning this year, with a 12-0 mark.
Omaha Express: Fast-paced, low-scoring games are the norm at the CU Sports Complex this season. Creighton's nine home games this year have averaged a brisk one hour and 36 minutes, while the average score in favor of the Bluejays is 3.4 to 1.2.
Game Starts in the First: While Creighton leads the MVC with a 1.51 ERA, the Bluejays have struggled to get on track in the first inning this year. The 24 runs opponents have scored in the first inning off of CU are the most of any inning against the Jays, while the Jays' first-inning ERA is an inning worst 2.86. The pitching staff has bounced back to log a 0.64 ERA over the second and third innings, including a best 0.16 ERA in the third frame. In fact, Drake's third inning run on April 15 was the first and only earned run a CU opponent had scored in the third inning this season (just the third overall third inning run).
Outfield 200: Senior Jessica Wakasugi has started Creighton's last 209 games, serving as the starting center fielder in every game of her Bluejay career.
Home Numbers: While Creighton is 10-4 at home this year, the Jays struggled to hit at the CU Sports Complex early on, batting just .221 and scoring 29 runs in their first 12 home games before going 22-for-49 (.449) and scoring 19 runs in a doubleheader sweep of South Dakota State on April 22 to raise their home batting average to .256. The Jays have managed success at home due to their slick fielding and tough pitching, as CU's home fielding percentage is .975 and its home ERA is 1.02, allowing just 14 earned runs, while allowing opponents to bat .161 in Omaha and tossing five shutouts.
The 700 Club: Junior Tara Oltman has surpassed 700 career strikeouts, joining Tammy Nielsen as the only two Bluejays to reach that mark. She is one of 13 players in MVC history to strikeout at least 700 in a career and now ranks ninth in league history with 744 Ks.
Career Strikeouts ? MVC Pitchers
No. Name (School) Ks Years
1. Darcy Wood (INSU) 984 2005-pr.
2. Tammy Nielsen (CU) 914 2003-05
3. Carisa Winters (SIU) 896 1997-00
4. Margo Pruis (WSU) 853 2004-07
5. Ashley Birdsong (BU) 800 2006-pr.
6. Nora Cagwin (MSU) 767 1996-99
7. Erin Stremsterfer (SIU) 757 1998-01
8. Melissa Porche (MSU) 754 2005-08
9. Tara Oltman (CU) 744 2007-pr.
10. Katie Markle (UE) 734 2002-05
Home Turf: Creighton is 10-4 at home this year, moving its record to 44-12-1 (.781) over the last three years. The Jays are 7-3 at home in Valley play on the season. After a perfect home MVC mark of 12-0 last year, the Jays are now 30-5-1 (.847) at home in Valley play over the last three years.
Bluejay Home Records since 1994
Year Overall W-L% MVC W-L%
2009 10-4 .714 7-3 .700
2008 19-2 .905 12-0 1.000
2007 15-6-1 .705 11-2-1 .821
2006 8-8 .500 5-5 .500
2005 13-5 .722 9-5 .643
2004 12-5 .706 8-4 .667
2003 5-9 .357 5-8 .385
2002 9-4 .692 9-2 .818
2001 10-8 .556 7-6 .538
2000 9-5 .643 5-3 .625
1999 9-5 .643 7-3 .700
1998 11-3 .786 7-1 .875
1997 10-6 .625 6-0 1.000
1996 6-8 .429 5-5 .500
1995 13-7 .650 7-3 .700
1994 3-7 .300 3-3 .500
Vigness Gets 500: Head coach Brent Vigness picked up his 500th win at Creighton with a 4-0 victory over Bradley on April 4. One of only two coaches in school history, Vigness joins Bluejay Hall of Famer Mary Higgins with 500 victories on the Bluejay bench. Higgins was 564-298 in her 17 seasons at CU.
Sharing Shutouts: Freshman Kylie Hovinga and junior Tara Oltman have combined for a pair of shutouts in April. Hovinga went 4.2 innings and gave way to Oltman with the bases loaded and one out in CU's 4-0 win over Bradley on April 4. Hovinga then went three innings and Oltman four in a 1-0 blanking of the best hitting team in the MVC, UNI on April 7. The pair also combined for a 4-2 win over Indiana State on April 10.
Kratochvil's Career: Laura Kratochvil's career has come to an end early, as the senior catcher broke a bone in her leg in practice on April 2. Kratochvil was enjoying a career-year in her final season, as she already had established career highs for hits, home runs and RBI. She led the team with a career-high .338 average and was tops on the team in home runs and RBI when she suffered the injury. Kratochvil's career batting average entering the season was .223, she raised it to .249. She ends her career with 68 RBI on 88 career hits.
The Streaking Note: Creighton won its fourth straight game over in-state foe Nebraska on April 1 and its fourth consecutive at NU's Bowlin Stadium. CU is 7-3 in its last 10 against Nebraska after losing 15 straight in the series. CU's 1-0 loss to Bradley on April 4 snapped CU's 13-game MVC winning streak (dating to last year). It was also CU's first home Valley loss since May 2007, snapping a streak of 17 straight home conference wins. That loss was also ended Tara Oltman's 19-game home winning streak and nine-game overall winning streak this season.
Jays Sweep Honors Twice: On March 23, the Creighton battery of Laura Kratochvil and Tara Oltman were tabbed the MVC Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively. On April 20, Oltman was joined by Renae Sinkler in earn Valley weekly honors, as Sinkler went 7-for-14 with three home runs in five games.
A First at CU: Creighton won five straight one run games March 21-25. Never before in school history had the Bluejays won five consecutive games by just one run.
Double Your Pleasure: Creighton tied a school record with six doubles in its 4-3 10-inning win over Kansas on March 25. CU had previously recorded six doubles in a game three times, but had not done so in 10 years. The last time CU had six doubles in a game was on Feb. 26, 1999 against Detroit. Bailey Dawson, Michelle Graner, Sara Loeffelholz and Jessica Wakasugi each had one double, while Liz McKewon notched her first two career doubles in the win.
Double the Doubles Notes: Bailey Dawson's leadoff double at Drake on April 21st was the 35th double of her career. With 35 two-baggers, she now ranks seventh on the CU career doubles list.
Three For .300: Three Bluejay upper classmen starters have better than a .300 career batting average, led by senior Jessica Wakasugi's .319 mark which ranks eighth in school history. Renae Sinkler's career mark of .314 ranks ninth in school history and Michelle Koch's career average of .308 is just outside of the CU career top-10.
Something Extra From Liz: Sophomore Liz McKewon has started all 104 games she's played at Creighton and through the first 84 games she had yet to record an extra-base hit. Her 85th game saw her not only hit her first career double, but she had a pair of two-baggers in CU's 4-3 10-inning win at Kansas (March 25). Her bloop double to lead off the 10th inning led to her scoring the game-winning run.
The Run Producer: Senior Bailey Dawson knows how to produce runs, as evident by her lofty career numbers. Dawson ranks third in school history with 119 career RBI, fourth with 29 career home runs, sixth with 118 career runs scored and seventh with 35 career doubles. A starter at shortstop in all 196 of her career games, she has a .291 career average.
Wakasugi Has CLASS: Senior center fielder Jessica Wakasugi has been named one of 30 national candidates for the 2009 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: Classroom, Character, Community and Competition. Wakasugi, a first-team all-MVC performer last year, owns a 3.64 cumulative GPA in business entrepreneurship and marketing.
Same Six Starters: Creighton has started six of the same players in all 44 games this year, with four players starting at the same position in every game. The Jays have had the same left side of the infield in every game, with Liz McKewon and Bailey Dawson starting at third base and shortstop, respectively, each game. Michelle Koch has joined that pair in starting at second base every game. Jessica Wakasugi has pushed her streak of 209 straight CU games started in center field. Renae Sinkler has split starts at first base (32) and designated player (12) and Michelle Graner has shared time in left field (32) and first base (12).
Hovinga Minus Arizona: Freshman Kylie Hovinga is 6-3 with a 2.01 ERA on the season ? that is, if you subtract one game against one of the top offenses in the nation. The Wildcats unleashed an 18-hit, 19-run attack (16 earned) on the Bluejay rookie. If you subtract her UA outing (5 IP, 18 H, 19 R, 16 ER) from her season statistics (6-4, 3.52 ERA), Hovinga's ERA drops dramatically and she moves to 6-3 with a 2.01 ERA, having allowed 59 hits and 18 earned runs in 62.2 innings.
Beating Arizona: For the second straight year, CU went to Arizona and defeated the nationally-ranked Wildcats in March. This time CU crushed Arizona 6-0 on March 7, the first time the powerful UA offense had been shutout at home since UCLA did it in 2005. Tara Oltman scattered five singles to a line up which averaged 17 runs per game in its other five games during the Hillenbrand Invitational. Bailey Dawson and Laura Kratochvil both homered in the win over No. 13 Arizona.
High-Scoring Affair: Creighton blasted Saint Louis 18-5 on Feb. 20 at the Tulsa Select Festival. The 18 runs were the most scored by the Bluejays since setting the school record of 20 runs against the College of Saint Mary's on Feb. 9, 2000. The 18 runs are the second-most scored in a game in CU history and the most ever against a Division I opponent.
Players Mentioned
OF
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OF/1B
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IF
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C
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IF
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UT
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UT
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OF
/ SoftballCreighton Softball Hit-A-Thon 2025
Thursday, August 21
Creighton Baseball & Softball Fields Groundbreaking - 6/11/25
Wednesday, June 11
Creighton BET Postgame vs. St John's, 5/8/25
Thursday, May 08
Creighton Softball Highlights vs. Seton Hall, 5/4/25
Sunday, May 04
