Softball Looks for Third Straight MVC Series Win
4/7/2011 12:01:00 PM | Softball
Creighton at Missouri State
Saturday, April 9 • Springfield, Mo. • Noon (DH)
Sunday, April 10 • Springfield, Mo. • Noon
This Week: Creighton plays no mid-week games while it awaits a three-game weekend series at Missouri State. The Bluejays and Bears will play a doubleheader at noon on Saturday, followed by the series finale on Sunday at noon in Springfield – the site of this year's MVC Tournament.
Follow the Jays: All three games of the series will have live stats provided by Missouri State at this link. Live video will be provided by Missouri State for Sunday's game at this link.
Last Week: Creighton went 3-3 while picking up a milestone victory for head coach Brent Vigness. CU started the week with a loss at 13th-ranked Nebraska on March 30, before splitting a doubleheader at Iowa State on March 31. The 9-3 win over ISU was the 565th win for Vigness at Creighton, making him the winningest coach in Creighton athletics history. The Jays swept Bradley in a doubleheader last Saturday in their first home games of the season, before the Braves took game three of the series on Sunday. Amy Baker homered in five of CU's six games last week and was 9-for-21 (.429) to earn MVC Player of the Week honors for the second time this season and fourth time in her career.
Scouting Creighton (14-16, 4-2 MVC): Creighton, which has appeared in six of the last eight NCAA Tournaments and is the reigning Missouri Valley Conference Tournament champion, has been picked to finish sixth in this year's MVC race ... The Bluejays return just three starters from last year's 37-23 team, while they have 11 freshmen and 10 returners on the roster ... The Bluejays, who set a school record with 66 home runs last year, have 22 homers in their last 13 games and 10 home runs in six MVC games ... Catcher Amy Baker has hit 12 of her MVC-leading 13 home runs in Creighton's last 12 games, as the sophomore catcher already ranks sixth in school history with 28 career homers ... Baker, who leads the team with 15 runs, is second in the league-lead with 25 RBI, 22 of which have come in her last 12 games ... Junior Christa Ruf (.291) entered the season with one home run and 14 RBI in 86 career games, but has hit eight home runs with 24 RBI this spring ... Freshmen Ellen Homan leads the team with a .322 average and 28 hits and enters the weekend on a five-game hitting streak ... Liz McKewon is tied for the MVC-lead with 10 sacrifice bunts this season ... Jennifer Bohle leads the MVC, hitting .533 (8-15) in league games, followed closely by Baker's .529 (9-17) mark in Valley games ... CU ranks second in the MVC with a .967 fielding percentage, is hitting .262 as a team and allowing opponents to hit .235 with a staff ERA of 3.37 ... Freshman Becca Changstrom, who has tossed five shutouts in 16 starts, has emerged as the staff ace, leading the MVC with an opponents average of just .164, while she tops the team with a 10-7 record, 105 innings pitched and 108 strikeouts.
Scouting Missouri State (14-15, 4-4 MVC): The Bears were swept in a three-game series at Illinois State last weekend, but snapped a four-game skid with a 2-1 win at Arkansas on Wednesday ... MSU ranks last in the MVC with seven home runs and 78 runs scored and ninth with a .243 batting average ... Kaitlin Cutter ranks among MVC leaders with her .360 average, the only MSU regular hitting above .259, while she tops the team with eight stolen bases ... Ashley Knehans leads the team with 15 RBI, the only Bear with double figure RBI totals ... No MSU player has more than two home runs on the season ... Natalie Rose, two-time MVC Pitcher of the Week this spring, has pitched 129.1 of MSU's 194.2 innings ... Rose is 9-12 with a 2.54 ERA and 130 strikeouts, against just 21 walks, but has allowed 16 home runs.
Head Coach: Head coach Brent Vigness (Central College, 1988) is in his 18th season at Creighton. With a record of 567-391-2 at Creighton, he is the winningest coach in Bluejay athletics history. Vigness also served as head coach at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., for five years prior to coming to Creighton. His career record in 23 years as a head coach is 715-462-3. The most tenured softball coach in school history has led the Jays to six MVC Tournament titles (1999, 2003-05, 2007, 2010), six regular-season MVC crowns (1998-2000, 2007-09), seven NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2003-05, 2007-08, 2010) and was named MVC Coach of the Year in 1998 and guided the MVC Coaching Staff of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
CU-MSU Series: Creighton leads the all-time series with Missouri State, 45-27, including 32-24 under Brent Vigness ... The Bears swept the Bluejays in Omaha last year, as All-American pitcher Tara Oltman was limited to just one inning pitched in the three-game series ... CU has won five of its last six games in Springfield, with four wins coming via shutouts ... Even with that sweep last year, the Jays are still 9-4 in their last 13 meetings with MSU and 14-7 in their last 21.
Individuals Against MSU: Not one player on the Bluejay roster owns an RBI against Missouri State in her career. In fact, returning Bluejays are a combined 6-for-40 (.150) against MSU, with four hits belonging to Liz McKewon (4-15) – who did not play in last year's series due to injury. Amy Baker (1-7) and Christa Ruf (1-6) also have hits against MSU. Kylie Hovinga went 0-1 against MSU last year, pitching 13.1 innings of relief in two appearances against the Bears. She struck out 13 and allowed 10 hits, while posting a 1.58 ERA against MSU last year. Sammy Snygg started twice against MSU in the circle last year, hurling 6.2 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits for a 5.25 ERA.
He's a Winner: Head coach Brent Vigness captured win No. 565 as Creighton's leader on March 31 at Iowa State, a 9-3 win in Ames - just 30 miles from where he attended high school in Zearing, Iowa. The win moved him past Creighton Athletics Hall of Famer Mary Higgins for not only the softball record victory total, but he is now the winningest coach in Creighton athletics history - any sport. In his 18th season, he is the most tenured softball coach in school history, surpassing Higgins' 17 seasons between 1977-93.
Baker Player of the Week (x2): For the second time this year and the fourth time in her career, Amy Baker was named the MVC Player of the Week on Monday. Baker hit a home run in five of her six games last week, including a solo shots at No. 13 Nebraska and Iowa State, and a home run in each game of CU's three-game set with Bradley. For the week she hit .429 (9-21) with five home runs and nine RBI.
Baker's Dozen: Amy Baker has 13 home runs on the season to lead the MVC, with 12 coming in her last 12 games. Since starting the season hitting .182 (8-44) with one home run, five RBI and a .250 slugging percentage through 18 games, Baker's bat has exploded. In her last dozen games, Baker is hitting .436 (17-39) with 12 home runs, 22 RBI and a 1.359 slugging percentage to raise her average on the season to .301 and her slugging percentage to .771.
In a Pinch: Heading into the second game of its doubleheader at Iowa State on March 31, Creighton's pinch-hitters were 3-for-31 (.097) with three RBI on the season. In the Jays' 9-3 win over the Cyclones in game two, Bluejay pinch-hitters went 2-for-3 with three RBI and are now 4-for-9 (.444) in the last four games. McKenna Setlik had an RBI single and MaKenzie Michael had a two-run single in pinch-hitting roles at Iowa State. Setlik added another pinch-hit against Bradley and Brittanee Grove also collected a pinch-hit against BU last weekend.
Since the Skid: Creighton suffered a seven-game losing streak from March 4-10, but has since gone 7-5 in its last 12 games. The Bluejays were four games under .500 (7-11) for the first time this season following their seven straight losses, hitting just .228 with eight home runs and 49 runs scored through 18 games (2.7 per game). Since that point, the Bluejays have heated up, hitting .307 with 21 home runs and 60 runs scored in their last 12 games (5.0 per game). Opponents were hitting .243 against the Jays through their first 18 games, but are batting only .222 against Creighton in the Jays' last 12 games, while the Jays had a 3.78 team ERA through 18 games, only to lower it to 3.37 with a 2.80 ERA in their last dozen games.
Nationally Speaking: Amy Baker not only leads the MVC with 13 home runs, but she ranks seventh in the NCAA in home runs per game (0.43) and is 10th in total home runs. Liz McKewon is tied for the MVC lead with 10 sacrifice bunts on the season, which ranks 10th in the NCAA in sacs per game (0.33).
Bohle Bohle: Redshirt sophomore Jennifer Bohle leads the MVC with a .533 average through six conference games. Bohle, who redshirted last year after playing one season at Northwestern Missouri State is 8-for-15 in her first six MVC games. The junior has no multi-hit games in 24 non-conference games, while she now has three multi-hit games in six Valley games. She went 3-for-3 in her home debut against Bradley last Saturday and was 5-for-6 in the doubleheader against the Braves. She went 2-for-2 in her MVC debut at Evansville on March 19. Bohle is hitting .242 on the season, but is 10-for-22 (.455) in her last 10 games to raise her average 106 points in that span.
Super Subs: Looking for a spark from his deep bench, head coach Brent Vigness shook up his lineup at Iowa State on March 31. Malloree Grove and Danai Martin had started the first 25 games of the season at third base and right field, respectively, before the changes. Vigness inserted Ashley Frutos into the lineup at second base, shifting the infield of Jennifer Bohle from second to shortstop and Liz McKewon from shortstop to third base. Emily Perry has replaced Martin in the lineup in right field for the last five games.
Before March 31, both Perry and Frutos had not started one game this season. Since joining the lineup, Perry is 6-for-17 (.353), hit her first career home run and robbed a home run with a fantastic play in right field. Frutos is on a four-game hitting streak and is 4-for-15 with a pair of sacrifice bunts and a team-leading nine assists in her last five games.
Snygg's Heroics: Sammy Snygg is the Iowa prep record-holder with 49 home runs hit at North Polk High School, but the sophomore had yet to hit a big fly in her collegiate career before last weekend. The sophomore picked a perfect time to hit her first home run as a Bluejay on April 2, launching a towering fly ball just inside the left field foul pole in the bottom of the eighth-inning against Bradley, giving the Jays a 4-3 walk-off win. It was CU's first walk-off home run since Michelle Graner hit one on May 3, 2009 and the first Bluejay homer in extra-innings since Graner did so at Drake on April 21, 2010.
Lucky 13: Freshman Becca Changstrom struck out a career-high 13 batters in a 7-1 win over Bradley on April 2. The 13 Ks equal the highest strikeout total in a game by a Bluejay since the 2008 season. Tara Oltman twice struck out 13 in 2010, while no Bluejay has fanned more than 13 in a game since Oltman struck out a career-high 14 against Illinois State on April 21, 2007.
No April Fools: As an MVC power over the last decade, Creighton has used April to build momentum heading into May and the postseason. Last year the Bluejays were just 14-13 in the first two months of the season, before going 15-6 in April. Since 2007, the Bluejays are now 58-21-1 (.731) in April, while their overall winning percentage in that same span is .662, including .630 in months outside of April.
Same Spot Last Year: While it may seem the Bluejays are struggling this season, take a quick look back at last year's NCAA Tournament team and you'll see an identical record through 30 games. The 2010 Bluejays were also 14-16 through 30 games, before going 23-7 over their final 30 games. Renae Sinkler was off to her amazing start with a .375 average, 13 home runs and 32 RBI last year, compared to Amy Baker's .301 average, 13 home runs and 25 RBI this year. While this season's team is much younger, the offense is further along this year, than it was last year at this point. See the statistical breakdown comparing the 2010 and 2011 team through 30 games:
First 30 Games, 2010 vs. 2011
Category 2010 2011
Overall Record 14-16 14-16
MVC Record 2-5 4-2
Batting Average .196 .262
Opp. Average .256 .235
Runs 98 109
Hits 144 198
Home Runs 23 29
Doubles 26 13
RBI 87 99
Slugging % .332 .397
On-Base % .297 .343
Stolen Bases 20-25 27-39
ERA 3.21 3.37
Complete Games 14 14
Shutouts 7 7
Earned Runs 93 93
BB-K 84-195 88-176
Homan Gets Hot: Freshman Ellen Homan has started all 30 games this season in left field. The rookie leads the team with a .322 average and 28 hits, but she had to overcome a slow start to reach those numbers. The rookie was hitless in her first 13 collegiate at bats, but since that time she is 28-for-74 for a .378 average.
Homecoming: After having its home-opening weekend cancelled because of winter weather on March 26-27, Creighton played its first home games of the season against Bradley on April 2-3. The Bluejays played their first 27 games on the road this season, their longest season-opening road trip since playing their first 32 games on the road in 1999.
Happy Homecoming: Amy Baker enjoyed her home opening weekend on April 2-3, going 7-for-10 with three home runs and seven RBI in CU's three-game series with Bradley. Baker, an Omaha native, has shown she enjoys playing at the CU Sports Complex in her two seasons, as she led the Bluejays with a .385 average, eight home runs and 25 RBI in 19 home games as a freshman.
Amy's Records: Amy Baker set Creighton freshman records last year for home runs (15), RBI (46) and total bases (109). She has already set another school record this year, as her 13 home runs are the most by a sophomore in school history and are tied for fourth in single-season history. With her next blast, she will become the first player in school history to have two seasons with at least 14 home runs.
Baker's Blasts: Amy Baker hit scoreboards at Nebraska (March 30) and Iowa State (March 31) with monster home runs and enters this weekend having homered in each of her last three games. The sophomore was named the MVC Player of the Week (March 14) after an amazing three-game span at the Diamond Devil Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. Baker hit five home runs in a doubleheader on March 11, tying the school record by hitting three home runs in a game against Campbell on March 11. She followed with another blast on Saturday, giving her six home runs in the span of eight plate appearances. All six of her hits during the week were home runs, while she topped the team with 11 RBI in six games (March 8-12).
Doubles Down: Through 30 games, Creighton has just 13 doubles as a team – 11 fewer than the next closest team in the MVC. At this rate, the Bluejays are on pace to hit 23 doubles during the regular-season, which would be the fewest ever under Brent Vigness – 13 fewer than the 36 hit by the 2003 squad. Should the Jays stay on this pace, it will be the fewest two-baggers hit by the Jays since the 1992 team finished with 21 doubles.
Double-Digit Winner: Becca Changstrom picked up her 10th win of the season against Bradley on April 2. She became the first Bluejay hurler other than Tara Oltman to win at least 10 games since Amanda Hess captured 13 wins in her first season with the Bluejays in 2007.
Help Yourself: Freshman Brittany Telecky made just her second start of the season at Iowa State on March 31, picking up a win in the circle at Iowa State. In addition to the pitching start, she was inserted into the lineup and produced a hit, a walk and a run scored in her first collegiate trips to the plate. Fellow rookie Becca Changstrom replaced Telecky in the circle and lineup. After getting hit by a pitch she came around to score a run in the 9-3 win.
Homer Happy: Home runs haven't necessarily meant success for the Bluejays this season. Creighton is 8-9 when they hit a home run this year and 6-7 when they fail to hit a home run. The Jays homered twice in their loss at Nebraska on March 30 – their only two hits of the night – and then hit a solo home run for their only run in a 7-1 loss to Iowa State on March 31. Creighton then did not have an extra base hit, but scored nine runs on 10 singles in its 9-3 win over the Cyclones.
Slow Starters: The first two innings haven't been kind to the Bluejays this year, as they have been out-scored 50-21 in the first two innings of games this year, including 21-7 in the first. The Jays' seven runs scored and .162 average in the first are their worst totals of any inning this spring. Three of the seven first-inning runs scored this year came in CU's first four games. The Bluejays have allowed 29 runs in the second inning this year, the most allowed in any frame.
High-Scoring BCS Win: Creighton scored nine runs in a 9-3 victory at Iowa State on March 31, the most runs it has scored against a school from a BCS conference since scoring 13 against Nebraska on April 9, 2008.
Shutout Streak Snapped: Freshman pitcher Becca Changstrom tossed three consecutive shutouts (March 12-19) to extend her scoreless innings streak to 25.1. That streak was ended when she surrendered a two-run home run with no outs in the first inning at No. 13 Nebraska on March 30. She went from March 11 to March 30 between runs allowed. The rookie became the first Bluejay to throw a shutout in three straight starts since All-American Tara Oltman did so as a sophomore in 2008.
Sacrificing in Two Ways: Senior shortstop Liz McKewon is tied for the MVC lead and ranks 10th in the NCAA with 10 sacrifice bunts this season, already passing last season's total by seven. She has now dropped down 41 sac bunts in her career, moving her into a tie for eighth place in school history in sac bunts. Not only does she sacrifice her at bats, but she also has sacrificed her body, getting hit by a pitch 15 times in her career to rank sixth in school history in that category. McKewon has actually walked as many times (15) in her career as she has been hit by pitches.
MVC Players of the Week: Freshman Becca Changstrom was named the MVC Pitcher of the Week and junior Christa Ruf was named the MVC Player of the Week on March 21 following their play at Evansville. Changstrom flirted with two no-hitters, carrying a no-hitter into the sixth in a two-hit shutout on Mach 19 before coming within one out of a no-no on March 20. She hurled 14 innings against UE, allowing just three hits in two complete game shutouts. Ruf went 3-for-4 with two home runs and all four RBI in Creighton's 4-0 win on March 20. She also walked three times, scored three runs and had a .600 on-base percentage during the three-game set.
Getting Ruffed Up: Christa Ruf is off to a fantastic start to her junior season, ranking second on the team and fourth in the MVC with 24 RBI. Her .291 average is 84 points higher than her career average at the start of the season and her 24 RBI through 30 games are 10 more than she had through the first 86 games of her career. She is second on the team and third in the MVC with eight home runs in 86 at bats – she entered the year with only one home run in her first 140 career at bats.
Martin Gets Moving: Danai Martin leads the team and ranks fourth in the MVC with 10 stolen bases. Eight of those stolen bases have come in three games, as she stole two bases in the season-opener against Western Illinois (Feb. 11) and posted three stolen bases against Northern Colorado (March 4) and against Howard (March 12). She became the first Bluejay since Lauren Cisneros in 2005 to swipe three bases in one game. The sophomore has already equalled the team-leading total of Renae Sinkler from 2010, which is the most stolen bases by a Bluejay since Melanie Dorsey had 24 stolen bases in 2005.
Hovinga Hurls No-Hitter: Junior pitcher Kylie Hovinga tossed the first Bluejay no-hitter in two seasons in a 10-0 win over Centenary on Feb. 25 at the UTA Classic in Arlington, Texas. The left-hander walked one and struck out five in the five-inning no-no. It was the 17th no-hitter thrown by the Bluejays during head coach Brent Vigness' tenure.
Fresh Faces: With freshmen making up more than half of this year's roster, it's no surprise that several have been plugged into starting roles. Freshmen Malloree Grove and Ellen Homan each started the first 25 games this season at third base and left field, respectively, while Homan has still started every game this season. Homan leads the team with a .322 average and 28 hits and Grove, who had a team-best eight game hitting streak earlier this season, is hitting .292 this year. Freshmen have started 20 of the 30 games at first base, with Brittanee Grove starting 15 and Brittnie Kreiser starting five, combined they are flawless in 127 chances in the field. Kreiser is third on the team with three home runs. McKenna Setlik went 3-for-3 with three RBI in her collegiate debut has two home runs and six RBI in 21 games. Rookie pitcher Becca Changstrom is the staff ace, leading the team with 10 wins, 1.93 ERA, five shutouts, 11 complete games, 105 innings pitched and 108 strikeouts.
Leftovers: Amy Baker hit a team-high .489 with runners in scoring position last year, she started this season 3-for-30 (.100) with RISP this season before she was a perfect 5-for-5 with RISP against Bradley last weekend to raise her average to .229 with RISP this season ... Ellen Homan is hitting a team-high .417 and has a team-best 10 hits with runners in scoring position ... Creighton is 1-9 when its opponent scores in the first inning this season, that win came against Bradley on April 2 ... That win was one of just two this season the Jays have captured after allowing the opposition to score first, also coming from behind to beat UT Arlington (Feb. 26), CU is now 2-13 when the opponent scores first this season ... CU captured its first extra-inning win of the season in the second game of its doubleheader with Bradley on April second, Sammy Snygg's walk-off eighth-inning home run gave the Jays a 4-3 win and a 1-2 record in extra-innings this season ... Brittany Telecky, Emily Perry and Ashley Frutos each collected their first hit and their first RBI of the season at Iowa State on March 31 ... Perry went 2-for-7 in the doubleheader at Iowa State – she was 1-for-17 in her career before the twin bill (including 1-for-15 last year) ... Amy Baker walked 13 times in 58 games last year, but walked 13 times in her first 21 games this season and leads the team with 18 walks on the year ... Baker has 28 career home runs, the rest of the team has a combined 17 career homers ... Baker has homered 25 times in her last 60 games played dating back to last year, Renae Sinkler hit a CU record 24 home runs in 60 games last year ... Creighton has won two games this year in which it has trailed and lost four games this year in which it has led.
Saturday, April 9 • Springfield, Mo. • Noon (DH)
Sunday, April 10 • Springfield, Mo. • Noon
This Week: Creighton plays no mid-week games while it awaits a three-game weekend series at Missouri State. The Bluejays and Bears will play a doubleheader at noon on Saturday, followed by the series finale on Sunday at noon in Springfield – the site of this year's MVC Tournament.
Follow the Jays: All three games of the series will have live stats provided by Missouri State at this link. Live video will be provided by Missouri State for Sunday's game at this link.
Last Week: Creighton went 3-3 while picking up a milestone victory for head coach Brent Vigness. CU started the week with a loss at 13th-ranked Nebraska on March 30, before splitting a doubleheader at Iowa State on March 31. The 9-3 win over ISU was the 565th win for Vigness at Creighton, making him the winningest coach in Creighton athletics history. The Jays swept Bradley in a doubleheader last Saturday in their first home games of the season, before the Braves took game three of the series on Sunday. Amy Baker homered in five of CU's six games last week and was 9-for-21 (.429) to earn MVC Player of the Week honors for the second time this season and fourth time in her career.
Scouting Creighton (14-16, 4-2 MVC): Creighton, which has appeared in six of the last eight NCAA Tournaments and is the reigning Missouri Valley Conference Tournament champion, has been picked to finish sixth in this year's MVC race ... The Bluejays return just three starters from last year's 37-23 team, while they have 11 freshmen and 10 returners on the roster ... The Bluejays, who set a school record with 66 home runs last year, have 22 homers in their last 13 games and 10 home runs in six MVC games ... Catcher Amy Baker has hit 12 of her MVC-leading 13 home runs in Creighton's last 12 games, as the sophomore catcher already ranks sixth in school history with 28 career homers ... Baker, who leads the team with 15 runs, is second in the league-lead with 25 RBI, 22 of which have come in her last 12 games ... Junior Christa Ruf (.291) entered the season with one home run and 14 RBI in 86 career games, but has hit eight home runs with 24 RBI this spring ... Freshmen Ellen Homan leads the team with a .322 average and 28 hits and enters the weekend on a five-game hitting streak ... Liz McKewon is tied for the MVC-lead with 10 sacrifice bunts this season ... Jennifer Bohle leads the MVC, hitting .533 (8-15) in league games, followed closely by Baker's .529 (9-17) mark in Valley games ... CU ranks second in the MVC with a .967 fielding percentage, is hitting .262 as a team and allowing opponents to hit .235 with a staff ERA of 3.37 ... Freshman Becca Changstrom, who has tossed five shutouts in 16 starts, has emerged as the staff ace, leading the MVC with an opponents average of just .164, while she tops the team with a 10-7 record, 105 innings pitched and 108 strikeouts.
Scouting Missouri State (14-15, 4-4 MVC): The Bears were swept in a three-game series at Illinois State last weekend, but snapped a four-game skid with a 2-1 win at Arkansas on Wednesday ... MSU ranks last in the MVC with seven home runs and 78 runs scored and ninth with a .243 batting average ... Kaitlin Cutter ranks among MVC leaders with her .360 average, the only MSU regular hitting above .259, while she tops the team with eight stolen bases ... Ashley Knehans leads the team with 15 RBI, the only Bear with double figure RBI totals ... No MSU player has more than two home runs on the season ... Natalie Rose, two-time MVC Pitcher of the Week this spring, has pitched 129.1 of MSU's 194.2 innings ... Rose is 9-12 with a 2.54 ERA and 130 strikeouts, against just 21 walks, but has allowed 16 home runs.
Head Coach: Head coach Brent Vigness (Central College, 1988) is in his 18th season at Creighton. With a record of 567-391-2 at Creighton, he is the winningest coach in Bluejay athletics history. Vigness also served as head coach at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., for five years prior to coming to Creighton. His career record in 23 years as a head coach is 715-462-3. The most tenured softball coach in school history has led the Jays to six MVC Tournament titles (1999, 2003-05, 2007, 2010), six regular-season MVC crowns (1998-2000, 2007-09), seven NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2003-05, 2007-08, 2010) and was named MVC Coach of the Year in 1998 and guided the MVC Coaching Staff of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
CU-MSU Series: Creighton leads the all-time series with Missouri State, 45-27, including 32-24 under Brent Vigness ... The Bears swept the Bluejays in Omaha last year, as All-American pitcher Tara Oltman was limited to just one inning pitched in the three-game series ... CU has won five of its last six games in Springfield, with four wins coming via shutouts ... Even with that sweep last year, the Jays are still 9-4 in their last 13 meetings with MSU and 14-7 in their last 21.
Individuals Against MSU: Not one player on the Bluejay roster owns an RBI against Missouri State in her career. In fact, returning Bluejays are a combined 6-for-40 (.150) against MSU, with four hits belonging to Liz McKewon (4-15) – who did not play in last year's series due to injury. Amy Baker (1-7) and Christa Ruf (1-6) also have hits against MSU. Kylie Hovinga went 0-1 against MSU last year, pitching 13.1 innings of relief in two appearances against the Bears. She struck out 13 and allowed 10 hits, while posting a 1.58 ERA against MSU last year. Sammy Snygg started twice against MSU in the circle last year, hurling 6.2 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits for a 5.25 ERA.
He's a Winner: Head coach Brent Vigness captured win No. 565 as Creighton's leader on March 31 at Iowa State, a 9-3 win in Ames - just 30 miles from where he attended high school in Zearing, Iowa. The win moved him past Creighton Athletics Hall of Famer Mary Higgins for not only the softball record victory total, but he is now the winningest coach in Creighton athletics history - any sport. In his 18th season, he is the most tenured softball coach in school history, surpassing Higgins' 17 seasons between 1977-93.
Baker Player of the Week (x2): For the second time this year and the fourth time in her career, Amy Baker was named the MVC Player of the Week on Monday. Baker hit a home run in five of her six games last week, including a solo shots at No. 13 Nebraska and Iowa State, and a home run in each game of CU's three-game set with Bradley. For the week she hit .429 (9-21) with five home runs and nine RBI.
Baker's Dozen: Amy Baker has 13 home runs on the season to lead the MVC, with 12 coming in her last 12 games. Since starting the season hitting .182 (8-44) with one home run, five RBI and a .250 slugging percentage through 18 games, Baker's bat has exploded. In her last dozen games, Baker is hitting .436 (17-39) with 12 home runs, 22 RBI and a 1.359 slugging percentage to raise her average on the season to .301 and her slugging percentage to .771.
In a Pinch: Heading into the second game of its doubleheader at Iowa State on March 31, Creighton's pinch-hitters were 3-for-31 (.097) with three RBI on the season. In the Jays' 9-3 win over the Cyclones in game two, Bluejay pinch-hitters went 2-for-3 with three RBI and are now 4-for-9 (.444) in the last four games. McKenna Setlik had an RBI single and MaKenzie Michael had a two-run single in pinch-hitting roles at Iowa State. Setlik added another pinch-hit against Bradley and Brittanee Grove also collected a pinch-hit against BU last weekend.
Since the Skid: Creighton suffered a seven-game losing streak from March 4-10, but has since gone 7-5 in its last 12 games. The Bluejays were four games under .500 (7-11) for the first time this season following their seven straight losses, hitting just .228 with eight home runs and 49 runs scored through 18 games (2.7 per game). Since that point, the Bluejays have heated up, hitting .307 with 21 home runs and 60 runs scored in their last 12 games (5.0 per game). Opponents were hitting .243 against the Jays through their first 18 games, but are batting only .222 against Creighton in the Jays' last 12 games, while the Jays had a 3.78 team ERA through 18 games, only to lower it to 3.37 with a 2.80 ERA in their last dozen games.
Nationally Speaking: Amy Baker not only leads the MVC with 13 home runs, but she ranks seventh in the NCAA in home runs per game (0.43) and is 10th in total home runs. Liz McKewon is tied for the MVC lead with 10 sacrifice bunts on the season, which ranks 10th in the NCAA in sacs per game (0.33).
Bohle Bohle: Redshirt sophomore Jennifer Bohle leads the MVC with a .533 average through six conference games. Bohle, who redshirted last year after playing one season at Northwestern Missouri State is 8-for-15 in her first six MVC games. The junior has no multi-hit games in 24 non-conference games, while she now has three multi-hit games in six Valley games. She went 3-for-3 in her home debut against Bradley last Saturday and was 5-for-6 in the doubleheader against the Braves. She went 2-for-2 in her MVC debut at Evansville on March 19. Bohle is hitting .242 on the season, but is 10-for-22 (.455) in her last 10 games to raise her average 106 points in that span.
Super Subs: Looking for a spark from his deep bench, head coach Brent Vigness shook up his lineup at Iowa State on March 31. Malloree Grove and Danai Martin had started the first 25 games of the season at third base and right field, respectively, before the changes. Vigness inserted Ashley Frutos into the lineup at second base, shifting the infield of Jennifer Bohle from second to shortstop and Liz McKewon from shortstop to third base. Emily Perry has replaced Martin in the lineup in right field for the last five games.
Before March 31, both Perry and Frutos had not started one game this season. Since joining the lineup, Perry is 6-for-17 (.353), hit her first career home run and robbed a home run with a fantastic play in right field. Frutos is on a four-game hitting streak and is 4-for-15 with a pair of sacrifice bunts and a team-leading nine assists in her last five games.
Snygg's Heroics: Sammy Snygg is the Iowa prep record-holder with 49 home runs hit at North Polk High School, but the sophomore had yet to hit a big fly in her collegiate career before last weekend. The sophomore picked a perfect time to hit her first home run as a Bluejay on April 2, launching a towering fly ball just inside the left field foul pole in the bottom of the eighth-inning against Bradley, giving the Jays a 4-3 walk-off win. It was CU's first walk-off home run since Michelle Graner hit one on May 3, 2009 and the first Bluejay homer in extra-innings since Graner did so at Drake on April 21, 2010.
Lucky 13: Freshman Becca Changstrom struck out a career-high 13 batters in a 7-1 win over Bradley on April 2. The 13 Ks equal the highest strikeout total in a game by a Bluejay since the 2008 season. Tara Oltman twice struck out 13 in 2010, while no Bluejay has fanned more than 13 in a game since Oltman struck out a career-high 14 against Illinois State on April 21, 2007.
No April Fools: As an MVC power over the last decade, Creighton has used April to build momentum heading into May and the postseason. Last year the Bluejays were just 14-13 in the first two months of the season, before going 15-6 in April. Since 2007, the Bluejays are now 58-21-1 (.731) in April, while their overall winning percentage in that same span is .662, including .630 in months outside of April.
Same Spot Last Year: While it may seem the Bluejays are struggling this season, take a quick look back at last year's NCAA Tournament team and you'll see an identical record through 30 games. The 2010 Bluejays were also 14-16 through 30 games, before going 23-7 over their final 30 games. Renae Sinkler was off to her amazing start with a .375 average, 13 home runs and 32 RBI last year, compared to Amy Baker's .301 average, 13 home runs and 25 RBI this year. While this season's team is much younger, the offense is further along this year, than it was last year at this point. See the statistical breakdown comparing the 2010 and 2011 team through 30 games:
First 30 Games, 2010 vs. 2011
Category 2010 2011
Overall Record 14-16 14-16
MVC Record 2-5 4-2
Batting Average .196 .262
Opp. Average .256 .235
Runs 98 109
Hits 144 198
Home Runs 23 29
Doubles 26 13
RBI 87 99
Slugging % .332 .397
On-Base % .297 .343
Stolen Bases 20-25 27-39
ERA 3.21 3.37
Complete Games 14 14
Shutouts 7 7
Earned Runs 93 93
BB-K 84-195 88-176
Homan Gets Hot: Freshman Ellen Homan has started all 30 games this season in left field. The rookie leads the team with a .322 average and 28 hits, but she had to overcome a slow start to reach those numbers. The rookie was hitless in her first 13 collegiate at bats, but since that time she is 28-for-74 for a .378 average.
Homecoming: After having its home-opening weekend cancelled because of winter weather on March 26-27, Creighton played its first home games of the season against Bradley on April 2-3. The Bluejays played their first 27 games on the road this season, their longest season-opening road trip since playing their first 32 games on the road in 1999.
Happy Homecoming: Amy Baker enjoyed her home opening weekend on April 2-3, going 7-for-10 with three home runs and seven RBI in CU's three-game series with Bradley. Baker, an Omaha native, has shown she enjoys playing at the CU Sports Complex in her two seasons, as she led the Bluejays with a .385 average, eight home runs and 25 RBI in 19 home games as a freshman.
Amy's Records: Amy Baker set Creighton freshman records last year for home runs (15), RBI (46) and total bases (109). She has already set another school record this year, as her 13 home runs are the most by a sophomore in school history and are tied for fourth in single-season history. With her next blast, she will become the first player in school history to have two seasons with at least 14 home runs.
Baker's Blasts: Amy Baker hit scoreboards at Nebraska (March 30) and Iowa State (March 31) with monster home runs and enters this weekend having homered in each of her last three games. The sophomore was named the MVC Player of the Week (March 14) after an amazing three-game span at the Diamond Devil Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. Baker hit five home runs in a doubleheader on March 11, tying the school record by hitting three home runs in a game against Campbell on March 11. She followed with another blast on Saturday, giving her six home runs in the span of eight plate appearances. All six of her hits during the week were home runs, while she topped the team with 11 RBI in six games (March 8-12).
Doubles Down: Through 30 games, Creighton has just 13 doubles as a team – 11 fewer than the next closest team in the MVC. At this rate, the Bluejays are on pace to hit 23 doubles during the regular-season, which would be the fewest ever under Brent Vigness – 13 fewer than the 36 hit by the 2003 squad. Should the Jays stay on this pace, it will be the fewest two-baggers hit by the Jays since the 1992 team finished with 21 doubles.
Double-Digit Winner: Becca Changstrom picked up her 10th win of the season against Bradley on April 2. She became the first Bluejay hurler other than Tara Oltman to win at least 10 games since Amanda Hess captured 13 wins in her first season with the Bluejays in 2007.
Help Yourself: Freshman Brittany Telecky made just her second start of the season at Iowa State on March 31, picking up a win in the circle at Iowa State. In addition to the pitching start, she was inserted into the lineup and produced a hit, a walk and a run scored in her first collegiate trips to the plate. Fellow rookie Becca Changstrom replaced Telecky in the circle and lineup. After getting hit by a pitch she came around to score a run in the 9-3 win.
Homer Happy: Home runs haven't necessarily meant success for the Bluejays this season. Creighton is 8-9 when they hit a home run this year and 6-7 when they fail to hit a home run. The Jays homered twice in their loss at Nebraska on March 30 – their only two hits of the night – and then hit a solo home run for their only run in a 7-1 loss to Iowa State on March 31. Creighton then did not have an extra base hit, but scored nine runs on 10 singles in its 9-3 win over the Cyclones.
Slow Starters: The first two innings haven't been kind to the Bluejays this year, as they have been out-scored 50-21 in the first two innings of games this year, including 21-7 in the first. The Jays' seven runs scored and .162 average in the first are their worst totals of any inning this spring. Three of the seven first-inning runs scored this year came in CU's first four games. The Bluejays have allowed 29 runs in the second inning this year, the most allowed in any frame.
High-Scoring BCS Win: Creighton scored nine runs in a 9-3 victory at Iowa State on March 31, the most runs it has scored against a school from a BCS conference since scoring 13 against Nebraska on April 9, 2008.
Shutout Streak Snapped: Freshman pitcher Becca Changstrom tossed three consecutive shutouts (March 12-19) to extend her scoreless innings streak to 25.1. That streak was ended when she surrendered a two-run home run with no outs in the first inning at No. 13 Nebraska on March 30. She went from March 11 to March 30 between runs allowed. The rookie became the first Bluejay to throw a shutout in three straight starts since All-American Tara Oltman did so as a sophomore in 2008.
Sacrificing in Two Ways: Senior shortstop Liz McKewon is tied for the MVC lead and ranks 10th in the NCAA with 10 sacrifice bunts this season, already passing last season's total by seven. She has now dropped down 41 sac bunts in her career, moving her into a tie for eighth place in school history in sac bunts. Not only does she sacrifice her at bats, but she also has sacrificed her body, getting hit by a pitch 15 times in her career to rank sixth in school history in that category. McKewon has actually walked as many times (15) in her career as she has been hit by pitches.
MVC Players of the Week: Freshman Becca Changstrom was named the MVC Pitcher of the Week and junior Christa Ruf was named the MVC Player of the Week on March 21 following their play at Evansville. Changstrom flirted with two no-hitters, carrying a no-hitter into the sixth in a two-hit shutout on Mach 19 before coming within one out of a no-no on March 20. She hurled 14 innings against UE, allowing just three hits in two complete game shutouts. Ruf went 3-for-4 with two home runs and all four RBI in Creighton's 4-0 win on March 20. She also walked three times, scored three runs and had a .600 on-base percentage during the three-game set.
Getting Ruffed Up: Christa Ruf is off to a fantastic start to her junior season, ranking second on the team and fourth in the MVC with 24 RBI. Her .291 average is 84 points higher than her career average at the start of the season and her 24 RBI through 30 games are 10 more than she had through the first 86 games of her career. She is second on the team and third in the MVC with eight home runs in 86 at bats – she entered the year with only one home run in her first 140 career at bats.
Martin Gets Moving: Danai Martin leads the team and ranks fourth in the MVC with 10 stolen bases. Eight of those stolen bases have come in three games, as she stole two bases in the season-opener against Western Illinois (Feb. 11) and posted three stolen bases against Northern Colorado (March 4) and against Howard (March 12). She became the first Bluejay since Lauren Cisneros in 2005 to swipe three bases in one game. The sophomore has already equalled the team-leading total of Renae Sinkler from 2010, which is the most stolen bases by a Bluejay since Melanie Dorsey had 24 stolen bases in 2005.
Hovinga Hurls No-Hitter: Junior pitcher Kylie Hovinga tossed the first Bluejay no-hitter in two seasons in a 10-0 win over Centenary on Feb. 25 at the UTA Classic in Arlington, Texas. The left-hander walked one and struck out five in the five-inning no-no. It was the 17th no-hitter thrown by the Bluejays during head coach Brent Vigness' tenure.
Fresh Faces: With freshmen making up more than half of this year's roster, it's no surprise that several have been plugged into starting roles. Freshmen Malloree Grove and Ellen Homan each started the first 25 games this season at third base and left field, respectively, while Homan has still started every game this season. Homan leads the team with a .322 average and 28 hits and Grove, who had a team-best eight game hitting streak earlier this season, is hitting .292 this year. Freshmen have started 20 of the 30 games at first base, with Brittanee Grove starting 15 and Brittnie Kreiser starting five, combined they are flawless in 127 chances in the field. Kreiser is third on the team with three home runs. McKenna Setlik went 3-for-3 with three RBI in her collegiate debut has two home runs and six RBI in 21 games. Rookie pitcher Becca Changstrom is the staff ace, leading the team with 10 wins, 1.93 ERA, five shutouts, 11 complete games, 105 innings pitched and 108 strikeouts.
Leftovers: Amy Baker hit a team-high .489 with runners in scoring position last year, she started this season 3-for-30 (.100) with RISP this season before she was a perfect 5-for-5 with RISP against Bradley last weekend to raise her average to .229 with RISP this season ... Ellen Homan is hitting a team-high .417 and has a team-best 10 hits with runners in scoring position ... Creighton is 1-9 when its opponent scores in the first inning this season, that win came against Bradley on April 2 ... That win was one of just two this season the Jays have captured after allowing the opposition to score first, also coming from behind to beat UT Arlington (Feb. 26), CU is now 2-13 when the opponent scores first this season ... CU captured its first extra-inning win of the season in the second game of its doubleheader with Bradley on April second, Sammy Snygg's walk-off eighth-inning home run gave the Jays a 4-3 win and a 1-2 record in extra-innings this season ... Brittany Telecky, Emily Perry and Ashley Frutos each collected their first hit and their first RBI of the season at Iowa State on March 31 ... Perry went 2-for-7 in the doubleheader at Iowa State – she was 1-for-17 in her career before the twin bill (including 1-for-15 last year) ... Amy Baker walked 13 times in 58 games last year, but walked 13 times in her first 21 games this season and leads the team with 18 walks on the year ... Baker has 28 career home runs, the rest of the team has a combined 17 career homers ... Baker has homered 25 times in her last 60 games played dating back to last year, Renae Sinkler hit a CU record 24 home runs in 60 games last year ... Creighton has won two games this year in which it has trailed and lost four games this year in which it has led.
Players Mentioned
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/ 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
