Softball Heads to Alabama For Plainsman Invitational

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Creighton heads to Auburn, Ala. to play in the Plainsman Invitational Feb. 17-19. The Bluejays will face Mercer, No. 2 Auburn and Evansville in a total of five games over three days.

Game Schedule
Game #1 • Feb. 17 • Creighton vs. Mercer • 9:45 p.m.
Game #2 • Feb. 17 • Creighton vs. No. 2 Auburn • 2:30 p.m.
Game #3 • Feb. 18 • Creighton vs. Evansville • 1:00 p.m.
Game #4 • Feb. 18 • Creighton vs. No. 2 Auburn • 6:00 p.m.
Game #5 • Feb. 19 • Creighton vs. Evansville • 9:30 a.m.
*All times listed are Central Standard Time

Follow the Action
Live stats for all five games will be available on GameTracker, and links for each specific contest can be found at the top of the GoCreighton.com home page.

Creighton's two games against Auburn (Feb. 17 at 2:30 p.m. & Feb. 18 at 6 p.m.) will be featured on the SEC Network+, which can be found on ESPN3.com and the WatchESPN app. A television subscription may be required to view the events.

Audio will also be provided for the Bluejays' games against the Tigers at: www.auburntigers.com/collegesportslive.

Scoring updates and infographics will be provided via Twitter at @BluejaySoftball.

Scouting Creighton
Creighton opened the 2017 season with five games at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz..

The Bluejays picked up one win against Saint Mary's (CA) and dropped contests to San Jose State, No. 9 Oregon, Stanford and Cal Poly.

Bryana Clark led the Creighton pitching staff with a 2.15 ERA in 13.0 innings and recorded the first victory of the season. Clark earned BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week accolades for her opening-weekend efforts.

Offensively, the Bluejays were held to 12 hits through five games, with Tash Coffiel leading the way with three.

Scouting Mercer
Mercer opened the 2017 season by hosting the Mercer Invitational in Macon, Ga. The Bears lost their first two contests before defeating Portland State and Dayton to end the event at 2-2.

Mercer was picked third in the 2017 Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll and had four individuals on the All-SoCon Preseason Teams.

Three-time All-SoCon selection Taylor Miller returns for the Bears after leading the conference with a .414 batting average.

Meghan Rud led the Bears' offense during the first weekend with eight hits in 14 at-bats, while Quirisa Mauga had three doubles and a home run.

Miller, Rud and Mauga were each preseason SoCon selections.

Mercer had four different starting pitchers during the first four games of 2017, while Megan Bilgri pitched 12.2 innings in three appearances (1-0, 2.21 ERA, 6 Ks, 0 BBs).

As a team, the Bears struck out 15 hitters and walked only five while allowing opposing batters to hit .264.

Head coach Stephanie DeFeo is in her fifth season at Mercer and picked up her 100th victory with the program during the opening weekend (101-78).

Scouting No. 2 Auburn
Preseason No. 2 in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Coaches Poll, Auburn opened the 2017 season with a 3-1 record at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge in Mexico.

The Tigers opened the season with a 3-2 win over preseason No. 1 and defending national champion Oklahoma in a rematch of the 2016 Women's College World Series Finals.

Auburn claimed the second position in the 2017 SEC Softball Preseason Coaches' Poll behind current-No.1 Florida.

Kaylee Carlson, Kasey Cooper and Makayla Martin each earned spots on the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Watch List.

Carlson and Martin anchor the Tigers' pitching staff while Cooper, the 2016 espnW National Player of the Year and SEC Player of the Year, leads the
high-powered Auburn offense.

During the opening weekend, Martin posted a 0.91 ERA in 15.1 innings of work and went 2-1, while Carlson tossed 15.2 innings with a 1.34 ERA, 1-0 record and one save.

The Tigers offense managed to hit only .194 in Mexico, but accumulated a .317 batting average with Cooper leading the way (.422) during the 2016 season. Cooper also had 21 home runs, 19 doubles and 83 RBIs in 70 games last season.

Head coach Clint Myers is in his fourth season at Auburn and led the Tigers to back-to-back Women's College World Series appearances, the first two in program history Myers coached Arizona State to the 2009 and 2011 national titles and trips to the WCWS in seven of his eight years with the Sun Devils.

Scouting Evansville
The Purple Aces were picked sixth in the 2017 Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll.

Evansville won 12 MVC games last season for the first time since 2007 and clinched its best finish in the league since 2008 (6th).

Michal Luckett returns for the Purple Aces after leading the 2016 squad with 49 hits and a .312 batting average.

Two-time All-Missouri Valley Conference First Team selection Chandra Parr is in her senior season after hitting .300 last season.

Morgan Florey, the 2016 MVC Freshman of the Year, will lead Evansville in the circle. Florey went 16-11 with a 1.95 ERA in 41 appearances last season. She also led the team offensively with eight home runs and 26 RBIs.

Head coach Mat Mundell is in his third year with the program following a 24-26 campaign in 2016, a 14-win improvement from his first season in 2015.

Series History vs. Mercer
Creighton and Mercer have not met previously before Friday's game.

Series History vs. Auburn
The Tigers own a 1-0 edge all-time against the Bluejays.

Auburn picked up a 6-2 victory on March 12, 2000 during the War Eagle Classic in Auburn, Ala.

Series History vs. Evansville
Creighton owns a 38-19 lead in the series against Evansville.

The two teams met annually from 1995-2013 as Missouri Valley Conference opponents.

The Bluejays defeated the Purple Aces 6-4 in the most recent matchup on March 16, 2013.

Left-Handed Opening Game Starters
Sophomore Michal Hylton started in the cirle during Creighton's season-opener and became the first left-handed pitcher to start the Bluejays' first game of the season since Stephanie Cortese in 2006.

Clark Named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week
Bryana Clark was named the BIG EAST Softball Pitcher of the Week on Monday

Clark ended the weekend with a 2.15 ERA in 13.0 innings of work during three appearances at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz.

The junior transfer from South Dakota State pitched a complete-game five-hitter during the Bluejays' 2-1 win against Saint Mary's on Feb. 10. She did not allow an earned run and struck out three batters while only needing to throw 89 pitches.

Clark opened the 2017 season with a four-inning relief appearance during the season-opener against San Jose State on Feb. 9, giving up three hits and one earned run while striking out three and walking one.

Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Senior Jen Daro was hit by the pitch during Creighton's lid lifter against San Jose State (Feb. 9), marking the 30th time she has been hit in her career. She now sits alone in second place on Creighton's career list hit by pitch list.

The record is held by Michelle Graner (2007-10) with 34.

Daro was also hit by a team-high seven pitches in 2016.

In 2015, Daro became the first player in school history to be hit by 10 or more pitches in multiple seasons, as she was been plunked 12 times as a freshman in 2014 before 10 beanings in 2015 during her sophomore campaign.

Quick Work
Creighton's final game (vs. Cal Poly, Feb. 11) of the Kajikawa Classic lasted only one hour and ten minutes, making it the shortest game by time since April 22, 2007 when the Bluejays played Illinois State in a game that last only one hour and one minute.

That game between Creighton and Illinois State ended in a 1-1 tie when the game was called after five innings because of rain.

Below is a list of some of the shortest games by time in Creighton softball history since 1999:

Date Opponent Result (Inn.) Time

4/22/07 Illinois State T, 1-1 (5) 1:01

4/11/06 UMKC W, 8-0 (5) 1:05

5/8/99 UNI W, 2-0 1:09

2/11/17 Cal Poly L, 0-8 (5) 1:10

3/13/15 Albany W, 11-0 (5) 1:11

5/4/08 Missouri State W, 8-0 (5) 1:11

2/13/09 Detroit W, 8-0 (5) 1:11

3/08/08 La Salle W, 9-0, (5) 1:13

2/24/13 Grambling State W, 10-0 (5) 1:14

Losing-Streak Snapped
Creighton's victory on Friday against Saint Mary's snapped a nine-game losing streak that stretched back to the end of 2016. The nine-game streak tied for the third-longest losing stretch in program-history.

Durable Daro
Senior infielder Jen Daro was not in the starting lineup in the second game of the day on Feb. 10 for only the second time in her Creighton career. She started 129 consecutive games before the contest against Stanford.

However, Daro did pinch hit against the Cardinal, and has now played in all 148 games since enrolling at Creighton.

Softball Heads to Alabama For Plainsman Invitational

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Bryana Clark

Tash Coffiel

Jen Daro

Michal Hylton

Softball Heads to Alabama For Plainsman Invitational

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Bryana Clark

Tash Coffiel

Jen Daro

Michal Hylton

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