Softball Opens 2018 Season At Sportco Kick Off Classic

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Creighton opens the 2018 season at the Sportco Kick Off Classic in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Bluejays will play a total of five games, beginning with a contest against host UNLV on Friday night.

Game Schedule
Game #1 • Friday, Feb. 9 • Creighton at UNLV • 8:00 p.m.
Game #2 • Friday, Feb. 9 • Creighton vs. Utah Valley • 10:15 p.m.
Game #3 • Saturday, Feb. 10 • Creighton vs. North Dakota State • 1:15 p.m.
Game #4 • Saturday, Feb. 10 • Creighton vs. Southern Utah • 5:45 p.m.
Game #5 • Sunday, Feb. 11 • Creighton vs. #16 Minnesota • 11:00 a.m.
*All times listed are Central Standard Time

Follow The Games
All five of Creighton's games in Las Vegas will have live stats. Links to the stats are available at GoCreighton.com.

The Bluejays' contest on Friday night against UNLV will have a live video stream (https://livestream.com/mwn/events/7741116), but the other four games will not.

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

Scouting UNLV
The Rebels return six position starters and two pitchers from last season's team that finished eighth in the Mountain West.

Janine Petmecky returns after leading UNLV with a .344 batting average and 55 hits on her way to a a Second Team All-Mountain West selection.

Bre Burke returns in the circle for the Rebels after recording a 2.86 ERA during 58.2 innings pitched.

UNLV hired Kristie Fox this past summer as its new head coach. Fox spent five years as head coach at UT Arlington.

Series History Against Rebels
Creighton leads the all-time series 3-1. Last season, UNLV claimed its only victory in the series, a 4-0 win in Las Vegas.

Scouting Utah Valley
The Wolverines enter the season after a third place finish in the WAC during head coach TJ Hubbard's first season in Orem and were picked fourth in the 2018 Preseason Poll.

Lauren Frailey Spendlove returns after leading Utah Valley in ERA (3.59), innings pitched (126.2), wins (12) and strikeouts (43) last season. Frailey was named the WAC Pitcher of the Year and earned NFCA All-West Region Third Team honors.

Sophomore Caragh Morris ranked second on the team with a .357 batting average, paced the squad with eight doubles and was tabbed the 2017 WAC Freshman of the Year.

Frailey Spendlove and Morris each earned 2018 Preseason All-WAC accolades.

Hubbard guided Utah Valley to a 16-24 overall record and 7-8 mark in conference during his first season as head coach of the Wolverines.

Series History Against Wolverines
Creighton and Utah Valley have met only once previously. The Wolverines defeated the Bluejays 4-1 on March 11, 2014 at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Florida.

Scouting North Dakota State
The Bison return eight starters from last season's Summit League Tournament champion squad. North Dakota State was selected as the preseason favorite in the league for this season.

Conference tournament MVP and all-Summit League second team outfielder Bre Beatty returns after leading North Dakota State to its fourth conseuctive conference tournament title.

NFCA All-Midwest Region Second Team selection Jacquelyn Sertic ended 2017 with 340 strikeouts (5th-best nationally) and a 2.78 ERA during 292.1 innings of work.

The Bison opened the 2017 Norman Regional with a victory over eventual national champion Oklahoma (3-2) before falling to Tulsa and the Sooners.

Head coach Darren Mueller is in his 18th year as head coach of North Dakota State, and holds a 571-315 record with one NCAA regional title (2009), eight Summit League tournament titles and six regular-season Summit League titles.

Series History Against Bison
Creighton leads the all-time series against North Dakota State 7-4.

The Bison won the most previous meeting between the two schools 6-2 on March 3, 2012 at the Wilson/DeMarini Invitational in Tempe, Arizona.

Scouting Southern Utah
The Thunderbirds begin 2018 following a fourth place finish in the 2017 Big Sky standings and were picked fifth in the 2018 preseason coaches' poll.

Outfielder Sarah Murphy returns after being named Big Sky Conference Co-Newcomer of the Year and claiming All-Big Sky Second Team honors a year ago. Murphy is the only returner to start all 46 games during 2017 and led the sqaud with 48 hits and 12 stolen bases.

Hanna Wynn returns for the Thunderbird pitching staff after leading the team with 87.2 innings pitched during a team-best 20 appearances.

Head coach Tom Gray is in his fourth season at Southern Utah.

Series History Against Thunderbirds
Creighton leads the all-time series against Southern Utah 4-1.

The two teams competed during the 1991 (two times) and 1992 (three times) seasons as members of the Western Athletic Conference.

The Bluejays claimed a 12-5 victory during the 1992 WAC Tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah, the only previous meeting between the two schools at a neutral site.

Scouting #16 Minnesota
The Gophers return 14 players, including seven starters from last season's team which won a program-best 56 games and its first Big Ten regular season title since 1991.

Kendyl Lindaman, the 2017 NFCA Sports Diamond Catcher of the Year and Big Ten Player and Freshman of the Year, started 61 games at catcher and set school records for home runs (20), slugging percentage (.899), walks (63) and on-base percentage (.598)
during her first season at Minnesota.

The Gophers lost Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Sara Groenewegan because of graduation, but added LSU transfer Sydney Smith. Smith went 25-11 with a 1.64 ERA and 129 strikeouts during 204 innings pitched over the course of two seasons at LSU.

Sophomore Amber Fiser returns in the circle for the Gophers after finishing a perfect 14-0 with a 1.68 ERA.

Jamie Trachsel is in her first season at Minnesota after spending last season at Iowa State and 2011-2016 as co-head coach at North Dakota State.

Series History Against Golden Gophers
Creighton and Minnesota have met 17 times previously, with the Bluejays holding a slight 9-8 advantage.

The Jays and Gophers last met during the Wildcat Invitational in Tuscon, Arizona during the 2010 season, with Creighton earning a 5-0 victory.

Season Outlook
The 2018 Creighton softball team seeks a trip to the BIG EAST conference tournament for the first time since the program's inaugural season in the league (2014).

Last season, the Bluejays won six straight BIG EAST contests during the month of April to move into fourth place in the conference standings, and picked up seven wins overall during an eight-game stretch.

Despite the mid-season momentum, Creighton dropped its final home league game and last nine games of the season and finished in sixth place in the final conference standings.

All-BIG EAST Second Team outfielder Ashley Cantu led the team with a .346 batting average and ranked second on the team with a .404 on-base percentrage as a freshman. She returns this season to build off her first year.

Three-year starter Tash Coffiel paced the squad with 25 hits during league play and returns as the only starter from last season's regular infield.

Overall, Creighton returns four position players that started at least half of last season's schedule. The Bluejays' 12 returning letterwinners and 11 newcomers will fight for an NCAA Regional appearance for the first time since 2010.

Bryana Clark is the lone pitcher on the 2018 roster to appear in a game last season for the Bluejays.

Clark led Creighton in innings pitched (145.0), strikeouts (95), ERA (3.91) and wins (9) a season ago, as the overall staff struggled with consistency throughout the 2017 season.

Freshmen Kiele Miller and Logan Black are expected to make an immediate impact in the circle during their first seasons with the Bluejay program. Miller earned All-State First Team and District MVP honors as a senior at Dripping Springs (Texas) High School after recording 256 strikeouts and a 23-5 record while leading her team to the state semifinals.

Black, Millard West's career strikeout leader with 545, guided the Wildcats to four Nebraska Class A State Tournament appearances, including two third-place finishes. The Omaha, product recorded a school-record 245 strikeouts and posted a 1.46 ERA and 22-7 record while earning Omaha World-Herald All-Nebraska First Team honors as a senior.

Junior transfer Nikki McNeil will also factor into the pitching rotation after spending two seasons at Benedictine College (NAIA) in Atchison, Kansas.

Coffiel led the Bluejays with 88 assists while starting 30 games at shortstop and 19 at third base last spring. The Omaha, native owns 126 starts during her Creighton career.

Jayci McGill is the only other player on the 2018 roster to start a game at an infield position for Creighton a season ago. McGill started two contests at second base, but appears poised to fight for the starting nod this season after posting a .244 average at the plate, which included 12 at-bats as a pinch-hitter and a seven-game hitting streak during the middle of league action.

Transfers Kaitlynn Hunt, Hope Moreno and Kelli Finan each will compete to fill the current voids.

Hunt, a transfer from Nebraska-Omaha, started multiple games at catcher as a freshman during the 2017 season but has worked out primarily at shortstop during the offseason.

Moreno appears to hold the first base position after spending three seasons at UTEP, and will have one season of eligibility at Creighton.

Finan, a 2016 All-Big West Freshman Team selection, spent two seasons at Long Beach State before traveling from The Beach to Omaha and will fight for a spot in the starting lineup at second base, third base or shortstop. She may also see time in the outfield.

Freshman Victoria Alvarez will also push for playing time at the middle infield positions and third base, while junior Morgan Bohanan continues to recover after sitting out all of last season with an injury and may see time at first base.

Cantu, the only returning All-BIG EAST selection on this season's roster, paced the team with a .346 batting average and ranked second on the team in doubles (7), on-base percentage (.404) and stolen bases (3-of-4) during her freshman season. She made 35 starts in right field and hit in the lead-off position 25 times as a first-year player.

Sam Crowley, one of Creighton's five seniors, started 21 games in left field and 10 in center. She drove in 11 runs at the plate last season and is expected to patrol center this spring.

Sophomores Kristin Fry, Sydney Jenkins and Mileah McKelvy, as well as freshmen Courtney Sandell, Chloe Knapp and Jacey Sawyer will battle for starts and playing time.

Both Fry and Jenkins primarily were used as pinch-runners last season, while McKelvy earned a medical redshirt after off-season knee surgery.

Sandell is the state of Nebraska's career batting average leader with a .582 average (160 hits during three seasons) and led Malcolm to its first state championship in only the program's third year of existence (2016).

Senior Jordyn Sturgeon started 43 games at catcher, threw out nine would-be base-stealers -- the third-best total in the BIG EAST -- and will continue to work behind the plate for the Bluejays. She also tied for the team-lead with seven sacrifice hits last season.

Junior Valentina Bertrand, sophomore Mikaela Pechar and freshman Hope Bonar will provide depth at the catcher position.

McKelvy appears to be the front-runner for the starting designated player role, but multiple players may see time at the offensive specialist position.

Creighton Season-Opening History
The Bluejays are 48-47 under head coach Brent Vigness during season-opening tournaments (since 1994).

Since joining the BIG EAST prior to the 2014 season, Creighton is 8-12 during first weekend events.

The Jays have finished a season-opening tourney undefeated once (5-0 in 2007) under Vigness and have never gone winless.

The past two seasons Creighton has finished 1-4 during the first weekend.

Rare Visitors of Vegas
This weekend marks Creighton's second ever trip to Nevada for a tournament in program history.

The Bluejays participated in the UNLV Invitational March 6-8, 1987, and played two additional games against UNLV on March 9, 1987.

Last season marked the first year Creighton returned to the state of Nevada when the Bluejays played a midweek game at UNLV (March 7, 2017).

Creighton is 6-1 all-time during games played in Nevada, including a 4-0 showing at the 1987 UNLV Invitational.

Creighton Picked Fifth In BIG EAST Poll
The Creighton softball team received 23 points and ranked fifth in the 2018 BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, the conference announced on Thursday, Jan. 18.

Defending BIG EAST regular-season champion St. John's edged out defending conference-tournament champion DePaul for the top spot. Both the Red Storm and Blue Demons received four first-place votes, but the Johnnies claimed 46 points overall and DePaul earned 45.

Butler (34 points) and Villanova (29) ranked higher than the Bluejays, while Seton Hall (22), Providence (18) and Georgetown (7) rounded out the poll.

Creighton returns 12 letterwinners, including four position players that started at least 50 percent of last season's schedule. All-BIG EAST Second Team selection Ashley Cantu returns after leading the Bluejays in batting average (.346) and runs scored (30) during her first season with the Bluejays.

Senior infielder Tash Coffiel led Creighton with a .410 on-base percentage and enters her fourth season in Omaha with 128 career games played (126 starts) as a Bluejay.

Head coach Brent Vigness also welcomed 11 newcomers for the 2018 squad, which includes seven freshmen and four transfers.

Bluejays Return One All-BIG EAST Selection
Freshman Sam Dellinger made the All-BIG EAST First Team as an outfielder, while senior infielder Aujanae McCoy and freshman outfielder Ashley Cantu each made the Second Team.

Dellinger became the third different Bluejay to make the All-BIG EAST First Team, and the first since Liz Dike in 2015.

Cantu led Creighton with a .346 batting average and 30 runs scored, and is the only player of the three to return this season for the Bluejays.During BIG EAST play, Cantu hit .400, which ranked third in the conference. Her .456 on-base percentage during conference games led the Bluejays and ranked 10th in the league.

The Frisco, Texas, native hit seven doubles, two triples and one home run while driving in 14 runs during 38 total starts. Cantu hit in the lead-off spot 25 times during the 2017 campaign, including during 17 BIG EAST games.

Bluejays Set To Host Creighton Tourney
Creighton will host an in-season tournament for the first time since 1997 when it welcomes Iowa and Wichita State for a two-day event on March 16 and 17.

A total of five games will be played at the Creighton Sports Complex during the tourney.

The last time Creighton hosted a regular-season tournament was April 22-23, 1997, when the team hosted the Lady Jay Classic. The Bluejays also hosted the MVC Tournament four times, most recently during the team's final season in the conference in 2013.

Below is the schedule for this year's event.

2017 Creighton Tournament Schedule
Friday, March 16
Iowa vs. Wichita State       1 pm
Wichita State at Creighton   3:30 pm
Saturday, March 17
Wichita State vs. Iowa       11 am
Iowa at Creighton       1:30 pm
Wichita State at Creighton   4 pm

Jays Keeping It Close
Creighton played in 14 one-run games in 2017, and went 7-7 during those games.

The Jays also finished 4-1 during one-run BIG EAST contests.

The Bluejays owned two walk-off one-run victories.

Small-ball
The Bluejays had a total of seven sacrifice flies and 44 sac bunts during 2017. Creighton led the BIG EAST in sacrifice bunts for the second consecutive season.

Jordyn Sturgeon, Tash Coffiel and Aujanae McCoy each lead the Bluejays with seven sac bunts, while Anna O'Gorman and Allie Reinhart led the team with two sac flies a piece.

The Jays finished with five sacrifice flies and led the league with 48 sacrifice bunts during the 2016 season, including 15 from senior Kelsey Allender.

Double-Digit Hits
The Bluejays recorded 10 or more hits during eight of 11 games from April 9-April 27 last season.

Creighton recorded a season-high 14 hits on three different occasions, including its second game of a doubleheader against UMKC on April 18.

The Bluejays went 10-4 when recording 10 or more base knocks and 15-6 when outhitting its opponent. By comparasion, the Jays were 3-25 when they are outhit by the opposition (0-1 when hits were tied) and 2-11 when allowing 10 or more hits.

Vigness Wins #725
The 2017 season marked head coach Brent Vigness's 24th season as head coach at Creighton, where he owns a 729-545-3 record. He is the winningest coach in Creighton history in any sport and picked up his 725th victory against Seton Hall during the second game of a doubleheader on April 14, 2017.

Vigness has a career record of 877-616-4 in 29 years overall, which includes five seasons at Assumption (Mass.) College.

Vigness is assisted by two of his former players, Renae Sinkler and Micaela Whitney.

Softball Opens 2018 Season At Sportco Kick Off Classic

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Players Mentioned

Victoria Alvarez

Valentina Bertrand

Logan Black

Hope Bonar

Ashley Cantu

Bryana Clark

Tash Coffiel

Sam Crowley

Kelli Finan

Jayci Foster

Kristin Fry

Kaitlynn Hunt

Sydney Jenkins

Chloe Knapp

Mileah McKelvy

Nikki McNeil

Kiele Miller

Hope Moreno

Mikaela Pechar

Courtney Sandell

Jacey Sawyer

Jordyn Sturgeon