Creighton University
Villanova
Softball Heads Back On The Road For BIG EAST Series Against Villanova
4/11/2019 3:30:00 PM | Softball
Bluejays run-ruled Nebraska on Tuesday night but have not won in league play since March 23
Up Next
Creighton resumes BIG EAST play with a series on the road against Villanova.Â
Game Schedule
Games #30 & #31 • Saturday, April 13 • Creighton (12-17, 1-8 BIG EAST) at Villanova (19-17, 3-3 BIG EAST) • 11 a.m. (DH)
Game #32 • Sunday, April 14 • Creighton at Villanova • 10 a.m.
*All times listed are Central Standard Time
Follow The Games
A live stream for each of the three games will be available via Villanova.com/Watch. A subscription is required to view the stream.
Live stats will be available for the game via StatBroadcast.com.
Links to the live stats and video can be found on the Creighton Softball schedule page.
Scoring updates and infographics will be provided via Twitter at @BluejaySoftball.
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Scouting Creighton (12-17, 1-8 BIG EAST)
The Bluejays enter the weekend following a 9-1 victory against in-state rival Nebraska on Tuesday, but have lost eight of their last 10 (all BIG EAST losses).Â
Freshman Kiara Mills leads Creighton with a .375 batting average and a .766 slugging percentage. Mills paces the Bluejays in home runs (6) and RBIs (21) after hitting a go-ahead two-run homer on Tuesday. Mills is hitting .379 with three home runs and eight RBIs during BIG EAST play.Â
Lead-off hitter and center fielder Ashley Cantu is hitting .364 and claims a .477 on-base percentage. The junior paces the Bluejays in hits (32) and walks (19). She also is tied for the team-lead with 20 runs scored. Cantu has reached base in 17 straight games entering Saturday and is on a Bluejay season-best nine-game hitting streak. She claims a .355 batting average with five runs scored during league play.
Kelli Finan is tied with Cantu for the team-lead in runs scored (20) and ranks second in RBIs with 20 while hitting .308 with four doubles and four homers.Â
During BIG EAST games, Finan leads the Bluejays with seven runs scored and is hitting .296 with one homer and seven RBIs.Â
Creighton owns a .271 team-batting average and averages 5.00 runs per game during all games and a .267 average with 5.3 runs per BIG EAST contest.Â
Logan Black paces the Bluejay pitching staff with 77.0 innings pitched (16 appearances, 13 starts) and owns a 4.09 ERA with 62 strikeouts.Â
Laura Roecker leads Creighton with 18 appearances, including 11 times in relief (58.0 innings pitched). She paces the team with a 3.86 ERA.
Kiele Miller entered the week ranked 10th nationally with 10.1 strikeouts per seven innings (61 in 42.1 innings) and leads the BIG EAST with a .213 batting average against but has not pitched since March 23 because of injury.
The Creighton pitching staff claims a 4.21 ERA with 159 strikeouts and holds the opposition to a .244 batting average. The Bluejays own 52 strikeouts in 62 innings of work during league play with a 3.95 ERA.Â
Head coach Brent Vigness, Creighton's winningest coach across all sports, is in his 26th season at the helm of the Bluejays.
Scouting Villanova (19-17, 3-3 BIG EAST)
The Wildcats head into the weekend fresh off a 3-0 midweek victory against Lafayette.
Villanova won two out of three games last weekend at home against Providence.Â
Paige Rauch leads the Wildcats' offensively with a .368 batting average, .489 on-base percentage and .764 slugging mark. She entered the week in a tie for fifth in the BIG EAST with 39 hits, second in home runs (10) and fourth in RBIs (30). Rauch is also tied for the league lead with 24 walks. The sophomore is hitting .381 (8-of-21) during league play (six games) with one homer, four RBIs and six runs during her first season at Villanova. Rauch earned 2018 Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year honors while playing at Fordham.Â
Rauch also owns a Wildcat-best 22 appearances in the circle, including 18 starts. She owns a 2.49 ERA and 90 strikeouts during 104.0 innings of work.Â
Angela Giampolo ranks in the top five in the BIG EAST with 28 runs scored and is a perfect 9-of-9 in stolen bases. Giampolo paces the Wildcats with seven runs scored during league games.
Villanova is hitting .261 as a team and averaging 4.86 runs per game. The Wildcats own a .278 batting average and 42 runs scored through six BIG EAST games (7.0 runs/game).
Sara Kennedy, the BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week, did not allow a run during 11.0 innings of work last weekend against Providence. The freshman holds a 3.07 ERA during 45.2 innings overall, and a 1.87 ERA in 15.0 innings of BIG EAST work.Â
The Wildcat pitching staff claims a 3.64 ERA overall, including a 3.08 mark in league play. Villanova owns three shutouts during BIG EAST games.Â
Head coach Bridget Orchard is in her first season at Villanova. Orchard returned to her alma mater after 17 seasons at Fordham.Â
Series History Against Wildcats
The all-time series between Creighton and Villanova is tied at 8-8.
The Bluejays swept the Wildcats during a three-game series in Omaha last season as Creighton outscored Villanova 29-5 and earned two run-rule victories (14-0 and 9-0).Â
Creighton is 1-5 during games played at Villanova.
Bluejays Snap Six-Game Losing Skid
Creighton snapped a six-game losing streak (all BIG EAST games) with a 9-1 five-inning win against in-state rival Nebraska on Tuesday. The victory marked the Bluejays' first against the Cornhuskers since 2012.Â
Creighton blasted four home runs, including three during the first inning and scored nine unanswered runs.Â
Senior Laura Roecker needed only 73 pitches for the complete-game victory.Â
The Bluejays enter the weekend with eight consecutive BIG EAST losses. Creighton opened its conference slate with a 14-5 win against Georgetown (March 23) but has lost eight straight, including seven games by two runs or less and one by 10 runs.
Creighton's Close Contests
Since March 17, Creighton has played eight games decided by two or less runs including seven during BIG EAST play. The Bluejays are 1-7 during those contests with all seven losses coming in league games.
Creighton is 3-9 overall (0-7 in BIG EAST play) during games decided by two runs or less this season.Â
The Bluejays' last victory during a game decided by two runs or less came on March 17, a 1-0 win against South Dakota State.Â
Roecker In Relief
Senior Laura Roecker leads the Bluejays with 18 appearances, including 11 in relief. She owns a 3.11 ERA during 27.0 innings of relief work and holds the opposition to a .208 batting average. Comparatively, during her six starts this season Roecker has allowed 20 earned runs in 31.0 innings (4.52 ERA).Â
The senior pitched 7.1 innings of relief during Creighton's extra-inning loss against Providence on March 30. She posted five consecutive scoreless innings before the Friars tallied the winning run during the 12th inning.Â
Roecker faced only 16 batters while not allowing a hit or run during 5.0 innings of relief during Creighton's trip to Carbondale, Illinois (Feb. 22-24).Â
She hit one batter but did not allow a hit or run and left three runners stranded in 2.0 frames while earning the victory against Saint Louis (Feb. 22).
The UNO transfer also walked one and struck out two while not allowing a hit or run during 3.0 innings against Southern Illinois (Feb. 24) to earn her first save as a Bluejay.
Recent Power Surge
Creighton hit only four home runs during the first 18 games of the season, but the Bluejays have launched 20 homers during their past 11 games, including 10 during nine BIG EAST games.Â
Kiara Mills leads the Bluejays with six home runs, including a game-winning two-run homer on Tuesday against Nebraska. Mileah McKelvy ranks second on the team with five. McKelvy hit her fifth with a pinch-hit three-run homer on Sunday against St. John's.
Kelli Finan has four, while Mikaela Pechar and Ashley Cantu each have three. Two of Cantu's round-trippers have been inside-the-park home runs.Â
Creighton Ties Program Record For Homers
The Bluejays hit six home runs on March 27 against South Dakota to tie a program record.Â
Creighton set its single-game record for homers in a game with six last season against UMKC (April 17).
Kiara Mills hit two long balls on against the Coyotes, Ashley Cantu tallied an inside-the-park homer and Mileah McKelvy, Kelli Finan and Mikaela Pechar each launched one.
McKelvy Moves Into Top 10 on HBP List
Junior Mileah McKelvy earned a free pass by being hit by the pitch on Tuesday against Nebraska and now has been hit seven times this season to lead the Bluejays.Â
McKelvy currently ranks ninth on Creighton's career record list for times hit by pitch with 15.
The junior was hit by the pitch three times in Kansas City (March 15-17) including twice with the bases loaded.
Creighton Career Hit By Pitch List
1. Jen Daro, 39 (2014-17)
2. Michelle Graner, 34 (2007-10)
3. Alexis Cantu, 29 (2012-14)
4. Michelle Koch, 25 (2007-10)
Lauren Cisneros, 25 (2003-06)
6. Sami Herbster, 21 (2000-03)
7. Liz McKewon, 18 (2008-11)
8. Renae Sinkler, 16 (2007-10)
9. Mileah McKelvy, 15 (2016-Present)
10. Tash Coffiel, 13 (2015-18)Â
CU Sports Complex Turns Into Launching Pad
Creighton and South Dakota combined for seven home runs during the Bluejays' home-opener on March 27, St. John's and Creighton combined for nine homers during a three-game series in Omaha (April 6-7) and the Bluejays hit four homers against Nebraska on Tuesday at the Creighton Sports Complex.
The Bluejays own 11 home runs through five games played at home, compared to only 13 during 24 contests played away from Omaha.
A total of 47 home runs were hit during 19 Creighton games played at the Creighton Sports Complex in 2018, which is the most during the past 10 seasons. The Bluejays hit 25, while opponents had 22.
Creighton hit a program-record six home runs against UMKC at home on April 17, and the two teams combined for 10 homers.
During the past 10 seasons, the most home runs Creighton has hit during a single season at home is 26 (2010).
During the 2015 season, 41 home runs were hit during the span of 13 games, but 25 of those were hit by the opposition, which is the most during the past 10 seasons.Â
The top of the next column shows the home runs totals at the CU Sports Complex during the past 10 years:
HRs (CU HRs) Number of Games Year
20 (11) 5 2019
47 (25) 19 2018
29 (13) 12 2017
26 (9) 15 2016
41 (16) 13 2015
29 (17) 15 2014
20 (13) 14 2013
34 (20) 16 2012
26 (12) 14 2011
42 (26) 19 2010
Creighton hit 37 home runs overall last season, the most since the team hit 42 in 2014. The program record for home runs in a season is 66, which was set during 2010. The Bluejays have hit more than 30 home runs 13 different times in program history (each time since 2001).
RPI Update
Creighton is ranked No. 210 in the latest RPI, released by the NCAA on Monday (297 Division I schools ranked).Â
The Bluejays own the sixth-best RPI among BIG EAST teams.
BIG EAST Teams in Division I RPI
97. DePaul
116. St. John's
124. Providence
135. Villanova
178. Seton Hall
210. Creighton
217. ButlerÂ
234. GeorgetownÂ
