Creighton University
Kansas City
Softball Opens Home Slate With Wednesday Afternoon Doubleheader Against Kansas City
3/14/2023 9:25:00 AM | Softball
Game #23-24:  Kansas City Roos (5-17) vs. Creighton Bluejays (11-11)
Wednesday, March 15, 2023 • 1 p.m. • Omaha, Neb. • Creighton Sports Complex
|Â LIVE VIDEOÂ | LIVE STATSÂ | CU NOTES (PDF)|
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After playing 22 straight games on the road, Creighton (11-11, 0-0 BIG EAST) is set to open the home portion of its schedule with a twinbill against Kansas City (5-17) on Wednesday afternoon.Â
Game one's first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. with game two to followed afterwards from the Creighton Sports Complex.
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Follow The Games
Live stats will be provided through StatBroadcast, while live video will be featured on FloSports.Â
Links to the video and live stats can be found on the Creighton Softball schedule page on GoCreighton.com.Â
Scoring updates and infographics will be provided via Twitter at @BluejaySoftball.
Bluejays not Blue Jays
Creighton's mascot is the Bluejays or Bluejay, one word. Conversely the MLB Toronto team is the Blue Jays.
Scouting Creighton (11-11, 0-0 BE)
Creighton enters Wednesday's matchup with an 11-11 overall record after posting a 5-3 record at THE Spring Games last week.Â
Overall, the Bluejays have defeated 10 different opponents, including a victory over Wednesday's opponent, Kansas City.Â
Junior Cayla Nielsen paces Creighton's offense with a .382 batting average with seven doubles and 14 runs scored, while four other Bluejays hold at least a .300 batting average from the plate.Â
Junior Madeline Vejovda owns a .369 average with a team-high 15 runs scored and 10 RBI, while Saren Croker has posted a .350 average as a senior.Â
Junior Alyssa Gappa leads the Bluejays with a team-high eight doubles and is tied for the team lead with four home runs, while junior Emma Rosonke ranks second in the BIG EAST with 16 RBI on a .300 batting average.Â
Senior Kailey Wilson, the reigning BIG EAST Player of the Year, is tied for the team lead with four home runs and 16 RBI while posting a .273 batting average. Â
Overall, Creighton is hitting .282 with 102 runs scored (4.64 runs per game) and 48 extra-base hits.Â
In the circle, Creighton holds a 2.69 ERA with 125 strikeouts in 140.2 innings of work.
Junior Payton Akers paces the Bluejays pitching staff with a 2.04 ERA and a team-high 45 strikeouts in 34.1 innings. Freshman Natalia Puchino follows closely behind with a 2.29 ERA in 55 innings of work with 38 strikeouts, while sophomore Alexis Wiggins holds a 3.41 ERA and ranks second in strikeouts with 37 in 39 innings of work this season.
The Bluejays return 12 letterwinners from last year's squad, while 10 newcomers enter the program with first year head coach Krista Wood.Â
Creighton was picked fifth in the preseason BIG EAST Coaches poll.Â
Scouting Kansas City (5-17)
Kansas City is 5-17 this season with wins over Georgia State, UT Martin (twice), UT Arlington and Rider, but the Roos have dropped six of their last seven contests.
Kansas City offensively is hitting .236 as a team and averages 3.59 runs per game, while opponents are hitting .327 on the season with an average of 6.55 runs scored per game.Â
Senior Ally Vonfeldt paces Kansas City offensively with a .344 batting average, including a team-high seven doubles and 10 RBI. She is the only player hitting better than .300, while freshman Katie Noble and junior Sydney Nichols are not far behind with .290 and .286 batting averages respectfully.Â
Noble has also gotten things done in the circle this season for the Roos. She owns a team-best 5.03 ERA and a 2-4 overall record in 34 innings pitched. Junior Camryn Stickel has collected 31 of the teams 72 strikeouts, while posting a 6.92 ERA. As a staff, the Roos own an 8.02 ERA in 141.1 innings of work.Â
Kansas City was slotted fifth in the Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll as head coach Kiki Stokes O'Connor is in her first season with the Roos.Â
Series History Against Roos
Creighton and Kansas City have played a total of 55 games against each other, with Creighton holding a commanding 52-3 edge in the all-time series.Â
The Bluejays are a perfect 22-0 against the Roos at the CU Sports Complex, the best home record based on percentage against any Creighton opponent in program history.Â
The Bluejays and Roos met earlier this season in the UTEP Invitational with Creighton posting a 7-0 shutout win on Feb. 25.
Head Coach Krista Wood is 14-9 all-time against Kansas City, including a 13-9 record while at SDSU.
Home Opener History
Creighton owns a 30-15 record (.667) in home openers, including wins in 13 of the last 16 home openers (does not include 2020 when Creighton did not play a home game).
Head coach Krista Wood owns an 11-4 overall record in home openers as a head coach, including a 4-3 record at South Dakota State and a 7-1 record at Wayne State College.Â
The Bluejays are slated to play 14 more home games this season, including BIG EAST series against Seton Hall, Butler, Connecticut and St. John's.
Creighton Connection To Kiki Stokes O'Connor
Kansas City head coach Kiki Stokes O'Connor got her start in coaching as an assistant coach under current Creighton head coach Krista Wood at South Dakota State from 2019-2021.Â
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Creighton At Home
Since joining the BIG EAST in 2014, the Bluejays own a 53-53 record at home.
The Bluejays finished 3-10 at home last season, which included a pair of wins over Providence and a win against DePaul.Â
Last season, Creighton hit .280 at home with 17 doubles, two triples and 19 home runs. Senior Kailey Wilson paced the Bluejays offense with a .544 batting average with four doubles, six home runs and 13 RBI, while Emma Rosonke (.333)Â led the team with 18 runs batted in.Â
Opponents finished the year hitting .317 with 22 home runs and 22 doubles at the Creighton Sports Complex.
A total of 41 home runs (19 by CU, 22 by opponents) were hit during 87 innings of action.Â
The Bluejays did not play a home game in 2020 because of the season ending on March 12, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Creighton posted 13 wins at home in 2018, the most in a single season since claiming 19 home victories in 2008.
Year-by-year home records since 2014:
2022: 3-10
2021: 8-3
2020: No home games
2019: 5-6
2018: 13-6
2017: 6-6
2016: 7-8
2015: 4-9
2014: 9-6
HRs Hit At CU Sports Complex By Year
HRs (CU HRs) Number of Games   Year  Â
41 (19)Â Â Â 13Â Â Â 2022
34 (16)Â Â Â 11Â Â Â 2021
--      No home games   2020
33 (15)Â Â Â 11Â Â Â 2019
47Â Â Â (25)Â Â Â 19Â Â Â 2018
29Â Â Â (13)Â Â Â 12Â Â Â 2017
26Â Â Â (9)Â Â Â 15Â Â Â 2016
41Â Â Â (16)Â Â Â 13Â Â Â 2015
29Â Â Â (17)Â Â Â 15Â Â Â 2014
Payton Akers Nabs Spot On BE Honor Roll
Junior Payton Akers shined in her first start as a Bluejay, landing a spot on the BIG EAST Honor Roll.Â
The Cedar Rapids, Iowa native recorded the first no-hitter of her career and the 25th Bluejay no-hitter since 1994 against Penn on March 8 in Madeira Beach, Florida.
Akers struck out a season-high tying eight batters, while allowing just four walks in the Bluejays' 8-0 run-rule win over the Quakers.Â
Quick Work
Creighton's game vs. Penn on March 8 at THE Spring Games lasted only one hour and sixteen minutes, making it the 12th shortest game by time since 1999.
The shortest game in that time span was on April 22, 2007, when the Bluejays played Illinois State in a game that last only one hour and one minute. That game ended in a 1-1 tie when the game was called after five innings because of rain.Â
Below features 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
4/11/06Â Â Â UMKCÂ Â Â Â Â Â W, 8-0 (5)Â Â Â 1:05
5/8/99Â Â Â Â Â Â UNIÂ Â Â Â Â Â W, 2-0Â Â Â Â Â Â 1:09
2/16/19   Ark-Pine Bluff   W, 9-0 (5)   1:10
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
3/5/22      Green Bay      W, 8-0 (5)   1:15
3/8/23      Penn      W, 8-0 (5)   1:16
Akers' No-Hitter
Junior Payton Akers tied a season-high with eight strikeouts and needed only 82 pitches for her five-inning no-hit performance against Penn on March 8 during the finale of THE Spring Games in Madeira Beach, Florida.
She recorded the Bluejays 25th no-hitter since 1994, and the Bluejays' first solo no-hitter since Kiele Miller tossed a no-hitter against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Feb. 16, 2019.
Penn had one runner reach on a walk in the second inning, while one runner reached on an error and a pair of Quakes reached via the walk in the third. Akers allowed another walk in the fifth, but no one advanced further than second base.
Micaela Whitney is the last Bluejay pitcher with a seven-inning no-hitter when she needed only 72 pitches against Seton Hall on April 2, 2016. She is also the last Creighton pitcher with multiple no-hitters as she also did not allow a hit during her Bluejay debut on Feb. 5, 2015.Â
A complete list of Creighton no-hitters can be found on page 6 in this notes packet.
One-Hit Wonder
Freshman Natalia Puchino nearly tossed the Bluejays' 25th no-hitter since 1994 on March 8 in Creighton's 10-0 run-rule win over Penn. Puchino allowed just one hit in the top of the second inning before allowing just a pair of Penn walks in the final three innings.
The Colorado native threw all 5.0 innings and struck out two batters on the way to earning the first shutout of her Bluejay career.Â
Below is a list of Creighton one-hitters since joining the BIG EAST in 2014.
Date   Opponent      Pitcher
3/8/23   vs. Penn      Natalia Puchino
3/25/22   Providence      Kate Mullally
3/6/20Â Â Â LIUÂ Â Â Â Â Â Kiele Miller
2/28/20   Purdue Fort Wayne   Mikayla Santa Cruz
3/17/19   South Dakota State   Kiele Miller
2/15/19   Ark.-Pine Bluff      Laura Roecker
3/5/18   Villanova      Kiele Miller
                                 Bryana Clark
3/9/16   Holy Cross      Sydnee Eck
3/6/16   Akron      Sydnee Eck
4/13/14   Seton Hall      Becca Changstrom
3/13/14   Siena      Becca Changstrom
4/8/14   South Dakota State   Mac Millspaugh
                                             Brittany Telecky
Dalton and Vejvoda Earn Spot on BE Honor Roll
Freshman Ella Dalton and junior Madeline Vejovda collected spots on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Monday, March 7.Â
Through the first four games of THE Spring Games, Dalton hit .600, appearing in four games as a pinch-hitter. She registered a triple, two RBI, and one run scored, while Vejvoda led the Bluejays to a 3-1 record, batting .416 with a double, RBI, three walks, and a team-best five runs scored.
RBI Queen
Junior Emma Rosonke has collected two four RBI games this season after hitting a grand slam in the Bluejays' 10-0 run-rule win over Penn on March 8.Â
Rosonke now has eight four RBI games in her career her eighth four RBI game of her career, the most by any Bluejays since joining the BIG EAST and the most since Amy Baker had 11 from 2010-2013.Â
The Omaha native ranks 21st in the country with 1.08 RBI per game and ranks tied for second in the BIG EAST with 16 RBI this season.
Last season, Rosonke was the only Bluejay since at least 1999 to have at least five four-RBI games in a season.Â
Rosonke also went 3-for-3 at the plate with two doubles while collecting a pair of RBI in the Bluejays' 8-0 win over Penn in the finale of THE Spring Games. She now has 16 multi-RBI games in her career, which ranks fifth most by a Bluejay since joining the BIG EAST in 2014. Senior Kailey Wilson leads the way with 25 career multi-RBI games.
Shining Bright In The Sunshine State
Creighton has played some of its best softball of the season while in the state of Florida throughout program history.
Last week was Creighton's 12th time spending its spring break in Florida. The Bluejays posted a 5-3 overall record at THE Spring Games and is now a combined 91-28 in its 12 trips to the Sunshine State.Â
Below is a breakdown of the Creighton's year by year trip to Florida.
Year   W-L   R   RA
1991Â Â Â 11-6Â Â Â 71Â Â Â 28
1995Â Â Â 8-2Â Â Â 42Â Â Â 13
1996Â Â Â 7-3Â Â Â 44Â Â Â 28
2004Â Â Â 14-0Â Â Â 78Â Â Â 8
2005Â Â Â 8-0Â Â Â 56Â Â Â 2
2006Â Â Â 8-5Â Â Â 71Â Â Â 29
2013Â Â Â 6-2Â Â Â 29Â Â Â 10
2014Â Â Â 11-1Â Â Â 47Â Â Â 12
2015Â Â Â 9-1Â Â Â 63Â Â Â 11
2016Â Â Â 9-1Â Â Â 45Â Â Â 13
2020Â Â Â 5-4Â Â Â 34Â Â Â 31
2023Â Â Â 5-3Â Â Â 37Â Â Â 15
Totals   91-28   617   200
