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Softball Chris Due (chris.due@lcu.edu)

Lady Chaps Opening LSC Era With Conference Opener Friday

LCU Opening Conference Play On The Road For First Time Since 2016

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LAWTON, Okla. (February 28, 2020) – No.22 Lubbock Christian University plays their Lone Star Conference opener and doubleheader Friday at McMahon Field facing Cameron with a 3 p.m. first pitch.
LCU INVITATIONAL
OPPONENT LOCATION CITY TIME (CT) WATCH STATS LCU STATS OPP. STATS
CU McMahon Field Lawton, Okla. 3 p.m. Watch Stats Season Season
CU McMahon Field Lawton, Okla. 5 p.m. Watch Stats Season Season

WUNDERGROUND WEATHER: Plenty of sunshine. High 66F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph.

WATCH ONLINE: LSC Digital Network (Online or via OTT apps including Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Android TV and Roku devices by searching "LSC Digital Network.")


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LCU and CU Series Snapshot
  • The all-time series is tied 1-1.
  • The prior two meetings were neutral site contests. The first meeting was in the Mansfield North Texas Softball Bash (Mansfield, Texas) on Feb. 19, 2015, with Cameron defeating LCU 4-2. The previous meeting was in San Angelo, Texas at the NCAA Division II South Central Region Tournament, which resulted in a 14-11 LCU win.
  • In the previous meeting, LCU came back from a 10-3 deficit in the win. Annika Schwartzenberg is the only current Lady Chap that appeared in the meeting.
 
Opening Thoughts
  • LCU is off to a 15-3 start on the season. They opened the season 9-0, which marked their best start since a 23-0 start in 2012 (best start since going Division II).
  • Pitcher Taylor Franco, who claimed LSC Pitcher of the Week accolades, is 8-2 on the season (tied for first in the conference in wins and tied for fourth nationally) and has a 1.21 ERA (third in the LSC) over 57.2 innings pitched (fifth in the LSC). She has 54 strikeouts (fifth in the conference) and six walks on the season (first walk allowed this season came in the 24th inning of her innings pitched). Franco enters the week leading the LSC and ranks 12th nationally with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 9.00. She also enters the week averaging 0.73 walks per seven innings (second in LSC and 30th nationally) and a WHIP of 0.83 (second in the LSC and 28th nationally).
  • LCU ranks second in the LSC with 15 home runs on the season (tied for 13th nationally). Angela Donaldson and Skylar Herrera each have three on the season to lead the team (tied for 10th in the LSC and 46th nationally).
  • Donaldson leads the team in RBI with 18, which is tied for eighth in the conference (30th nationally). Half (nine) of her RBI have come with two-outs.
  • The statistic of "game-winning RBI" is not an official statistic (the RBI that gives a club the lead it never relinquishes), but through their 15-3 season start, six different Lady Chaps have a game-winning RBI. Skylar Herrera and Clarissa Martinez co-lead the team with four. Angela Donaldson has two, while Brooke Makemson, Savannah Wysocki and Athena Muniz each have one (two have been via errors, which players do not get credit for).
  • Athena Muniz leads LCU with a .459 average on the season (17-for-37), which is second in the conference. Her .676 slugging is 16th in the conference.
  • Savannah Wysocki is LCU's hits leader (21, tied for 11th in the conference) and is batting .362 (21-for-58), with six doubles (tied for sixth in the LSC and leads team) and three triples (second the LSC in triples and tied for sixth nationally). She also has two home runs (had one last season) for a .672 slugging mark, which is second on the squad.
 
How is the Team Doing?
  • LCU is 15-3 this season and are 4-0 against nationally ranked teams. They are currently ranked No.22 in the NFCA Top-25 Poll, marking the first time they have been ranked since making the move to NCAA Division II (2014 season).
  • The Lady Chaps are hitting .299 as a team, with 15 home run and 101 RBI in 18 games. LCU averages 6.5 runs a contest (third in the LSC).
  • LCU enters the weekend ranking 17th nationally in stolen bases per game (2.4) and seventh in total stolen bases (44). Skylar Herrera ranks third in the conference with 17 stolen bases and Savannah Wysocki is seventh in the LSC with 13 steals.
  • In the circle, LCU is second in the LSC in ERA (1.85), ranking 23rd nationally. The Lady Chaps enter the weekend 12th in the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.91) and ranking 10th in WHIP (0.92). LCU has five shutouts this season, which is tied for eighth nationally (second in the LSC).
  • Defensively, LCU has turned six double plays, which ranks 19th nationally. Their .970 fielding percentage is 36th nationally and third in the LSC.
  • LCU batters have been beaned 15 times by pitches, which ranks tied for 19th nationally. Addi Lewis leads the team, getting hit four times (tied for seventh in the LSC). Eight different batters have been pegged this season.
  • While LCU is 11-for-32 (.344) with the bases loaded (Clarissa Martinez is 4-for-4 with the bases loaded), LCU's opponents are 3-for-15 (.200) when the bases are juiced.
  • LCU has a 39-11 advantage in two-out RBI this season over their opponents.
 
Doubleheaders
  • LCU went 23-13 last season in games part of a doubleheader. They split 10 of 12 of their conference doubleheaders (12-12 in conference doubleheaders and 11-1 in non-conference doubleheaders).
  • The Lady Chaps are is 13-3 this season in doubleheaders.
 
Conference Openers
  • LCU is 7-5 all-time in conference openers.
  • The Lady Chaps went 2-4 in Heartland Conference openers and 5-1 in Sooner Athletic Conference openers.
  • Last season (Feb. 24, 2019), LCU opened conference play with a 7-3 loss to Newman.
  • Feb. 26, 2016 marked the last time LCU opened conference play on the road (2-1 loss at St. Edward's).
 
Lone Star Conference Breakdown
  • LCU's games Friday mark the first LSC games in program history.
  • In 2019, LCU was 16-14 in conference contests.
 
On the Road
  • LCU is 1-0 in road play this season (Feb. 15 win at Central Oklahoma).
  • The Lady Chaps are hitting .387 on the road.
 
Streaking Along
  • Athena Muniz has an active three-game hit streak entering Friday (hitting 3-for-6 during the streak).
  • Clarissa Martinez and Savannah Wysocki each had a six-game hit streak earlier this season, which are the longest by a Lady Chaps member this season.
  • Alivia Villarreal leads LCU actively with a streak of nine consecutive games reaching base safely.
  • Clarissa Martinez and Brooke Makemson each had a nine-game streak of reaching base safely, which is the Lady Chaps longest this season.
 
Coach Talk
  • LCU head coach Daren Hays is in his 10th season at the helm of the Lady Chaps.
  • Hays is LCU's winningest softball head coach, entering Sunday with a softball record of 413-125 (76.8%).
  • His 400th win was recorded Feb.1, as he became the 53rd active NCAA Division II softball head coach to reach 400 career wins and he is the only active coach to do it in less than 11 seasons.
  • Along with surpassing 300 coaching wins in softball, Hays had surpassed 300 wins as a collegiate baseball head coach. He spent eight seasons as the LCU baseball head coach and compiled a 356-163 record.
 
Looking at CU
  • The Aggies are coming off a 37-18 season and they went 20-10 in the LSC. They were a South Central Region Championship qualifier and made it to the Super Regional, where they were swept by Texas A&M-Kingsville.
  • They are 12-7 this season, with Friday's games serving as their conference and home opener. They are 0-3 against nationally ranked programs this season.
  • Cameron ranks fourth nationally with an LSC-best 34 doubles on the season. Callie Busby is their team leader with eight doubles.
  • Bethany Hines (7-5) leads the LSC and ranks third nationally with 15 appearances in the circle this season.
  • Cameron has drawn 64 walks this season, which is 14th nationally.
  • The LSC Preseason Polls have CU selected No.4 (out of 17), and they were No.15 in the NFCA Preseason Poll.
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Players Mentioned

Taylor Franco

#72 Taylor Franco

RHP
5' 7"
Sophomore
Clarissa Martinez

#9 Clarissa Martinez

INF/RHP
5' 4"
Junior
Annika Schwartzenberg

#12 Annika Schwartzenberg

INF
5' 7"
Senior
Alivia Villarreal

#49 Alivia Villarreal

3B/C
5' 8"
Senior
Savannah Wysocki

#22 Savannah Wysocki

OF
5' 5"
Sophomore
Addi Lewis

#14 Addi Lewis

C
5' 6"
Junior
Angela Donaldson

#18 Angela Donaldson

UT
5' 7"
Junior
Athena Muniz

#4 Athena Muniz

RHP/OF
5' 4"
Junior
Brooke Makemson

#21 Brooke Makemson

INF
5' 6"
Junior
Skylar Herrera

#25 Skylar Herrera

INF
5' 11"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Taylor Franco

#72 Taylor Franco

5' 7"
Sophomore
RHP
Clarissa Martinez

#9 Clarissa Martinez

5' 4"
Junior
INF/RHP
Annika Schwartzenberg

#12 Annika Schwartzenberg

5' 7"
Senior
INF
Alivia Villarreal

#49 Alivia Villarreal

5' 8"
Senior
3B/C
Savannah Wysocki

#22 Savannah Wysocki

5' 5"
Sophomore
OF
Addi Lewis

#14 Addi Lewis

5' 6"
Junior
C
Angela Donaldson

#18 Angela Donaldson

5' 7"
Junior
UT
Athena Muniz

#4 Athena Muniz

5' 4"
Junior
RHP/OF
Brooke Makemson

#21 Brooke Makemson

5' 6"
Junior
INF
Skylar Herrera

#25 Skylar Herrera

5' 11"
Freshman
INF