Softball 04.17.2021 Chris Due (chris.due@lcu.edu)

Dustdevils and Lady Chaps Face Off in Vital LSC Doubleheader

Both LCU and TAMIU Enter The Series Tied in the LSC Standings

LUBBOCK, Texas (April 18, 2021) – Lubbock Christian University plays their finals home series of the regular season Sunday, hosting Texas A&M International for a pivotal Lone Star Conference series at PlainsCapital Park. The doubleheader, scheduled for a noon start, will begin with a Senior Day presentation recognizing senior Alivia Villarreal.

LSC SOFTBALL
OPPONENT	LOCATION	CITY	TIME	WATCH	STATS	LCU STATS	OPP. STATS
TAMIU	PlainsCapital Park	Lubbock	12 p.m.	Watch	Stats	Season	Season
TAMIU	PlainsCapital Park	Lubbock	2 p.m.	Watch	Stats

WUNDERGROUND WEATHER: Mostly cloudy. High 61F. Winds N at 5 to 10 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.")

TICKETS: Tickets Must Be Purchased Online in Advance (Click This Link), unless you are a ChapPass card-holder

LCU Social Media:

LCU and TAMIU Series Snapshot

LCU has an 18-8 all-time series advantage of the Dustdevils.
LCU has won the prior two meetings and both were at the Heartland Conference Tournament in San Antonio, Texas in 2019 (May 2, 2019 6-5 LCU win, May 3, 2019 7-6 LCU win).
LCU is 9-2 all-time against TAMIU in Lubbock, Texas (last game was a 5-1 LCU win on Mar. 1, 2019).
The prior four meetings have all resulted in one-run decisions.

How is the Team Doing?

LCU is 25-12 this season and 13-9 in LSC play after falling in a doubleheader sweep Friday to Texas A&M-Kingsville at home. LCU is in a three-way tie for seventh place in the LSC standings (13-9), alongside Cameron and Texas A&M International.
The Lady Chaps are hitting .357 as a team (seventh nationally, leads the LSC), with 38 home runs (eighth nationally and third in the LSC) in 37 games. LCU averages 6.46 runs a contest, ranking third in the LSC.
In the circle, LCU has an ERA of 1.93 (19^th nationally). Opponents are hitting .225 against LCU this season and the team has 12 shutouts, which is tied for third in the nation and co-leads the LSC (with A&M-Commerce).
On the field, LCU ranks sixth in the LSC with a .965 fielding percentage.

Who is Doing What?

Pitcher Taylor Franco is 13-5 this season with a 1.04 ERA in 121.1 innings pitched (also has two saves). Franco went 45.2 innings to start the season without allowing an earned run. She has 15 complete games (second nationally) and 76 strikeouts (seventh in the LSC). Opponents are hitting .204 against Franco, who is 34-15 in her LCU career (sixth player in program history with 30 wins). She is one of 13 pitchers nationally to appear in 22 games this season. Her 13 wins ranks tied for ninth nationally. Franco opened the weekend with a 0.95 WHIP, leading the LSC.
Brooke Makemson is hitting a team-best .427 on the season. She co-leads LCU with seven home runs (tied for 12th in conference) and has 34 RBI on the season (sixth in the LSC), and was named NFCA National Player of the Week on Feb. 9 after hitting .692 (9-for-13) at the LCU Invitational.
Savannah Wysocki, hitting .411 at the plate, has a team-leading 53 hits (ranks third nationally). She also has 25 stolen bases (second in conference) on the season as well (fourth nationally). Wysocki has three triples this season, placing her with 15 in her LCU career to match the program career mark with Brittany Kent (2011-2012).
Skylar Herrera ranks fifth nationally with five triples, and also has seven home runs (tied for the team lead) and is 11^th nationally in RBI (39).
Tyla Lee has 12 RBI over the past 12 games (six on the season prior to the stretch) off a 17-for-36 (.472) performance at the plate in the span. She is hitting .400 overall on the season, with a .477 on-base percentage (15^th in the LSC).
Athena Muniz is ninth in the LSC in hits (43) and is hitting .402 on the season.

Lone Star Conference Breakdown

This season is LCU's second season in the LSC.
LCU is 18-12 all-time in LSC play.
LCU is 13-9 this season in conference play, with a 9-5 record in conference home play.
- LCU is hitting .349 in conference, with a 2.38 team ERA (hitting leads the conference and pitching ranks second in the LSC for conference games).
- Taylor Franco is 6-4 with a 1.62 ERA (opponents hitting .227) in LSC action.
- Maxine Valdez is 3-2 with a 2.39 ERA and opponents are hitting .147 against her in conference.
- Savannah Wysocki is 30-for-73 (.411) with nine extra-base hits in LSC play. She is second in the LSC with 17 stolen bases in conference play.
- Athena Muniz leads LCU in conference play with a .463 average, and leads LCU with five home runs against conference competition.
- Tyla Lee is hitting .394 with four homers and Brooke Makemson is hitting .403 in conference contests.
- Skylar Herrera leads the team with 23 RBI in conference.

Home Sweet Home

LCU is 272-36 (88.3%) all-time in home games at PlainsCapital Park.
Last season, LCU was 13-1 at home.
They are 16-6 at home this season.
LCU is hitting .380 at home with 28 home runs and 6.8 runs per game. Brooke Makemson is hitting .554 with six home runs and 27 RBI at home.
Athena Muniz is hitting .500 with 12 extra-base hits (six home runs) and 21 RBI at home.
Taylor Franco is 8-2 at home with a 1.08 ERA, and opponents are hitting .193 against her (50 hits allowed in 70.1 innings pitched). Maxine Valdez is 2-1 with a 1.29 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 21.2 innings (opponents hitting .141 against her). She pitched a 5.0-inning no-hitter in her last start at home (Mar. 21 vs. UT Permian Basin).

Streaking Along

Skyler Herrera is LCU's active hit-streak leader, as she enters Sunday's games with a nine-game active hit streak.
Brooke Makemson had a 22-game hit streak earlier in the season, which is the longest by a Lady Chaps member this season and is the longest in program history.
Makemson also has the team's season-high mark of consecutive games reaching base safely at 25 games.
Athena Muniz has reached base safely in her last 19 games (team's active leader).

Season Expectations

The Lady Chaps are preseason picked to finish sixth in the Lone Star Conference.
LCU is in their seventh season playing a NCAA Division II schedule (2013 was their last season in NAIA) and this is their second season as members of the Lone Star Conference.
There are 16 softball programs in the LSC this season.

Coach Talk

LCU head coach Daren Hays is in his 11^th season at the helm of the Lady Chaps.
Hays is LCU's winningest softball head coach, entering Sunday with a softball record of 443-140.
Along with surpassing 400 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.

National Notes

LCU opened the season ranked No.19 in the NFCA Top 25 Preseason Poll.
The Lady Chaps bounced around between No.24 and No.25 before dropping out in early March. They have been receiving votes since dropping out.
The Lady Chaps went 8-0 last season against nationally ranked programs, but are 2-8 against nationally ranked programs this season. They did record a win (Mar. 26) at No.2 Texas A&M-Commerce to mark their first win in program history on the road at a top-five nationally ranked program.

Looking at TAMIU

The Dustdevils are 20-15 on the season (went 5-16 last season) and are 13-9 in conference after being swept in a doubleheader at Angelo State Friday. The two teams played a non-conference game Saturday, with TAMIU falling 10-1, which extended their losing skid to six games.
TAMIU is 7-8 on the road this season and they have dropped their last three road games.
Texas A&M International was preseason picked tied for 14^th in the LSC Preseason Poll.
TAMIU leads the LSC with 43 home runs on the season, with Briana Arredondo leading the team with 10 home runs (second in the LSC). Darrian Smith has nine to rank ted for third in the conference.
Pitcher Erika Cortez leads the LSC with 140 strikeouts and she has held opponents to a .211 hitting mark this season.

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Players Mentioned

#72 Taylor Franco: RHP; 5' 7"; Junior

#25 Skylar Herrera: INF; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#44 Tyla Lee: 3B/OF; 5' 3"; Senior

#21 Brooke Makemson: INF; 5' 6"; Senior

#4 Athena Muniz: RHP/OF; 5' 4"; Senior

#5 Maxine Valdez: RHP; 5' 4"; Sophomore

#49 Alivia Villarreal: 3B/C; 5' 8"; Graduate Student

#22 Savannah Wysocki: OF; 5' 5"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#72 Taylor Franco
: 5' 7"; Junior
: RHP

#25 Skylar Herrera
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: INF

#44 Tyla Lee
: 5' 3"; Senior
: 3B/OF

#21 Brooke Makemson
: 5' 6"; Senior
: INF

#4 Athena Muniz
: 5' 4"; Senior
: RHP/OF

#5 Maxine Valdez
: 5' 4"; Sophomore
: RHP

#49 Alivia Villarreal
: 5' 8"; Graduate Student
: 3B/C

#22 Savannah Wysocki
: 5' 5"; Junior
: OF

Lubbock Christian University Athletics

Schedule

Events

Results

Dustdevils and Lady Chaps Face Off in Vital LSC Doubleheader

Both LCU and TAMIU Enter The Series Tied in the LSC Standings

Players Mentioned

#72 Taylor Franco

#25 Skylar Herrera

#44 Tyla Lee

#21 Brooke Makemson

#4 Athena Muniz

#5 Maxine Valdez

#49 Alivia Villarreal

#22 Savannah Wysocki

Players Mentioned

#72 Taylor Franco

#25 Skylar Herrera

#44 Tyla Lee

#21 Brooke Makemson

#4 Athena Muniz

#5 Maxine Valdez

#49 Alivia Villarreal

#22 Savannah Wysocki