TYLER, Texas (May 5, 2023) – No.24 Lubbock Christian University aims for a long positive Friday at Irwin Ballpark, as they open their play in the Quarterfinals of the Lone Star Championships with a 1:30 p.m. first pitch as the No.4-seed and facing No.5-seed Cameron. A win moves them into the Semifinals and a 6:30 p.m. scheduled game against No.1-seed and No.3 nationally ranked UT Tyler.
The Scenario
- If LCU defeats Cameron, LCU will play again Friday in a Semifinals contest at 6:30 p.m. against No.3 UT Tyler. If LCU is able to go 2-0 on Friday, they will advance to Saturday's 2 p.m. Championship Game.
- Any loss would eliminate LCU from the tournament and place their NCAA Division II South Central Regional sights towards an at-large bid during Monday's NCAA Selection Show (9 a.m. on NCAA.com).
| LONE STAR CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP |
| OPPONENT |
LOCATION |
DAY |
TIME (CT) |
WATCH |
STATS |
| Cameron |
Tyler, Texas |
Fri., May. 5 |
1:30 p.m. |
Video |
Stats |
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| *UT Tyler |
Tyler, Texas |
Fri., May. 5 |
6:30 p.m. |
Video |
Stats |
| *if win vs. CU |
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| WEATHER |
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TOURNAMENT WEBSITE
LCU and CU Series Snapshot
- The Lady Chaps have won the three of the prior four contests head-to-head and have a 6-4 all-time series lead.
- LCU won two of the three Lone Star Conference series meetings this season (Apr. 11-12), as they opened with a pair of wins (4-1, 8-0 in 5 inn.) before dropping the finale 7-3.
- The 8-0 win was a no-hitter pitched by Maxine Valdez.
- Berkeley Quinn (.375), Skylar Herrera (.333) and Tiarra Delrosario (.300) co-led LCU in the regular season with three hits each against the Aggies.
- LCU hit four home runs and all four from different individuals.
- Kasey Flores and Amanda Valdiviezo each had a trio of RBI in the series.
- LCU hit .292 against the Aggies and held the Cameron bats to a .183 average.
- Josie Swafford led the Aggie bats in Lubbock, going 3-for-8 (.375), while also pitching 6.1 innings and holding LCU to a .231 average at the plate.
- Six of the 10 meetings have been decided by two runs or less.
- The two teams have met twice in neutral site play, and the teams are split 1-1 (Cameron won the first neutral site game 4-2 on Feb. 9, 2015 in Mansfield, Texas). The only prior postseason meeting was their last neutral site meeting, which was a NCAA South Central Regional clash in San Angelo, Texas on May 12, 2017. LCU rallied for a 14-11 win, which was LCU's first-ever NCAA Division II postseason win.
- Taylor Franco is 4-1 in her LCU career against Cameron with a 3.09 ERA and holding the Aggies to a .235 batting average. She has 25 strikeouts in 34.0 innings pitched (five career appearances).
- Skylar Herrera (nine career games) and Kamryn Gibbs (seven career games) have combined for 12 RBI in their career against the Aggies (each have six RBI). Herrera is hitting .375 (10-for-26) all-time against CU. Gibbs is LCU's active leader in home runs against CU with three.
- In five career games against Cameron, Tiarra Delrosario is 6-for-17 (.353) with a .421 on-base percentage.
- Kasey Flores has been held to three hits in five career games against CU, but she has drawn eight walks and has a .579 on-base percentage.
- Maxine Valdez has a 1-0 record against Cameron, but has made five career appearances and has 15.1 shutout innings with 23 strikeouts and three hits allowed (Cameron is hitting .059 against Valdez). Included in the mix, which is her lone win over her career against CU, was a 5.0-inning complete game no-hitter on Apr. 11.
How is the Team Doing?
- LCU is 39-14 this season and are coming off a road series sweep in LSC play against UT Permian Basin (placed their LSC record to 29-13, which matched a 2010 program record for conference wins).
- This season's 39-14 record includes a 13-game, 10-game and six-game win streak.
- The Lady Chaps are hitting .326 as a team (leads the conference and 32nd nationally), with 58 home runs (17th nationally) in 53 games. LCU averages 6.2 runs a contest (third in LSC and 33rd nationally).
- In the circle, LCU has an ERA of 2.18 (28th nationally and third in the LSC). Opponents are hitting .182 against LCU this season (leads the LSC). The staff has a WHIP of 0.99 (second in the LSC and eighth nationally) and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.03 (third in the LSC and 35th nationally). LCU has seven no-hitters this season (12 over the prior two seasons).
- LCU ranks eighth in the nation in doubles (97) and is 12th in doubles per game (1.83).
- Defensively, LCU ranks 43rd nationally with a 96.8% fielding percentage. They are fifth in the LSC with 0.30 double plays turned per game.
Who is Doing What?
- Lone Star Conference All-Conference Recipients (additional honors listed)… Eight Lady Chaps were recognized.
- Pitcher Maxine Valdez is 16-4 this season with a 2.37 ERA in 109.1 innings pitched (also has two saves). She ranks 11th nationally averaging 9.3 strikeouts per seven innings, 10th in hits allowed per seven innings (4.16, second in the LSC), 13th nationally in WHIP (0.86, leads LSC) and 54th in strikeouts (146, fifth in the LSC). On Feb. 11, Valdez posted a complete game no-hitter against Chadron State (Feb. 9). She continued, completing her second no-hitter of the season Mar.17 in a win over St. Mary's, a third on April 12 (against Cameron) and a fourth on April 28 against UT Permian Basin (had 16 strikeouts in the game to match a program single-game record), which was her fifth of her career. Valdez also claimed NFCA National Pitcher of the Week on Mar. 14 and is the LSC's only four-time Pitcher of the Week recipient this season. She is 35-13 in her career.
- Taylor Franco is 15-8 with a 1.56 ERA (fourth in the conference) and ranks tied for 15th nationally with 20 complete games (co-leads LSC). She is tied for 15th nationally in shutouts (7, which is tied with Valdez), 19th in hits allowed per seven innings (4.16), 36th in WHIP (0.95) and 30th in strikeouts (167). She claimed NFCA National Pitcher of the Week honors on Mar. 1 (first of her career). On Mar. 5, she became the second Lady Chaps pitcher in program history to surpass 500 career strikeouts. LCU's career-leader in starts (108) blanked UT Permian Basin on Apr. 28 to become the 12th NCAA Division II player to reach eight career no-hitters. She is on the Tucci/NFCA Player/Pitcher of the Year Watchlist.
- Franco ranks third actively in NCAA Div. II career shutouts (29), which is ninth actively at all NCAA levels
- Fourth actively in NCAA Div. II career complete games (70), which is 12th actively at all NCAA levels
- Fifth actively in NCAA Div. II career innings pitched (687.3), which is 17th actively at all NCAA levels
- 11th actively in NCAA Div. II career saves (8)
- 13th actively in NCAA Div. II career strikeouts (586)
- 38th actively in NCAA Div. II career strikeouts-per-seven innings (5.97)
- Ranks 31st actively in NCAA Div. II career marks in ERA (1.99)
- New Mexico State transfer Hope Banales is hitting .379 (10th in the LSC) at the plate with a team-leading 20 doubles, which leads the LSC and is fourth nationally. Banales, who has one LSC Hitter of the Week honor under her belt, has 61 hits to rank fifth in the LSC.
- Kasey Flores leads the team in home runs (19, tied for fourth nationally and co-leads the LSC), RBI (61, 11th nationally and leads the LSC), total bases (130, eighth nationally and second in the LSC), slugging (0.878, which is eighth nationally) and OPS at 1.381. The LSC recognized Kasey as the LSC Hitter of the Week on Feb. 7 and the NFCA named her National Player of the Week on Mar. 28. In 53 games, she has 21 multi-RBI games. Flores' power has resulted in the opposition walking her (intentionally) and she ranks 21st national in walks per game (0.70, fourth in the LSC). She is on the Tucci/NFCA Player/Pitcher of the Year Watchlist.
- In her LCU career, Flores has the ninth-best slugging mark in active-career NCAA Div.II statistics, with a career slugging of .810.
- She has 59 career home runs, which actively ranks tied for 12th among all NCAA levels.
- LCU has an 85-51 advantage this season in stolen bases. Berkeley Quinn leads LCU with 25 stolen bases (sixth in the LSC) and Skylar Herrera has 24 (seventh in the LSC) to place a pair of Lady Chaps in the top-10 in the conference in thefts. LCU has 85 swipes and averages 1.6 in steals per game (fifth in LSC).
- Herrera has 76 career stolen bases, which ranks 22nd for active career leaders in NCAA Div. II
- The Lady Chaps have 58 home runs this season (second in LSC) and 10 different Lady Chaps have round-trippers this season.
- Skyler Herrera ranks tied for 11th in the LSC in runs scored with 40.
- Actively ranks 32nd in NCAA Div.II in career runs (148)
- 30th in total bases (341)
- 31st in home runs (32)
- 41st in RBI (139)
Lone Star Conference Championships Breakdown
- This season is LCU's third tournament appearance in the LSC Championships (of three eligible seasons, as there was no tournament in 2020).
- Previously, LCU qualified for four Heartland Conference Championships, winning the tournament twice (2016, 2017) and compiling a 10-5 tournament record all-time.
- LCU is 0-2 all-time in the LSC Championships, as they fell 5-3 to St. Edward's in 2021 and 10-9 in 13 innings last season to Oklahoma Christian.
- LCU is hitting .275 all-time in LSC Championship play and they have a staff ERA of 5.85.
- Angela Donaldson is LCU's all-time hit leader in the tournament with six hits. Actively, Skylar Herrera has five career hits at the tournament and heads to Tyler 5-for-9 (.556) in the event with four RBI and LCU's lone home run.
- Surprisingly, LCU has five sacrifice hits in their two all-time games in the event (in comparison, they have six this entire season).
Lone Star Conference Breakdown
- This season was LCU's fourth season in the LSC.
- LCU is 74-36 all-time in LSC play.
- The Lady Chaps went 23-7 last season in conference.
- LCU went 29-13 in conference play, and finished in a share of third place in the LSC standings.
- The 29 conference wins marks the most in a single season since moving to NCAA and the most since a 29-win 2010 season.
- LCU is hit .304 in conference, with 48 home runs (allowed 16).
- The pitching staff had a 2.46 ERA in LSC play, with 277 strikeouts in 276.0 innings and held opponents to a .191 batting average.
- Tiarra Delrosario led LCU in conference hitting .370.
- Kasey Flores led LCU in home runs (15) and RBI (46) in conference play.
- Taylor Franco produced a 1.81 ERA and went 12-7 with 132 strikeouts in 147.1 innings. She averaged an allowance of 4.75 hits per seven innings in LSC play.
- Maxine Valdez went 12-4 in conference games and is held the opposition to a .184 batting average. She had 121 strikeouts in 90.1 innings (9.4 per seven innings).
Season Expectations
- The Lady Chaps were preseason picked to finish fourth in the Lone Star Conference.
- LCU is in their ninth season playing a NCAA Division II schedule (2013 was their last season in NAIA) and this is their fourth season as members of the Lone Star Conference.
- There are 15 softball programs in the LSC this season. The major difference from last season to this season is Texas A&M-Commerce made the move to NCAA Division I.
National Notes
- Lubbock Christian is 0-7 this season against nationally ranked programs.
- The Lady Chaps went 9-10 last season (2022) against nationally ranked programs.
- LCU opened the season No.21 in the NFCA National Top-25 Coaches Preseason Poll. Despite no-hitting opponents twice on the road in a 3-0 week, LCU dropped to No.24 (spent the prior week at No.23). They had been ranked ranging No.11 - No.7 most of this season until dropping to No.16 two weeks ago.
Coach Talk
- LCU head coach Daren Hays is in his 13th season at the helm of the Lady Chaps.
- Hays is LCU's winningest softball head coach, entering this week with a softball record of 525-171.
- Along with surpassing 500 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.
Streaking Along
- Berkeley Quinn leads LCU, actively with a 10-game hit streak. Kasey Flores has the longest hit streak of the season at 13 games.
- Kasey Flores had a season-best streak (of a Lady Chap this season) of 23 games reaching base safely, which is being chased by Quinn, who has reached base safely in 16 consecutive games.
- Tiarra Delrosario leads LCU with 19 multi-hit games, with Hope Banales (18), Berkeley Quinn (17) and Kasey Flores (16) right behind.
- Flores leads the team with 21 multi-RBI games.
Neutralize
- This season had been the first season LCU did not have a neutral site game, but that changes with postseason play.
- The fewest neutral site games LCU had played in during a single-season was two in 2014 (2-0).
- Last season, LCU went 7-3 in neutral site contests.
In Summary
- LCU has a 56-28 scoring advantage in the first inning and a 60-13 advantage in the fourth inning, with their highest offensive output coming in the second inning, with a 66-27 scoring advantage. LCU is 19-3 when leading after the first inning and 33-3 when scoring first.
- The Lady Chaps are 33-2 when leading after four innings.
- LCU is 29-6 this season when they hit at least one home run in a game.
- The Lady Chaps are 20-2 when errorless. They are 29-7 when their opponents commit at least one error.
Looking at CU
- The Aggies went 25-24 last season, dropping their final six conference games to finish ninth in the LSC with a 13-17 conference mark. They are 30-22 this season and finished fifth in the LSC with a 25-17 conference record.
- CU is hitting .266 this season and have 32 home runs on the season (32-35 disadvantage in home runs against their opponents). They have a staff ERA of 3.13 and opponents are hitting .234 against them. They have 12 shutouts this season (ranks 28th nationally), but have been without one over their prior 11 games.
- Cameron is 3-1 in neutral site play this season. All four games were against GAC foes in Wichita Falls, Texas (Feb. 10-12).
- CU was preseason picked to finish eighth in the LSC in the LSC Preseason Poll.
- Josie Swafford is ranking sixth in the LSC in shutouts with six. She is also ranking 54th nationally hits allowed per seven innings (5.3).
- Kylie French headlined Cameron's All-LSC selections. She was named to the All-Academic team and also selected to the LSC Golden Glove team at third base. In addition to French, Kaiden Boren was named to the First Team, Josie Swafford was Second Team and on the third team was Khmari Edwards and Taylor Rowley.
