Regional Invite Website | MWSU Notes
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The 2013 Missouri Western Softball team opens up its season this weekend in the Southeastern Regional Invitational. The Griffons will face six teams which include Cameron, Southeastern Oklahoma State, Southern Nazarene, Henderson State, Drury and Ouachita Baptist.
Missouri Western returns seven starters from a team that finished 42-13 (16-2, MIAA) and made it to the NCAA National Tournament for the second year in a row. Of those returning are seniors Keri Lobert and
Maegan Roemmich. Lorbert cracked eight home runs leading the team a season ago leading her to a Second Team All-MIAA selection. Roemmich placed second on the team with a .347 batting average and was named First-Team All-MIAA.
Also returning is junior pitcher
Jackie Bishop, who continued her impressive career as a sophomore with a MWSU single season record 243 strikeouts. She finished the season with a 24-5 record. She was named to the Daktronics Softball All-America Second-Team, Daktronics NCAA Division II South Central Region Pitcher of the Year and MIAA Pitcher of the Year.
The Griffons Griffons brought in freshman pitcher
Janie Smith from Des Moines, Iowa and utility players
Brooke Schaben and
Sydney McCune. Schaben transferred to MWSU after playing one season at Division I South Dakota while McCune transferred from Des Moines Area Community College.
Missouri Western begins its quest back to the NCAA Tournament Friday at 10 a.m. against the Cameron Aggies. The 3-day invite ends Sunday with a noon tilt against Ouachita Baptist.
About Cameron: The Aggies are currently 1-3 after playing four games last weekend. Senor Leslie Martini, leads the team with a .371 batting average, and freshman Spencer Ferrell look to lead Cameron this season. The team finished 17-32 last season.
Southeastern Oklahoma State: The host team is 3-2, but has dropped its past two games after starting the season 3-0. The Savage Storm has a bunch of young talent, but is led by senior Paige Priest, who was Second Team All-GAC in 2012. SEOSU finished 40-16 last season, just missing out on the regional tournament.
Southern Nazarene: The Crimson Storm finished 42-18 last year, and lost in the NAIA National Tournament to Cal State San Marcos. Jill Clemence and Kylie Lang both came back after leading the team in batting with a .412 average. This marks the first year the Crimson Storm are a member of NCAA Division II.
Henderson State: The Griffons split with Henderson State last season, winning 2-1 and dropping a 6-2 game. Both games went eight innings. This year, the Reddies sit at 1-5 after opening up the season last week. Amber Wilburn and Sarah Gipson both hit home runs for Henderson State in last week's games. They were 20-30 last year.
Drury: The Panthers had their best season in school history a season ago finishing 36-19. Monica Villarreal returns to the circle after finishing last season with a 17-11 overall record. The two teams split a pair of games last season in St. Joseph with both teams winning 1-0.
Ouachita Baptist: The Tigers are 2-2 this season. Last season they finished and 18-31, which included a 6-0 victory over Missouri Western. OBU is led by senior Megan Askew. The first-baseman is hitting .467 with seven hits in four games.
The Griffons return to action on February 15-17 participating in the Arkansas-Monticello Five State Classic in Bentonville, Ark. The Griffons will play six games on the weekend.
