ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Griffon Softball (16-3) is at last home to play Augustana (3-8) on Saturday at MWSU Spring Sports Complex.
The doubleheader is slated to start at 12 p.m. with the second game to follow at about 2 p.m. The game will be available to watch on the MIAA Network and listen to on the Griffon Sports Network (Varsity Network App, GoGriffons.com/listen). KQ2's Dan Byford will be on the call.
Where We Left Off
Griffon Softball completed a "Shutout Saturday" last weekened with a pair of dominant wins over Bemidji State and Concordia-St. Paul on the final day of the Midwest College Classic at MidAmerica Complex in Shawnee, Kansas. The Griffons blanked the Beavers, 7-0, before run-ruling CSP, 10-0, to cap off a 4-1 weekend and run their record to 16-3 overall. The record through 19 games matches the program's best start since 2017.
Game 1 - MWSU 7, Bemidji State 0
The Griffons took early control with one big swing.
Rachel Cain's grand slam in 2nd inning gave the Griffs a 4-0 lead en rout to the 7-0 victory.
Pitcher
Ashlyn Finarty (5-1) went the distance, scattering just 4 hits in the shutout. Finarty also helped her cause from the plate, going 2-2 with triple, a run scored and an RBI.
Game 2 - MWSU 10, Concordia St. Paul 0 (F/6)
Sydney Young followed up a 2-hit game against Bemidji with a monster effort against the Golden Bears. The DP went -3-3 with a walk, a home run and 4 RBI in the 10-0 run-rule victory. Cain's hot bat also carried over into game 2, as the seccond baseman went 3-3 with 3 runs scored.
Ayva McComas went 1-3 with 3 RBI in the victory. Pitcher
Harley Pruetting threw six innings of shutout softball, allowing 5 hits, while striking out 7. The victory improved Pruetting's record to 6-0 on the season.
Season Outlook
Griffon Softball was picked to finish 7
th out of 13 teams in the MIAA this season, per the preseason coaches' poll. MoWest received 84 points in the voting, sitting behind Washburn in 6
th place and ahead of 8
th place Emporia State.
The Griffons, under second year head coach
Nicole Thompson, are coming off of a 32-21 mark in 2025, including a 12-12 record in MIAA play. MoWest, who's won 30 games or more in each of the last four seasons, qualified for the MIAA softball tournament last season, falling to Pittsburg State 10-7 in the quarterfinal round.
MoWest brings back a strong core of talent this season with 11 returners total, including four of the top five hitters and two starting pitchers from last season. The Griffons bring back five players who started 46 games or more in 2025, and eight players who started 16 games or more.
The Griffons also added 11 players – seven transfers and four freshmen. Three of the new players are pitchers, while eight position players were added as well. Of the seven transfers, four of them come from the NCAA Division I level.
Schedule Breakdown
The Griffons will stay home next weekend to host Fort Hays State on Saturday, March 14 for its MIAA opener. They will first, however, host Minnesota State-Moorhead for a non-conference doubleheader on Thursday, March 12 at 12 and 2 p.m.
The first MIAA doubleheaders on the road are set for March 20–21 at Northeastern State and No. 16 Rogers State respectively. The Griffs will also travel to see No. 14 Central Oklahoma on April 4 and then come home to see No. 8 Missouri Southern on April 10.
The regular season concludes May 1 with a road doubleheader at Northwest Missouri State. The 2026 MIAA Softball Tournament is scheduled for May 6-10 at Trusler Sports Complex in Emporia, Kansas.
Fight On 50
The 2025-26 season marks the 50
th season of Griffon Softball and of women's athletics at Missouri Western State University. Softball has been a key part of that history as one of the four original women's programs that started in 1975-76.
Since that time, Griffon Softball has won 1310 games with 14 national tournament bids (11 NCAA + 3 NAIA), one NAIA national title (1982) and four MIAA championships (two tournament, two regular season).
