Valparaiso (24-18, 11-7 Horizon)
April 28 [DH] and 29 - Oakland (17-19, 10-8 Horizon)
Next Up in Crusader Softball: With just six regular season games remaining, the importance of each contest keeps growing, and this weekend's series with Oakland is the most important yet for the Valparaiso University softball team. With just 1.5 games separating second through sixth in the Horizon League standings, this weekend's series could prove to have a big impact on the final positions.
Previously: Valpo took two of three from Detroit Mercy last weekend in its final league road series. The Crusaders then dropped a twinbill in mid-week action this week in their final step outside league play against Northern Illinois.
Looking Ahead: The regular season concludes for the Crusaders next weekend at the Valpo Softball Complex as they host Wright State for a three-game series.
Following the Crusaders: All three games this weekend will have live stats available via ValpoAthletics.com, while Saturday's game will feature live video as well. Most league home games and select road games throughout the year will be available on ESPN3, WatchESPN and the ESPN app.
Head Coach Kate Stake: Kate Stake was hired as head coach of the Valparaiso softball program on July 23, 2014 and is in her third season as head coach, owning 58 victories. Stake led the Crusaders to the 2016 Horizon League Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament - the third in program history. Stake arrived at Valpo with eight seasons of assistant coaching experience at the Division I level, most recently serving as an assistant at mid-major power Hofstra.
Series Notes: Valpo and Oakland have had a fairly even history, having spent eight seasons overlapping in the Mid-Con and in their fourth season together as Horizon League members. The Golden Grizzlies own a slight 18-17 advantage all-time, including a 5-4 mark in Horizon League play. In a quirk of scheduling, as well as one series move, this will be the fourth straight year Oakland will travel to Valpo for the regular season series.
Scouting the Opposition: The Golden Grizzlies enter this weekend at 17-19 overall and 10-8 in Horizon League play, most recently dropping a non-league matchup with Toledo on Wednesday. Three Oakland regulars are hitting better than .300, led by a .327 mark from freshman Jamie Squires, who also has connected on a team-high five home runs. In the circle, senior Erin Kownacki has thrown nearly half the innings and owns a 10-7 record with a 1.63 ERA.
Crusaders Picked Third in Preseason Poll: Valparaiso was picked to finish in third place in the Horizon League standings in 2017 in the preseason poll, as picked by the league’s head coaches. UIC claimed seven of the nine first-place votes and finished with 62 points, while Wright State received the other first-place nod and 55 total points. The Crusaders tallied 47 points in the polling.
Looking Back at 2016: The 2016 season saw Valpo make a run for the ages, as the Crusaders needed a win on the final day of the regular season just to make the Horizon League Championship. But once there, Valpo more than proved it belonged, rolling through the first three days of the tournament before rallying from a four-run deficit in the seventh inning to defeat Wright State and claim the Horizon League title and the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. Returning award winners in 2017 include Carly Trepanier (Second Team All-League; All-Tournament Team), Sam Stewart (league tournament MVP) and Lanie Callaghan (league tournament batting champion).
Experienced, Yet Youthful: The 2017 Crusader softball team features a distinct mix of veterans and newcomers. Seven starters return from last year's lineup, but the Crusaders also welcome nine first-year players to the program this season - seven of whom are true freshmen.
In It to Win It: Last season, the Crusaders had to go right down to the final day of the regular season to clinch a spot in the Horizon League Championship. This year, it will hopefully not take quite that long for Valpo to be secure in the tournament field. At 11-7 in league action, the Crusaders enter the weekend four games up on 7-11 Northern Kentucky and own the tiebreaker (by virtue of the series victory this year) over the Norse. Any combination of two Valpo wins and two NKU losses will clinch one of the six tournament berths for the Crusaders.
Looking at the Race: UIC has all but secured the regular season title, needing just one victory to secure the championship and hosting rights for the league tournament. But two through six in the league standings are in as tight of a logjam as you'll ever see this deep into a season. Detroit Mercy currently owns second position at 12-7 in league play, and just 1.5 games back sits Oakland at 10-8 and in sixth position. The Crusaders are ensconsed in a third-place tie with YSU at 11-7, while Wright State has three series left and is 9-6 in league action. Four of the nine league series remaining pit two of the six teams in the race against each other.
Winning Series: Last weekend saw Valpo take two out of three at Detroit Mercy, the team's fifth series win through six Horizon League series. The five series victories are tied for second-most in a single season since moving to the Horizon League, matching the 2008 squad's five series wins. Only the 2012 team, which captured the league's regular season title, claimed more series wins (six).
A Big Weekend: Senior Sam Stewart enjoyed a stellar three games at the plate in the Crusaders' series win at Detroit Mercy. After going 1-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored in the opener, Stewart launched a pair of home runs - including a second-inning grand slam - in the victory in the series' middle game. She drew five walks in her final six plate appearances, ending the series with a slash line of .600/.833/1.800. Stewart now has 13 home runs on the year, just one shy of the Crusaders' single-season record, and is also on pace to easily break the program's single-season mark for slugging percentage. League-wide, Stewart paces all Horizon League players in seven offensive categories.
One Last Chance: Valpo found itself trailing by three runs through six innings and, later in the frame, down to its final strike before rallying to tie the middle game of the series at Cleveland State. The Crusaders eventually won in extra innings, marking the third time this year Valpo has won when being down after six innings - a single-season program best dating back to at least 1999. As of March 17, the Crusaders were 10-308 (.031) since the start of the 1999 campaign when trailing through six innings, but have won three of their last nine in that situation:
March 18 vs. South Dakota - down 4-3 entering the 7th inning; recorded a walk, a sacrifice bunt and four straight singles to walk off with the 5-4 win
March 24 at Northern Kentucky - down 3-2 entering the 7th inning; tied game on a one-out single, took lead on a bases-clearing double; scored five runs in the 7th and eventually won 7-4
April 14 at Cleveland State - down 3-0 entering the 7th inning; tied game on a two-out, two-strike base hit; eventually won 4-3 in eight innings
Weekly Honors: Kenzie Grossmann was named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week by the league office on March 20, giving Valpo four league weekly awards from the Horizon League office in as many weeks of competition to open the season, after Valpo had had just five total honorees the last three years. Perhaps most impressively, the four awards went to four different Crusaders.
March 20 - Kenzie Grossmann - Pitcher of the Week - 2-1, 5-hitter in win over South Dakota State, 11 strikeouts in 12.1 innings
March 13 - Ashlyn Montgomery - Pitcher of the Week - 1-1, 1 save, 1.11 ERA, .229 opponent batting average, 4-hitter at #9/11 Alabama
March 6 - Carly Trepanier - Player of the Week - 9-for-15 (.600), 4 runs scored
Feb. 20 - Sam Stewart - Player of the Week - 6-for-11 (.545), 1.727 SLG, 4 home runs, 8 runs, 7 RBIs
High Five: The Crusaders' win over Stony Brook on March 3 was their fifth consecutive to open the season, setting a new program record for the best start in team history at 5-0. Valpo had previously started 4-0 in 1986, 2000 and 2002, but all three of those squads dropped their fifth game of the season.
