Valpo (9-12, 0-0 MVC)
March 13 - at Murray State (9-12, 1-1 MVC) - 1 p.m. DH
March 14 - at Murray State - 1 p.m.
March 15 - at IU Indy (3-19) - noon CT DH
March 17 - DePaul (10-14, 1-2 Big East) - 4 p.m.

Next Up in Valpo Softball: A busy weekend awaits the Valpo softball team, as the Beacons continue MVC play with a three-game series Friday and Saturday at Murray State before stopping at IU Indy for a nonconference doubleheader Sunday afternoon. Valpo is then scheduled to open its home schedule at the Valpo Softball Complex Tuesday afternoon against DePaul.

Previously: Valpo dropped two games at Southern Illinois to open MVC action before the third game of the series was canceled due to weather. The Beacons then fell in a nonconference doubleheader at Northern Kentucky.

Looking Ahead: The Beacons are slated for their first MVC home series next weekend, as they welcome UNI to town March 20-21.

Following Valpo Softball: All three games of the Murray State series are slated for broadcast on ESPN+, while every game will have live stats available via ValpoAthletics.com. Most home games and most MVC road games will be broadcast on ESPN+, while select nonconference games will have video streams depending on the host.

Head Coach Mike Armitage (29-42 [.408] at Valpo, 2nd season; 98-109 [.473] overall, 5th season): Mike Armitage is in his second season as head coach of the Valpo softball program after being hired as head coach on June 6, 2024. In his first year at Valpo, Armitage guided the Beacons to 20 wins - the program's winningest season since 2018 and an 11-win improvement over the previous season. Valpo posted a six-win improvement within MVC play, finishing with its highest total of Valley wins, its most MVC series wins and its best Valley regular season finish since 2018 as well. Prior to Valpo, Armitage spent three seasons as head coach at Minnesota State Moorhead, posting the first back-to-back 30-win seasons in MSUM program history in 2023 and 2024 after inheriting a Dragons program which had not finished above .500 since 2007.

Series Records: Murray State - The Racers are a perfect 5-0 in the brief series between the two programs, sweeping a three-game set in 2023 and a doubleheader in 2024. 

IU Indy - Valpo owns a 35-26 advantage in the all-time series between the two programs, although the two programs have not met since the Jaguars rebranded as IU Indy. The last meeting came back in 2019 at the Valpo Softball Complex, a 4-1 Valpo victory.

DePaul - The Blue Demons hold a 48-1-1 advantage in the all-time series, including two DePaul wins last season - a 2-0 final on opening weekend at the Dome Tournament and a 4-3 final in eight innings in Chicago. This year's matchup will mark five out of the last six seasons that the two programs have met.

Scouting the Opposition: Murray State - The Racers sits at 9-12 overall and are 1-1 in MVC play after splitting a conference-opening twinbill against UNI last weekend. Bailey Broemmer and Kynadee Warner are both hitting better than .350 at the plate, while in the circle, Bre Haislip has tossed a team-high 48.2 innings and is 3-3 with a 3.31 ERA.

IU Indy - The Jaguars are 3-19 on the year, with a game scheduled at Bellarmine Thursday afternoon prior to Sunday's doubleheader. Molly Kable is leading IU Indy with a .356 batting average and an OPS above 1.000. The Jaguars have struggled in the circle, with a team ERA of 8.86.

DePaul - The Blue Demons are 10-14 this season entering the weekend, where they are scheduled to host Georgetown for a three-game series prior to Tuesday's game. Alexis Houge reaches base at a .500 clip and leads the team with 20 runs scored and 10 stolen bases, while in the circle, Hannah Messer has thrown a team-high 65 innings and is 4-7 with a 3.12 ERA.

Old Friend Alert: Valpo has a long history with its two nonconference foes over the next week, having previously shared conference affiliation with both institutions. DePaul and Valpo were both members of the North Star Conference and then were in the Mid-Con together from 1993-99. Meanwhile, Valpo and IU Indy (then known as IUPUI) competed together in the Mid-Con from 1999-2007.

More Weather Changes: After having two of their three outdoor tournaments' schedules adjusted due to weather, it feels like no surprise that the Beacons' MVC-opening series at Southern Illinois was truncated to two games thanks to Mother Nature. Having already had four games erased from the original schedule due to weather, Valpo picked up Sunday's doubleheader at IU Indy on its way back from Murray State.

Earliest Home Opener: Valpo's scheduled home opener with DePaul on Tuesday, March 17 would be its earliest home opener in program history by three days - the current earliest game Valpo has hosted is March 20 (2012 versus IUPUI; 2015 versus Green Bay). Should Tuesday's game be postponed or canceled (and based on the weather forecast as of the composition of these notes, that seems extremely likely), if the Beacons play their games as scheduled Friday against UNI, that would still match the earliest home game in program history.

Walk This Way: Valpo's collective discerning eye at the plate has led to plenty of free bases. The Beacons have drawn six or more walks nine times this season, highlighted by a 10-walk performance in the opening-weekend win over Oakland - tied for fifth-most in a single game in program history. Valpo currently ranks 33rd nationally in walks, with their 100 free passes already more than halfway to the program single-season record.

Just Keep Reaching Base: Senior Mack Gallagher extended her season-opening on-base streak to 21 consecutive games as she reached at least once in all four games last weekend - tied for seventh-longest by a Valpo player in the last two decades. She drew a walk in each of the first three games of the weekend before connecting on a two-run homer in the nightcap at Northern Kentucky. Gallagher ranks third nationally in walks/game (1.05), while her 12 walks lead the MVC and her .526 on-base percentage ranks fifth in the Valley.

Jackson With the Hits: While sophomore Marissa Jackson saw her batting average drop slightly last weekend, she did pick up at least one hit in three of the Beacons' four games to push her season total to 23 hits. Her .383 batting average ranks eighth among MVC players.

V Races Into Record Book: One season after cracking Valpo's single-season top-10 for stolen bases by going a perfect 17-for-17, sophomore Madison Vrastil made her mark in the single-game department on opening weekend. Vrastil stole one base in the first inning, one in the second inning and two in the third inning of the Beacons' Saturday win over Green Bay, establishing a new Valpo single-game record with four stolen bases. Vrastil is 15-for-15 on the bases this year - tied for 13th nationally in steals. Her 32 career stolen bases rank eighth in program history.

Nonconference Success: Valpo heads into MVC play with a winning record, as the Beacons sit at 9-8 through four weekends of play. This is the second straight season the Beacons have carried a winning record into Valley action, as they were 11-9 going into their MVC opener in 2025. Prior to last year, it had been since 2018 (12-8) that Valpo opened conference play with a winning record.

A Perfect Start: Valpo swept its four games on opening weekend at the DePaul Dome Tournament, starting 4-0 for the fifth time in program history and just the second time against all D-I opponents. The 2017 squad started 5-0 for the best start by a Valpo team, while the 1986, 2000 and 2002 teams all faced at least two non D-I opponents en route to a 4-0 start.

Who's Back: Valpo returns 15 letterwinners from last year's squad for the 2026 campaign, a group which accounted for 85.3% of the team's at-bats and 100% of the innings pitched last season. The Beacons also return two pitchers - Mia Carroll-Greeves and Kayla Purdy - who sat out the entirety of their first season on campus in 2025.

Who's New: Valpo welcomes six newcomers to the program this season. Transfers Grace Hollopeter and Cadan Brinkman join from Purdue Fort Wayne and Campbell, respectively, while Addie Young, Jenna Flessner, Lillian Martinez and Ava Goodman come in as true freshmen.

A Large Roster: Do the math from the above two notes, and you find that this year's Valpo softball roster is comprised of 23 players. While that is one shy of last year's team, which featured a program-record 24 players, it is still the second-largest roster in program history.

Hitting the Road: This weekend's games continue a long and winding road for the Beacons before they finally get the chance to play at the Valpo Softball Complex. Valpo played in tournaments hosted by DePaul, UT Martin, UNLV and Lindenwood to open the season and played at SIU and NKU last weekend. After this weekend's five road games, Valpo will have played 26 games before the scheduled home opener against DePaul March 17.

Looking Back at 2025: Valpo won 20 games in 2025, more wins than the previous two seasons combined and its highest win total since the 2018 season. The Beacons won nine MVC games, also their highest total since 2018. Offensively, Valpo scored the most runs in a season since 2017, while on the mound, the pitching staff's ERA was the program's lowest since 2018.

Lopez Earns Preseason Honor: Senior Azalya Lopez was named to the preseason All-MVC First Team for her work in the circle and at the plate. Lopez - a Second Team All-MVC choice last season in her first year at Valpo - posted 10 wins, four saves, a 2.89 ERA and 109 strikeouts in 138 innings of work in 2025 while allowing opponents to hit just .218 off of her — the tenth-best mark in a single season in program history. She tied for the MVC lead in saves, ranked fifth in strikeouts and opponents' batting average, and eighth in ERA and wins. At the plate, the two-time MVC Newcomer of the Week hit .254 with 14 runs scored and 25 RBIs. Lopez led the team with 10 doubles and ranked second in both RBIs and walks (23). She found her groove in the batter's box during conference play, hitting a team-best .307 in MVC play with an .835 OPS.

Soaring Sophomores: A pair of Beacons who had strong freshman campaigns are back for their sophomore season in 2026. Madison Vrastil hit a team-high .333 as a rookie and posted an .818 OPS. Vrastil moved into 10th on Valpo's single-season steals chart with 17, third-most among MVC players, and ranked ninth in the Valley with 57 hits. She opened her career with a 22-game on-base streak, tied for the fourth-longest by a Valpo player since 1999.

In the circle, Erin Metz appeared in 44 games as a rookie, recording six wins and tying for the MVC lead with four saves while posting a 3.35 ERA and striking out 77 batters in 92 innings of work. She was named MVC Pitcher of the Week April 7 after going 4-0 with a 1.34 ERA the previous week, becoming the first Valpo pitcher to pick up the win in four consecutive games since 2008.

Return of the Mack: In addition to Lopez, head coach Mike Armitage had senior Mack Gallagher come with him from MSU Moorhead to Valpo, and Gallagher made a big impact in her first season as a Beacon in 2025. Gallagher ranked second on the team with a .392 on-base percentage, thanks in large part to drawing 36 walks - third-most by a Valpo player in a single season in program history, tied for second among MVC players and tied for 48th nationally in walks per game. She led the Beacons with six home runs and 30 RBIs as well.

Big Bat Incoming: Purdue Fort Wayne transfer Grace Hollopeter brings quite the resume with her to the Beacons' roster for her final season of collegiate softball. A two-time First Team All-Horizon League honoree, Hollopeter hit .415 with 12 home runs last season and led the Horizon League in slugging percentage (.800), on base percentage (.509), OPS (1.309), RBIs (53), doubles (14) and walks (25). The senior - who has seen action at catcher, around the infield and as designated player - hit .355 over her three seasons in the Mastodon uniform, totaling 154 hits, including 34 doubles and 27 homers, 81 runs scored and 111 RBIs.