TAHLEQUAH – Northeastern State takes a journey to Missouri to face Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri.
The Friday and Saturday doubleheaders follow a four-date homestand for the RiverHawks, one where they most recently split with Central Missouri on Mar. 30.
The Setup
- Northeastern State is in its first season with Rachel Rhode as the head softball coach. She has experience as an assistant at Truman State (2021-22) and Bemidji State (2019-20).
- The RiverHawks enter the campaign after a 30-win result in 2023, the team's sixth straight winning season and their second 30-win effort since 2018. A 12-14 MIAA record resulted in NSU missing the league's postseason tournament for the second time in three seasons.
- Northeastern State's 26-game MIAA schedule continues with this week's doubleheaders.
Around the Diamond
- Emily Sampson has been a powerfully hot hand of late, homering for a second straight week with two blasts over the wall, including a grand slam against the Jennies that proved the be the difference in game two win of the doubleheader. Sampson leads the team with 14 extra base hits, with 11 doubles.
- Maddie Messenger was solid last week from the box, finishing with at least one hit across every game in the pair of doubleheaders against Lincoln and Central Missouri, with seven total. Her four-game hitting streak is tied for the longest active on the team, while her on-base streak of seven games is the longest active on the roster.
- Korynn Tindel received her first win of the season after throwing six innings in the late game of Saturday's doubleheader against Central Missouri. The redshirt freshman forced three batters back to the visiting dugout via strikeout, while she limited the Jennies to five base hits. Tindel owns the staff's lowest earned run average (3.38) and opposing hitters have been silenced to a .227 averaged over the season.
- Madison Heinle struck out 12 batters over 16 innings of action in the circle at RiverHawks Park last Friday and Saturday, with three of her four appearances seeing the opposing side limited to no more than one run. Heinle received her first save of 2024 with a credit from throwing a scoreless seventh inning against UCM on Saturday in the late encounter.
- The RiverHawks travel to Missouri with the hopes of ending a three-game losing streak to the Griffons and extending their three-game winning streak against the Bearcats.
Northeastern State at Missouri Western (Apr. 5 at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.) // Live Coverage
About Missouri Western (20-12, 6-6 MIAA)
- MWSU took a total of three consecutive losses to end last weeks action, including falling victim to a two-game sweep across last Saturday's doubleheader with Washburn.
- Joe Yegge is in his third season with the program as the head softball coach, where he most recently guided the team to a 37-win season in 2023. Yegge was previously the associate head coach at DePaul from 2019-21, while his previous experience as a head coach extends to the JUCO ranks at Kirkwood CC (2008-18) and North Iowa Area CC (1999-2002).
- The Griffons are ninth in the MIAA in batting average (.277), though they rank inside the top five in home runs (26). The pitching staff ranks in the middle of the league in both ERA (sixth, 2.70) and strikeouts (eighth, 155), while they've allowed walks the least amount in the conference (57).
- Five MWSU players hit at least .306, led by Kalee Higdon (.386). Myah Dwyer leads the team in at-bats (101) and is second with a .347 clip on the campaign.
Series Notes
- The Griffons have won 29 of 34 all-time contests with the RiverHawks.
- MWSU swept NSU in 2023 in Tahlequah.
- The Griffons have won seven of eight meetings at home against the RiverHawks.
Northeastern State at Northwest Missouri (Apr. 6 at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.) // Live Coverage
About Northwest Missouri (17-19, 6-6 MIAA)
- A late game victory against Emporia State last Saturday ended a five-game losing streak for the Bearcats, all against MIAA opponents.
- NWMSU hosts a ranked opponent in Rogers State on Friday.
- Naomi Tellez leads NWMSU softball after spending time as an assistant at North Dakota, where she spent three seasons at the team's pitching coach. Her player career includes time at New Mexico and DePaul, where she was an All-Big East First Teamer in 2016.
- Lillie Filger (.462) holds the second-highest batting average in the MIAA, while she's only gone down by strikeout seven times across 130 at-bats this season. Alexis Brown (.389) and Skylar Pieper (.342, 4 HR, 21 RBI) are key ingredients to an offense that ranks in the upper half of the conference in average (sixth, .303) and home runs (t-sixth, 21).
Series Notes
- A sweep of Northwest Missouri at RiverHawks Park in 2023 gave Northeastern State the series lead in the all-time history between the squads a 36-35.
- The RiverHawks are 3-5 in road meetings with the Bearcats.
- NSU will seek another dominant afternoon from their pitching after holding NWMSU to just one run across last year's doubleheader.
Coming Up
Northeastern State continues the road trip with matchups against Newman and Central Missouri the next week.
