Game Time... The Northwestern College softball team travels to Mitchell, S.D., to play Dakota Wesleyan in a GPAC doubleheader beginning at 5:00 pm. The Red Raiders are in sixth place in the conference standings with an 8-6 record, 18-14 overall with one week left to play in the regular season. DWU is currently in 10th place with a 6-10 league record and trail eighth place Hastings (11-9) by five-and-a-half games for the final postseason spot.
Scouting Report... The Tigers are coached by first year Head Coach Marie McCarthy who takes over the DWU program after building up the Iowa Central CC program to the national level for the past couple of seasons. Coach McCarthy's squad split their last three doubleheaders played last week (USF, Nebraska Wesleyan and Hastings). Prior to that, they swept Mount Marty in a GPAC doubleheader.
DWU is batting .276 this season and is averaging 3.7 runs per game. The Tiger pitching staff posts a 4.43 team ERA and is giving up 5.8 runs per game. Defensively, Coach McCarthy's squad has made 63 errors this season for a fielding percentage of .921.
Individually, they are led by freshman Makinna Meeks who boasts a .351 average at the plate with a team-high 14 RBIs. She also is tied for the team-lead with two home runs and has five doubles. Annie Martinez, a sophomore outfielder, is batting .350 with seven doubles, two home runs and 11 RBIs. Martinez earned first team all-GPAC honors in 2007. Senior catcher Sarah Wells earned honorable mention honors in 2007 and is third on the team with a .333 average. Dana Baxa (.315) and Amy Torgerson (.288) are the other top hitters for the Tigers. Ekekela Watson, a freshman infielder, leads the team with eight stolen bases in nine attempts.
Leading the pitching staff is Amy Torgerson, a junior from Idaho, with a 6-7 record and a 4.70 ERA. She has 54 strikeouts in 83 1/3 innings pitched and teams are batting .301 against the junior. Valerie Spencer, a sophomore from California, is 3-4 this season with a 4.85 ERA.
Last Time Out... DWU split their third straight doubleheader last Saturday against Hastings, winning game one 3-2 (8 innings) and falling in game two, 3-1. Amy Torgerson picked up the complete game win as the junior went eight innings and gave up four hits and just one earned run. She struck out four and walked two. Offensively, DWU managed seven hits, led by Annie Martinez who went 2-for-3 with a double and one run scored. Makinna Meeks also added two hits for the Tigers. In game two, Hastings scored two runs in the top of the inning to break a 1-1 tie en route to the 3-1 win. Valerie Spencer went the distance on the mound, giving up just two hits and three earned runs. She walked five and struck out seven. DWU was led at the plate by Martinez, Meghan Hauck and Torgerson who all had one hit. Martinez added an RBI.
The Red Raider softball team swept a GPAC doubleheader from Nebraska Wesleyan on Saturday by the scores of 2-0 and 2-0. Northwestern improved to 18-14 overall, 8-6 in the GPAC with one week left in the regular season. Lexy Determan earned shutout wins in both games and improved to 13-7 overall with six shutouts. In game one, the freshman gave up two singles, one in the fourth and one in the final inning. Determan did not walk a batter and struck out 14 Nebraska Wesleyan batters. In game two, Determan allowed just three hits, all singles, in earning the complete-game win. She walked four NWU hitters and recorded 11 strikeouts. Determan leads the GPAC with 173 strikeouts and needs just 15 more to break the Northwestern single season record, set by Megan McHugh in 2007, of 187.
Offensively in game one, the Red Raiders scored one run in the second inning on an RBI double by Determan which scored pinch runner Jenny Otto. Northwestern went up 2-0 in the fifth inning on a solo home run by Amy Larson, her first of the season. Rachel Harris went 2-2 with two doubles and Lizz Swanson, Stacey Godfrey and Lara Vonnahmen all had one hit apiece.
Coach Mason's squad recorded four hits in game two, one each by Michelle Van Duyn, Swanson, Godfrey and Determan. The Red Raiders scored one run in the third inning on an RBI single by Michelle Van Duyn, scoring Jenny Otto from second with two outs. Northwestern went up 2-0 in the third inning on a lead-off, solo home run by Swanson, her ninth of the season.
Next up... The Red Raiders will host Briar Cliff on April 23 (5/7:00 pm) and Morningside on April 24 (5/7:00 pm).
2008 media guide
