KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan softball team wraps up their stay in the state of Alabama this weekend at the 2023 JSU Gamecock Invite on March 10-11. WMU will start their weekend play on Friday with a doubleheader first taking on Samford University at 3:30 pm, followed by a 6 pm slate with invite hosts Jacksonville State. Saturday features a repeat lineup with Samford University at 1 pm and Jacksonville State again at 6 pm.
GAME INFORMATION:
Friday, Mar. 10
3:30 pm – Western Michigan vs. Samford |
Live Stats
6:00 pm – Western Michigan vs. Jacksonville State|
ESPN+ | Live Stats
Saturday, Mar. 11
1:00 pm – Western Michigan vs. Samford |
Live Stats
6:00 pm – Western Michigan vs. Jacksonville State|
ESPN+ |
Live Stats
Western Michigan enters the weekend (5-8) after dropping their weekday contest against No. 9 Alabama, 3-1 on Tuesday. Despite the loss, WMU showed its defensive strengths to hold the Crimson Tide to just three runs.
Rissa Bajusz pitched six complete innings to allow six hits, three earned runs, and five strikeouts against Alabama. Bajusz has been a dominant force on the mound for the Broncos, registering a 2.80 ERA with a 2-2 record. She has pitched a total of 40 innings to allow 16 earned runs. Bajusz's five strikeouts added on Tuesday evening make for 33 strikeouts on the season.
Offensively,
Haley Boxwell was a brute force registering the solo home run for Western Michigan to diminish Alabama's shutout. Boxwell's homer marked the first of her Bronco Career and snapped a 43-inning scoreless streak for Crimson Tide softball.
Western Michigan enters the weekend with a 5-8 record after concluding a single game against the No. 9 ranked Crimson Tide. The Broncos are led offensively by junior
Addison Hudson, who is batting .455 with 15 hits, including five RBIs.
Courtney Farrish is batting .351 with 13 hits, including six doubles, two home runs, and eight RBIs.
Alyssa Kramer adds to the leading offense, batting .333 with 13 hits, including four doubles and one home run for a total of four RBIs.
As a unit, the Broncos are batting .250 with 44 runs, 82 hits, 35 RBIs, and five homers on the season. WMU totals 114 bases with 17 doubles.
SAMFORD (6-14 Overall)
The Bulldogs of Samford University enter the weekend 6-14 coming off a 1-4 weekend at the UGA Tournament at the University of Georgia. McKenzie Newcomb has been a force on the mound for the Bulldogs. She has tallied 78 strikeouts against seven walks in 64.2 innings of work this season. Her 78 strikeouts rank her 19th in the country with an ERA of 1.52. Logan Champion is another Bulldog to watch this weekend, ranking nearly first or second in every offensive category including batting average (.328), hits (19), doubles (7), triples (1), total bases (37), and slugging percentage (.638).
As a unit, Samford offensively records a .232 batting average, 46 RBIs, 64 runs, and 139 hits with 24 doubles, and two triples. The Bulldogs register a total of 10 homers and 178 bases.
JACKSONVILLE STATE (10-8 Overall)
JSU enters play Friday, coming off a 0-4 stretch in Knoxville, Tenn., the Gamecocks dropped a pair of games to nationally ranked Tennessee. Freshman Jaliyah Holmes leads the JSU pitching with a 2.47 ERA with a 4-3 record. In 39.2 innings pitches, Holmes allowed 14 earned runs in 27 hits and recorded 46 strikeouts on the season. Offensively, Lindsey Richardson leads the Gamecocks batting .348 to record five runs, 16 hits, two doubles, two home runs, and 14 RBIs. Lauren Hunt follows just behind with an average of .238 with six runs, 15 hits, and five RBIs.
As a collective, JSU is batting .224 for a total of 74 runs, 102 hits, nine home runs on the season, and 64 RBIs. The Gamecocks have totaled 146 bases this season including 11 doubles and three triples.
ON DECK
The 2023 JSU Gamecock Invite marks the final non-conference weekend for Western Michigan. WMU returns home to begin Mid-American Conference play next week with a three-game series against the Bulls of Buffalo on March 17-18. WMU starts the series with a single game on Friday, March 17at 3 pm on Ebert Field. The Broncos wrap up the series with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 18 at 1 pm and 3 pm.
