Upcoming Event: Softball versus Minnesota Crookston on September 28, 2025 at 1 p.m.
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1 p.m.
Softball
vs Minnesota Crookston
South Dakota State University Athletics
Saturday, April 28
Macomb, Ill.
Noon
South Dakota State University
at
Western Illinois
Photo by: Inertia Sports Media/Dave Eggen
Softball closes Summit League play at WIU
4/26/2018 11:43:00 AM | Softball
| Â GAMES 42-44: South Dakota State (29-12, 8-3) at Western Illinois (16-25, 8-1) |
| Â When | Â Saturday, April 28 (Noon / 2 p.m.) | Sunday, April 29 (11 a.m.) | |||
|  Where |  Mary Ellen McKee Stadium | Macomb, Illinois | |||
| Â Live Stats | Â SIDEARM Sports | |||
| Â Live Video | Â ESPN3/WatchESPN | |||
| Â Game Notes | Â South Dakota State | |||
| Â Social Media | Â Twitter | Facebook | #GRIT | |||
Gameday Outlook
South Dakota State softball enters the final week of its Summit League schedule in the hunt for its first-ever league championship as they head for league-leading Western Illinois for a three-game set. The Jackrabbits and Fighting Leathernecks will play a doubleheader Saturday at Noon and 2 p.m., followed by a single game Sunday at 11 a.m. All games will be played at Mary Ellen McKee Stadium in Macomb, Illinois.
The Jacks (29-12, 8-3 Summit League) sit second in the league standings and will wrap up the league regular season this weekend while the Leathernecks (16-25, 8-1 Summit League) is first in the standings and will host North Dakota State (third in standings) the first weekend of May after the Jackrabbit series this weekend.
The Jackrabbits are 9-23 all-time against Western Illinois, playing four straight games to end the season last year when the 'Necks knocked SDSU out of the Summit League Tournament. State did claim the regular season series, 2-1, last season at Jackrabbit Softball Stadium.
About the Jacks
South Dakota State has already locked in its best non-conference record at the Division I level and sits second in Summit League play as the regular season winds down. SDSU is also one victory away from the 30-win plateau, reached only three other times in program history (1996-97, 2005).
The Jackrabbits are hitting .330 as a team (sixth in NCAA Division I) with 73 doubles, nine triples and 37 home runs. SDSU has scored 280 runs in 41 games with 255 runs batted in. The Jacks are third nationally with 1.78 doubles per game and fifth in scoring (6.83 runs per contest).
In the circle, SDSU has put together a 3.99 team ERA with 152 strikeouts, allowing 151 earned runs in 264.2 innings pitched.
Individually, Brittney Morse and Abbey Murphy lead the Jacks with .414 averages, both putting together 58-for-140 efforts in the box with 12 doubles apiece. Morse leads SDSU with nine home runs and 52 RBIs, while Murphy has four triples and 18 walks, second among Jacks behind Ali Herdliska's 24 free passes. Julia Andersen is close behind with a .405 average, racking up a team-high 60 hits and 14 doubles while driving in 32. She also has three home runs, two doubles and 14 walks. Herdliska has added seven home runs and five doubles while putting together a .314 average, just behind Megan Rushing's .326 effort as the third baseman is 28-for-86 on the year with eight doubles, two triples and four home runs.
Madison Hope (3.46 ERA) is second in The Summit League with 17 wins (five losses) on the year and has tallied four saves. She broke the school's career saves record earlier this season and now has six in a Jackrabbit uniform. Hope has tossed 11 complete games in 31 appearances and leads the team in strikeouts (86) and innings pitched (139.2) while being named The Summit League's Pitcher of the Week twice this season. Taylor Compton (7-6) has a 5.37 ERA in 23 appearances, tossing 75.2 innings with 38 strikeouts. Olivia Douglas (4.67 ERA) picked up her first collegiate win in March at UMKC in a complete game performance and now has 10 strikeouts over 18 innings pitched. Kendra Conard (2.68 ERA) has made 14 appearances and boasts a 4-0 record over 31.1 innings pitched, striking out 18.
Jackrabbits' Last Time Out
The Jackrabbit softball program pushed their current win streak to six games this week with a pair of run-rule victories over Dakota State in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. SDSU won game one 12-1 in five innings and took the finale, 18-8 in six frames.
South Dakota State hit an impressive .509 in the two games, jacking six home runs and nine doubles to score 30 runs (29 batted in). The team also drew 13 walks. In the circle, SDSU had a 4.45 ERA with nine strikeouts.
Baily Janssen (.833) was 5-for-6 with a pair of two-baggers in the doubleheader while Mallory McQuistan (.800, four RBIs), Julia Andersen (.667, five RBIs) and Megan Rushing (.667, seven RBIs) all had four hits and home runs, as Rushing tacked on three doubles and Andersen two. Brittney Morse (.600) had two home runs in game two and drew two walks.
Madison Hope earned the game one victory in three innings pitched, striking out two with one unearned run allowed. Kendra Conard picked up a relief win in the finale, tossing 2.1 innings with a run allowed and three strikeouts. Olivia Douglas did not allow a run in game one relief and Taylor Compton started the second contest, throwing the first 3.2 innings with six runs allowed and four strikeouts.
About the Opponent
Western Illinois is hitting .283 as a team this season with 49 doubles, 10 triples and 18 home runs, scoring 155 total runs with 140 runs batted in. The pitching staff has compiled a 4.40 team ERA and struck out 204 in 256.1 innings pitched, allowing 166 runs (161 earned).
Hailey Duwa is 43-for-113 (.381) at the plate and has a team-leading nine doubles and five home runs, driving in 28 runs with 10 walks. Jasmine Lara (.324) has started 34 games and is 34-for-105 at the plate with five doubles while working 16 walks, second-most on the team behind Kelsey Marlow (17 walks, .266 average). Halle Hollatz (.308) is the lone WIU player to start all 39 contests, and has five doubles, four home runs and 21 RBIs with 13 walks.
Emily Ira (3.12 ERA) is 9-7 on the season in 22 appearances, tossing 13 complete games. She has struck out a team-best 137 opponents in 123.1 innings and allowed 55 earned runs. Abby Carline (1-7) has thrown the second-most innings (54.1), while Payton Abbott (4.36 ERA, 3-2) and Megan Lotarski (5.82 ERA, 3-7) have tossed 35.1 and 39.2 innings with 28 and 22 strikeouts, respectively.
Summit League Tournament Outlook
South Dakota State is fighting for the top seed in next month's Summit League Championship in Fargo, North Dakota, currently one-game back of league-leading Western Illinois as the season winds down. The Jackrabbits have three league games remaining while WIU and North Dakota State (currently third) each have six contests left. The 'Necks and Bison conclude the regular season against each other in early May.
Although official seeding will not be known until next weekend's results are in, if SDSU wins all three games this weekend the Jacks would be 11-3 in league play and only lose the regular season title if NDSU sweeps the next two weekends (against Fort Wayne and WIU).
Morse Continues to Mash
Brittney Morse has elevated her play in Summit League games, hitting .500 in those contests (20-for-40) with five home runs and 24 RBIs.
For the complete season, Morse leads the league in batting average (.414), slugging percentage (.693), total bases (97) and runs batted in (52) and is second in home runs (nine) and hits (58). Her RBI total this season also broke the school's single-season mark, previously held by Alyssa D'Agostino (2015).
Jackrabbits Rake in Weekly Honors
Three Jackrabbits have combined for four Summit League Player or Pitcher of the Week honors from the league this season.
- Brittney Morse was named the Player of the Week April 9. She led the Jackrabbits with a .600 average and .900 slugging percentage, helping SDSU claim its series over rival South Dakota. Morse reached safely in all three games, including two multi-hit and multi-RBI performances. She finished the week with eight runs batted in while hitting her sixth home run of the season.
- Madison Hope was named the Pitcher of the Week March 26 after posting a 2-0 record with a save in three appearances. She started the week with a complete-game win at Iowa Wednesday, striking out five while allowing just one unearned run. She helped the Jacks secure their first sweep of a power five opponent at the Division I level in the doubleheader's finale, pitching the final two innings of a 5-2 win for her second save of the season in shutout fashion. Hope concluded the week with another complete-game victory, tossing all seven innings of a 6-4 win at UMKC on Friday.
- Hope earned Pitcher of the Week honors March 12 after going 5-0 over seven appearances, leading the team with a 1.94 ERA and 36 innings pitched. The senior tallied 21 strikeouts on the week and pitched four complete games, earning a save in the weekend finale against Delaware State. Hope had three games with four or more strikeouts, including six against Quinnipiac Sunday. She did not allow a run against QU or Central Michigan in a pair of Jackrabbit wins.
- Baily Janssen was honored as the Summit League's Softball Player of the Week, released Feb. 26. Janssen hit .500 and slugged 1.000 with a .500 on-base percentage over two starts. The Missouri Valley, Iowa went 3-for-6 at the plate with three RBIs, two walks and an inside-the-park home run.
Miss Consistent
Abbey Murphy, Julia Andersen and Brittney Morse own three of the top four spots in SDSU's Division I history for consecutive games of reaching base safely. Murphy did it in 38 straight games between the 2017 and 2018 seasons, while Andersen is in the midst of a 23-game streak and Morse has reached safely in the last 19 contests.
Saving The Day
Madison Hope picked up her sixth career save April 21 at Fort Wayne, breaking the school's career saves mark previously held by Kim Westendorf (2005-07). Hope has four saves this season (also a school record).
Herdliska Chasing Records
In her third season as a Jackrabbit, Ali Herdliska has already moved into the top 10 of several offensive record lists. She is also fourth in defensive chances and putouts, less than 500 from each defensive record.
Quick Hits
- SDSU is off to its best start in program history with a 29-12 mark through 41 contests. The previous best start came in 1996, when the team was 28-13 at the same time. The Jacks were also 27-14 through 41 games in 1997. Through 44 games in those years, SDSU was 30-14. The best season record in Jackrabbit history was 1996 when the team went 43-22 with a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
- South Dakota State has put up four or more runs in an inning 27 times this year, last doing it April 24 when the Jacks had five runs in the sixth against Dakota State (after scoring eight in the fifth and four in the third).
- The Jacks have scored five or more in an inning 14 times this season and have put together a double-digit run inning twice.
- Abbey Murphy became the first Jackrabbit to drive in five runs in a game since Ali Herdliska did it last Feb. 26 against Alabama A&M when Murphy went for five against Austin Peay Feb. 25. Brittney Morse matched her total April 7 against South Dakota when she was 3-for-4 with a three-run home run and a two-RBI single.
- SDSU's 19-12 win over Green Bay on Feb. 11 was the first time the Jacks had surpassed the 15-run mark since April 30, 2016 in a 16-2 win over Fort Wayne. The Jacks matched the 15-run total on March 11 against Delaware State.
- The Jackrabbits racked up 18 hits against Delaware State, one shy of the school's record. The Jacks have tied or surpassed the 15-hit mark four times this season already and have 10 or more hits in 15 games.
- Abbey Murphy has been hit by 17 pitches in her career and is alone in second place at SDSU. She trails only Jessica Markanich (2012-15), who was hit 20 times. Mallory McQuistan (13) is tied for third, Ali Herdliska (12) is fifth and Lyndsey Crist (11th) ranks sixth on the list.
- Julia Andersen (3/30 at Omaha, 4/21 at Fort Wayne) and Brittney Morse (3/24 at UMKC) have tallied four-hit games for the Jackrabbits this season. Andersen also scored four runs at Omaha (3/30) when she had two home runs. That scoring total was matched by Abbey Murphy on April 21 at Fort Wayne.
- The Jackrabbits are now 25-24 all-time in season openers and 6-9 at the Division I level (since 2004). State's win over UMKC was its first opening day win since 2015.
Jacks Picked Fourth in Summit League Poll
South Dakota State was picked fourth in the 2018 Summit League Preseason Coaches Poll, released early February by the league office. The Jacks earned the No. 6 seed in the 2017 Summit League Championships and carry an experienced lineup into the 2018 season.
State has with 13 returners on the roster, including eight position starters and a starting pitcher. The Jacks will blend 14 upperclassman (five seniors, nine juniors) with a promising group of underclassman.
SDSU received 14 votes in the poll, three behind South Dakota, who had 17 points and one first-place vote. Atop the poll, reigning league champion North Dakota State is first with five first-place votes and 25 points, while Western Illinois garnered 20 tallies for second.
Herdliska Named a Player to Watch
For the second consecutive season, Ali Herdliska was named a Player to Watch for The Summit League, announced preseason alongside the coaches poll.
Herdliska, an All-Summit League performer from 2017, is back for her junior campaign after leading the Jackrabbits with a .338 average last year, starting all 54 games. The infielder racked up 18 doubles, six home runs and 36 RBIs while drawing 18 walks on the season.
Smarty Jacks
South Dakota State was one of 149 Division I softball programs to earn a spot on the 2017 Easton / National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Academic Teams award list. The rankings recognize the academic prowess of softball teams across seven membership divisions within the NFCA.
The Jackrabbits had a 2016-17 team grade point average of 3.016 with 11 team members boasting GPAs above the 3.00 mark.
For the 2017 fall semester, State posted a 3.47 combined GPA with 18 of 20 student-athletes logging a plus-3.0 grade point average.
Nine Sign NLIs with Jackrabbit Softball
South Dakota State softball coach Krista Wood announced nine additions to the Jackrabbit softball program as part of this week's National Signing Day activities.
Olivia Douglas, part of the group, enrolled early and has joined SDSU for the upcoming season, while the other eight newcomers will come to campus fall 2018. Those signees are Caelyn Christiancy (Lincoln, Nebraska), Peyton Daugherty (Ankeny, Iowa), Morgan DeMarais (Buffalo, Minnesota), Emma Hardin (Brookings, South Dakota), Jadelyn Johnson (Battle Ground, Indiana), Kelsey Lenox (Chesterfield, Missouri), Olivia Pfeifer (Hannibal, Missouri) and Allison Yoder (Urbandale, Iowa).
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IF
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