STILLWATER, Okla. - Seattle U softball heads to its final non-conference tournament of the 2024 season this weekend, traveling to Oklahoma for the Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invite. The three-day tournament will have the Redhawks taking part in five games over three days. Each contest will feature live stats, while the game against Oklahoma State will be streamed live on ESPN+ and the contest at Tulsa will be streamed live on their Sidearm Sports streaming network.
FOLLOW THE REDHAWKS
- Friday, March 1 at 8:00 a.m. pacific time
- Seattle U (6-9) vs. UMKC (6-9)
- Stillwater, Okla.
- Live Stats
- Friday, March 1 at 1:00 p.m. pacific time
- Seattle U at #6 Oklahoma State (15-2)
- Stillwater, Okla.
- ESPN+
- Live Stats
- Saturday, March 2 at 8:00 a.m. pacific time
- Seattle U vs. Miami (OH) (9-2)
- Tulsa, Okla.
- Live Stats
- Saturday, March 2 at 1:00 p.m. pacific time
- Seattle U at Tulsa (9-5)
- Tulsa, Okla.
- Hurricane Vision
- Live Stats
- Sunday, March 3 at 8:00 a.m. pacific time
- Seattle U vs. Drake (6-4)
- Stillwater, Okla.
- Live Stats
HIGHLIGHTS FROM MARY NUTTER CLASSIC
Taylor Fitch had a stellar weekend for the Redhawks, hitting a team-high .438 with two home runs and three RBIs. The sophomore from Woodinville, Washington, opened the weekend with two singles against CSUN, before marking her first home run in a Seattle U uniform against UC Riverside in the evening win. The infielder doubled her season home run total with a solo shot against CSU Fullerton and recorded two hits in two at bats against No. 1 Oklahoma to end the weekend. Fitch is currently on a team-best eight game on base streak and ranks second on thea team in multi-hit games with five.
The trio of Mikee Morris, Ava Sin and Nicola Simpson all marked their first career home runs over the weekend, with Morris sending one out in the third inning in a 6-0 win over UC Riverside and the latter two both hitting two-run, home runs in the fifth inning against California.
Berkley Vance tied for the team-lead in ERA this past weekend, posting a 2.62 over 10.2 innings with seven strikeouts. Her momentum began in the opening game against CSUN, coming into the circle for a relief appearance in the third inning. The freshman allowed just two hits and struck out four Matadors, giving Seattle U a chance to take this one. The Lakewood, California, native was given her first career start against California on Saturday thanks to the strong performance on Friday.
Nicola Simpson tied Vance for best team ERA over the weekend, throwing eight innings with six strikeouts. The Seattle native came out strong to open the weekend, holding UC Riverside scoreless over four innings and striking out six Highlanders. Avari Morris earned her first career save in this contest, throwing three innings of work with five strikeouts and just one hit allowed.
PRESEASON HONORS/PRESEASON POLL
Stefanie Madrigal and Tai Wilson were honored by the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) this past week, with the former being named the Preseason Co-Pitcher of the Year and the latter joining her on the All-WAC Preseason Team. The Redhawks have gone seven straight seasons with multiple players earning Preseason All-WAC honors and have had at least one athlete named for the last 11 years.
Madrigal became the first Redhawk to earn Preseason Co-Pitcher of the Year honors, marking her third consecutive season on the All-WAC Preseason Team. The native of San Jose, California, took another step forward during the 2023 season, leading the squad with the nation's 37th most wins at 19. Madrigal played some of her best softball on the biggest stage at the WAC Tournament, taking the ball in all five contests and allowing just one run in the first two.
Wilson earns the award for the first time after a breakout 2023 season in which she finished in the top-10 in batting average (.438), runs scored (23) and hits (35) during conference play in route to an All-WAC First Team award. The junior outfielder led the Redhawks with 72 hits (30th nationally), a batting average of .396 (54th nationally) and an on base percentage of .456 (142nd nationally). Wilson's overall hits total and batting average rank as the Redhawks' fourth and eighth best single-season performance.
Seattle U was picked to finish third as voted on by the 10 WAC coaches, receiving 66 points and one first place vote. The Redhawks have been picked to finish third overall or better in eight straight years.
NATIONAL AND CONFERENCE RANKINGS
Team batting average (.279) - fourth in the WAC
Team ERA (3.87) - fourth in the WAC
Team fielding percentage (.966) - third in the WAC
Caught stealing by (four) - Karen Spadafora, #24 in the nation and third in the WAC
Doubles (four) - Taylor Fitch, fifth in the WAC
Hits (17) - Sydney Frankenberger, fourth in the WAC
Home runs (two) - Taylor Fitch, fourth in the WAC
Shutouts (one) - Nicola Simpson, one of 53 pitchers in the nation to throw one
Toughest to strikeout (39.0) - Lily Garcia, #29 in the nation and first in the WAC
SERIES-AT-A-GLANCE
UMKC: The all-time series is tied at 12.
Oklahoma State: The Redhawks lead the all-time series, 1-0.
Miami (OH): The Redhawks trail the all-time series, 3-4.
Tulsa: This will be the first meeting between the two programs.
Drake: This will be the first meeting between the two programs.
HOW TO FOLLOW
All 14 Seattle U home contests this season will be broadcast on ESPN+. For road games, related links to video stream and live stats will be posted on the softball schedule page on goseattleu.com. Fans are encouraged to check the Seattle U Softball team's official Twitter feed @seattleusb for updates of games in progress as well as news and notes. Greg Sexton and former Redhawk, Katie Favilla (Antich), mark their third season on the call.
Stay connected with Seattle U softball and get all the latest team updates by downloading the GoSeattleU mobile app available now for free in the App Store or Google Play.