Softball Calls Audible; Heads to Gulf Shores

Date: Feb. 28-Mar. 1
Tournament (Host): Sand Dollar Snow Classic (The Fieldhouse)
Site (Venue): Gulf Shores, Ala. (Gulf Shores Spotsplex)
Audio: None
Video: None
Live Stats: GoRacers.com
Twitter In Game: @RacersSoftball
MSU Record (Streak): 8-5 (W1)
MSU vs. The Field: 1-0
All-Time Series vs. WSU (Streak): First Meeting
All-Time Series vs. BU (Streak): First Meeting
All-Time Series vs. AAMU (Streak): MSU leads 1-0 (W-1)
MSU Next Games: Feb. 27-Mar. 1 at 2015 Tennessee Classic (Knoxville, Tenn.)
MSU Next Home: Mar. 22 vs. Tennessee St.

This Week
Due to snow in Knoxville, the tournament the Racers were originally scheduled for, the Tennessee Classic was canceled. The 2015 Sand Dollar Snow Classic is made up of teams that had to abandon previous plans and have converged on Gulf Shores for the weekend. Along with the Racers' three opponents, Wright State, Alabama A&M and Bradley, OVC foes Eastern Kentucky and Belmont are also taking part in the event.

Last Week
The Racers went 2-2 last week at the Chanticleer Classic, picking up wins over Sacred Heart and Coastal Carolina, but falling to Bucknell and Boston College. Murray State had seven home runs on the weekend, including three in the 7-4 win over Coastal.

Alexa Becker hit .357 on the week with four RBIs, four doubles and three home runs for a slugging percentage of 1.071. In addition to walking twice for an on-base percentage of .438, she did not strikeout once in 14 at bats.

Mason Robinson went 2-0 in three appearances for a 1.79 ERA over 15.2 innings and two complete games. The sophomore a 2:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio with 14 strikeouts and seven walks over the four-game span. Robinson gave up just four earned runs on nine hits last week, while limiting opponents to a .167 average.

Against The Field
Murray State has never faced either Bradley or Wright State, but is 1-0 against Alabama A&M. The Racers tangled with the Lady Bulldogs last season in Alabama State's Hornet Invitational and won 8-0 in six innings.

Scouting Wright State
The Raiders are coming off of a 0-5 performance two weeks ago at the Hillenbrand Invitation. While in Tucson, Wright State dropped games to 14th-ranked Arizona, San Jose State, Drake, Loyola Marymount and Loyola Chicago. As a team, WSU is hitting .193 with just three extra base hits and five RBIs.

Amongst regular starters, Libby Pfeffer leads the way with a .308 average and a walk. As a staff, the Raiders have put together a 15.67 ERA with 11 strikeouts, 29 walks and an opponent's average of .383. The go-to pitcher for Wright this season has been Montana Wear who is 0-4 with an 11.64 ERA and 10 strikeouts.

Scouting Bradley
Bradley is currently 2-12 on the season after going 0-4 at last weekend's Eagle Classic in Statesboro, Georgia. Despite losing all four games last weekend, three of the game were decided by just one run and two went to extra innings. As a team, Bradley is hitting .268 on the season, while opponents are hitting .367 against them. The current staff ERA for Bradley stands at 7.42, while the ERA for opposing pitchers is 2.72.

Alyson Spinas-Valainis is the current ace of the staff with 6.00 ERA in 12 appearances and 1-4 record. She currently leads the team with 18 strikeouts over 44.1 innings and has allowed opponents to hit .347 against her. Maria Shcroeder currently carries the best average on the team at .429 with a team-high 10 runs and seven RBIs. With eight walks and a hit by pitch her on-base percentage currently stands at .568 and she is 1-for-2 on the base paths this season.

Scouting Alabama A&M
The Lady Bulldogs are currently 7-3 on the season after losing to Tennessee State, 6-4, in Nashville on Tuesday. Taiya McInnes leads a team that is batting .386 with a team-high .609 average of her own to go along with three doubles, three walks and eight RBIs.

In the circle, Jordan Bradley is 2-0 with a team-low ERA of 4.02 with 11 strikeouts, eight walks and a .233 opponent's average. As a team, AAMU has an ERA of 6.43 with 32 strikeouts, while limiting opponents to a .268 clip.

We're Going Streaking
On Saturday, Jessica Twaddle broke the program record for reached base streaks by successfully reaching in her 28th consecutive game, dating back to last season. The previous record of 27 games was set in 2010 by Jenna Bradley. Twaddle kept her streak going, extending to 30 and has now reached in every game this season.

Weekly Sweep
Alexa Becker and Mason Robinson swept the conference weekly awards last season by being named as the adidas® OVC Player and Pitcher of the Week. It was the fourth honor of Becker's career and the first for Robinson. Robinson is now just the second Racer to be named as Pitcher of the Week joining Chelsey Sullivan.

Next Up
Next weekend, the Racers will travel to Carbondale, Illinois for the Coach B Classic. While at Charlotte West Stadium, MSU will take on the host Salukis, Northern Illinois and head coach Kara Amundson's alma mater DePaul.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alexa Becker

Mason Robinson

Jessica Twaddle

Murray State University Athletics