Schedule
Hillsdale College (4-5) vs Quincy (5-7) | 1 p.m. Saturday, March 4 | Spartan Sports Park – Chatham, IL
Hillsdale College (4-5) at Illinois Springfield (9-4) | 3 p.m. Saturday, March 4 | Spartan Sports Park – Chatham, IL
Hillsdale College (4-5) vs McKendree (9-3) | 1 p.m. Sunday, March 5 | Spartan Sports Park – Chatham, IL
Hillsdale College (4-5) vs Quincy (5-7) | 3 p.m. Sunday, March 5 | Spartan Sports Park – Chatham, IL
Links
Hillsdale Roster | Hillsdale Stats | Quincy Roster | Quincy Stats | UIS Roster | UIS Stats | McKendree Roster | McKendree Stats
Outlook
The Hillsdale College softball team took a big step forward at last weekend's NFCA Leadoff Classic, picking up three quality wins against teams that had winning records in 2022 and getting closer to .500.
This weekend brings another big test for the Chargers, with four critical in-region contests against three solid teams from the GLVC at this weekend's UIS Invite, and at least two teams who look likely to be real factors in the NCAA DII Tournament race in the Midwest Region this season.
Hillsdale starts and ends the weekend with book-end games against Quincy, who are off to a 5-7 start to 2023. Many of the Hawks' losses came against tough competition from the Central Region in the season-opening Emporia State tournament, and the Hawks went 4-2 against Midwest Regional foes at last weekend's Blue Bridge Battle in Evansville, Indiana.
On the mound, the Hawks return ace pitcher Jayle Jennings, who helped Quincy to a split against the Chargers last year, and who is off to a solid start this season with a 2.20 ERA, 25 strikeouts to 3 walks and a 3-2 record in six starts. Freshman Brooklyn Fischer has been the second starter for Quincy, with a 4.20 ERA and a 2-5 record in eight appearances so far for the Hawks.
At the plate, senior catcher Taylor Downen has been the leader, hitting .400 with a team high six RBIs in 12 games. Jennings and Allyson Maynard are both returning All-GLVC players in the lineup as well for the Hawks.
The Chargers finish Saturday with a game against host Illinois-Springfield, who enters the weekend with a 9-4 record and a perfect 7-0 mark against Midwest Region competition.
Hillsdale could see one of three pitchers this weekend, all of whom have been strong so far. Returning starter Reagan Miles has a 1.97 ERA and a 3-1 record in six appearances, but arguably UIS' two most effective pitchers so far have been sophomore Taylor Zawacki, who is 3-2 with a 1.77 ERA and 39 strikeouts to one walk in seven appearances, and freshman Rosie Bartletti, who has a 1.21 ERA and a 2-1 record in four appearances.
At the plate, UIS returns two experienced All-Region performers in senior infielder Danielle Dennis and junior outfielder Jillian Mathis to form the backbone of the lineup. Sophomore infielder Ella Brinkley is hitting .421 so far for the Prairie Stars, and Bartletti is also hitting .371 at the plate to lead UIS so far.
On Sunday, as well as a rematch with Quincy, Hillsdale also plays a McKendree team that's off to a great start in 2023, going 9-3 with several in-region victories.
McKendree has a great ace in junior and two-time All-GLVC honoree Ellie Quaethem, who is 6-0 on the mound with a 1.05 ERA and 55 strikeouts so far this season. Sophia Koesterer and Sydney Bires have also each made three starts for the Bearcats so far.
At the plate McKendree returns a first-team All-American in Olivia Stansbury, who hit 20 home runs and led all of NCAA DII in slugging percentage last year, but the story of 2023 so far for the Bearcats is freshman infielder Lauren Harris, who is hitting .568 with a 1.417 OPS and a team-leading 14 RBIs in the first 12 games of her collegiate career.
Hillsdale enters the 2023 season with one of the top aces in the Midwest Region in sophomore Joni Russell, a returning first-team All-G-MAC pitcher who has a 0.45 ERA, 52 strikeouts to 12 walks and a 3-1 record in five appearances. Russell earned G-MAC Pitcher of the Week honors on Monday after a dominant weekend performance, pitching complete games in all three of Hillsdale's wins. Erin Kapteyn is also a returning second-team All-G-MAC honoree and the second starter for the Chargers.
Although it got off to a slow start with little in the way of returning experience, Hillsdale's lineup looks like it's beginning to fall into place as well. Junior Grace Wallner earned G-MAC Player of the Week honors after a strong performance in Georgia, and is now hitting .393 for the season with the team lead in RBIs, while freshman second baseman Taylor Lewis, junior catcher McKenna Eichholz, and senior first baseman Jenna Cantalupo are all hitting above .300 as well.
While Hillsdale is below .500, they're off to a better start through nine games than in 2021, when they ended up winning 33 games and reaching the NCAA Tournament, or in 2022, when they won 31 games and won the G-MAC regular season title, meaning there's still time for the Chargers to continue to grow and get better before conference play begins at the end of the month. Continued progress this weekend would be a good sign for Hillsdale heading into its Spring Break trip to Florida the following weekend.