Schedule
Kentucky Wesleyan (14-14, 5-3 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (18-8, 4-0 G-MAC) | 3 p.m. ET Friday, March 29 | Johnny Williams Field – Hillsdale, MI
Kentucky Wesleyan (14-14, 5-3 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (18-8, 4-0 G-MAC) | 5 p.m. ET Friday, March 29 | Johnny Williams Field – Hillsdale, MI
Trevecca Nazarene (25-9, 7-1 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (18-8, 4-0 G-MAC) | 12 p.m. ET Saturday, March 30 | Johnny Williams Field – Hillsdale, MI
Trevecca Nazarene (25-9, 7-1 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (18-8, 4-0 G-MAC) | 2 p.m. ET Saturday, March 30 | Johnny Williams Field – Hillsdale, MI
Links
Live stats | Hillsdale Roster | KWC Roster | Trevecca Roster | 2024 Hillsdale Stats | 2024 KWC Stats | 2024 Trevecca Stats | G-MAC Softball Standings | G-MAC Softball Stats
Outlook
Now the winners of 12 straight games, the Hillsdale College softball team plays at home for the first time this weekend looking to keep their hold on first place in the G-MAC with two strong opponents coming to town over Easter weekend.
The Chargers kick things off on Friday with a much-improved Kentucky Wesleyan team that enters at 5-3 in conference play in two weekends after going 1-23 all last season in the G-MAC. Veteran coach Miles Mallette has rebuilt the team quickly back into a squad that should contend for a G-MAC Tourney berth.
The core of the improvement starts at the plate and returning 2023 G-MAC Freshman of the Year Megan Matheis, who is making a strong case to move up to G-MAC Player of the Year honors so far this season, batting .430 with 11 doubles, six home runs and 24 RBIs. Fellow vet Augusta Garr and impressive freshman Kristyn Murphy are also hitting above .300 for the Panthers, while freshman outfielder Chloe Apple is bringing additional power to the plate as well.
Another big key in KWC's rise has been the performance of its retooled pitching staff, as the Panthers have a new freshman ace in Chloe Williams, who's started her career with an impressive 6-3 record in 11 starts with a 3.03 ERA and 41 strikeouts. Returning starter Allie Dunn is also 2-3, and has been splitting second starter duties with Murphy, who has been solid in the circle as well as at the plate for KWC. Madison Beckhart and Immi Mann are also options out of the bullpen for the Panthers.
That challenging doubleheader could set the stage for a critical one on Saturday, as perennial G-MAC contender and the current second-place team in the standings, Trevecca Nazarene, comes to town for a noon start. The Trojans return nearly everyone from a team that took third in the G-MAC in 2023 and are currently on a seven-game winning streak of their own entering the weekend.
Trevecca Nazarene has a true ace on the mound in junior Ashlan Sensing, who's had some epic battles with the Chargers pitching staff over the last two years and is one of the best in the Midwest region. Sensing currently has a 12-5 record with a 1.39 ERA and 140 strikeouts to 21 walks in 16 starts. Trevecca has alternated two quality pitchers in the second starting slot, with veteran Alex Behnke and JuCo transfer Halle Grace Patton sharing the role. Rylee Veron and Brianna Asmondy are also options out of the bullpen for the Trojans.
The Trojans also have a standout lineup led by three-year starting catcher Kendall Andrews, who's hitting .456 with eight doubles, 10 home runs and 49 RBIs in an outstanding start to the season. Veteran hitters Anna Bennett, Sydney McCormick, Gracie Kirby and Malone Thrift, all multi-year starters, give Trevecca depth at the plate, while freshmen Addy Grace Summers and Annabelle Ellis have been huge additions to the lineup as well.
Hillsdale entered the 2024 season with one of the best one-two punches on the mound in the nation at the NCAA DII level, and that's played out exactly as expected so far. Junior Joni Russell is a consensus returning All-American that finished in the top five in the country in both strikeouts and ERA and earned G-MAC Pitcher of the Year honors in 2023, and senior Erin Kapteyn also capped a year that saw her put up a 1.95 ERA and record 13 wins with her second-straight All-G-MAC honor. Together with junior Emma Vis and sophomore Mackenzi Maxson, the group set a G-MAC record with a 1.71 staff ERA in 2023, and all four players return in 2024.
Russell has been her usual excellent self so far in 2024, earning Wilson/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week honors to start March, setting the Hillsdale College career strikeouts record and entering conference play with an 10-3 record in 11 starts, 117 strikeouts and a 0.90 ERA. Kapteyn has been rock solid as well with a 2.34 ERA, four shutouts, seven wins and two saves, and enters the weekend off of back-to-back shutout performances the previous two weeks. As a team the Chargers are at an impressive 2.07 ERA so far this season, second in the G-MAC only to a Malone team that's played majority DIII and NAIA competition so far, and 26th in the nation.
Hillsdale's offense also seems to be heating up after a slow start to the season. Sophomore Maggie Olaveson has been Hillsdale's most consistent hitter so far, batting .356 with a team-best 15 extra base hits and 16 RBIs, while seniors McKenna Eichholz and Grace Wallner have also impressed. Eichholz is hitting .321 with a team-leading 22 RBIs, while Wallner is batting .349 and has eight doubles as well.
In addition to those three players, juniors Emma Vis and Hannah Hoverman have flashed power, each currently with three home runs, while freshman Sydney Davis is batting above .300 in an impressive debut campaign. As a team, the Chargers have 15 home runs, putting them on pace to exceed the totals of the last two years, and to threaten the record of 37 set in 2021.
Hillsdale is 10-4 since 2017 against Kentucky Wesleyan, with four straight wins including sweeps in each of the last two seasons. The Chargers are 12-5 all-time against Trevecca Nazarene, and split with the Trojans in the regular season last year before winning a 2-1 thriller in the G-MAC Tournament against Trevecca.