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Saturday, April 2
Kansas City, Mo.
12:00 PM
Kansas City
vs
St. Thomas
Kansas City Softball Continues Conference Play at Home
4/1/2022 10:39:00 AM | Softball
The Roos will take on St. Thomas at the Urban Youth Academy
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas City Softball will look to win their second conference series in back-to-back weekends at home. The Roos will play a three-game series against St. Thomas at the Urban Youth Academy, home of Kansas City Softball. The action will begin with a double-header on Saturday starting at noon, with the third game of the series scheduled for 11 a.m. Sunday.
Kansas City Notes
Kansas City Notes
- In his third season at the helm of Kansas City Softball, Head Coach Kerry Shaw scheduled a strong lineup of teams, including games against 13 ranked opponents. Shaw wrapped up his first complete season with the Roos last year, finishing with the first winning season in a decade and first win over a ranked team in program history.
- Weathering injuries, Kansas City is still looking to return to form in all three phases of the game during conference play. The Roos finished the 2021 season with a .274 team batting average and 38 homeruns, both second-most in the Summit.
- KC returns seven starters from the 2021 season, including five seniors: Mia Hoveland (P), Alexis D'Ambrosio (C), Kloe Hilbrenner (CF), Ashley Thorne (LF) and Delainey Fenoglio (DP).
- Hilbrenner picked up where she left off last season but in the leadoff spot of the lineup. She is currently hitting .378 with 34 hits, six doubles, three triples, four homeruns and 17 stolen bases; all top-ten in the Summit thus far. She also has 14 multi-hit games this season.
- Hilbrenner led the offense in opening weekend of conference play, finishing with a .500 batting average, .667 on-base percentage and swiping three stolen bases.
- Designated hitter, Fenoglio, follows with a .342 batting average, three homeruns, three doubles, a team-high 15 RBI and a team-low seven strikeouts. She earned Summit League Player of the Week honors on March 7 after her performance at the Razorback Rumble where she hit .571.
- Rightfielder, Marina Karnes, has stayed perfect in the field with 27 putouts and zero errors. She is also currently on a five-game hitting streak while hitting .305 with a .424 slugging percentage, both good for third best in the lineup.
- Transfer Sydney Nichols, from Wichita State, has brought more power to Kansas City's lineup with four homeruns on the season and 13 RBI.
- Ally Vonfeldt tallies up extra-base hits for the Roos, hitting five doubles, two triples and two homeruns this season, giving her 15 homeruns in her career, good for sixth on the all-time homeruns list in program history.
- Alexis D'Ambrosio has a keen eye, leading the team with 12 walks and some pop in the bat with two homeruns and four doubles this season.
- Kansas City has hit 17 homeruns this season thus far, with seven different Roos contributing.
- After the first weekend of conference play, Kansas City's pitching staff posted a 1.22 ERA, the best mark in conference play thus far.
- Kansas City has a five-man pitching staff, starred by senior ace, Mia Hoveland, who currently has 339 career strikeouts. Hoveland threw two complete games and 15 innings this past weekend against UND, holding the Fighting Hawks scoreless through 14 of those innings. She only allowed 10 hits all weekend, and only three of those were multi-base hits, while also recording 10 strikeouts.
- KC received a sophomore transfer, Casey Stout, from North Central Missouri College who recorded a 25-3 record last season with 281 strikeouts, second-best in the NJCAA in 2021. She came on in relief against North Dakota and posted a 0.00 ERA in 3.2 innings pitched with five strikeouts.
- The Roos also return sophomore Camryn Stickel, who finished her freshman campaign with a 14-9 record on the mound. Stickel quickly made her way onto the record books, notching the fifth most wins in a single season in program history.
- The 2022 freshman class is comprised of four impact players. Sydney Reid and Lexy Smith will see time on the infield, while Audrey Danielson and Jenna Milan will make appearances in the pitching rotation.
- This will be the first meeting in program history between the Tommies and the Roos, after St. Thomas transitioned to Division I and joined The Summit League this year.
- After the first weekend of conference play, St. Thomas has an overall record of 6-21 and 2-1 record in conference after their series victory over Western Illinois.
- The Tommies are currently sitting tied for first place in the Summit with Kansas City, South Dakota State and South Dakota after the first week.
- Senior third baseman, Sarah Hudson, and freshman shortstop, Brooke Ellestad, were picked 2022 Summit League Players to Watch.
- The St. Thomas pitching staff has the highest ERA of conference teams, giving up an average of 6.99 earned runs per game.
- Brooke Ellestad in the two-hole spot of the lineup leads the team on offense with a .427 batting average, five homeruns and a team-high 21 RBI.
- Ellestad earned Summit Player of the Week honors this past week after her performance against WIUwhere she posted a .636 batting average with five RBI.
- Leadoff hitter Kaitlyn Raymond and three-hole hitter Sarah Hudson are also batting the team's next best at .342 and .325, respectively.
- Freshman pitcher Christina Crawford has the most production in the circle for the Tommies, pitching 61.1 innings with a 5.48 ERA and 52 strikeouts.
- The other pitchers in the rotation include senior Megan Baniecke, senior Kendall Hopkins and junior Isabelle True.
Players Mentioned
C
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
1B
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
LHP
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C/UT
/ SoftballSB Highlights vs. #3 South Dakota
Wednesday, May 07
SB Highlights @ South Dakota (Game Three)
Saturday, May 03
SB Highlights @ South Dakota (Game Two)
Friday, May 02
SB Highlights @ South Dakota (Game One)
Friday, May 02