Leading off . . .
•    The Washburn Ichabod softball team returns to the road with a trip to Canyon, Texas to take part in the West Texas A&M Invitational. Washburn will open play on Feb. 10 against Fort Lewis College and Cameron followed by West Texas A&M and Chadron State on Saturday and wrap up the event with the host Lady Buffs in a single game on Sunday.  West Texas A&M is ranked No. 4 in the NFCA Preseason top 25 coaches poll.
•    Washburn is coming off an 0-6 weekend in its first action of the season.
•    Erica Harper leads the team with a .438 batting average with seven hits in 16 at bats adding four doubles and seven RBI and two home runs.
•    Savannah Moore is batting .313 with a team-high seven runs scored and two home runs.
•    Ashley Ruder has five hits and a stolen base batting .238 so far this season.
•    In the circle, Kelsee Henry has made three starts tossing a complete game with seven strikeouts.

Where to follow . . .
•    Live stats will be provided all weekend long by the host school, West Texas A&M at www.gobuffsgo.com/sports/2017/2/7/2017-wt-invitational.aspx … the invitational website has links to live stats and video for selected games.
 
This week's opponents . . .
Fort Lewis
•    The Skyhawks were picked 10th in the RMAC Preseason Coaches Poll.
•    This weekend's games will be the first for Fort Lewis this season.
•    The Skyhawks finished the 2016 season with a 15-32 overall record and a 12-22 conference mark, placing them 11th in the final regular season conference standings.
•    The Skyhawks return six starters and 10 letterwinners from last year's squad.
•    The Ichabods and the Skyhawks have never met.
 
Cameron
•    The Aggies are 3-3 this season playing two MIAA foes with a win over Emporia State and a loss to Pittsburg State.
•    As a team, Cameron has a .257 batting average and a 4.75 earned run average.
•    Cameron was recently selected to finish fifth in the Lone Star Conference preseason poll after going 33-21 and 18-14 in league play. Last season in their sixth straight conference tournament appearance, the Aggies were knocked out of the first round by Midwestern State.
•    The team returns seven players including senior Breezy McComas who was recently selected to be on the 2017 Shutt Sports/NFCA Division II Player of the Year watch list.
•    The Ichabods and Aggies are tied 3-3 in all-time meetings … this weekend will be the first time the two teams have played since the 2013 season.
 
West Texas A&M
•    The Lady Buffs are 5-0 this season and were ranked No. 4 in the NFCA Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll.
•    The Lady Buffs return 12 letterwinners from last season's South Central Regional Championship team that registered an overall record of 59-5. All-American selections Kilee Halbert, Ashley Hardin, Brittany Cruz and Allie Smith highlight the talented returning group that have led WT to three-straight LSC Titles and an incredible record of 164-23 (.877) since the start of the 2014 season.
•    Lady Buffs' head coach Kevin Blaskowski coached the Washburn softball team to a 31-22 record in 1995.
•    WT is 175-28 in home games since the 2011 season and has hosted NCAA postseason action in 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016.
•    The Ichabods are 1-4 against the Lady Buffs having lost the last two games, but have not faced WT since the 2011 season.
 
Chadron State
•    The Eagles are 1-5 this season picking up a win over No. 17-ranked Saint Leo at the Eckerd College Spring Invitational.
•    The Eagles are batting .170 as a team and have a 3.87 earned run average.
•    CSC was ranked third behind Colorado Mesa University, who received 8 of 12 first place votes, and MSU Denver, who received the remaining four in the RMAC Preseason Coaches Poll. The three teams finished in the same order at the conclusion of the 2016 regular season.
•    CSC head softball coach Rob Stack's Eagles are coming off one of their best seasons ever.  They were 29-18-1 overall and 21-11 in the RMAC to finish third. Their overall record was the program's best in 10 seasons.
•    There were eight seniors on last year's team, but the Eagles return 10 letterwinners, including five of the top six hitters.  Stack said six seniors are expected to be in the starting lineup.
•    The Ichabods and the Eagles have never met.
 
Last time out . . .
(Feb. 5, 2017) -- MAGNOLIA, Ark. -- The Washburn Ichabod softball team dropped its final two games of the Southern Arkansas Invitational falling 8-3 to Texas A&M-Commerce and 12-10 to Newman as a late-game rally came up short. Washburn returns to the field next Friday-Sunday at the West Texas A&M Lady Buffs Invitational in Canyon, Texas
Game 1 - Texas A&M-Commerce 8, Washburn 3
The Ichabods took a 1-0 lead in their first at bat when Savannah Moore connected on her first home run of the season, but the Lions came back in the top of the second with two taking a 2-1 lead.
In the bottom of the third, Moore hit her second home run of the game also scoring Maddie Anderson as the Ichabods took the lead back 3-2.
The Lions took the lead for good adding one in the fourth and four more in the fifth adding a solo run in the seventh leading to the 8-3 win.
Washburn had six hits in the game as Moore finished with three hits and three RBI and Ashley Ruder had two hits.
Lexi Crabtree took the loss allowing five earned runs striking out five.
 
Game 2 - Newman 12, Washburn 10
After Newman took a 1-0 lead after its first at bat, Washburn (0-6) went ahead 2-1 after a 2-run homer by Erica Harper scoring Moore who singled in the inning.
Newman tied the score with a run in the second and then Washburn added two in the third inning on a 2-RBI double by Harper scoring Moore. Britnee Douglas scored pinch-running for Harper on a sac fly by Jordan Erickson.
Washburn held a 4-2 lead entering the top of the sixth, but Newman sent 12 to the plate scoring six unearned runs as the Ichabods finished the game with six errors.
However Washburn rallied scoring four in the sixth inning as Dakota Sanders led off the inning with a single and Chantal Prester reached on a walk and then Sanders scored on a wild pitch. After Moore drew a walk, Harper connected on her second home run of the game clearing the bases pulling Washburn within 11-8.
The Jets scored one more in the seventh going up 12-8. In their last at bat, the Ichabods scored a pair of unearned runs when Megan Stegman and Sanders each came around to score.
Harper drove in five runs with three hits in the game pacing Washburn's attack and Taylor Kemp had two hits.
The loss went to Kelsee Henry who had four strikeouts pitching 5 1/3 innings.
 
Head coach Brenda Holaday
•    is 0-6 in her first season as the Ichabod head softball coach.
•    coached the previous 19 seasons at Washburn Rural High School in Topeka compiling a 351-93 record.
•    led the Junior Blues to three 6A state championships as well as winning 14 league championships earning 16 6A state tournament berths, five second-place state finishes and three third-place state finishes.
•    was been named the Centennial League Coach of the Year and City Coach of the Year nine different times earning the Midwest Sectional Coach of the Year in 2011 and the 6A Kansas Coach of the year two times in 2008 and 2011 and was named the overall Kansas Coach of the Year in 2011.
•    while at Washburn Rural, she coached more than 40 players who have gone on to play college softball including three at the NCAA Division I level including for Ichabod head softball coach Lisa Carey, the winningest coach by wins in program history.
 
Washburn Ichabod softball history . . .
•    The Ichabods are 1113-842-1 in their 48th year of softball.
•    The Ichabods have made three NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2006, 2008).
•    Washburn won the 2002 regular season MIAA title.
 
Up Next . . .
•    The Ichabods will head back on the road again to Bentonville, Ark., to take part in the Eight-State Classic hosted by Arkansas-Monticello Feb. 17-19.