Leading off . . .
•  The Washburn Ichabods are scheduled to open up its home slate this week with six games starting with Newman in a game which will be played at Hummer Sports in Topeka on Tuesday.
•  Washburn will then face Rockhurst on March 2 and then open MIAA play on March 3 against Central Oklahoma.
•  The Ichabods are off to an 8-5 start this season after dropping a pair of games against McKendree last time out on Feb. 25 in Emporia.
•  Washburn was picked 10th in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll which was released on Tuesday by the conference office.
•  The Ichabods return seven letterwinners off last season's squad which went 25-30 finishing ninth in the MIAA race. Of the seven returnees, two were honorable mention all-MIAA selections in junior third baseman Savannah Moore senior pitcher Kelsee Henry.
•  Washburn is 6-0 in games in which the Ichabods have hit a home run.
•  Emilee Baker leads the team with a .487 batting average with 19 hits scoring 10 runs which also leads the team … her seven multi hit games also lead the team.
•  Savannah Moore leads the team with five multi-RBI games.
•  Samantha Stallbaumer has reached base in 10-straight games.
•  Megan Deiter has a team-best 2.14 earned run average and has a 3 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio with 57 K's compared to 18 BB's and opponents are batting .177 against her.
 
Where to follow . . .
•  Fans can also follow the Ichabod softball team at @WashburnSB for updates as well at the athletic department twitter handle at
@wusports.
 
Last time out . . .
EMPORIA, Kan. – The Washburn Ichabod softball team was swept in a non-conference doubleheader on Sunday in Emporia falling 6-4 and 5-1 to McKendree.
Game 1 – McKendree 6, Washburn 4
The Ichabods jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second after Courtney Todd drove in Taylor Kirk who doubled and then a Morgan Henry double scored Kirk. In the third, the Ichabods added another run on a Savannah Moore RBI which scored Ashley Ruder who led off the inning with a single.
However the Bearcats came back with four runs in the fifth to take a 4-3 lead. Washburn tied the score in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI single by Moore sending Maddie Anderson home knotting the score at 4-4.
In the top of the seventh, the Bearcats broke the tie with two runs and the Ichabods went down in order in the bottom of the frame.
Lexi Crabtree took the loss in the circle allowing two runs in the bottom of the seventh after replacing Megan Deiter who struck out eight in 4 1/3 innings.
Todd had two of Washburn's eight hits in the game.
Game 2 – McKendree 5, Washburn 1
McKendree took  a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning with a lead off home run  and added three more in the bottom of the fifth going up 4-0.
Washburn's lone run came in the top of the sixth on a lead off home run by Halle England, but the Bearcats added one more in the sixth  leading to the 5-1 win.
England had two of the Ichabods' five hits in the game Kelsee Henry dropped to 4-3 in the circle allowing two earned runs in the loss.
 
Head coach Brenda Holaday
•  is 33-35 in her second 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 named the Centennial League Coach of the t 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 former Ichabod head softball coach Lisa Carey, the winningest coach by wins in program history.
 
Washburn Ichabod softball history . . .
• The Ichabods are 1104-862-1 in their 49th 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 out on the road for their next scheduled 14 games and will return home March 27 against Northeastern State.