Leading off . . .
•    The Washburn Ichabods return to MIAA play with Nebraska-Kearney on Wednesday and Fort Hays State on Thursday on the road.
•    The games were pushed up from the weekend because of the weather forecast for the weekend.
•    Washburn's doubleheader with Northeastern State originally scheduled for April 3 has been moved back to April 10 in Topeka. 
•    Following the games with the RiverHawks, the Ichabods will wrap up the regular season with eight games at home.
•    In non-conference play, the Ichabods have gone 4-1 against teams from the NSIC, 5-2 against the Heartland Conference, 3-2 against the GLVC and 3-1 against teams from the GAC this year and now 1-1 against MIAA teams in non-conference games after splitting with Emporia State last weekend.
•    The Ichabods are off to their best in MIAA play since the 2003 season when they would begin the year 11-3 in league play.
•    The Ichabods are in first place in the MIAA race with the 11-1 record while Central Missouri is 11-3 and Central Oklahoma is 12-4. Northwest Missouri and Northeastern State are tied for fourth at 10-4.
•    The 27 wins this season are two more than the Ichabods recorded in 2017.
•    The 27-8 start is the best by an Ichabod team through 35 games since going 25-10 to start the 2003 season.
•    Washburn is 16-2 in games in which the Ichabods have hit a home run.
•    Brianna Francis leads the team with a .500 batting average and is batting .650 in the last 14 MIAA games she has played in … she also is on a 10-game hitting streak.
•    Emilee Baker has a .434 batting average and tied for the team lead with 49 hits scoring 31 runs which is second on the team … her 14 multi hit games is second on the team and she enters the UNK doubleheader riding a 16-game hitting streak.
•    Savannah Moore leads the team with 14 multi-RBI games and 16 multi-hit games …  she is third on the team with a .422 batting average while batting .488 in MIAA play … her 48 RBI is tops on the team as are her 10 doubles and her 49 hits is tied for the team lead.
•    Samantha Stallbaumer  leads the team with 34 runs scored and 15 stolen bases … she is third on the team with 44 hits.
•    Megan Deiter has a team-best 1.80 earned run average going 12-0 in the circle. She has a 2 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio with 120 K's compared to 58 BB's and opponents are batting .185 against her.
•    Kelsee Henry is 12-3 in the circle and has a 3.05 ERA.
•    The 44 stolen bases this season for the Ichabods in 35 games has already passed the final season total dating back to every year until 2000 when the Ichabods swiped 58 bases.
•    This season as a team the Ichabods are batting .318 compared to their .245 batting average from last season.
•    The Ichabod pitching staff has also lowered its ERA dropping from 2.79 in 2018 to 3.12 in 2017.
•    Washburn is outscoring its opponents 27 to 9 in the first inning, 31 to 14 in the second inning, 27 to 15 in the third inning, 27 to 11 in the fourth inning, 39 to 21 in the fifth inning and 25 to 19 in the sixth inning and 13 to 9 in the seventh inning.
•    The Ichabods are 14-0 when scoring in the first innings of games this season.
•    Washburn is 24-3 this season when leading after four innings.
•    Washburn opponents are 0-19 when scoring two runs or less.
•    The Ichabods are hitting .325 as a team in MIAA play while holding opponents to a .278 batting average.
•    Washburn's pitching staff as a 1.51 earned run average in MIAA action compared to its opponents ERA of 4.94.
•    Washburn was picked 10th in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll.
•    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.
 
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.
 
About the Lopers . . .
•    The Lopers are 12-21 this season and 8-8 in the MIAA.
•    Wednesday's games will only be the Lopers' third and fourth home games of the season.
•    Cheyenne Hamilton leads the team with a .376 batting average along with her seven home runs and 26 RBI.
•    The Lopers are hitting .310 as a team while opponents are hitting .324.
•    Meg Householder has a 3.00 ERA to lead the team who has a combined ERA of 5.70.
 
About the Tigers . . .
•    The Tigers are 9-29 this season and 5-11 in the MIAA.
•    Grace Philop has a .352 batting average leading the team with her 45 hits.
•    FHSU opponents are batting .345 this season.
•    The Tigers have a team ERA of 5.60.
 
Last time out . . .
TOPEKA, Kan. – The Washburn Ichabods split a non-conference doubleheader with Emporia State as the Ichabods blanked the Hornets in game one 8-0 in five innings before falling in eight innings 9-7. Washburn (27-8, 11-1 MIAA) will return to MIAA play on Tuesday when the Ichabods are scheduled to host Northeastern State at noon at the Washburn Softball Complex.
Game 1 – Washburn 8, Emporia State 0
The Ichabods scored all eight runs in the first two innings of the game rolling to the 8-0 run-rule victory. In the first, Savannah Moore connected on her third home run in two days against the Hornets scoring Samantha Stallbaumer who led off the inning with a single.
In the second, the Ichabods sent 10 to the plate. After Ashley Ruder drew a walk to start the inning, Maddie Anderson singled on a bunt. After a sac bunt by Morgan Henry, Stallbaumer reached on an error. An RBI single by Emilee Baker scored Ruder and then Moore's double to right drove in Baker and Anderson putting Washburn up 5-0. Taylor Kirk's 3-run shot to center field cleared the bases and put the Ichabods up 8-0 to wrap up the scoring.
Megan Dieter moved her record to 12-0 in the circle striking out two scattering four hits. Lexi Crabtree tossed two shutout innings.
Moore finished with 4 RBI in the game and Kirk had three.
Game 2 – Emporia State 9, Washburn 7 – 8 innings
The Hornets scored a solo run in each of the first two innings, but the Ichabods tied the score in the bottom of the second at 2-2 after an RBI double by Alyssa Carney as the Ichbods took advantage of a Hornet error.
Neither team would score until the fifth when the Hornets scored on a solo home run, but the Ichabods came back with a run on their own on an RBI single by Emilee Baker scoring Morgan Henry. After the Hornets scored three in the sixth inning, the Ichabods came back with three of their own highlighted by a pinch-hit two-run homer by Lenae Salinas tying the score at 6-6 following a lead-off solo home run by Carney. Courtney Todd also singled and then would later score on the home run by Salinas.
In the top of the seventh, the Hornets scored an unearned run to go up 7-6, but agin the Ichabods came back to tie the score on Moore's second home run of the day to right field knotting the score at 7-7. However the Hornets, who improved to 14-24 with the win, scored two more to go up 9-7 and the Ichabods could not tie the score of the third inning in a row.
Lexi Crabtree pitched 3 1/3 innings in relief taking the loss replacing starter Kelsee Henry who tossed 4 2/3 innings.
Moore and Carney had two hits for the Ichabods in the second game.
 
Head coach Brenda Holaday
•    is 52-38 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 1119-865-1 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 . . .
•    Washburn's doubleheader with Northeastern State originally scheduled for April 3 has been moved back to April 10 in Topeka.  Following the games with the RiverHawks, the Ichabods will wrap up the regular season with eight games at home.