•   The Washburn Ichabod softball team, who for the third week in a row was just outside of the NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll at No. 26, will open MIAA play starting at No. 12-ranked Central Oklahoma on Friday followed by Newman on Saturday in a pair of MIAA doubleheader road contests.
•   Washburn enters the weekend with a 19-5 record after going 5-1 at the McKendree Invitational last weekend … the Ichabods outscored their opponents 45 to 11.
•   The Ichabods will open their home conference slate against Rogers State and Northeastern State on March 15 and March 16.
•   The Ichabods finished the 2023 season with a 37-16 record going 15-11 in MIAA play.
•   Washburn was picked in the No. 4 spot in the MIAA preseason coaches poll trailing Central Oklahoma, Rogers State and Missouri Southern.
•   The 2024 Washburn schedule features seven teams who reached their NCAA Regional, two more NCAA Super Regional teams, and two teams who reached the NCAA D2 Softball World Series … Ichabods open their home slate on Feb. 23 with the Washburn Invitational.
•   Brenda Holaday is in her eighth season as the Ichabod softball head coach recording a 234-137 overall record going 104-52 in MIAA contests leading the Ichabods to two MIAA Regular Season titles (2018, 2022) and NCAA Central Regional berths in those years as well, the fourth and fifth in school history. Holaday trails Lisa Carey as the all-time winningest coach by victories at 256. •   The Ichabods led the nation with 222 hits and 57 doubles … Washburn is ranked in the top five in the nation in doubles per game (2.38), third in earned run average (1.18), second in and shutouts (8).
•   Individually, Sadie Walker leads the nation in games started (14) and appearances (18), wins (10) and complete games (8) … Jaycee Ginter is eighth in the nation in hits (34) and second in the MIAA and she is fifth in the circle in pitching wins with 9 … Autymn Schreiner is third in the nation in sac flies with four and Marrit Mead is ninth in the nation in stolen bases (16).
•   #1 Marrit Mead - Was a perfect 8 for 8 in stolen bases last week … needs one more stolen base to break the Ichabod career mark of Torrie Beauchamp.
•   #2 Autymn Schreiner - Recorded three doubles last week driving in seven runs.
•   #3 Hailey Neira - Had two RBI and three hits scoring four runs last week.
•   #4 Molly Gilbert - A perfect 1 of 1 in pinch hit appearances last week driving in one and scoring a run.
•   #5 Ashlynn Wolff - Appeared in one game last weekend.
•   #7 Riley Stephens - Was 1 for 3 with an RBI and a runs scored.
•   #8 Sheyenne Cheek - Struck out three in two innings of work last weekend.
•   #10 Zoe Quinn - Appeared in three games going 1 for 2 with a run scored.
•   #11 Rylee Moore - Has appeared in one game this season.
•   #12 Jaycee Ginter - hit .500 last week going 9 for 18 scoring six runs with three doubles and 5 RBI recording a .667 slugging percentage, a .591 on base percentage and a 1.258 OPS drawing three walks and stealing two bases as the Ichabods were 5-1 at the McKendree Classic. Ginter recorded RBI in 4 of the six games tying a season high with three runs scored against Maryville … she also went 3-0 in the circle with a 1.71 ERA striking out 19 in 16 innings of work allowing four earned runs in four appearances.
•   #14 Danielle Schlader - Had a double and an RBI last week in five games.
•   #15 Ellington Hogle - Batted .412 last week with seven hits in 17 at bats with four doubles and 2 RBI.
•   #16 Erin Boles - Drove in three runs with a double and run scored last week.
•   #17 Kaylee Wagner - Had a team-high 6 RBI last week batting .444 with eight hits and five doubles.
•   #18 Jaden LaBarge - Drove in two last week with two doubles and three runs scored.
•   #19 Allie Stipsits - Has appeared in six games this season.
•   #20 Gracie Gallagher - Has scored three runs in five games last week.
•   #21 Sadie Walker - Went 2-1 in the circle with a 1.02 ERA striking out 21 in 20 2/3 innings pitched with two complete games and a save.
•   #22 Madi Moore - Was 4 for 8 last week in five games with two runs scored and a double.
•   #23 Mariah Wheeler - Drove in three runs in five games with three hits and a double last week.
•   #24 Alexis Tanguma - Had three hits in three games with two runs scored and a home run last week.
•   #25 Kinlei Boley - Recorded a pinch hit and scored a run driving in one more run last week.
  •   Marrit Mead enters her final season as an Ichabod within reach of several Ichabod career marks … her career batting average of .405 is the tied for the highest mark in school history … she needs four runs scored to tie the career record of 188 and needs seven base hits to tie the career record of 258 … also needs two doubles to break the school record of 56 … Mead is within 125 of the total bases record.
•   Jaycee Ginter is 17 RBI from tying the school's all-time record of 167 … her 77 career wins is the most all-time at Washburn … Ginter also needs two saves to tie the career mark and 10 more appearances will break Washburn's all-time record of 137 … with 95 innings pitched, Ginter will have thrown the most innings in a Washburn career … Ginter already holds the Ichabods record for career strikeouts with 684, which sits 236 more than the second-place holder. O'FALLON, Ill. – The Washburn Ichabod softball team wrapped up non-conference play with a split on the final day of the McKendree Bearcat Classic topping Maryville 9-1 before falling to host squad McKendree 2-1.
Game 1 – Washburn 9, Maryville 1
The Ichabods took the early lead and never looked back in a 9-1 win over the Saints to open the day. Washburn (19-5) scored three runs in the top of the first after Marrit Mead led off the game with a walk and a stolen base and then came around to score on a double by Jaycee Ginter. Kaylee Wagner drove in Ginter with a triple to left. Washburn scored its final run of the frame when Jaden LaBarge doubled driving in Wagner.
Washburn added three more in the fifth after Ginter started the frame with a single and then Wagner doubled sending Gracie Gallagher to third who entered as a pinch runner for Ginter. A LaBarge single cleared the bases and then Ellington Hogle's double scored LaBarge.
The Saints scored a solo run in the sixth cutting the lead to 7-1.
Washburn added a solo run in the seventh on a double by Mariah Wheeler that scored Ginter who walked. In the seventh, the Ichabods added two more runs when Ginter doubled driving in Mead who walked. The Ichabods' final run came on a single by Autymn Schreiner that drove in Gallagher.
Ginter picked up the win in the circle improving to 9-2 with six strikeouts.
Wagner finished with four hits and Ginter had three hits in the win and Mead walked three times.
Game 2 – McKendree 2, Washburn 1
The Ichabods were limited to two hits in the game. Mead scored the Ichabods only run in the top of the first after Mead reached on an error and then stole second and came around to score on Wagner's ground out.
The Bearcats tied the score in the bottom of the first taking advantage of an Ichabod error. Neither team scored until the bottom of the third when the Bearcats scored another run taking a 2-1 lead over Washburn.
Sadie Walker took the loss in the circle striking out five falling to 10-3 in the circle.
  CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
•   Central Oklahoma remained No. 12 in the weekly National Softball Coaches Association Division II poll that was released Tuesday. The Bronchos, 12-6 and riding a five-game winning streak, open defense of their Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association title this weekend with a pair of doubleheaders.
•   The Bronchos have won the last seven over the Ichabods in the series with Washburn's last win coming on April 20, 2019 in Edmond.
NEWMAN
•   The Jets are 7-9 entering the weekend where they will face Emporia State on Friday night prior to the Ichabods on Saturday.
•   The Ichabods have won the last nine in a row over the Jets with Newman's last win over the Ichabods coming on Feb. 5, 2017 in Magnolia, Arkansas in a 12-10 win.
  •   is 234-137 in her eighth season as the Ichabod head softball coach.
•   in seven seasons, Washburn has had 34 all-MIAA picks, one MIAA Player of the Year, one MIAA Pitcher of the Year, two MIAA Freshmen of the year and 17 all-region selections and six All-American picks and three members of the MIAA Gold Glove team.
•   coached 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 and was inducted into the Washburn Rural High School Hall of Fame in 2018.
•   was 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 former Ichabod head softball coach Lisa Carey, the winningest coach by wins in program history. •   The Ichabods are 1307-959-1 in their 54th year of softball.
•   The Ichabods have made five NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2006, 2008, 2018, 2022).
•   Washburn won the 2002, 2018 and 2022 regular season MIAA titles.