TLU Opens DIII WCWS with Berry Thursday

DIII WCWS STORYLINES

• No. 4 Texas Lutheran (43-4, 21-0 SCAC) continues their quest for a second national title as the Bulldogs make their third consecutive appearance in the NCAA Division-III Softball Championships in Salem, Virginia.
• The D3 Women's College World Series begins Thursday as the Bulldogs play the second game of the tourney versus Berry (34-11, 15-3 SAA) at 1:30 PM EST/12:30 PM CST.
• Thursday's game, as well as all games in the tournament, will be available to stream for free on ncaa.com.
• The action can be heard on KWED 1580 AM with play-by-play announcer Mike McBride on the call for fans in the Guadalupe County area.
• Tickets will be available at the Moyer Sports Complex only and will not be sold online. All-Session passes can be purchased at the following prices: Adult: $40, Senior Citizen (55+): $25, Student (With ID): $20, Youth (12 and Under): $20. Single Session Tickets can be purchased for the following prices: Adult: $15, Senior Citizen (55+): $10, Student (With ID): $10, Youth (12 and Under): $10, Groups of 10+: $5/ticket.

BACK TO SALEM

• The Bulldogs return to the Division-III Women's College World Series for the third year in a row for its third overall appearance.
• This season marks Texas Lutheran's eighth consecutive appearance in the NCAA postseason, including every year since joining the SCAC in 2014, all under head coach Wade Wilson
• In 2021, the Bulldogs reached its second WCWS in program history, culminating in a runner-up finish in the championship series following their 2019 National Championship victory.

A PERFECT UNION

• The Bulldogs will be familiar with the complex housed at 1000 Union St. in which the World Series will take place following their trip to Salem last year. Texas Lutheran is 4-2 at Moyer Sports Complex, defeating Tufts, DePauw, and Birmingham-Southern, before taking one out of three games from Virginia Wesleyan in last year's Championship Series.

• All time, Texas Lutheran is 9-2 under Wade Wilson in the Women's College World Series.

LAST TIME OUT

• The No. 2 Bulldogs won the Seguin Super Regional over No. 5 Belhaven in a two-game sweep to punch their ticket to the D-III WCWS.
• Texas Lutheran won game one, 2-1 in eight innings, before eliminating the Blazers, 6-2, in game two.
• Madison Johnson (Round Rock/Round Rock), the Super Regional's Most Outstanding Player, continued her impressive postseason with a 3-for-7 weekend, two runs scored, a double, and a triple. Kelly Jurden continued to solidify her Player of the Year candidacy with a 4-for-8 weekend that saw her finish with one RBI, two runs scored, and a stolen base on the weekend.
• TLU's pitching staff of Ashlyn Strother (Seabrook/Clear Falls) and Sydney Ouellette (Corpus Christi/Gregory-Portland), the Super Regional's Most Outstanding Pitcher, shut down the Blazers high-powered offense, surrendering a combined three runs on eight hits. Ouellette picked up the win in both games, including a complete game, four strikeout effort in game two.
• The battery of Ouellette and Sarah Metzer (Sugar Land/Dulles) made the series-clinching out with Ouellette collecting her final strikeout of the afternoon for the final out to send TLU to Salem.

A LOOK AT THE VIKINGS

• The Bulldogs and Berry Vikings meet for the fourth time, the first time since 2018 where the two teams faced off in the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Tucson, Arizona. Berry holds the all-time record over the Bulldogs, 2-1, dropping their 2018 meeting against the Bulldogs. Texas Lutheran beat the Vikings 9-7 behind five RBIs from Haley Padilla, three RBIs and 5.1 innings in the circle from Kassie Maddox, picking up the victory for TLU.
• The Vikings, winners of the Southern Athletic Association, come to Salem after winning the Greencastle, Indiana Regional and Rome, Georgia Super Regional. They hold a 5-0 record in the NCAA Tournament.
• The Vikings are led by sophomores catcher Anna Jackson, a 2022 NFCA First Team All-American, 2022 Catcher of the Year and the 2022 SAA Co-Player of the Year, infielder 2022 NFCA All-American Morgan Frye and freshman pitcher Hannah Gore. Jackson is batting .397 with 9 HRs, 42 RBIs, and 25 total extra base hits. Morgan Frye led the SAA with 12 home runs while batting .422 and driving in 40 runs. Gore has quickly established herself as one of the best pitchers in the country as a freshman - holding a 16-1 record with 108 strikeouts and 0.88 ERA.

BULLDOGS VS. THE FIELD

• Christopher Newport: The Bulldogs and Captains have met twice in their program's histories with the last matchup coming in the 2021 Seguin Regional that saw the Bulldogs eliminate the Captains with a 4-2 victory. The teams are tied 1-1 all-time with their only other meeting coming in March 2020.
• Worcester Polytechnic Institute: This would be a first-time match up between the Bulldogs and the Engineers who hail from the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC). The Engineers have two NFCA All-Region players in pitcher Katie Martin and third baseman Shaina Lazarus
• Salisbury: Despite both teams making NCAA Tournament runs over the last decade, a match up between the Bulldogs and Seagulls would be a first ever between the top five teams. The Seagulls have three NFCA All-American selections in juniors: Abby Mace, who doubled as Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) Player of the Year, Lindsey Windsor, and Natalie Paoli. Mace and Windsor each are finalists for NFCA Player/Pitcher of the Year.
• Eastern Connecticut State: The 2022 Division-III Women's College World Series could present a sequel to the 2019 Women's College World Series matchup that saw the Bulldogs come out on top, 7-6, as part of their journey to a national championship. Chassety Raines (Spring/Klein Collins), a key member of that game, is still a member of the Bulldogs softball team. The Warriors feature four NFCA All-American players: Little East Player of the Year, third baseman Julia SanGiovanni, and Little East Pitcher of the Year Alexis Michon, first baseman Brooke Matysovsky, and Utility Lindsey Windsor.
• Trine: After losing to the Thunder, 7-2, in the 2016 NFCA Leadoff Classic, the Bulldogs would look to extend their winning streak against the Thunder to three following a 6-3 win in the 2019 DIII WCWS semifinals and a 6-2 win over the Thunder in the 2022 NFCA Leadoff Classic earlier this season. That game featured a 13-strikeout performance from Ashlyn Strother and home runs from Casey Martin (Pearland/Pearland) and Bailey Hudgeons (Dripping Springs/Dripping Springs).
• Millikin: This would be a first-time matchup between TLU and the Big Blue of Millikin University. The Big Blue make their first DIII Women's College World Series appearance and are members of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin. The Big Blue are led by NFCA All-Americans - pitcher Addison Sargent and freshman outfielder Kendallyn Davison.

RECORD BREAKERS & CHASERS

• The Bulldogs broke the program record for most consecutive conference wins with their current streak sitting at 62 dating back to the 2019 season.
• The Bulldogs broke the program record for stolen bases in a season in the SCAC Championship against Trinity, stealing base No.  196 in Irving, Texas, and have since brought their season total to 209, soaring past the 2019 team's previous record of 195. The 2021 squad hit the program mark in six less games. The Bulldogs are six stolen bases away from matching the NCAA Division-III single season record for stolen bases in a season set by The College of New Jersey in 1995 (224 stolen bases in 54 games).
• Senior Casey Martin is six hits shy of the single season hits record (69) set by Ashley Jacobsen in 2013.
• Senior Kelly Jurden is three walks shy of matching her single season record of 30 walks in a season.
• As a team, Texas Lutheran is one walk away from matching the 2019 team's record of 159 walks in a season.
• With two wins last weekend, Texas Lutheran matched the single-season wins record (43) set by the 2016 squad.
• Ashlyn Strother's current ERA of 0.65 would surpass the previous program record for lowest ERA in a season set by Taylor Grissom in 2015 (0.77 ERA).

BULLDOG PARTY

• Defensively, Texas Lutheran is in the top two in: Walks and Hits Per Inning Pitched (WHIP) (1st, .88), Earned Run Average (2nd, 1.14 ERA), Fielding Percentage (2nd, .979), shutouts (2nd, 21 shutouts)
• Texas Lutheran leads the country, regardless of division, in stolen bases with 215 on the season. Division-II Miles College is the closest to TLU with 169 stolen bases.
• TLU is outscoring opponents 318-64 on the season, scoring an average of 6.77 runs per game to opponents 1.36 clip.
• TLU has won by run-rule in 14 of its 47 games.
• Eight Bulldogs have hit a home run this season, with five blasting at least two.
• Texas Lutheran owns two of the top 10 ERAs in the country:
  • 1st - Ashlyn Strother (0.65)
  • 9th - Sydney Ouellette (0.96)
• Kelly Jurden ranks second in the country in stolen bases with 69 on the season.
• The Texas Lutheran defense ranks first in the country out of teams that have played at least 35 games with a .979 fielding percentage and have committed just 27 errors in 923 opportunities.
• TLU's pitching staff is second in the country with 21 shutouts and 1.14 ERA.

JURDEN, STROTHER TWO OF 25 DIVISION-III PLAYER AND PITCHER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS

• Kelly Jurden and Ashlyn Strother were named 2022 Schutt Sports/NFCA Division-III Player and Pitcher of the Year Top 25 Finalists, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) announced on May 10th.
• Jurden, the NCAA Division-III All-Time Stolen Base leader and 2022 First Team All-SCAC and First Team All-West Region selection, makes her third appearance as a finalist with another season for the record books. Jurden broke the NCAA career stolen bases record in early March at Ed Kruse Stadium, stealing base No. 196 vs. Austin College. The Brenham, Texas, product now has 238 career stolen bases and currently sits in second place nationally with 69 stolen bases on the season to go with 23 RBIs and a .379 batting average. She ranked first in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) in stolen bases and walks (27) - tying for eighth nationally in walks. This season, Jurden has also set the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference all-time hits (255) and walks (105) records, the TLU all-time at-bats (608), walks (105) and runs scored (229) records in addition to the TLU and SCAC single-season stolen base record - breaking her previous record of 61 stolen bases in 2019.
• The 2022 SCAC Pitcher of the Year, Strother, also a First Team All-West Region selection, has taken Division-III softball by storm. In 139.2 innings pitched, Strother has a 0.65 ERA with 192 strikeouts to 21 walks. Her earned run average ranks first in the country while her strikeout-to-walk ratio (9.84) ranks tenth. She has allowed just 13 earned runs on the season (16 runs total) and is allowing opponents to bat just .155. Strother has allowed 12 extra base hits, with only four being home runs. The Seabrook, Texas, product has one no-hitter on the season - tossing a no-hitter against Austin College on March 19. Strother has nine double-digit strikeout performances, including a career-high 15 vs. Southwestern on March 25 and 14-K's in her no-hitter against Austin College. Additionally, her 23 wins are the most in a single-season in TLU softball history.

STROTHER, OUELLETTE, WHITE LEAD DOMINANT PITCHING STAFF

• The, at-times, four-deep pitching staff has put together a solid season, pitching shutouts in 21 of TLU's 45 games.
• Ashlyn Strother tossed the staff's lone no-hitter against Austin College on March 19.
• The staff has allowed two hits or less in 12 games this season.
• The staff holds a 1.14 ERA, good for 2nd in the country, and has allowed 64 runs in 47 games to go with 288 strikeouts and 222 hits allowed to 47 walks.
• SCAC Pitcher of the Year and NFCA First Team All-Region selection, sophomore Ashlyn Strother leads the staff with a 0.65 ERA and 192 strikeouts to go with 23 wins and no losses. Opponents are batting just .155 against the Seabrook, Texas, native. In conference play, Strother posted a 0.22 ERA with 98 strikeouts to 7 walks while opponents batted .094 against her.
• Sydney Ouellette, another All-Region honoree for TLU, has a 0.96 ERA in 109 innings of work to go with 12 wins, three saves, and three losses. In conference play, Ouellette was 6-0 with a 0.15 ERA to go with 24 strikeouts and just four walks. Opponents are batting .213 against Ouellette.
• Junior Amanda White has impressed in her return to the Bulldogs after a year away, collecting eight wins to one loss - striking out 36 in 50.2 innings pitched. White holds a 1.52 ERA and struck out 21 in conference play to just five walks.
• Sophomore Madison Johnson (3.0) has also seen action in the circle for the Bulldogs.

STROTHER, JURDEN EARN ALL-AMERICA HONORS

• Two members of the No. 4 Texas Lutheran softball team were named National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Americans, the organization announced Tuesday.

• Sophomore Ashlyn Strother was named a First Team honoree while Kelly Jurden collected Second Team accolades.

• Texas Lutheran joins Berry, Bethel (Minn.), Concordia Wisconsin, DePauw, Linfield, and Millikin with two selections each. Eastern Connecticut State led the way with four honorees - including three on the First Team.

• Strother receives her second career All-America honor after being a Third Team All-American last season and her first first-team accolade. Jurden receives her third career All-America honor and second second-team accolade after garnering the status as a sophomore.
• Strother has paced the dominant Texas Lutheran pitching staff in 2022. The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Pitcher of the Year holds the nation's lead in earned run average (minimum 80 innings pitched) with a 0.65 ERA and is in the top fifteen in strikeout-to-walk ratio (9.14). Strother is 23-0 on the year and is credited with nine shutouts and an additional three combined shutouts. In 139.2 innings of work, she has limited her opponents to a .156 batting average - striking out 192 batters in the process. Strother's 23 wins sets a new season-high mark for a Texas Lutheran pitcher and her current earned run average would surpass the single season record set by Taylor Grissom in 2015 (0.77 ERA).
• Jurden, a First Team All-SCAC selection and Top 25 Finalist for NFCA/Schutt Sports Division-III Player of the Year, is the NCAA Division-III All-Time Stolen Base Leader and is currently second in the country with 69 stolen bases this season. She is first in the SCAC in walks and currently eighth nationally. This season, Jurden has also set the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference all-time hits (255) and walks (105) records, the TLU all-time at-bats (608), walks (105) and runs scored (229) records in addition to the TLU and SCAC single-season stolen base record - breaking her previous record of 61 stolen bases in 2019. Jurden, the 2022 Seguin, Texas Regional's Most Outstanding Player, is currently batting .379 with 23 RBIs.