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Casey Martin (photo by Bryce Hayes)
Casey Martin (photo by Bryce Hayes)
Posted: May 27, 2022

Texas Lutheran Meets Worcester Polytechnic Institute Saturday in DIII WCWS

ON DECK

  • No. 4 Texas Lutheran (43-5, 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.
  • After dropping its WCWS opener to Berry Thursday, the Bulldogs match up with Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) Saturday morning at 9:30 AM EST/8:30 AM CST in an elimination game. With a win over WPI, TLU would meet the loser of Salisbury-Trine (Saturday at 7 PM EST) in a Saturday night cap tentatively scheduled for at 5:30 PM EST/4:30 PM CST.
  • Friday'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.

WCWS NOTES & NUMBERS

  • Thursday's loss to Berry was the first time in three WCWS appearances TLU has lost its opener.
  • Kelly Jurden (Brenham/Brenham) is one stolen base away from tying the Division-III single-season stolen base record set by Jessica Goldyn of Virginia Wesleyan in 2021 (73).
  • 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 (Pearland/Pearland) is five hits shy of the single season hits record (69) set by Ashley Jacobsen in 2013.
  • Senior Kelly Jurden is two walks shy of matching her single season record of 30 walks in a season.
  • As a team, Texas Lutheran surpassed the previous program record of 159 walks with two walks against Berry, establishing a new program record of 160+ walks in a season.
  • Ashlyn Strother's (Seabrook/Clear Falls) 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).

LAST TIME OUT

  • The fourth-seeded Bulldogs dropped its opening game at the Division-III Women's College World Series in Salem, Virginia to Berry College, 5-1, on Thursday.
  • After falling behind 3-0, Casey Martin would drive in the Bulldogs only run of the game in the third inning.
  • Texas Lutheran was limited to three hits, matching a season low.
  • TLU sophomore Sydney Ouellette (Corpus Christi/Gregory-Portland) allowed four runs on nine hits to go with one walk and five strikeouts in five innings of work.

A LOOK AT THE ENGINEERS

  • The Bulldogs and Engineers meet for the first time in each program's history.
  • Katie Martin, a 2022 NFCA All-Region selection, has been the ace in the circle for the Engineers, striking out 170 on the year to 45 walks in 212.2 innings pitched. She holds a 1.94 ERA entering Friday.
  • At the plate, WPI is batting .279 as a team, led by Shaina Lazarus's .342 batting average, 3 HR and 39 RBI. Five different Engineers have hit three home runs on the season.

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 9-3 under Wade Wilson in the Women's College World Series.

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.
  • Berry: took their first matchup of the season on Thursday, 5-1, bringing the all-time record to 2-2 between the two programs.
  • 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.

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 241 career stolen bases and now leads Division-III with 72 stolen bases on the season to go with 23 RBIs and a .373 batting average. She ranked first in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) in stolen bases and walks (28) - tying for eighth nationally in walks. This season, Jurden has also set the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference all-time hits (255) and walks (106) records, the TLU all-time at-bats (610), walks (106) and runs scored (230) 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, 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.

BULLDOG PARTY

  • Defensively, Texas Lutheran is in the top two in: Walks and Hits Per Inning Pitched (WHIP) (1st, .89), Earned Run Average (2nd, 1.22 ERA), Fielding Percentage (2nd, .978), shutouts (2nd, 21 shutouts)
  • Texas Lutheran leads the country, regardless of division, in stolen bases with 218 on the season. Division-II Miles College is the closest to TLU with 169 stolen bases.
  • TLU is outscoring opponents 319-69 on the season, scoring an average of 6.65 runs per game to opponents 1.44 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.
  • Kelly Jurden leads the country in stolen bases with 72 on the season.
  • The Texas Lutheran defense ranks first in the country out of teams that have played at least 35 games with a .978 fielding percentage and have committed just 29 errors in 1,333 opportunities.
  • TLU's pitching staff is second in the country with 21 shutouts and 1.14 ERA.

For more information on Texas Lutheran softball, follow the Bulldogs on Facebook (@txlutheransoftball), Twitter (@TLUsoftball), and Instagram (@tlu_softball) and as always you can find updates on all Texas Lutheran athletics on tlubulldogs.com and all official TLU social media channels (@tluathletics on Twitter, @tlubulldogs on Instagram and Facebook, and @tlu_athletics on TikTok).