Pittsburg State at
Fort Hays State
Saturday, April 1 - 1 p.m.
Hays, Kan. - Fleharty Family Field

Missouri Southern at
Fort Hays State
Sunday, April 2 - 12 p.m.
Hays, Kan. - Fleharty Family Field

Fort Hays State Softball returns to MIAA play this weekend, hosting Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern at Fleharty Family Field. The Tigers face the Gorillas at 1 p.m. on Saturday (Apr. 1) and the Lions at 12 p.m. on Sunday (Apr. 2). FHSU is 22-11 overall and 4-2 in the MIAA, while the Gorillas are 21-9 overall, 6-2 in the MIAA. The Lions enter their weekend at 22-7 overall, 7-1 in the MIAA.
 
Live stream and live stats will be available throughout the weekend.
 
The Opponents
Pittsburg State (21-9, 6-2 MIAA)
-FHSU leads the series history with Pittsburg State 22-20 for the NCAA Division II era.
-FHSU swept each of the last two doubleheaders between the teams. The Tigers won 5-1 and 9-8 in Pittsburg last year. They won 7-1 and 5-1 in Hays in 2021. Pittsburg State's last win against FHSU was in game one of the 2019 MIAA doubleheader between the teams in Hays.
-Regan Curry had 3 RBIs in the doubleheader with Pittsburg State last year. Loren Beggs, Sarah Tiffany, and Madison Pierce all had 2.
-The Gorillas have 5 players hitting .350 or better for the season.
-Hannah Harrison leads Gorilla pitching with a 1.78 ERA, 6 shutouts, a 10-3 record, and 96 strikeouts in 91 innings.
 
Missouri Southern (22-7, 7-1 MIAA)
-FHSU leads the series history with Missouri Southern 20-17 for the NCAA Division II era.
-MSSU has won the last 3 games between the teams. FHSU scored just 1 run over those three games. MSSU swept the doubleheader between the teams last year in Joplin, but the teams split in Hays in 2021.
-FHSU won 3 of the last 4 games between the teams in Hays, including a 2019 sweep by scores of 8-4 and 8-2.
-MSSU pitchers Avery Tallman and Bailey Lacy each have ERAs below 2.50.
-Yazmin Vargas and Leighton Withers are both hitting north of .450 for the season.
 
 
Tiger Notes
Won 9 of last 10
Fort Hays State won nine of its last 10 games. The Tigers had a 9-game win streak snapped at Southwestern Oklahoma State on Tuesday after falling 4-2 in the second contest. However, Morgan Schmidt's no-hitter in game one gave FHSU its longest win streak in Adrian Pilkington's coaching tenure.
 
When the Tigers Score Four
Fort Hays State is 13-2 this season when scoring at least four runs in a game. The only losses when scoring four or more were on walk-off home runs, a 7-6 loss to Southern Nazarene and a 13-11 loss to MSU Denver. FHSU is 9-9 when scoring three or less runs this season.
 
11 Shutouts
Eleven of Fort Hays State's 22 wins this season have been by shutout. The 11 shutouts are lead the MIAA and rank 6^th in NCAA Division II. The national lead is 18 by Saint Leo, led by former FHSU head coach Erin Kinberger. The 11 shutouts are already the most by a Tiger team during Adrian Pilkington's tenure as a head coach. The 2013 team, led by Kinberger, set the record for most shutouts by a Tiger team with 19. This year's team joins the 2002 (10) and 2009 (11) squads as the only others in the program's NCAA Division II history to reach double figures in shutouts for a season.
 
Shepard of Speed
Peyton Shepard ranks among the top 10 players in the MIAA in batting average (6^th), stolen bases (5^th), on-base percentage (T-7^th), hits (3^rd), and hit-by-pitch (T-8^th). She has 16 stolen bases, 45 hits, a .425 batting average, a .500 on-base percentage, 25 runs, and has been hit by a pitch five times.
 
Efficient Running
Peyton Shepard and Sarah Tiffany have combined for 25 stolen bases so far this season. Shepard leads the team with 16, caught just one time, while Tiffany is a perfect 9-of-9 on her attempts. Carly Stuke is 2-of-2, while Sydnee Hoffman is 1-of-3. The Tigers are 28-of-31 as a team.
 
Pierce Churning Out Doubles
Madison Pierce started to find her groove at the plate once again, hitting safely in the last 8 games. She had five doubles in the last seven games and leads the team with 14. She ranks second in the MIAA in doubles and 8^th in NCAA Division II. Sydni Hawkins of Missouri Western leads the MIAA with 15.
 
Tough to Strikeout
Lilliana Ramirez-Johnson has just two strikeouts in 80 at bats this season. She ranks 23^rd in NCAA Division II for toughest to strikeout, averaging just one every 40 at bats. The national leader Jolie Miracle of Florida Tech has struck out just once in 108 at bats.
 
Beggs Getting Hits in Bunches
Loren Beggs has recorded multi-hit games in five of the last 10 contests. She went 3-for-6 at the plate in the doubleheader at Southwestern Oklahoma State and has elevated her season batting average up to .277. She moved back into the lead for RBIs on the team with 24 for the season after picking up two on a triple at SWOSU.
 
Putting the Ball in Play
Fort Hays State leads the MIAA in fewest strikeouts per game as a team, averaging just 2.97 per game with 98 in 33 games. Nebraska-Kearney leads the MIAA in strikeouts with 185, averaging 6.2 as a team per game. FHSU is the last team standing in the MIAA with less than 100 strikeouts as a team this season.
 
Moving Your Teammate Up
Fort Hays State ranks second in the MIAA in sacrifice bunts/hits with 22, only behind Washburn's 28. FHSU is also second in the conference in total sacrifices with 32 when adding on their 10 sacrifice flies. Washburn leads the MIAA in total sacrifices with 36. Central Oklahoma leads the sacrifice fly category with 19 for the season.
 
Solid Pitching
Fort Hays State has a team pitching ERA of 2.50, which ranks fifth in the MIAA. Three of four Tiger pitchers have ERAs lower than 2.50 for the season, led by Savanah Egger at 1.72. The Tiger pitchers rank second in the MIAA in strikeouts with 215, only behind Washburn (259). All four Tiger pitchers have at least 31 strikeouts on the season, led by Egger with 103. FHSU is allowing just a .236 batting average to opponents, which is fourth in the MIAA.
 
Strong in the Circle
Savanah Egger has allowed two or less earned runs in 12 of her 16 starts in the pitching circle this season. She had four consecutive shutouts from February 24 to March 4, then notched her fifth on March 21 against Colorado School of Mines and sixth on March 25 against Nebraska-Kearney. She ranks 4^th in NCAA Division II for individual shutouts and leads the MIAA. She also leads the MIAA and ranks 13^th in NCAA Division II for complete games with 12. She ranks 3^rd in the MIAA in strikeouts and 21^st in NCAA Division II with 103. She had a 32-inning scoreless streak snapped on March 6 against Northwestern Oklahoma State, but threw 38 shutout innings in a 41-inning stretch from February 24 to March 11. She has held the opposition scoreless in 19 of her last 20 innings pitched.
 
Four-Straight Complete Game Starts for Carlson
Bailey Carlson threw a pair of complete games last week in Colorado and then tossed a pair at home against Colorado School of Mines and Nebraska-Kearney last week. She has went the distance in each of her last four starts. She went the full seven innings in a 3-1 win at MSU Denver and a 5-2 win at CSU Pueblo. She notched her second shutout of the season against Colorado School of Mines on March 21 in a 2-0 win, then followed that with a 10-2 victory against Nebraska-Kearney in six innings on March 25. The complete game at MSU Denver on March 14 was her first since a 14-0 run-rule win in five innings over Sioux Falls back on February 26. Carlson holds a 2.40 ERA for the season.
 
Schmidt Tosses 14^th No-Hitter in Program's NCAA Division II History
Morgan Schmidt's threw the 14^th no-hitter in FHSU Softball's NCAA Division II history on Tuesday at Southwestern Oklahoma State. She was the first to throw a no-hitter since Michaelanne Nelson's 8-inning no-hitter against Oklahoma Baptist back on February 16, 2020 in Oklahoma City. The last three FHSU no-hitters have been thrown in the state of Oklahoma as Paxton Duran threw a no-no at Northeastern State in Tahlequah back on March 21, 2014. Schmidt is the seventh individual to join the individual no-hitter club at FHSU. Six of the seven have all thrown one, while Maddie Holub threw seven in her career. Head coach Adrian (Mohr) Pilkington joined Holub for the only combined no-hitter in the program's NCAA Division II history.