Fort Hays State (14-15) at
Northwestern Oklahoma State (9-20)
Tuesday, March 24 – 1 p.m. (DH)
Alva, Okla. – NWOSU Softball Field
 
Fort Hays State heads south on Tuesday for a non-conference doubleheader at Northwestern Oklahoma State in Alva. The doubleheader is set to begin at 1 p.m. The Tigers enter at 14-15 overall, while the Rangers are 9-20 for the season.
 
Fort Hays State is looking to get back on track after dropping three of four in MIAA play this past weekend. However, both doubleheaders were against nationally ranked teams and the Tigers claimed a 4-1 win against No. 3 ranked Missouri Southern in that stretch.
 
Northwestern Oklahoma State has dropped five of its last six games. The Rangers went 1-2 in GAC play last weekend at Arkansas-Monticello. The last time NWOSU played a non-conference doubleheader was on March 9 when they swept Newman University in Wichita.
 
This will be the first of two non-conference doubleheaders between FHSU and NWOSU this season. The Rangers are scheduled to make the return trip to Hays on Tuesday, March 31. The Tigers hold a 9-3-1 all-time record against the Rangers and have won the last six contests. The tie between the teams is the only tie ever in FHSU Softball's NCAA Division II history, which occurred in the second game of a doubleheader in 2022 in Alva due to an evening storm.
 
FHSU won three meetings with NWOSU last year. The Tigers defeated the Rangers in Wichita Falls 3-2 and then in both games of a doubleheader in Hays, 2-1 and 4-2.
 
Hannah Green and Peyton Shepard lead the Tigers in hitting this season, Green at .442 and Shepard at .406 for the season. Shepard leads in stolen bases with 21, followed by Green with 20. The duo has combined for 53 runs this season. Green ranks fourth in the MIAA in batting average. Abbey Duarte leads the Tigers in RBIs with 28 to go with a .321 batting average, while Lilly Mohr leads the Tigers in home runs with nine (third in the MIAA).
 
Fort Hays State has three pitchers with at least 25 innings of work this season. Solana Carpenter leads the way with a 3.89 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 77.1 innings. Claire Kirby and Korryn Johnson have also thrown at least 25 innings.