Friday, April 12
University Park, Pa.
3 PM
Michigan State University
at
Penn State
Photo by: Jack Moreland
Softball Returns to Road at Penn State
4/11/2024 2:05:00 PM | Softball
EAST LANSING, Mich. - After defeating Western Michigan in a midweek contest on Wednesday the Michigan State softball program is back on the road for a three-game series against Penn State in State College, Pa. Action kicks off on Friday, April 12 with a 5:00 p.m. first pitch. All games throughout the weekend will be streamed on B1G+.
ABOUT PENN STATE
Penn State is 28-8 overall and 7-2 in B1G action. The Nittany Lions have seen success at home going 11-1 in State College. PSU is No. 27 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings with a signature win over Arkansas in non-conference.
The Nittany Lions rank #86 nationally in batting average (.289), #77 in ERA (2.96), #171 in fielding (.960), #121 in OBP (.358), #66 in scoring (5.22) and #47 in SLG (.480).
Bridget Nemeth is one of the best pitchers in the country as a freshman ranking #18 in ERA and #42 in strikeouts. Nemeth is 17-1 with a 1.17 ERA, .90 WHIP and 114 strikeouts in 113.2 innings. Opponents hit just .191 against her. Mady Volpe leads the team in pitching appearances (27) with a 3.83 ERA in 80.1 innings of work. Opponents hit .237 against her.
Penn State has five starters hitting over .300 led by Kaitlyn Morrison's .350. Maddie Gordon is hitting .345 and her 14 doubles rank #15 nationally. Emily Maddock, hitting .328, is one of the toughest players to strike out in the country with just three strikeouts in 116 at-bats. Haylie Brunson leads the team with 30 RBI hitting .289.
SPARTANS SPLIT MIDWEEK CONTESTSÂ
Michigan State played a pair of midweek games this past week prior to arriving in State College, Pa. The Spartans were defeated by Michigan on Tuesday night, 11-5, before defeating Western Michigan on Wednesday, 4-3.
Macy Lee was 3-for-3 on Tuesday against the Wolverines, adding a walk to have a perfect night at the plate. Britain Beshears and Anna Fox each had two hits for MSU. Sydney Doloszycki and Hannah Hawley hit back-to-back home runs for the Spartans on Wednesday against Western Michigan. Madison Taylor allowed just three hits in the circle against the Broncos on Wednesday in a complete game effort.
DOLOSZYCKI DOING DAMAGE
Sophomore outfielder Sydney Doloszycki has been a bright spot in the Spartan lineup over the last seven games, matching MSU's longest individual hitting streak of the season (Alexis Ross, 7). Over her last seven games, Doloszycki is hitting a team-high .450 (9-for-20) with three home runs, seven runs scored, five RBI and five walks. In that span, Doloszycki leads MSU in batting average (.450), OBP (.560), SLG (.950) and OPS (1.510).
PRODIGIOUS POP
MSU has hit 38 home runs through 37 games, which marks the most home runs by the program since the 2019 season (44 in 50 games). In 2024 Michigan State ranks No. 36 nationally in home runs per game (1.03). The Spartans are now tied for No. 7 in program history for single season home runs.
#1 - 66, 2017
#2 - 53, 2011
#3 - 50, 2007
#4 - 46, 2009
#5 - 44, 2019
#6 - 41, 2016
#7 - 38, 2024/2015
TAYLOR TURNING IT UP A NOTCH
In her last six appearance, junior pitcher Madison Taylor has posted a 3.77 ERA over 26.0 innings of work, far lower than her season-long ERA of 5.03. Taylor has tossed two complete games during that stretch and twice has struck out a career-high eight batters.
HAULING IN HITS
Sophomore Hannah Hawley leads the Spartans with a .342 batting average, a .443 on-base percentage, a .676 slugging percentage and a 1.119 OPS. Hawley is #7 in the B1G in slugging percentage and #6 in OPS. Hawley leads the team with 38 hits, 22 runs scored, 18 extra-base hits and 14 walks drawn. Hawley also leads the Spartans with 11 multi-hit games (five three-hit games, six two-hit games) and is second with five multi-RBI games (Britain Beshears, 7). Hawley recently ended a 10-game on base streak.
GREY-TEFUL DEAD
Graduate student Liv Grey has been among the best pitchers in the country so far this season. Through 111.1 innings Grey has posted a 2.39 ERA, a 1.13 WHIP and a .220 batting average against. Grey has struck out 125 batters, ranking #26 nationally in strikeouts despite ranking #68 in innings pitched. Her 7.9 k/7 is #49 nationally. Grey was named B1G Pitcher of the Week 3/4/2024, the eighth Spartan all time do so.
BASHING BESHEARS
Sophomore Britain Beshears ranks #42 nationally in home runs (11) and #48 home runs per game (0.31). Beshears is #5 in the B1G in home runs and her 11 home runs already rank tied for fifth in program history for a single season. No Spartan had hit 11 home runs in a season since 2019 (Caitie Ladd, 11). Michigan State's single-season record for home runs is 20 (Lindsey Hansen, 2011).
BALL MAGNET
Senior Jenae Wash has been hit by pitch a team-high nine times this season, good for 0.30 times per game. Wash ranks #25 nationally in hit by pitch per game and #3 in the B1G.
Â
UP NEXT
After its series with Penn State, Michigan State will head to Ann Arbor, Mich. for a midweek game at intrastate rival Michigan on Tuesday, April 16. First pitch on Big Ten Network is set for 7:02 p.m.
Â
ABOUT PENN STATE
Penn State is 28-8 overall and 7-2 in B1G action. The Nittany Lions have seen success at home going 11-1 in State College. PSU is No. 27 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings with a signature win over Arkansas in non-conference.
The Nittany Lions rank #86 nationally in batting average (.289), #77 in ERA (2.96), #171 in fielding (.960), #121 in OBP (.358), #66 in scoring (5.22) and #47 in SLG (.480).
Bridget Nemeth is one of the best pitchers in the country as a freshman ranking #18 in ERA and #42 in strikeouts. Nemeth is 17-1 with a 1.17 ERA, .90 WHIP and 114 strikeouts in 113.2 innings. Opponents hit just .191 against her. Mady Volpe leads the team in pitching appearances (27) with a 3.83 ERA in 80.1 innings of work. Opponents hit .237 against her.
Penn State has five starters hitting over .300 led by Kaitlyn Morrison's .350. Maddie Gordon is hitting .345 and her 14 doubles rank #15 nationally. Emily Maddock, hitting .328, is one of the toughest players to strike out in the country with just three strikeouts in 116 at-bats. Haylie Brunson leads the team with 30 RBI hitting .289.
SPARTANS SPLIT MIDWEEK CONTESTSÂ
Michigan State played a pair of midweek games this past week prior to arriving in State College, Pa. The Spartans were defeated by Michigan on Tuesday night, 11-5, before defeating Western Michigan on Wednesday, 4-3.
Macy Lee was 3-for-3 on Tuesday against the Wolverines, adding a walk to have a perfect night at the plate. Britain Beshears and Anna Fox each had two hits for MSU. Sydney Doloszycki and Hannah Hawley hit back-to-back home runs for the Spartans on Wednesday against Western Michigan. Madison Taylor allowed just three hits in the circle against the Broncos on Wednesday in a complete game effort.
DOLOSZYCKI DOING DAMAGE
Sophomore outfielder Sydney Doloszycki has been a bright spot in the Spartan lineup over the last seven games, matching MSU's longest individual hitting streak of the season (Alexis Ross, 7). Over her last seven games, Doloszycki is hitting a team-high .450 (9-for-20) with three home runs, seven runs scored, five RBI and five walks. In that span, Doloszycki leads MSU in batting average (.450), OBP (.560), SLG (.950) and OPS (1.510).
PRODIGIOUS POP
MSU has hit 38 home runs through 37 games, which marks the most home runs by the program since the 2019 season (44 in 50 games). In 2024 Michigan State ranks No. 36 nationally in home runs per game (1.03). The Spartans are now tied for No. 7 in program history for single season home runs.
#1 - 66, 2017
#2 - 53, 2011
#3 - 50, 2007
#4 - 46, 2009
#5 - 44, 2019
#6 - 41, 2016
#7 - 38, 2024/2015
TAYLOR TURNING IT UP A NOTCH
In her last six appearance, junior pitcher Madison Taylor has posted a 3.77 ERA over 26.0 innings of work, far lower than her season-long ERA of 5.03. Taylor has tossed two complete games during that stretch and twice has struck out a career-high eight batters.
HAULING IN HITS
Sophomore Hannah Hawley leads the Spartans with a .342 batting average, a .443 on-base percentage, a .676 slugging percentage and a 1.119 OPS. Hawley is #7 in the B1G in slugging percentage and #6 in OPS. Hawley leads the team with 38 hits, 22 runs scored, 18 extra-base hits and 14 walks drawn. Hawley also leads the Spartans with 11 multi-hit games (five three-hit games, six two-hit games) and is second with five multi-RBI games (Britain Beshears, 7). Hawley recently ended a 10-game on base streak.
GREY-TEFUL DEAD
Graduate student Liv Grey has been among the best pitchers in the country so far this season. Through 111.1 innings Grey has posted a 2.39 ERA, a 1.13 WHIP and a .220 batting average against. Grey has struck out 125 batters, ranking #26 nationally in strikeouts despite ranking #68 in innings pitched. Her 7.9 k/7 is #49 nationally. Grey was named B1G Pitcher of the Week 3/4/2024, the eighth Spartan all time do so.
BASHING BESHEARS
Sophomore Britain Beshears ranks #42 nationally in home runs (11) and #48 home runs per game (0.31). Beshears is #5 in the B1G in home runs and her 11 home runs already rank tied for fifth in program history for a single season. No Spartan had hit 11 home runs in a season since 2019 (Caitie Ladd, 11). Michigan State's single-season record for home runs is 20 (Lindsey Hansen, 2011).
BALL MAGNET
Senior Jenae Wash has been hit by pitch a team-high nine times this season, good for 0.30 times per game. Wash ranks #25 nationally in hit by pitch per game and #3 in the B1G.
Â
"I want to do everything in my power to give the team the success we need. I'm not one to stray away from something new."
— MSU Softball (@MSU_Softball) April 11, 2024
Learn more about senior outfielder Jenae Wash and the obstacles she has faced throughout her career at MSU.#GoGreen | #SpartanUp pic.twitter.com/bOmSfT6UpW
UP NEXT
After its series with Penn State, Michigan State will head to Ann Arbor, Mich. for a midweek game at intrastate rival Michigan on Tuesday, April 16. First pitch on Big Ten Network is set for 7:02 p.m.
Â
Players Mentioned
1B
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
3B/C
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
LHP
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballA Road Less Traveled | Spartans All-Access
Thursday, April 17
A Higher Standard | Spartans All-Access
Tuesday, February 11
Spartans All-Access: Jenae Wash
Thursday, April 11
Spartans All-Access: Coach Sharonda McDonald-Kelley
Thursday, April 20