Lincoln, Neb. (May 7, 2024)- Nebraska Wesleyan is set to face Simpson College in the first round of the 2024 American Rivers Conference softball tournament. The tournament will take place in Pella, Iowa, over the course of Friday and Saturday, with Central College as the host school.
SERIES INFORMATION, GAME TIMES, LIVE STREAM & LIVE STATS
Friday will mark the 20th match up between the two teams. Simpson leads the all time series 15-4, and swept Nebraska Wesleyan during the regular season.
First pitch is set for 2:00 p.m. The Central Dutch Network will
live stream the game. Central will carry
live stats.
SCOUTING THE PRAIRIE WOLVES
Nebraska Wesleyan enters Friday with a 26-10 overall record, and a 9-6 in American Rivers Conference play. NWU is the four seed in the conference tournament. The Prairie Wolves earned a split with (20) Central in their last series, winning game one 8-0, before losing game two 2-0. Nebraska Wesleyan has posted a batting average of .331, with 24 home runs, 214 RBIs, a slugging percentage of .476, and an on base percentage of .409. Nebraska Wesleyan's pitchers have an ERA of 3.03 and a WHIP of 1.31. Defensively, the Prairie Wolves carry a .957 fielding percentage.
TEAM LEADERS
Hits: Hanna Roth (44)
Home runs: Taylor Korecky &
Amber Kosmicki(4)
RBIs: Sami MacDonald (29)
Runs: Lyndsey Roth (41)
Batting Average: Lyndsey Roth (.414)
Slugging Percentage: Lyndsey Roth (.616)
On Base Percentage: Lyndsey Roth (.559)
ERA: Eva Fahrnbruch (2.29)
MARY YORI PROFILE
Head Coach
Mary Yori is in her ninth season as the head coach of Nebraska Wesleyan's softball program. Yori was hired as Nebraska Wesleyan's first full time head softball coach in June of 2015. In nine seasons as head coach, Yori has complied a 177-138 record and was the 2016 AD3I All-Independent Co-Coach of the Year. On Tuesday, March 19th, 2024, Yori earned her 900th career victory in Nebraska Wesleyan's game one victory over Peru State College. Under Yori's leadership, Nebraska Wesleyan has seen both individual and team success. Yori coached Nebraska Wesleyan to its first NCAA tournament appearance in 2022 and has won 20 games five times. Last season Yori helped pitcher
Elise Warneke earn first team All-Conference and third team NFCA Third Team All Region honors. In Yori's time at Nebraska Wesleyan, 10 athletes have earned NFCA/NCAA III scholar athlete honors.
HISTORIC REGULAR SEASON
Nebraska Wesleyan enters the conference tournament fresh off one of the best regular seasons in school history. The regular season saw NWU win at least 26 games for the first time since 2011, and for the fourth time in program history. Additionally, Nebraska Wesleyan posted nine conference wins, which is the Prairie Wolves' second most since joining the American Rivers Conference in 2017. The Prairie Wolves went 9-2 at home, 6-4 on the road and 11-4 in neutral site games.
AMERICAN RIVERS CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT BREAKDOWN
The American Rivers Conference softball tournament will feature the top six teams from the regular season, playing a single elimination tournament. The top two teams during the regular season, Central and Coe, received byes. (1) Central will play the winner of (4) Nebraska Wesleyan vs. (5) Simpson, on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. (2) Coe will face the winner of (3) Wartburg vs. (6) Luther at 3:00 p.m. The championship game is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 11th.
NEBRASKA WESLEYAN SOFTBALL TRADITION
Nebraska Wesleyan's lone conference championship occurred in 1986. That season saw Nebraska Wesleyan post an 8-4 conference record in the NIAC. Nebraska Wesleyan's only NCAA tournament appearance occurred in 2022. That season saw Nebraska Wesleyan go 23-16 overall, and 8-8 in American Rivers Conference Play.
SCOUTING THE STORM
Simpson enters Friday with a 26-12 record. Simpson has a batting average of .338, with 26 home runs, 241 RBIs, a slugging percentage of .526, and an on base percentage of .425. Simpson's pitchers have an ERA of 2.63 and a WHIP of 1.36. The Storm are coached by Brent Matthias who is in his 9th season.
