Midwestern State vs. Tarleton State
Friday, Mar. 18, 2016 | 5/7 p.m.
Saturday, Mar. 19, 2016 | 2/4 p.m.
Mustangs Park | Wichita Falls, Texas
Records: Midwestern State (18-16, 4-8 LSC); Tarleton State (14-13, 1-7 LSC)
Live Stats: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4
Live Video: MSUMustangs.tv


WICHITA FALLS, Texas – After sweeping a non-conference Wednesday doubleheader on the road against Oklahoma Baptist, Midwestern State returns to Mustangs Park for a four-game Lone Star Conference series Friday and Saturday against rival Tarleton State. Friday's doubleheader gets underway at 5 p.m. while first pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday.

LAST TIME OUT
– Midwestern State earned a run-rule over Oklahoma Baptist, 14-3, in five innings in game one behind a pair of six-run innings before going on to take a 2-0 victory in game two
– Freshman pitcher Makenzi Harris tossed a two-hitter for Midwestern State while the Lady Bison recorded all three runs off a pair of MSU errors in the second inning
– Senior third baseman Katelyn Vinson recorded a grand slam in the second inning to cap off a six-run frame to set the momentum in the early going for the Mustangs
– All nine Mustangs that made appearances at the plate recorded hits as the Mustangs totaled 13 for the game
– Homers for junior designated hitter Baylee Voigt and freshman right fielder Taylor Mordecai lifted MSU to the win in game two with junior pitcher Erin Knox earning the victory in the circle in a complete game effort
 
VINSON MATCHES LSC HOME RUN RECORD
– With her grand slam against Oklahoma Baptist, Katelyn Vinson tied the Lone Star Conference career home run record with her 62nd homer 
– It was Vinson's third career grand slam and first since recording two as a freshman in 2013
– She moved to the top of the LSC leaderboard alongside former West Texas A&M standout Renee Erwin, who took over as the record holder during her senior season in 2015
 
VINSON SETS TWO NEW SCHOOL RECORDS
– Making her return to the field after a two-game absence, Katelyn Vinson made history in the series opener against Eastern New Mexico on Feb. 26 by becoming the MSU career home run leader
– Vinson inked her 57th career bomb with a three-run shot to break open a 3-3 ballgame in the fifth inning against the Greyhounds
– The Southlake native climbed to the top of the record books just three games after tying Kim Jerrick's previous record-holding mark of 56 set in 2014
– Vinson is closing in on the Lone Star Conference career home run record, needing just one more to tie the record of 62 set by West Texas A&M's Renee Erwin from 2012-15
– In the series finale against the Greyhounds, Vinson moved to the top of the career RBI list as she blasted a three-run home run to push her career total to 200, breaking former teammate Kelley Schaefer's record of 199 set last season
 
A LOOK AT THE MUSTANGS
– Midwestern State improved to 18-16 on the season after its sweep over Oklahoma Baptist
– Vinson leads the Mustangs at the plate this season with a .467 batting average and a team-best.848 slugging percentage and .565 on base percentage, eighth in NCAA Division II
– She also paces MSU with 38 RBI and nine home runs, ranking in the top 15 nationally in both categories
– Senior center fielder Haley Howerton has also put together a stellar senior season with a .429 batting average and a team-high 54 hits and 35 runs scored
– Howerton has also recorded over half of MSU's 31 stolen bases this season, going 16-for-17 on the base paths
– In the circle, Knox and Makenzi Harris lead the Mustangs with six wins apiece with Knox making a team-high 11 starts and throwing six complete games for 59.2 innings this season
– Knox owns a team-best 4.22 ERA while Harris is close behind with a 4.23 in 49.2 innings of work
 
SCOUTING THE TEXANNS
– After beginning the season ranked No. 10 in the NFCA preseason poll, Tarleton State has dropped eight of its last 10 games to fall to 14-13 overall and 1-7 in the LSC
– Nyka Wood comes into the weekend with a .410 average at the plate, leading the TexAnns with eight doubles while adding 32 hits this season
– The sophomore catcher also ties for the team high with three home runs and has a team-best .628 slugging percentage and .468 on base percentage
– Senior outfielder Melody Mayse is hitting .337 on the season while pacing Tarleton with 33 hits, 27 runs scored, 11 stolen bases and three triples
– Sophomore Haley Freyman has spent over 60 percent of the season in the circle for the TexAnns, recording an 11-10 record and 2.91 ERA in 113.0 innings of work
– Head coach Julie Mata is in her 20th season with the TexAnns softball program with a career record of 554-421-3
 
MUSTANGS MAKING THEIR MARK
– Seniors Katelyn Vinson and Haley Howerton have not only posted some big numbers to climb the MSU record books, but the duo have moved to the top of the NCAA Division II active career leaders list in several offensive categories during their final campaigns
– Vinson is the active career leader in NCAA Division in home runs (62) and comes in second in RBI (210) and total bases (449) and fourth in slugging percentage (.841)
– Howerton has also moved to the top of the active leaders, ranking second in career hits (242) and fourth in runs scored (170)
 
THE TIGERT ERA
– Since starting the program 12 years ago, head coach Brady Tigert has led Midwestern State softball to nine NCAA Tournament appearances while compiling a 474-244 (.660) record in his time at MSU
– After a three-year stint at LSC foe Texas A&M-Kingsville, Tigert guided MSU to a 31-16 record in its inaugural season in 2004 where the squad captured the LSC North title and punched a ticket to the NCAA Tournament
– Under Tigert, the Mustangs have claimed two South Central Region Championships (2010, 2011) and advanced all the way to the national semifinals in 2011 before falling to Alabama-Huntsville
– During that two-year span, the Mustangs led all of collegiate softball with 108 wins with back-to-back 54-win campaigns to set a new LSC single-season wins record
– Tigert holds three regional coaching staff of the year honors (2006, 2010-11) and is a five-time LSC Coach of the Year awardee (2004, 2006-07, 2010-11), capturing conference titles in 2006 and 2007
 
MUSTANGS PICKED SEVENTH IN LSC PRESEASON POLL
– Midwestern State was chosen to finish seventh in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll, voted on by the league's head coaches, sports information directors and media representatives
– The Mustangs totaled 87 points in the poll behind West Texas A&M (211), Angelo State (173), Tarleton State (161), Texas Woman's (159), Cameron (142) and Texas A&M-Commerce (101). Texas A&M-Kingsville (54) and Eastern New Mexico (37) rounded out the poll in eighth and ninth, respectively
 
LOOKING AHEAD
– Midwestern State receives a bye in LSC play next weekend before hosting Oklahoma Christian in a doubleheader on Wednesday, Oct. 30 at 4 p.m. at Mustangs Park