Midwestern State at Edmond Regional Festival

Friday, Feb. 11 - Sunday, Feb. 13
Tom Heath Field at Lawson Plaza (Oklahoma City, Okla.) and Gerry Pinkston Stadium (Edmond, Okla.)

EDMOND, Okla. – After a week's delay, Midwestern State officially kicks off the 2022 season and the Brittanie Talley reign Friday in the Edmond Regional Festival.

The festival is co-hosted by Central Oklahoma and Oklahoma Christian with games played at UCO's Gerry Pinkston Stadium and OC's Tom Heath Field.

THE SCHEDULE

Friday, Feb. 11

Midwestern State vs. Missouri Southern, Noon (OC's Tom Heath Field)
Midwestern State at No. 20 Central Oklahoma, 4:30 p.m. (UCO's Gerry Pinkston Stadium)

Saturday, Feb. 12

Midwestern State vs. Southwestern Oklahoma State, 10:30 a.m. (OC's Tom Heath Field)
Midwestern State vs. Fort Hays State, 3 p.m. (UCO's Gerry Pinkston Stadium)

Sunday, Feb. 13

Midwestern State vs. Rogers State, 10:30 a.m. (UCO's Gerry Pinkston Stadium)

MUSTANG RETURNERS

Senior Ashley Turner led the Mustangs with 42 hits and a .344 average last season. In 40 games, she collected a team-best 27 runs and .409 on base percent. Turner also led MSU with eight double plays from third base. She posted 149 catches and 96 assists.
 
Bailey Brenek started and played in 41 of 42 games for MSU in 2021. The junior put up a team fourth-best 27 hits for a .245 average. Brenek complied nine runs with seven doubles and two homers. The infielder led the team and sat 14th in the Lone Star Conference with 20 walks.
 
Hanna Hetherington notched 22 hits and 8 runs for a 0.244 batting average. The sophomore recorded five doubles and three home runs in 30 starts. Her 20 RBIs sat second for the Mustangs while she collected 108 catches from catcher and first base. Hetherington gathered 92 putouts for a 0.963 fielding percent.
 
Payton Griffin garnered 17 hits in 97 at bats through 36 games. The junior registered a 0.175 average with three homers and four doubles. Griffin saw 14 runs and 5 RBIs for the Mustangs. The left fielder and third baseman grabbed 68 catches and 43 putouts.

MSU NEW FACES

Transfer Kennedy Cameron made 11 appearances and five starts on the mound at Norfolk State. The sophomore went 1-3 with 17 strikeouts and 3.55 ERA to help the Spartans to a 20-19 season. Cameron tallied 23.2 innings pitched.
 
Sophomore Maci Sanders comes to MSU from Grayson College. The infielder recorded 48 runs on 63 hits for a .360 average. In 175 at-bats, Sanders registered 32 RBIs and .415 on-base percent. She stole 28 bases in 2021 and collected a .868 fielding percent.
 
Freshman Mikey Dominguez recorded a .491 average as a senior at Rockport-Fulton High School in Rockport, Texas. The catcher notched 42 runs and 22 RBIs to earn 1st Team All-South Texas. Dominguez added 20 stolen bases and a .996 fielding average in her quest as Defensive Player of the Year.

THE BRITTANIE TALLEY ERA

Head Coach Brittanie Talley begins her first year at the reigns of the Midwestern State team. She comes from Vernon College where she turned an eight-win program into a powerhouse over the last five years. Talley completed a 129-75 record (.632) over the past five seasons. She earned Texoma NexStar College Coach of the Year after leading the Chaps to a 42-12 mark last spring and an advancement to the NJCAA regional tournament. Talley had a standout career at Jackson State where she earned second-team All-SWAC honors on the mound.

SCOUTING THE LIONS

Missouri Southern was picked fourth in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association preseason poll after a 30-15-1, 19-6-1 MIAA season in 2020-21. The Lions return 13 from the previous season and add five freshmen.
 
MSSU had six All-MIAA performers, including First Team All-MIAA and D2CCA All-Central Region shortstop, Josie Tofpi. The junior started all 46 games in 2021 and led the team in batting average (.386), runs scored (36), hits (56), doubles (13), total bases (82), slugging percentage (.566) and assists (101).
 
Kara Amos and Ashlynn Williams were Second Team All-MIAA as a pitcher-catcher duo. Amos had a .351 average with 26 RBIs and a team-high .464 on-base percentage. The sophomore went 10-5 in the circle with a 2.69 ERA in 24 appearances. Williams led the Lions with five triples, four home runs and 224 putouts. The junior added 32 RBIs and ten doubles to snag a .565 slugging percentage.

SCOUTING THE BRONCHOS

Fellow MIAA member, Central Oklahoma, is already 3-2 on the 2022 season. The Bronchos started the season with back-to-back wins over Texas Woman's and Texas A&M-International in early February. The team then dropped games to St. Mary's and UT Tyler on Feb. 6. They bounced back with a 3-2 win over Southern Arkansas. No. 20 UCO was picked to lead the MIAA in the preseason poll with eight first place votes.
 
Sophmore Shayleigh Odom leads Central Oklahoma with a .538 average, seven hits and ten RBIs. The outfielder clinched one double and one homer for a .846 slugging percentage in five games. She adds six catches and one assist on the year.
 
Outfielder Jaycee Minter earned second-team All-MIAA honors in 2021 after starting all 50 games. She currently tops UCO with six runs in five appearances. The sophomore has five hits and eight RBIs for a .333 batting average.
 
Sophomore Kylee Lynch is 2-0 in 15.2 innings. In her three starts, she earned ten strikeouts and allowed eight runs on 21 hits. The pitcher owns a 3.57 ERA in 2022.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS

The Great American Conference picked Southwestern Oklahoma State as eleventh in the 2022 preseason poll. The Bulldogs are coming off a 9-29, 9-24 GAC season. Head Coach Kim Maher was 2019 Coach of the Year.
 
Senior Hannah Franklin was the lone player to earn All-GAC recognition last year. The first baseman led SWOSU in batting average (.366) and home runs (11) to post honorable mention accolades. Franklin added nine doubles, three triples and 24 RBIs in her 35 appearances.
 
Senior Breanna Simmons also returns for the Bulldogs. In 2021, she led Southwestern Oklahoma State in runs (23), hits (42), RBIs (26) and doubles (10). The infielder started all 38 games, in which she tallied six stolen bases and six home runs.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS

Fort Hays State is 1-3 on the 2022 season with two losses to MSU Denver and a split double header with Regis. The MIAA side was picked eighth in the preseason poll after going 17-9 in conference play last year. The team returns seven and adds 14 underclassman to this year's team.

Sara Breckbill is in her fifth year at Fort Hays State and led the Tigers with a .331 average in 2021. The senior tallied a team-best 27 RBIs and 11 doubles. Breckbill was named All-MIAA Honorable Mention as she started all 46 games and tallied 46 hits. She currently averages .250 and has two runs on three hits.

Loren Beggs collected a .326 average last year with five home runs. The sophomore had 45 hits and 26 RBIs for FHS in 2021. Beggs averages .250 this season with three RBIs on three hits.

Jessica Espinoza is the only pitching returner for the Tigers. The senior collected a 2.33 ERA in six innings on the mound. She allowed seven hits and two runs. Espinoza owns six catches and six putouts from the outfield this season.

SCOUTING THE HILLCATS

MIAA member, Rogers State, is 5-1 for the 2022 season. The Hillcats won four straight at the Houston Classic before dropping 7-9 to No. 18 Angelo State on Feb. 7. RSU followed up with an 11-0 beating of Texas Woman's. The team was tabbed to finish third in the MIAA after falling to Central Missouri in the tournament championship last year.
 
Elexis Watson leads the Hillcats with a .571 average and eight hits in six games. The senior has three runs and five RBIs while completing a .929 slugging percent. The infielder leads the team with 36 catches and 35 putouts on the year.
 
Makayla Bowman is Rogers State's leader with six runs on the season. The senior inked four hits, including a double, triple and home run.
 
At the mound, Andrea Morles is 3-0 with three starts and a 1.56 ERA. The senior allowed 15 hits and four runs in 18 innings while striking out 28 batters. She's allowed just four walks and one home run in three starts for RSU.

SERIES HISTORY

MSU is 5-0 all-time against MSSU. Midwestern State claimed the only neutral victory in 2019 in Bentonville, Ark. This was a 4-2 win on Feb. 9.
 
In a long-standing history, UCO leads MSU 28-24 in the series. The Mustangs have fallen seven straight games to the Bronchos in the last eight years. Midwestern State is 7-13 when playing on the road, with the last win in Edmond, Okla., in 2010. Central Oklahoma defeated MSU 9-2 in the 2020 meeting at home.
 
Midwestern State owns a 29-7 advantage over Southwestern Oklahoma State since 2004. The two teams were conference foes up until 2011 when SWOSU left the Lone Star Conference. The two teams have played just one neutral game, which took place Abilene, Texas, in 2006. MSU walked away with a 6-0 defeat over the Bulldogs. The teams last squared off in 2020 on the Mustangs' home turf. Midwestern State gained an 8-0 win on Feb. 15 with Bailey Brenek's two runs and two hits.

The series between Midwestern State and Fort Hays State is tied at 2-2. MSU tied the series with the 4-3 win in Lubbock, Texas, in 2021. Ashley Turner tallied two hits and one run in the win. At neutral sites, the Mustangs are 1-2 all-time against the Tigers.
 
The Mustangs have swept Rogers State in the four meetings between the two schools. Since 2016, MSU is 2-0 in neutral sites against RSU. The last meeting was in 2020 when Midwestern State completed a 5-4 win over the No. 22 Hillcats in Edmond, Okla. Ashley Turner registered one hit and one run in the victory.

UP NEXT>

Midwestern State competes in the Ouachita-Henderson State Tournament next week in Arkadelphia, Ark. The Mustangs play Ouachita Baptist and Christian Brothers (Tenn.) on Friday, then take on Henderson State (Ark.) and Drury (Mo.) on Saturday.