LOUISVILLE, KY.-- For the second-consecutive week, the Trine softball team is ranked fifth in the nation in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Poll, which was released Wednesday.
The Thunder held steady at 160 points in the poll after receiving the same number of votes last week. Trine extended their winning-streak to 19 with sweeps of Olivet and Kalamazoo last week. That win-streak is second in school-history to the 2013 team's streak of 20-consecutive wins. Three of those four victories came in run-rule shortened contests. The Thunder are 20-1 overall this season and have opened MIAA-play 4-0. The NFCA Division III Top 25 Poll is selected by eight NCAA Division III head coaches representing the eight NCAA regions. Votes reflect games played through Monday.
As a team, Trine leads the MIAA in every major offensive category. The Thunder lead the conference in runs, hits, home runs, steals, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, total bases and extra-base hits. Updated NCAA Statistics were not available at the time of writing, with the last report being released Mar. 30.
Carly Searles (Levering, Mich./Petoskey) leads the punch atop the lineup, leading the conference in runs (37), hits (38), triples (9), stolen bases (16), batting average (.528), on-base percentage (.600), slugging percentage (.958), total bases (69) and extra-base hits 16). The junior is closing in on Trine's all-time hits record. She has 181 hits in her Thunder career and needs 12 hits to become the school's all-time leader.
Kaitlyn Clark (Mount Juliet, Tenn./Wilson Central) has been on a tear at the plate lately, with hits in her last 11 games. Over that span, Clark is batting .561 with seven home runs, 26 RBI's, and four steals. The sophomore leads the MIAA in home runs (9) and RBI (33) and ranks second only to Searles in runs (25), hits (29), slugging percentage (.899), total bases (62), and extra-base hits (15).
In the circle, the Thunder have been led by Bree Fuller (Hubbardston, Mich./Fulton). The junior leads the MIAA in wins (11), strikeouts (95) and strikeouts per seven innings (9.64). Fuller has won 11-consecutive decisions and sports an 11-1 record to go along with a 2.03 ERA.
Trine heads up to Alma for a showdown against the rival-Scots this afternoon at 3:30 p.m. The Thunder return home for Senior Day this Saturday, Apr. 12 when they host Adrian at 1:00 p.m.