ANGOLA, IND.-- The sixth-ranked Trine softball team will host the 2014 MIAA Softball Championship this Thursday and Friday at the Trine Softball Field.
The Thunder will be seeking their second-consecutive MIAA Tournament title after clinching their third-straight regular-season conference title. Trine enters the tournament 33-2 overall and finished conference play 16-0. The Thunder are the no. 1 seed, with Hope (no. 2), Olivet (no. 3) and Calvin (no. 4) rounding out the field. Olivet and Hope open the tournament Thursday at 11:00 a.m., followed by the Thunder and Knights squaring off at 1:00 p.m.
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The Thunder score 8.34 runs per game, a mark that ranks them second in the nation. The team also ranks third in slugging percentage (.574), seventh in home runs per game (1.00) and 10th in batting average (.372). Trine pitchers have posted the 23rd-best ERA in the nation (1.67), while the defense has backed the pitching with the 24th-best fielding percentage in the nation (.967).
Trine outscored the rest of the tournament field by a combined 47-4 in six games this season. Those six games included three wins by run-rule. Seven of Trine's regular starters are batting .315 or better. Eight players have homered, and seven players have driven in 20 or more runs.
Bree Fuller (Hubbardston, Mich./Fulton) hasn't allowed a hit in her last two MIAA starts. The junior no-hit Calvin before firing the first perfect game in Trine history in a victory over St. Mary's.
Trine's Carly Searles (Levering, Mich./Petoskey) leads the nation with 12 triples and is third in runs scored per game (1.51) Kaitlyn Clark (Mount Juliet, Tenn./Wilson Central) has hit 13 home runs this season, the fifth-highest total in the nation.
No. 2 seed Hope finished 13-3 in the MIAA and 21-13 overall. Junior first baseman Peyton Wells enters the tournament on a hot streak, earning MIAA Player of the Week honors last week after batting with two homers and 10 RBI's over the the course of six games.
No. 3 Olivet rode an MIAA-best 1.52 ERA to a 26-9 overall record and 10-6 record in the MIAA. Ashlyn Grubb anchors the Comets staff after posting a 17-7 record with a 1.47 ERA. Rotation-mate Morgan Stratton has a 9-1 record to go along with a 1.20 ERA.
No. 4 Calvin is looking to solidify an NCAA Regionals bid as the only MIAA-school other than Trine ranked in the NCAA Regional rankings. The Knights were ranked fourth as of the last rankings released Apr. 24. Calvin ranks second in the conference in both home runs and slugging percentage.
Four games are scheduled for Thursday, with the tournament wrapping up with the final elimination game and championship game(s) Friday.