LOUISVILLE, Ky.-- The Trine softball team is ranked fifth in the nation in the latest NFCA Division III Top 25 Poll, released Wednesday.
The ranking is the highest of the season for the Thunder. Trine has received a 23-point increase in vote totals over the last two weeks to jump from a no. 7 ranking to fifth in the nation. Last week, the Thunder wrapped up a fourth-consecutive MIAA Championship with sweeps of Alma and Saint Mary's. Trine concluded the regular-season 33-2 overall, with a 15-1 mark in conference play. The Thunder will host the MIAA Tournament this Thursday and Friday, with an automatic-qualifying berth to the NCAA Regionals on the line.
Click Here for NFCA Division III Top 25 Poll.
Trine leads the nation in home runs per game and slugging percentage, while ranking third in the nation in scoring and stolen bases per game. The Thunder are batting .384 as a team, a mark that ranks ninth in the nation. Trine also ranks fourth in doubles per game and 11th in on-base percentage.
Carly Searles (Levering, Mich./Petoskey) has set the table atop the Thunder lineup as one of the most dynamic offensive threats in the nation. Searles leads the nation in runs per game and ranks second in triples, third in batting average, fifth in slugging percentage, sixth in on-base percentage and ninth in stolen bases.
Searles won the MIAA batting title and set the all-time conference record for hits. She ranks second in NCAA history with 48 career triples and is tied for second in NCAA Division III history with 293 career hits.
Freshman Kaylee Fox (Vermilion, Ohio/Edison) tied the MIAA record with nine home runs in conference play to finish as the league-leader in home runs. Fox's 11 home runs are 12th in the nation, while her 46 RBIs are 18th. Jamie Schnarr (Kettering, Ohio/Kettering) and Kaitlyn Clark (Mount Juliet, Tenn./Wilson Central) are 34th and 39th in the nation in RBIs respectively.
Justine Robles (Long Beach, Calif./Lakewood) has led the pitching staff with seven shutouts, a mark that is tied for 12th in the country and a new team record. Robles is 17-2 with a 1.81 ERA on the season.
Trine hosts Saint Mary's in the first round of the MIAA Tournament tomorrow at 1 p.m., or 30-minutes following the conclusion of the preceding game between Hope and Alma.
For more information on the MIAA Tournament, visit THIS PAGE.