LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The Trine softball team remained ranked No. 4 in the latest Division III Top 25 poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.
The Thunder held on to the ranking for the third consecutive week. Last week, Trine went 3-1 with a sweep of Calvin and a split with Ohio Northern. The team had a 19-game winning streak snapped in game two of the doubleheader against ONU. The Thunder received the same number of Top 25 votes as it did the last two weeks (176). Trine owns an overall record of 21-1, including victories over currently ranked foes Luther (No. 5), Messiah (No. 10) and Illinois Wesleyan (No. 23).
Michaela Hartline (Niles, Mich. / Brandywine) is the reigning MIAA Player of the Week. The freshman record a hit in all four games last week, batting .600 with a pair of home runs. Included among her efforts was a four-RBI performance in a 5-0 victory over Calvin. She ranks second in the MIAA with a .521 on-base percentage.
The Thunder continue to produce power at an elite rate, ranking second in the nation with 1.18 home runs per game. The team ranks 20th in the nation with a .500 slugging percentage. As a team, Trine has hit 26 home runs and totaled 60 extra-base hits in 22 games.
Kaylee Fox (Vermilion, Ohio / Edison) and Makenna Hartline (Niles, Mich. / Brandywine) lead the Thunder with seven home runs apiece, tied for ninth nationally. Fox has 36 career home runs, ranked third in school history, with the school record of 42 within reach with a strong second half of the season. Carly Bachna (Elyria, Ohio / Elyria) has added six homers, 17th in the nation, and a team-best 23 RBIs on a team-leading .403 batting average.
Trine's pitching staff has worked to a 1.84 ERA, second in the MIAA and 37th in the nation. Danielle Ray (Hamilton, Ohio / Badin) tossed back-to-back, two-hit shutouts in her last two starts. Ray's 70 strikeouts rank third in the MIAA. Hannah Kampmann's (St. Paul, Minn. / Cretin Derham Hall) 1.39 ERA and Ray's 1.44 ERA rank third and fourth in the conference respectively.
Following a postponement, the Thunder are scheduled to travel to face Olivet Friday, Apr. 7. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Head coach Don Danklefsen would earn his 400th career victory with a Trine sweep.