The Mount Mary University softball team is hosting three doubleheaders this week. First up will be the Lawrence University (10-6) on Tuesday April 7th. The games will be played at Kulwicki Park in Greenfield, Wis. with first pitch at 3:00 pm.
It has been two seasons since the two teams have played when the Vikings defeated MMU in both games of their doubleheader with a combined score of 35-0. Since then, the Blue Angels have added to their lineup an assortment of well trained and experienced softball players. While Katie Edwards (Sr./Mackinaw, Ill.) was one of the few Blue Angels to have consistent offensive success against the Vikings, the Blue Angels have really boosted their offense in the last two seasons.
During that 2013 season, the Blue Angels played 19 games, in those games, MMU had only 56 hits and had a team batting average of .161, all the while sporting a 16.86 ERA. This year the Blue Angels already have 97 hits and have bumped their average to .226 and slashed their ERA to 7.97.
The Blue Angels have continued to make the small steps each season to make themselves more successful. This year's recruiting class has brought in two sharp and durable pitchers in Nikki Festge (Jr./Menomonee Falls, Wis.) and Ashley Contreras (Fr./College Station, Texas) who have each four complete games, and have reduced the team ERA and overall opponents' batting average significantly.
Contreras has been a big boost to the offense as well leading the team in extra base hits (8) while swing the bat at a .340 average. Newcomers Molly Peck (Fr./Milwaukee, Wis.) and McKenzie Harnack (Fr./Stoughton, Wis.) have been a big lift at the top of the order with a combined .274 on base percentage and 10 stolen bags.
As the Blue Angels continue to improve, they will have to test themselves against a strong Lawrence program, but as the Blue Angels have already battled with some of D3's top talent down in Fort Myers, this contest should show how MMU has grown since then.
Following Tuesday's games, the Blue Angels will face Lakeland College Thursday April 9th at Kulwicki Park in Greenfield, Wis. First pitch of the doubleheader between MMU and the Muskies will be at 3:00 pm.
