HUNTSVILLE, Texas (February 13, 2020) – The Loyola University Chicago softball team heads to Huntsville, Texas this weekend to compete in the Bearkat Classic hosted by Sam Houston State. Loyola's slate features a Friday morning doubleheader vs. George Mason (10 a.m.) and Houston Baptist (12:15 p.m.), two Saturday games vs. George Mason (10 a.m.) and Sam Houston State (2:30 p.m.), and one game on Sunday afternoon vs. Sam Houston State (12:15 p.m.).
Last Time Out: Loyola recently wrapped up the Rambler Rumble Tournament in Rosemont, Ill., picking up victories over Nebraska-Omaha (11-3), Butler (4-3 on a walk-off) and IUPUI (7-1). The Ramblers also faced two hard-fought games against Miami (OH) and Green Bay. Senior
Jessica Shields is leading the Ramblers in batting average (.556) at-bats (18) runs (seven) and hits (10). Junior
Allyson Ivey recorded a team-high seven RBI over the weekend, also picking up two doubles and three runs while batting .400. Additionally, senior
Shannon McGee and junior
Katie Polaski each tallied a triple, while sophomore
Nova Sinskul stole a team-high six bases.
Scouting the Patriots: George Mason returns 16 letterwinners and welcomes 10 newcomers to the 2020 squad.The Patriots are currently 0-5 after competing at the Stetson Lead-Off Classic in DeLand, Florida. The Patriots finished the 2019 season with a 22-26 overall record and 10-12 record in Atlantic 10 play. Mason's pitching reached two all-time marks last season, cracking the top three in single-season team saves (4) and the tied for the second most total strikeouts in a season (237). The Patriots retain the entirety of their pitching staff, led by redshirt senior Marina Vitalich, graduate student Bekah Ansbro and junior Haellie Gordon. Vitalich and Ansbro are both in the top five in Mason history for all-time strikeouts, along with earning the top two spots in career saves. Head coach Joe Verbanic is in his 14th season at the helm for the Patriots.
Scouting the Huskies: Head coach Mary-Ellen Hall is back in her 29th season as the Huskies head coach after recording her 800th victory last season. Houston Baptist signed seven newcomers this offseason, six of which are freshman and one transfer. Senior Heidi Jaquez leads the Huskies in RBI (seven) and runs scored (six) and has also tallied two doubles. Senior Riley Bullen is leading the Huskies with a .667 slugging percentage and has one home run. The Huskies finished 23-23 (10-16) in 2019.
Scouting the Bearkats: Sam Houston State was picked second in the Southland Conference Preseason Poll. Seniors Megan McDonald, Tiffany Thompson and Brooke Malia were named preseason All-Southland Conference. Thompson, a first-team All-SLC selection last season, had an outstanding 2019 campaign at shortstop, earning SLC Hitter of the Week honors in consecutive weeks. She hit .330 in SLC play with three home runs and was fourth in league play in triples (two), sixth in sacrifice bunts (6), seventh in hits (29), eighth in runs scored (18), ninth in slugging (.568) and 10th in stolen bases (10). McDonald, who was also a first-team All-SLC honoree last season, was fifth in SLC play in batting average (.389), tied for first in triples (three), second in hits (35) and fifth in runs scored (19). Malia enjoyed a solid season at second base to land on the All-SLC third team in 2019. She hit .325 in conference play and was tied for first in home runs with seven (her 10 total home runs were fourth best in the SLC). She was second in slugging percentage (.687), fourth in RBIs (22) and doubles (nine with a season total of 15, which was second best in the league).Head coach Garrett Valis is in his second season as head coach and fifth season overall with the Bearkats. Sam Houston State finished 35-23 (22-5 Southland Conf.) in 2019
Series Stuff: Loyola is meeting George Mason and Houston Baptist for the first time, but previously met Sam Houston State in 2019. The Bearkats defeated the Ramblers in both games of the doubleheader on March 2.
Up Next: After this weekend's Bearkat Classic, the Ramblers will travel to Florida for back-to-back weekend tournaments from Feb. 29-March 7.
