Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirls Head to Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic
February 19, 2014 | Cowgirl Softball
Feb. 19, 2014
STILLWATER, Okla. - The Oklahoma State softball team travels to Palm Springs, Calif., for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, Feb. 21-23. The Cowgirls will play five games in three days.
On Friday, the Cowgirls (7-3) will take on BYU at 12:30 p.m. CT, and Pacific at 8 p.m. On Saturday, OSU will face Long Beach State at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, the Cowgirls will battle Cal State Northridge at 4 p.m. and close out the competition with San Diego State at 6:30 p.m.
The Cowgirls are 4-3 all-time against BYU, their last meeting coming last season when OSU defeated the Cougars 3-2. This is the first time the Cowgirls will see Pacific since Feb. 23, 2012, when Pacific beat OSU 5-0. Pacific holds a 3-2 all-time series advantage over the Cowgirls.
OSU is 4-1 all-time against Long Beach State. The only loss against the 49ers came last season, 3-1. The Cowgirls are 2-4 all-time against Cal State Northridge and last faced the Matadors in 2009 when they lost 4-3. The last time OSU met San Diego State was in 2009 when the Cowgirls fell 1-0. The Aztecs hold a 4-1 all-time series lead over OSU.
OSU is coming off of a 5-0 weekend at the UTSA Classic in San Antonio, Texas. After their performances this weekend, seniors Simone Freeman and Tarah Ettinger were named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week and Player of the Week, respectively.
Offensively for the Cowgirls, junior Shelby Davis leads the team in batting (.487), hits (19), total bases (21) and slugging percentage (.538). Ettinger is second on the team in hits (12) and runs batted in (eight). Meanwhile, sophomore Tiffany Mikkelson is first on the squad with nine RBIs. Senior Shannon Kaufman has come up clutch for the Cowgirls in the ninth-spot, batting .375 with nine hits and nine runs scored. The pitchers are even getting into the offensive action. Freeman is hitting .300 with three hits, three runs scored and a double, while freshman Whitney Whitehorn sports a .250 average with three hits, a double and an RBI.
In the circle, the Cowgirls have continued to shut down opposing batters. Freeman (5-2) enters the weekend with a 0.67 earned run average in 42 innings. She's allowed only six runs on 17 hits while striking out 65 in the process. Whitehorn (2-1) has been solid as well. With a 1.31 ERA, she's allowed eight runs on 17 hits and nine strikeouts in her four starts.
After two weeks of play, Davis leads the Big 12 in hits, and is second in batting average. Mikkelson is tied for sixth in RBIs, and Freeman leads the Big 12 in strikeouts (65), shutouts (two) and opponent batting average (.121). She is second in the conference in complete games (four), games started (six), innings pitched (42) and wins (five). She is third in the Big 12 in ERA.
Fans can follow the Cowgirls in action through GameTracker or via Twitter at @CowgirlSB.
