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THIS SEASON
The University of Iowa softball team’s 2020 season was cut short on March 13 due to Covid-19 pandemic. The Hawkeyes played 22 games, going a Big-Ten best 17-5. Iowa led the Big Ten with a .976 team fielding percentage and boasted the conference’s best batter in freshman Nia Carter, who hit .509. In the circle, senior Allison Doocy (second; 1.54) and junior Lauren Shaw (fourth; 1.71) ranked inside the conference’s top five in ERA.
DYNAMIC DUO
- Junior Lauren Shaw and senior Allison Doocy were a potent one-two punch for the Hawkeyes on the mound.
- The duo have combined for 163 strikeouts in 141.3 innings
- Doocy was second in the Big Ten with a 1.54 ERA and Shaw is fourth with a 1.71 ERA.
- Shaw was one of four pitchers in the conference with nine wins.
- Doocy was fourth in the Big Ten with 102 strikeouts and she strikes out 41-percent of the batters she has faced. (102-249).
- As a team, Iowa ranked second in the Big Ten with a 2.15 combined ERA.
- Iowa’s pitching staff ranked 15th in the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.85).
B1G TIME
- Freshman Nia Carter led the conference in batting through the nonconference season.
- Carter batted .509 with nine RBIs, two doubles, and one triple.
- The Rancho Cucamonga, California, native had 28 hits on the season to four strikeouts. She is the only player in the Big Ten’s top-20 with less than five strikeouts.
- Carter ranked fifth in the Big Ten in total hits (28).
- Nationally, Carter was 11th in batting average.
BURN(S) NOTICE
- Freshman Kalena Burns was named the Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Week following her performance at The Spring Games, March 6-7.
- The Corona, California, native hit .563 with two homeruns and six RBIs, including a walk-off homerun against Loyola on March 6.
- Additionally, Burns slugged 1.000 and did not strikeout in 16 at-bats.
- Overall, Burns batted .403 on the season with a team-high 20 RBIs.
- The honor is the first of Burns’ career and fourth Big Ten honor of the season for Iowa.
(FUN)-DAMENTALS
- Iowa finished first in the Big Ten in fielding.
- Iowa’s .976 fielding percentage paced the conference and its 15 errors was fewest.
- The Hawkeyes had 450 putouts with 152 assists and 15 errors.
- On the basepaths, Iowa caught five runners stealing of 17 attempted steals.
- Nationally, Iowa was 29th in the nation in fielding percentage.
NATIONAL NOISE
- Senior Allison Doocy ranked 17th in the nation with 10.4 strikeouts per seven innings.
- The Ankeny, Iowa, native sits seventh on the Division I active career leaderboard with 621 career strikeouts.
- Doocy recorded her 600th career strikeout against South Alabama on Feb. 29.
YOU LOVE TO SEE IT
- After 22 games, Iowa was 17-5 with one of the best starts in program history.
- With two more wins, Iowa will have tied its win total from 2019.
- Iowa was on pace for its highest win total since at least 2013 (30).
- Iowa earned five wins in Hawaii to reach 12 wins – the earliest Iowa has reached the 12-win plateau (Feb. 23).
- The 2020 team joined the 1991 (18-2) and 2000 (13-1) teams as the best starts in program history.
- The 1991 team was 53-11 and the 2000 team finished 46-15.
NEWCOMER BATS
- Four of Iowa’s top five hitters were new to the team in 2020.
- Freshman Nia Carter (.509) leads the team followed by freshman Kalena Burns (.403), sophomore Riley Sheehy (.375), senior Havyn Monteer (.324), and sophomore Kit Rocco (.311).
CARTER NAMED B1G FRESHMAN, PLAYER
- Freshman Nia Carter made a statement in Hawai’i and was named the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Week and Player of the Week on March 24.
- Carter batted .744 (10-14) in five games with four RBIs.
- She recorded four multi-hit games, including a 3-for-3 performance against UMKC in the tournament finale.
- The honor is Carter’s first of her career and first Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor since Allison Doocy on April 17, 2017.
- Carter is the first player in program history to earn Big Ten Player of the Week and Freshman of the Week honors in the same week.
SHAW NAMED B1G PITCHER
- Junior Lauren Shaw was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week following a dominant weekend at the B1G/ACC Challenge in Atlanta, Georgia, Feb. 14-16.
- Shaw went 2-0 in the circle with two complete games, one shutout, and a 0.00 ERA.
- Shaw tallied 18 strikeouts on the weekend, including a career-high 10 against Georgia Tech on Sunday.
- Shaw helped Iowa win three of four games over the weekend and is 5-1 overall.
- The honor is Shaw’s first of her career and Iowa’s first since Allison Doocy’s nod on March 11, 2019.
LOOKING LIKE A BIG YEAR
- Renee-Gillispie-coached teams have improved an average of 12 wins in its second season under Gillispie.
- The biggest turnaround came during Gillispie’s tenure at Texas Tech where the team improved 30 games from year one to year two.
- The Hawkeyes were on pace to exceed the 2019 team’s 19 wins by the end of March.
GOTTA START THEM ALL
- Two Hawkeyes have played and started in all 22 games.
- Juniors Mia Ruther and freshman Kalena Burns have all earned the nod each game in 2020.
IOWA PRIDE
- The Hawkeyes have been accuring Iowa talent over the offseason.
- Of Iowa’s 11 new players, six are from the state of Iowa.
FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
For all of the latest news and information on Iowa softball, visit hawkeyesports.com. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at Facebook.com/iowahawkeyessoftball and @iowasoftball on Twitter and Instagram.
