UP NEXT
The University of Iowa softball team travels to Palm Springs, Calif. for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. The Hawkeyes open play on Friday with match ups against Bethune-Cookman and No. 1 UCLA. On Saturday they will face Cal and Cal State Northridge. They close out the weekend on Sunday morning as they take on Oregon St.
WATCH/Follow LIVE
All five games will be streamed on FloSoftball (subscription required). Fans can follow along for live updates via Twitter @IowaSoftball.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hawkeyes finished the ACC/B1G Challenge in Raleigh, N.C. going 2-2 on the weekend. They had victories over both NC State and Syracuse in their first two games of the weekend. Offensively, Nia Carter led the team hitting .500 on the weekend. They had six starters finish the weekend hitting over .300. Freshman, Jalen Adams through a complete game shutout against Syracuse. She allowed just four hits and one walk, while striking out four.
SCOUTING BETHUNE-COOKMAN
The Wildcats enter the weekend at a 1-8 mark on the season. Their top hitter is Desirae Martinez who is hitting .360 and has started all nine games in the infield. As a team BCU is hitting .167 and has an OBP of .241. In the circle, the Wildcats have a staff ERA of 4.93 in 54 innings of work.
SCOUTING UCLA
The Bruins enter the weekend undefeated with five wins over top-25 teams. They are ranked No. 1 in D1 Softball’s national ranking. They have six athletes hitting over .320, led by Maya Brady who is hitting .568 with a slugging percentage of 1.081. The UCLA pitching staff has a 1.12 ERA (7th nationally) with a .137 BA against. They have four different pitchers who have all recorded at least one win on the season.
SCOUTING CAL
The Golden Bears enter the weekend on a four-game winning streak. They have scored 79 runs in 11 games, while only allowing 33. Seven different Cal hitters have hit a home run on the season. As a team, they rank ninth in the nation in walks (50). Junior catcher, Kacey Zobac is hitting a team-leading .423. Haylei Archer is 4-0 in the circle with a 0.63 ERA in 22.1 innings.
SCOUTING CSUN
The Matadors enter the weekend at 5-5. Sophomore outfielder, Mikayla Carman is the only player to start all 10 games for CSUN. She is hitting .290 with four RBIs. Two Matador pitchers have thrown 69% of the innings for the team. They have a staff ERA of 2.17.
SCOUTING OREGON ST.
The Beavers are coming off a 2022 season that ended at the WCWS. They start this season hitting .229 as a team. They do have three athletes hitting over .300, but those three have not started all 10 games for OSU. In 61.2 innings, the Beaver pitchers have allowed 45 runs while their offense has score just 24.
PLAYING THE BEST
The Hawkeyes will face 12 different teams that made the 2022 NCAA Tournament: Lehigh, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Princeton, South Florida, UT-Chattanooga, and Wisconsin. They will face four teams who advanced to the WCWS, Northwestern, Oregon State, UCLA, and national runner-up Texas.