Joplin, Mo. - The Missouri Southern softball team will travel down to Clinton, Mississippi and face both Drury and Mississippi College twice due to the uncertainty of this weekend's forecast forcing the cancelation of the AE Memorial Classic in Bentonville, Arkansas that was originally supposed to take place.
 
The Lions opened the 2019 season with a split (1-1) last weekend as they defeated Ouachita Baptist, 2-1 for the first win of the season on a stellar pitching performance from sophomore Abby Atkin as she registered a complete-game victory while allowing one run on four hits and striking out three. Senior Angel Badalamenti gave the Lions the lead after launching a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth.
 
MSSU's schedule continues to get interesting down the line that includes facing one team in the NFCA preseason Top-25 - No. 15 Winona State (Mar. 23) among other competitive matchups out of the Great American, Great Lakes Valley, Gulf South, and Northern Sun Conferences before the start of the MIAA play against Pittsburg State (Mar. 8).
 
The Rundown
Saturday

• 1:00 pm against Drury
• 3:00 pm against Mississippi College

Sunday

• 11:00 am against Drury
• 3:00 pm against Mississippi College

 
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/mc/ (Depends)
Radio: None
Stats:  http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=misc
 
Leading The Hunt (Current stats)
Batting Average: Lexi Ferrari and Angel Badalamenti (.429)
Hits: Lexi Ferrari and Angel Badalamenti (3)
Doubles: Sidnie Hurst (1)
Triples: Emilee Meyer (1)
Home Runs: Angel Badalamenti (1)
RBIs: Angel Badalamenti (2)
Stolen Bases: Elizabeth Windsor (8)
ERA: Abby Atkin (1.00)
Wins: Abby Atkin (1)
Strikeouts: Abby Atkin and Mikaela Cox (3)
Fewest Walks Allowed: Abby Atkin (0)
Opponent Batting Avg: Abby Atkin (.167)
 
Touching All the Bases (Three Facets That Opponents Bring to the Diamond!)
Drury Panthers (4-2)

• Picked 12th in the Great Lakes Valley preseason poll
• Return ten total players including one of two All-GLVC recipients in junior outfielder Jacy Ummel (1^st) who hit .381 and scored 25 runs last season
• Searching for the program's first winning season in 2012 where the Panthers went 36-19 under second-year head coach Jerry Breaux; only one since introducing softball as a sport in 2008

Mississippi College Lady Choctaws (9-3)

• Picked Third in Gulf South Conference (GSC) preseason poll
• Return 12 total players including two All-GSC recipients in junior catcher Carley Crawford (1^st) and senior pitcher Cori Cooper (2^nd)
• The Choctaws have recorded 22 out of 34 total seasons with 20-plus victories with 30 or more seven times since the beginning in 1986, leading towards the program's first GSC championship in 2017 while winning the only game played between them and the Lions during the 2015 season (W, 8-2)

NFCA Coaches Poll (Jan. 30)

Rank	School	Points	Record	Previous
1	Southern Indiana (16)	400	41-23	1
2	Southern Arkansas	363	60-11	3
3	North Georgia	354	62-4	5
4	Saint Anselm	353	44-13-1	2
5	Saint Leo	341	39-18	4
6	Angelo State	330	53-9	6
7	Chico State	320	55-6	7
8	West Chester	274	45-15	8
9	Texas A&M Commerce	266	42-12	9
10	Concordia Irvine	239	46-14	10
11	UAH	236	39-18	11
12	Illinois-Springfield	211	40-19	12
13	Young Harris	194	35-21	14
14	Tarleton State	187	50-11	20
15	Winona State	182	45-7	19
16	Grand Valley State	151	44-9	17
17	Dixie State	136	42-10	13
18	Palm Beach Atlantic	123	36-8	22
19	Lenoir-Rhyne	109	45-10	21
20	Arkansas Tech	88	39-17	NR
21	Colorado Mesa	82	48-5	16
22	Valdosta State	61	41-11	RV
23	UC San Diego	60	36-19	RV
24	Gannon	49	32-15	24
25	Augustana	46	42-15	RV

Receiving Votes:  Southern New Hampshire (24), Embry-Riddle (10).
MIAA Teams and 2019 opponents in Bold; Central Region Teams Italicized.
 
Next Stretch
The Lions make their annual trip to Emporia, Kansas to take part in the Emporia State 5-State Classic where they will face six programs in three days (Feb. 22-24). Opponents in order include: Sioux Falls, Upper Iowa, Missouri St. Louis, Wayne State, Minnesota-Duluth, and Concordia-St. Paul to round out the weekend festivities.