SAN ANGELO – The No. 1 Angelo State softball team will host Texas Woman's in the NCAA Division II Super Regional with a trip to the NCAA Division II Softball Championship in Salem, Virginia on the line starting on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Mayer Field.
The Rambelles are 55-5 on the season and will face a Pioneer team that is 37-20 overall. ASU defeated Lubbock Christian and Colorado Mesa twice to advance to the super regional while TWU lost to St. Mary's before winning four straight games over Tarleton State, West Texas A&M and St. Mary's twice to move on. The Rambelles are hitting .311 as a team and team ERA of 1.42.
ASU will be seeking its fifth trip to the NCAA Division II Softball Championship tournament after appearances in 2004, 2007, 2009 and 2010. This will be the first NCAA Division II South Central Super Regional that ASU has been to and hosted since 2012. The opposing coach will be familiar as Genny Stidham was then the Central Oklahoma head coach the last time ASU was the host.Â
The pitching staff of Kenedy Urbany, Brandy Marlett and Morgan Hill each played a hand in the NCAA Division II South Central Regional. Urbany, the D2CCA South Central Player of the Year, earned two victories during the regional and is 20-1 overall. She has only allowed 29 runs in 120.1 innings pitched. Marlett earned a save and pitched the most innings during the regional. The D2CCA South Central Regional Pitcher of the Year is 27-4 on the year and has set the ASU school record for single season strikeouts with 287. Morgan Hill won the game against Colorado Mesa to send ASU to the NCAA Division II Super Regional. The junior has a 2.18 ERA and is 8-0 with six saves. She limited Colorado Mesa to just two hits in a complete game shutout. She has struck out 59 batters in 74.0 innings.
The Rambelle offense has been led by Courtney Barnhill's .382 average. The LSC Freshman of the Year and all-region selection has led ASU in runs scored (49), RBIs (50), walks (37), slugging (.676), on base percentage (.500) and tied for the team lead in home runs with 13. She has also stole 17 bases on the season to go along with 11 doubles.
Madison Greenwell leads ASU in hits this season with 68 on the year. The junior has hit nine double and a team-high five triples. She has scored 40 runs and driven in 26 on the year. She is one of five players with double-digit steals with 12.
Taegan Kirk has a team-high 20 doubles on the season with a .345 average. She has 57 hits and seven home runs. She has scored 39 times and driven in the second most RBI with 47. She has drawn 15 walks and has the third best slugging percentage at .594.
Bailey Wallace has a .327 average on the season with 48 hits, three doubles and two home runs. She has been hit by a pitch 33 times and walked 12 times. Danae Bina, a D2CCA first team all-region selection, has recorded 46 hits and a team-high 29 stolen bases. She has scored 38 times and hit nine doubles.
Urbany set the ASU career record for home runs with her 42nd and 43rd of her career. She has 13 on the season to go along with 12 doubles. The senior has a .319 average and 52 total hits. The Helotes native has scored 40 runs and driven in 44 RBIs.
Amanda Ramage, Brooke Mangold and Alexis Evans were starters during the regional. Ramage has 16 hits on the season with two doubles and two home runs. Mangold has scored 23 runs and walked 13 times. Evans has 34 hits with five doubles and nine home runs. She has scored 24 runs and recorded 39 RBIs.
Others off the bench that have helped ASU include Megan Gordon, Karina Rocha, Katlyn Herzog, Kelly Johnson, Heather Reatherford, Becky Wilhelm and Jacqueline Montejano. Reatherford and Johnson scored 15 and 16 runs, respectively. Gordon has eight hits in 18 at-bats and Rocha has 23 hits and scored 18 runs. Wilhelm has two doubles on the year while Montejano has scored three runs.
The game will be carried locally on 100.1 KCLL with Jeremy Bryant on the call.
