Softball set for first pitch of 2020 at Desert Stinger starting on Friday

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The annual trip to the Desert Stinger will once again help welcome in the new season for the Western Oregon University softball team as they will play five games in three days.

Last year, WOU went 3-0 in the Desert Stinger defeating Colorado Christian, Cal State Monterey Bay and Chico State. The Wolves were scheduled to face both UC San Diego and Hawaii Pacific, but both of those games were cancelled due to weather.

The Wolves put together a strong 2019 campaign that saw the team compile 33 wins on their way to advancing all the way to the NCAA West Region Championship game. WOU finished the season receiving votes in the NFCA National Poll and were again in the receiving votes category in the first NFCA National Poll for 2020 picking up six votes. If the poll extended past the top-25, the Wolves would currently be ranked 31st.

WOU was picked as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Preseason favorites in the coaches poll after finishing second in the regular season last year. The Wolves enjoyed a strong 12-4 home record in 2019, but also did well on the road going 9-6 away from home in true road contests and 12-8 in neutral site games. WOU began to gain momentum towards the end of the regular season by winning six straight games that included sweeps of Simon Fraser, Saint Martin's and Central Washington.

Following losses to Concordia and Northwest Nazarene in the GNAC Tournament, WOU responded in a big way with their backs against the wall at the NCAA Division II West Regional. After dropping the opening game to San Francisco State, Maddie Mayer and the Wolves locked down to pick up a pair of 1-0 victories in the same day over Concordia and San Francisco State to stay alive and advance to the championship game against host Concordia-Irvine. Although the Eagles took the championship game and advanced to Super Regionals, the Wolves will look to once again make a push in 2020 to get back to the regional stage.

The honors rolled in for WOU following their terrific season with Ayanna Arceneaux being named a NFCA All-American, along with D2CCA All-American. Arceneaux also landed on the first team NFCA and D2CCA All-Region teams along with teammate Ryanne Whitaker. Seven were named to the All-GNAC team led by first team selections Arceneaux and Whitaker, while Mayer was named the Freshman of the Year. Tyler Creach and Cheyanne Rimer landed on the second team, while Kennedy Coy, Haley Fabian and Mayer were named honorable mention.

Not only were the Wolves strong on the field in terms of earning accolades, they did well in the classroom. A total of 10 (Arceneaux, Chandler Bishop, Sydney Bowers, Coy, Creach, Allyson Drury, Haley Fabian, Jenna Kelly, Maddie McClelland and Whitaker) were all named to the Academic GNAC Team. Fabian and Whitaker later were named to the Google Cloud Academic All-District Teams and then Drury, Fabian, Whitaker and Creach were tabbed to the NFCA All-American Scholar-Athlete list.

Looking back at the stats from the 2019 season, Arceneaux led the way with an impressive .460 batting average that was No. 14 in the nation last year. She also led the team in runs scored (35), hits (64), tied for triples (4), total bases (91) and added 15 walks to just six strikeouts, along with four stolen bases. Coy nearly finished with a .400 average tallying a .388 batting clip to end the season. Four other Wolves hit over .300 including Whitaker (.365), Rimer (.350), Kiley Lynn (.316) and Creach (.312). Bowers led the team in doubles with 13, Coy, Whitaker and Creach all tied Arceneaux for the team lead in triples with four, Rimer clubbed eight home runs and also led the team in RBI with 40. Whitaker drew 21 walks and also led the team with 20 stolen bases, one of two players to swipe double-digit bags with Creach picking up 10.

In the circle, Mayer had a freshman year to remember leading the team with a 2.19 ERA, five shutouts and held teams to a .256 batting average while picking up 12 wins, 13 complete games in 112 innings pitched. Mayer also added a pair of saves. Fabian led the team with 13 wins in 21 appearances, including 16 complete games, 70 strikeouts and a 2.75 ERA in 122.1 innings of work. Bishop showed her versatility as not only did she hit three home runs and drive in 12 runs, she pitched in 12 games logging 56.1 innings and picked up four wins to go along with a 3.73 ERA. McClelland and Reilly Tidwell also saw time in the circle as the two combined for four wins and pitched 44 innings. As a staff, WOU held a slim 2.82 ERA in 334.2 innings pitched, picking up six shutouts, 168 strikeouts to just 84 walks.

WOU will open the Desert Stinger against a familiar regional opponent in San Francisco State on Friday at 11:30 a.m. Last year, the teams ended up playing three times, with two coming at the end of the season during the playoffs. The first meeting went to the Wolves, 4-2. Then in the NCAA West Regionals, San Francisco State took the first game over WOU, 6-3, before the Wolves answered back with a 1-0 victory. The Gators went 39-20 last year and feature a roster with four seniors and just one junior.

Later in the day on Friday, WOU will matchup with Sonoma State with first pitch set for 2 p.m. The two teams have matched up with each other each of the previous three seasons, as the SeaWolves have won two of the last three meetings. The win for the Wolves came in 2018 at the Desert Stinger, 4-3. Sonoma State went 36-20 last year and also reached the West Regional falling to UC San Diego. The SeaWolves have five seniors and five juniors on this year's roster.

On Saturday, WOU is set to face Colorado Christian first at 4:30 p.m. The Cougars out of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, went 36-16 last year with the season ending in the RMAC Tournament. Last year, WOU and CCU faced each other to open the season at the Desert Stinger with the Wolves rolling to the 8-3 win in the only meeting between the teams. Colorado Christian has three seniors and five juniors on this year's roster.

To finish the day on Saturday, WOU will face Oklahoma Christian at 7 p.m. This will be just the second time the two teams have faced each other with the first meeting occurring in 2014 with WOU taking the 5-4 victory in San Antonio. The Eagles went 40-16 last year just missing out on a bid to regionals. Oklahoma Christian is in the process of transitioning to the Lone Star Conference. The team features two seniors and seven juniors on this year's roster.

To close the tournament, WOU will face Cal State San Bernardino on Sunday at 2 p.m. Cal State San Bernardino won the last meeting in 2018 (11-8) and have won the nine meetings in the series since 2010. The Coyotes went 29-20 last year and just missed reaching the West Regional falling to Sonoma State in the CCAA Conference Tournament title game. The team features four seniors and 10 juniors on this year's roster.

Live stats will be available for all five games and can be found by clicking here.

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Players Mentioned

#12 Haley Fabian: P; 5' 9"; Senior; R-R

#21 Jenna Kelly: INF; 5' 7"; Senior; R-R

#22 Maddie McClelland: P; 5' 8"; Sophomore; L-L

#7 Cheyanne Rimer: Ut; 5' 8"; Senior; R-R

#1 Ryanne Whitaker: INF; 5' 4"; Senior; R-R

#8 Ayanna Arceneaux: OF; 5' 4"; Redshirt Junior; S-R

#27 Chandler Bishop: P/INF; 6' 0"; Senior; R-R

#9 Sydney Bowers: INF; 5' 4"; Junior; R-R

#32 Kennedy Coy: UT; 5' 1"; Senior; L-R

#2 Tyler Creach: UT; 5' 3"; Junior; L-R

Players Mentioned

#12 Haley Fabian
: 5' 9"; Senior; R-R
: P

#21 Jenna Kelly
: 5' 7"; Senior; R-R
: INF

#22 Maddie McClelland
: 5' 8"; Sophomore; L-L
: P

#7 Cheyanne Rimer
: 5' 8"; Senior; R-R
: Ut

#1 Ryanne Whitaker
: 5' 4"; Senior; R-R
: INF

#8 Ayanna Arceneaux
: 5' 4"; Redshirt Junior; S-R
: OF

#27 Chandler Bishop
: 6' 0"; Senior; R-R
: P/INF

#9 Sydney Bowers
: 5' 4"; Junior; R-R
: INF

#32 Kennedy Coy
: 5' 1"; Senior; L-R
: UT

#2 Tyler Creach
: 5' 3"; Junior; L-R
: UT