BILLINGS, Mont. -- The Montana State University Billings' softball team opens Great Northwest Athletic Conference play on the road at Northwest Nazarene University Saturday.
THE SERIES
* The Yellowjackets and Northwest Nazarene meet for the 48th and 49th time Saturday.
* It is the second-most games with an opponent for MSU Billings.
* Montana State Billings has won 40 of the 47 all-time meetings.
* MSUB has won nine straight over the Crusaders.
* During the nine-game win streak, MSU Billings has outscored NNU, 87-29.
* The last NNU win in the series was a 9-7 victory in Nampa on March 12, 2011.
* The Yellowjackets have won 18 of the 24 all-time meetings at Northwest Nazarene.
* The Crusaders have lost all 18 meetings in Billings.
* The first meeting was a 13-0 MSUB win in Nampa on March 8, 2004.
LEADING OFF
• After a 20-day break, Montana State Billings returns to the field for game action.
• The Yellowjackets have won their last three conference season-openers.
• Since joining the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, MSUB is 3-2 in conference season-opening contests.
• For the second straight season, the MSU Billings was picked first in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference coaches' preseason poll.
• Since joining the GNAC six years ago, the Yellowjackets have been picked preseason favorites in four of them.
• MSUB claimed the conference crown in 2009 and last season, it was picked first in the preseason poll both of those seasons.
• The Yellowjackets open the year with a program-best 46 points, and four first-place votes in the poll.
ABOUT THE CRUSADERS
Northwest Nazarene University hosts its fifth and sixth home games of the season in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference opening series against MSUB Saturday. After winning four straight, including a home-opening sweep over Eastern Oregon, the Crusaders dropped a pair of contests to the University of Great Falls last week. UGF outscored Northwest Nazarene, 10-1, in the doubleheader. NNU is led by Shelby Johnson's conference-leading .542 batting average. She has a 1.042 slugging percentage, and has three home runs and 18 RBI already this season. As a team, the Crusaders have a 3.80 ERA, which is third in the GNAC.
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
Meg Harasymczuk finally ended her drought on April 14, ripping a home run in game-two of a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader against Northwest Nazarene University to pull within one homer of the program's single-season record. The Montana State University Billings softball team, which has 49 home runs on the season, swept the twinbill over the Crusaders with a 9-4 victory in game-one before posting a 9-0, six-inning win in the second game.
Becca Frank had the most prolific outing at the plate for the day as the junior shortstop went 6-for-7 between the two games with four runs batted in and another two scored.
MSUB SOFTBALL APPEARS IN NATIONAL POLL
The Montana State University Billings' softball team received 10 votes in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association NCAA Div. II Preseason Poll. The Yellowjackets were selected as the preseason favorite to defend their Great Northwest Athletic Conference title, and are the only GNAC team in the preseason national poll. Valdosta State will christen defense of its 2012 national championship as the unanimous pick at No. 1 in the Division II Preseason Poll. The NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll is voted on by 16 NCAA Division II head coaches, two representing each of the eight NCAA regions. Final 2012 records are shown, first-place votes are in parentheses.
YELLOWJACKETS TOP PRESEASON GNAC POLL
For the second straight season, the Montana State University Billings' softball team was picked first in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference coaches' preseason poll. Since joining the GNAC six years ago, the Yellowjackets have been picked preseason favorites in four of them. MSUB claimed the conference crown in 2009 and last season, it was picked first in the preseason poll both of those seasons. After winning the conference title a season ago, Montana State Billings hosts the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships this season. The Yellowjackets open the year with a program-best 46 points, and four first-place votes in the poll.
WEST TEXAS A&M WINS DESERT STINGER
The West Texas A&M softball team claimed the fourth annual Desert Stinger tournament title in its first appearance in the 28-team classic. The Lady Buffs finished the tournament unbeaten, and edged out the University of Mary for the first place finish. Mary was the other undefeated team, but West Texas A&M won the run differential tiebreaker. The Lady Buffs scored 43 runs, while giving up 13, and totaled 27 tournament points.
