BILLINGS, Mont. – After a conference series sweep over Northwest Nazarene last week, this weekend the Yellowjackets are on a league break and are hosting a four-game series against instate competition the University of Great Falls.
 
After two conference series wins against Central Washington at home and Northwest Nazarene on the road, this weekend MSUB is looking forward to some instate rivalry. The 'Jackets are set to take the field against the Argos in what has come to be a fun Montana series for MSU Billings (23-18), and a chance for fans to see locally-based talented teams.
 
On the season, the MSUB softball team has won the last seven of eight games. The Yellowjackets are putting up some big numbers at the plate. In the series against CWU, MSUB batted .400 and last weekend against the Crusaders the 'Jackets hit .462. In the past eight Great Northwest Athletic Conference games, MSU Billings scored 97 runs on 117 hits. Collectively in the last two series, MSU Billings hit 15 home runs and 19 doubles. The 'Jackets have moved up and MSUB leads the GNAC and is ranked 19th in NCAA Division II in batting with a .344 average.
 
At the top of the list is senior Taylor Hoke. The senior shortstop battled .667 (8-of-12) last week and is batting .406 to lead her team and is third in the GNAC. Hoke had five RBI's and scored seven runs during the four games last week. On the season Hoke has accumulated 54 hits, 41 RBI's and 36 runs. She also has nine home runs which is second on the team and second in the conference.
 
Also last weekend, freshman Cameron Cassinelli batted .545 (6-of-11) and walked four times while driving in seven runs.  Brittney Sanders and Kelsey Devlin had nine and eight RBI's.  Pitcher Jessyka MacDonald allowed just one run in eight innings recording two victories. In the circle MacDonald boasts a 14-6 record with two saves, 12 complete games, and a 2.94 ERA. She has 96 strikeouts in 124 innings pitched.
 
First baseman Emily Osborn leads the Yellowjackets and the conference with 12 home runs. She is batting .381 on the season and is just behind Hoke in RBI's with 34 and is tied with Hoke in total bases with 93. Osborn is tops in the GNAC in slugging percentage at .738 with Hoke right behind her in second with .699.
 
Five Yellowjackets on the MSUB roster are batting north of .350. Aubrey Conceicao and Devlin are ranked eighth and ninth in the conference respectively. Conceicao is batting .386 and is eighth in the GNAC in hits with 49 and seventh in RBI's with 33. She is also tied with Alicia Fine from Western Washington as the two highest-ranked GNAC players in the nation this week.  They are tied for sixth in sacrifice flies with five each. Devlin is batting .384 and is fourth on the MSUB team in runs scored with 30.
 
Sophomore Bella Rovens is the fifth MSUB player included in the group batting above .350. The center fielder and leadoff hitter for MSUB is batting .363 and is second in the conference in runs scored with 40 and third in stolen bases (11) and walks (22). Rovens' on base percentage leads her team and is second in the GNAC at .473.
 
The University of Great Falls is 21-11 on the season and 3-1 in the Frontier conference.
 
The Argos are batting .330 collectively. They are led at the plate by Kirstie Thomas batting .415 with five home runs and 29 RBIs, Kayeley Lyons batting .395 with three home runs and 13 RBI's, and Keeley Van Blaricom who is batting .372 with nine home runs and 18 RBI's. Alex Lowry with 22 RBIs and Mindy Larson with 26 RBI's are also top offensive threats.
 
Van Blaricom at 16-3 and a 2.17 ERA is UGF's leading pitcher and is one of the top pitchers in the NAIA. This season she has 14 complete games and four shutouts.
 
This weekend MSUB is sponsoring a canned food drive. General admission to the games this weekend is just $2.00 for each canned food item donated. The series against UGF kicks off this Saturday, Apr. 17 with a double-header starting at 1 p.m. Sunday's double-header is scheduled for a noon start time at Avitus Group Stadium.
 
Live video and live stats for all four games in the series will be available online at msubsports.com.
 
Last time out: MSUB travelled to Great Falls for two games last season. The 'Jackets won both by scores of 9-8 (9 innings) and 5-0. In Game 1 of last year's double-header the score was tied at six sending it into extra innings. Both teams scored a run in the eighth to keep the game going. In the final inning MSUB added two runs and kept UGF to a single run in the bottom of the ninth for the win.
 
The Series: MSU Billings has won all nine games the two programs have played since the Yellowjackets and Argos began competing against each other in 2007.