BILLINGS, Mont. – Off to a solid 7-5 start to the 2018 season, the Montana State University Billings softball team is set for four more non-conference contests coming up this weekend in Colorado.
 
The Yellowjackets will play a doubleheader at Metro State University of Denver on Saturday starting at noon, and a doubleheader at Colorado School of Mines on Sunday beginning at 11 a.m. Live video and live statistics will be available for all four games, through the links on MSUB's softball schedule page online here.
 
"We are excited to get out and play again, especially with weather making it hard to get outside here," said MSUB head coach Jessica Rayman "We need to take advantage of these reps we are getting before conference play starts. We have seen Metro State already, but haven't seen their best, so we need to come out and play tough against them. Mines is going to be some good competition to help us prepare heading into conference."
 
After the best start in program history going 4-1 at the 2018 Desert Stinger Classic, MSUB is coming of a busy week on the road in which it went 3-4. The 'Jackets split a doubleheader against the University of Hawaii Hilo last Tuesday, before going 2-3 at the Dixie State Easton Classic last weekend in St. George, Utah.
 
MSUB got a taste of its opposition at its tournament last week, defeating Metro State 10-2 in six innings on Friday afternoon.
 
DETTLING PITCHES A MASTERPIECE: Setting the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and MSUB records for strikeouts in a single game, senior Megan Dettling shut down Chadron State College with 18 punchouts in a dramatic 1-0 win last Thursday. Dettling, whose previous career single-game high was nine strikeouts, broke the conference record on the last out of the game and became just the 31st player in NCAA Division II history with 18 or more strikeouts in a game.
 

 
In addition to her pitching excellence, which earned her GNAC Pitcher of the Week honors, Dettling continued her strong start to the year at the plate and drove in six runs with a home run last week. Overall Dettling is batting .436 on the year and is second in the GNAC with 14 RBIs.
 
TRACY ON THE BRINK OF HITS RECORD: Recording 15 hits last week, senior Heather Tracy is now just one hit away from the MSUB career record of 215 held by Bella Rovens. Tracy has a hitting streak of 17 games intact, which is the eighth-longest in GNAC history. Last year, Tracy reached a streak of 21 consecutive games with a hit, en route to breaking the school record for knocks in a season with 82. The senior already has 26 hits through 12 games this year, and leads the GNAC with a batting average of .578.
 
MSUB Softball Career Hits Leaders (as of Feb. 15, 2018)

Rank	Name	Hits	Seasons
1	Bella Rovens	215	2014-17
2	Heather Tracy	214	2015-18
3	Terina Stacks	207	2006-09
4	Emily Osborn	190	2012-15
5	Steph Gosselin	188	2006-09
6	Aubrey Conceicao	163	2012-15
	Kelly Parsons	163	2008-11
8	Taylor Hoke	162	2012-15
	Kelsey Devlin	162	2014-17
10	Jenna Haacke	158	2005-08
	Christy Wankel	158	2003-06

 
Within the scope of the GNAC, Tracy is now No. 13 in career hits and her career batting average of .419 is fifth-highest in conference history. Tracy also broke into the top-10 in career steals, as she is tied for seventh in GNAC history with 48.
 
GNAC Softball Career Batting Average Leaders (Min. 250 AB)

Rank	Name	AVG	Hits	AB	School	Seasons
1	Meghan Luebbert	0.449	151	336	CU	2016-17
2	Danielle Monson	0.432	142	329	CWU	2009-10
3	Kailyn Campbell	0.423	285	673	CWU	2014-17
4	Jane Purdy	0.420	208	495	SU	2005-08
5	Heather Tracy	0.419	214	511	MSUB	2015-18
6	Kelsie Gardner	0.415	289	697	WOU	2014-17
7	Samantha Petrich	0.413	128	310	CWU	2010-11
8	Kelsey Haberl	0.410	107	261	SFU	2011-12
9	Sam Munger	0.406	294	724	SMU	2012-15
10	Kelsey Haupert	0.399	129	323	CWU	2010-11

 
BARHAM BACK ON TOP: Off to the best start of her career in the outfield, senior Amanda Barham has been a major catalyst for the 'Jackets hitting out of the leadoff spot. The fourth-year senior from Sparks, Nev., is batting .391 out of the top spot in the order this year, and is getting on base at a clip of .429. She also ranks second on the team with a dozen runs scored, and has three doubles among her 18 hits for a slugging percentage of .457.
 
FISHER DOUBLES DOWN ON LONGBALL: Although they came in different games, a pair of three-run home runs by freshman Brittanee Fisher fell in consecutive at-bats last week. The Billings native went yard twice last Friday, and is now second on the team with a dozen RBIs this year. Perhaps her biggest swing of the bat however came in the 1-0 win over Chadron State, as she supplied a two-out, RBI-single to score Tracy for what proved to be the winning run.
 
HUGHES HOMERS, HITTING HOT: Fellow freshman Allie Hughes has taken advantage of her early opportunities, as she has earned five starts and has played in nine games in her debut campaign with the 'Jackets. Hughes is now 5-for-11 over her last four games at the plate, with three RBIs and four runs scored. In a 12-9 slugfest against UC Colorado Springs, Hughes hit her first collegiate home run in the form of a seventh-inning solo shot to straightaway center field. Overall on the year Hughes is batting .348 for the 'Jackets and is slugging at a clip of .522.
 
FELIX FEELING IT BEHIND THE PLATE: Junior catcher Shayla Felix earned a school record of her own during Dettling's dominant performance, as she had an unprecedented 19 putouts. In addition to handling all 18 of Dettling's strikeouts, Felix caught a foul pop up – one of just three non-strikeouts in the game. Felix will look to replicate her offensive performance in MSUB's first game against Metro State, when she went 2-for-4 and clubbed her second home run of the season. 

GRAND CAM SLAM: Felix and Fisher were not the only Yellowjackets to homer against the Roadrunners, as senior Cameron Cassinelli hit a grand slam in the run-rule victory and finished the game 3-for-4. The senior has a pair of long balls on the year, and has now recorded 32 home runs in her decorated career with the 'Jackets. In addition to being just three long balls away from the MSUB record, she is also just three RBIs away from the all-time Yellowjacket mark as she enters this week with 133. Cassinelli also reached the GNAC career top-10 in home runs, as she is now tied for eighth all-time.
 
MSUB Softball Career RBI Leaders (as of 2/15/18)

Rank	First Name	RBIs	Seasons
1	Emily Osborn	136	2012-15
2	Cameron Cassinelli	133	2015-18
3	Kelly Parsons	130	2008-11
4	Steph Gosselin	111	2006-09
5	Kelsey Devlin	106	2014-17
6	Aubrey Conceicao	103	2012-15
	Terina Stacks	103	2006-09
8	Taylor Hoke	94	2012-15
9	Heather Tracy	92	2015-18
10	Christy Wankel	91	2003-06

 
LINCOLN LEADING THE WAY IN CIRCLE: No one in the GNAC has pitched more than sophomore Maddy Lincoln early in the 2018 campaign, as she leads the league in both innings pitched (39.0) and appearances (11). Lincoln is also fifth in the conference with 23 strikeouts, and she is second in opposing batting average at just .197. The left-hander was tough against Metro State, logging a six-inning complete game and allowing just two runs on four hits while striking out five last Friday.
 
Metropolitan State University of Denver Roadrunners
Saturday, Feb. 17 – 12 PM Doubleheader – Regency Athletic Complex
2018 Record: 2-8
Head Coach: Annie Van Wetzinga (5th season)
2017 Record: 34-21, 26-12 RMAC
First Meeting: MSUB 10, MSUD 2 (6 INN) (Feb. 9 at St. George, UT)
 
The Roadrunners are off to a tough start to the year, and have lost four straight after a 5-2 win over Western New Mexico in the opening game of the Dixie State Classic last week.
 
Kristyn Peters is the team's early leader offensively, with a .462 batting average through 10 starts this year. Peters leads the team with two home runs and 10 RBIs, and she is getting on base at a clip of .517.
 
Annika Anderson and Tes Hass have hit MSUD's other two home runs this year, with the latter ranking second on the team with five RBIs through her first nine games.
 
Metro State has shown promise on the base paths with eight steals in 10 attempts to start the season. As a team they have struggled offensively however, batting just .214 and slugging at just .305.
 
In the circle, Destinee Lopez is the team's ace with a 2.88 earned run average in 17.0 innings pitched. Darby McGhee leads the team with 28 2/3 innings pitched, and has 14 strikeouts to go along with a 5.86 ERA.
 
The Series: MSUB is 2-1 in the all-time series after the win earlier this season. Saturday's games will be the first non-neutral site games in the brief series, as both meetings prior to this year were in Las Vegas, Nev., at the Desert Stinger.
 
Last Time Out: Cassinelli's grand slam was the highlight of a three-homer game, and a sixth-inning RBI-single by Felix counted as the game-winning swing of the bat. Peters went 3-for-3 and had both of MSUD's RBIs in the game.

Colorado School of Mines Orediggers
Sunday, Feb. 18 – 11 AM Doubleheader – CSM Softball Field
2018 Record: 4-6
Head Coach: Leah Glasgow, 5th season
2017 Record: 32-15, 26-10 RMAC
 
Similar to the 'Jackets, Colorado Mines went 2-3 last week at the Dixie State Classic. The Orediggers took No. 9 Dixie State to nine innings, but slipped 10-9 in a wild finish to the tournament. Their wins at the event came in the form of an 8-0, five-inning shutout of Dominican University, and a 10-2 win over Northwest Nazarene University also in five innings.
 
Pua Fujinaga is the team's leading hitter through 10 games, as she is batting .440 with a pair of home runs and 10 RBIs.
 
Clara Larson is a dangerous threat in the lineup, as she already has six home runs and has driven in 17 to go along with a .419 batting average. Larson is slugging at a clip of 1.065, as she has added a pair of doubles for 33 total bases in her first 31 at-bats of the year.
 
Sonoma Toot has also had a good start to the year at the plate, with a .394 batting average and seven RBIs. As a team the Orediggers are hitting .307 and have out-scored the opposition 68-59.
 
With two pitchers holding a sub-2.00 ERA, CSM has a couple of reliable options in the circle. Claire Stringfellow has given up just four earned runs in her first 18 1/3 innings of the season, while striking out 14 and walking just five. Maddie Rogers has looked equally impressive in her first three appearances of the year, with just one earned run allowed in 6 1/3 innings.
 
The Series: MSUB is 1-1 all-time against CSM, with both meetings coming at a neutral site in Las Vegas, Nev.
 
Last Time Out: MSUB was held to just three hits in a 6-2 loss to the Orediggers, as former CSM ace Kelly Unkrich struck out seven in a complete-game effort on Feb. 8, 2013.