BILLINGS, Mont. – Set for its final tune-up before beginning Great Northwest Athletic Conference play, the Montana State University Billings softball team plays a four-game series at Northwest Nazarene University this weekend.
 
The series between conference opponents will not be recorded as league games, as the 20-game GNAC schedule is set to begin next weekend. The conference series between NNU and MSUB is scheduled for April 30-May 1 at Avitus Group Stadium in Billings. "We are excited to get back out on the road, and NNU has always been a great team to play against," said MSUB head coach Lisa McKinney. "It was exciting to be back at home (last week), and we hadn't played since our series against Carroll last year. It was a great atmosphere, and the girls were really energetic."
 
"We are excited to play NNU, and we have been working really hard preparing for this," said sophomore third baseman Marin Penney.
 
 
This Week's Schedule
MSU Billings at Northwest Nazarene University – Nampa, Idaho – Halle Field
Friday, March 12 – 1 PM Doubleheader
Saturday, March 13 – 12 PM Doubleheader
Live video – https://vimeo.com/event/681301
Live statistics – https://nnusports.com/sidearmstats/softball/summary
*Per GNAC mandate, no fans allowed at conference schools in the spring of 2021.
 
The Yellowjackets (3-5) are coming off a busy week as they split the six games they played. MSUB made its home debut with a 3-1 series victory over Carroll College, before dropping a pair of non-conference games at Saint Martin's University last Saturday. Sunday's series finale against the Saints was rained out.
 
"When we are at home we have really good energy, and we are looking to take that energy into all the other games we play," Penney commented on the momentum from the wins against Carroll. "We have to be in tune on every play and every pitch, and expect the best from each GNAC team that we play."
 
After this weekend's series at NNU, the Yellowjackets will host Central Washington University on March 20-21 to kick off conference action. Four of MSUB's five league series will be in Billings, as MSUB will have a notable home-field advantage in the race to the conference tournament. The GNAC Championships are scheduled for May 6-8 at Western Oregon University, with the top-four teams in the regular-season standings qualifying for the postseason. "I feel like we are in a really good position," McKinney said. "We are still figuring everything out, and we didn't have the fall games this year to test everything. I think we are in a good spot, and once we get that first win against a conference opponent we are going to start rolling."
 
HUGHES TEARING IT UP IN SENIOR SEASON: Senior Allie Hughes has been the top power hitter for the Yellowjackets this spring, hitting three home runs and driving in nine through her first six games of the year. Hughes led the way in Game 2 of the doubleheader at Saint Martin's, hitting a three-run home run and setting a career high with four runs batted in in the game.
 
JONES KEEPS HOT START GOING: After hitting her first home run in an MSUB uniform in the team's opener at Regis on Feb. 20, Leslie Jones has kept the hot start to her year going with a .421 batting average through her first six games. Jones hit another home run in the series against Carroll, and she is reaching base at a clip of .400 while slugging .789 with five RBIs.
 
FRAZIER MAKING NOISE AT TOP: True freshman centerfielder Brie Frazier has taken ownership of the leadoff spot in MSUB's lineup, hitting .318 and reaching base at a clip of .375 to start her collegiate career. Four of Frazier's seven hits have been doubles, and she is tied with Hughes for the team lead in runs scored with seven through the first eight games of the spring.
 
FISHER WALKS IT OFF: Senior Brittanee Fisher hit one of the biggest home runs of her career last week, launching a solo shot to straightaway center field to give MSUB a 7-6 walk-off win over Carroll in the bottom of the seventh inning. The blast was the 22nd of Fisher's career, moving her into sole possession of the No. 9 spot in MSUB history in home runs. On the season Fisher is hitting .294 with a pair of home runs and a .647 slugging percentage, while playing perfect defense in 25 chances at first base.
 
PENNEY, OLIN ROCKS AT HOT CORNER: Defensively at third base, the combination of Marin Penney and Darian Olin has been perfect for the 'Jackets. Penney has played error-free defense with a team-leading 15 assists, and Olin has gone error-free in her six chances as well. Olin has gotten off to a strong start at the plate, hitting .444 in her first nine at-bats of the spring, while Penney has contributed a home run. "I am grateful to have a lot of playing time as a freshman last year, and one of my personal goals is to just stay solid on defense," said Penney. "Backing up our pitchers is super important to me, because they are working really hard for us."
 
"Marin has been doing awesome over at third base," McKinney said. "She is really taking charge."
 
NORWOOD A TOP SLUGGER: Senior Sydney Norwood leads the team with a 1.100 slugging percentage, as all four of her hits on the year have gone for extra bases. Norwood had a pair of doubles, her first-career triple, and a home run last week, and she is tied for second on the team with five runs batted in while batting .400.
 
IMADA COLLECTS FIRST COLLEGIATE HITS: True freshman Kilee Imada picked up the first two hits of her collegiate career against Carroll, doubling on Day 1 and hitting her first home run on Day 2. Imada has earned three starts so far on the year and has played perfect defense in her six chances in the infield.
 
QUALTERI GOES THE DISTANCE: Sophomore Julia Qualteri logged a complete game against the Saints, taking a tough loss despite striking out four and giving up just two runs in the narrow 2-0 defeat. Qualteri has added an inning to her stat line in each of her three starts this season, and enters the week with a team-best ERA of 4.20. "Julia did amazing in that first game and she really came out strong," Couch said. "After the first inning she really adjusted and sat them down the six innings that she pitched."
 
COUCH REACHES CAREER HIGH: Senior pitcher Haley Couch reached a career single-game high in strikeouts last week, as she fanned six Carroll players in her first start of the year. None of the six runs she allowed in the game were earned, and Couch threw a season-high 4 2/3 innings in the performance. "My curveball was definitely working, and that was really awesome for me," Couch commented on her start at home last week.
 
"Haley has been doing really well on the mound, and she is doing a good job of mixing pitches," McKinney commented on the senior right-hander. "She has also kept the hitters off-balance, and that has been helpful with her recent success."
 
KISTER MAKES NOISE IN FIRST START: True freshman Jenna Kister made her first collegiate start count, as she went the distance in MSUB's 10-1 run-rule win over Carroll. The right-hander struck out eight hitters while walking just one, and gave up just one run on four hits in her five innings of work.
 
"It's really nice to have that solid group of girls back with us again," Penney said regarding the team's chemistry. "We are really comfortable with each other, and our freshmen fit right in. We have been working really hard and doing a lot of personal growth these last few months with everything going on, and we have been trying to take that into the field."
 
Northwest Nazarene University Nighthawks
 
The Nighthawks enter this week's series with a record of 6-2 so far, and this will be the team's first taste of NCAA D2 competition this spring. NNU took 3 of 4 games from NAIA Eastern Oregon University on Feb. 24-25, before winning a series 3-1 against NCAA D3 Whitworth University last weekend. This marks the midway point of a season-opening 20-game home stretch for NNU, which will host Saint Martin's University and Western Oregon University over the next two weeks after the series with MSUB.
 
Brittany Genuardi is NNU's top hitter this season, with a .632 batting average and 10 RBIs in her first eight games of the year. Ivy Hommel adds team highs of three home runs and 16 RBIs, and she and Dominique Trevino are each hitting .500 to lead the offense. NNU is batting .403 as a team, while slugging .570 and posting a mark of 19-for-23 in the stolen base department.
 
Sidney Booth is NNU's top pitcher, holding a 1.77 ERA with 35 strikeouts against only five walks in her first 23 2/3 innings pitched on the season. Jackie Vargas and Tori Hensley are the other NNU players to have made multiple starts, and they hold a 4.77 ERA and 5.13 ERA, respectively.
 
Series History: MSUB owns a 55-20 record in the all-time series against NNU, which dates back to the 2004 season. The Yellowjackets are 25-13 in road games against the Nighthawks. NNU has had the upper hand lately however, winning all four games between the teams in the last meeting on April 19-20, 2019, and winning nine of the last 12 games overall in the series dating back to the 2017 season.