Huskers Host Purdue for Three-Game Series

The Nebraska softball team (28-14, 6-5 Big Ten) hosts Purdue (11-29, 3-6 Big Ten) for a three-game conference series this weekend, although weather has adjusted the original schedule. The teams will now play a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 3 p.m. The first 500 fans on Friday will receive a free Husker visor. Game three will be played on Sunday, beginning at noon. All three games will be available on BTNPlus/FloSoftball (subscription required), as well as Huskers.com (radio).

Last Time Out
Nebraska split a mid-week doubleheader with Iowa on Tuesday, dropping the first game and winning the second game. In the 3-0 win, Bri Cassidy recorded her first-ever stolen base and Kaylan Jablonski picked up her sixth save of the season. Jablonski is now tied for second on Nebraska’s all-time saves list.

Scouting Purdue
Purdue enters the conference series with an 11-29 record, which includes a 3-6 record in Big Ten play.  On Wednesday, the Boilermakers split a doubleheader against Indiana State. Purdue won game one, 8-6, but lost game two, 3-2.  In conference play, the Boilermakers went 2-1 against Northwestern at home last weekend, winning the first two games and dropping the third.

Purdue mixes up its roster quite a bit, as only three players - Ryleigh Scott, Jenny Behan and Mallory Baker - have started all 40 games and only two more have played in all 40 games (Stephanie Ramsey and Alexa Binckes). Halle Hixenbaugh has also seen significant action this season for Purdue, playing in 38 games, with 36 starts.

At the plate, Scott leads the team with a .316 batting average. Ramsey and Behan are also hitting above .300. Ramsey is hitting .310 and ranks second on the team in slugging with .434 and RBIs with 19. Behan is batting .306 and leads the team with seven home runs, 29 RBIs and a slugging percentage of .613.

In the circle, time has mostly been split between Kaitlynn Moody and Sydney Bates. Moody has a 7-15 record and a team-low 3.99 ERA. She’s pitched 121.0 innings and has made 28 appearances, including 16 starts. She has also pitched eight complete games and has 82 strikeouts. Bates has an ERA of 5.18 and a record of 4-1. She has also made 28 appearances, with a team-high 21 starts. She’s pitched 105.1 innings and six complete games. She also has two saves and a team-best 84 strikeouts.

As a team, Purdue ranks ninth in fielding in the Big Ten with an average of .955. The Boilermakers have 49 errors this season and have given up 38 unearned runs over 40 games.