ROCHESTER, Mich. — The Oakland softball program opens Horizon League play with doubleheaders on Friday, March 12, and Saturday, March 13, at IUPUI in Indianapolis. The opening doubleheader will begin at 2 p.m., while Saturday's doubleheader is set for a noon start. Live stats will be provided for all four games.
WEEKEND INFORMATION
March 12 | 2 p.m. | Live Stats
March 12 | 4 p.m. est. | Live Stats
March 13 | Noon | Live Stats
March 13 | 2 p.m. est. | Live Stats
SCOUTING THE JAGS
IUPUI is off to a 2-8 start to the 2021 season. They opened the year with five-straight losses at the Tiger Invite against the likes of Jacksonville, Auburn, and Murray State. Both of the Jaguars' wins came against Bellarmine in Louisville, Ky.
Lexi Lucas has led the pitching staff with a 2.57 earned run average in six appearances. She ranks first on the team in ERA, complete games (three), innings pitched (30.0), and opponent batting average (.225). Freshman infielder Lauren Youngblood has paced the offense by hitting .238 with one double and three RBI. Sophomore outfielder Maicey Bedrick batted 3-for-4 with one RBI in IUPUI's 6-3 victory at Bellarmine (3/7).
ALL-TIME VS. IUPUI
Oakland holds a 29-24 all-time record against the Jaguars. The programs last paired up for three games during the 2019-20 season, when IUPUI took the series with two wins. The Golden Grizzlies won the series closer in thrilling fashion, as OU rallied from a two-run deficit to come out on top, 10-9 (9 inn.) Shannon Carr hit a go-ahead single in the top of the ninth inning to clinch the victory. Lauren Griffith and Jamie Squires led the offense with a combined five hits, two home runs, five RBI, and three runs scored.
OPENING WEEKEND RECAP
The Golden Grizzlies opened the season with a 1-3 showing at the Purple/Gold Challenge. Oakland came close to a win in its season opener against the Loyola Ramblers with runners on first and third with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning but could not push in any runs, resulting in a 6-5 loss. OU rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the sixth inning, tallying four runs in the seventh to earn a 4-2 victory over the Lipscomb in its final game of the tournament.
HOT START FOR JONES
Redshirt junior third baseman Madison Jones hit a team-best .385 with one double, one home run, and three RBI at the Purple/Gold Challenge. She slashed .385/.429/.692 and added a stolen base in four games. Jones was at her best against Lipscomb (3/5), as she finished a triple shy of the cycle with a single, double, home run, and two RBI.
CAMPBELL EARNS COMPLETE GAME WIN
Sophomore pitcher Sydney Campbell earned a complete-game win against Lipscomb (3/6) at the Purple/Gold Challenge. The right-hander went seven innings, giving up two earned runs on six hits, allowing one walk, and striking out three. She allowed no runs on two hits from the third inning on.
CAN'T STOP CAMMIE
Junior first baseman Cammie Brummitt reached base a team-high eight times at the Purple/Gold Challenge. She reached base two or more times in three of the four games, including a team-best three times — two walks and one HBP — at Lipscomb (3/6). On the season, Brummitt leads the team in on-base percentage (.533) and walks (four).
SHE'S JUST A FRESHMAN
OU freshman Maci Brown has hit a team-leading two doubles in four starts for the Golden Grizzlies. In her first-career appearance for Oakland, she went 1-for-2 with a double, walk, and two runs.
2021 SCHEDULE
The Golden Grizzlies are slated for 40 in-conference games with nine weekend series and two midweek matchups. A Friday-Saturday doubleheader is scheduled for each in-conference series, while the two midweek matchups are scheduled for Tuesday doubleheaders. Click here for the full schedule.
2020 IN REVIEW
The Golden Grizzlies produced a 7-11 record in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season. Oakland raced out to a 6-3 start to the season with feature wins over Clemson, Villanova, and UMass. Oakland closed the campaign with a six-game losing streak. Three of the six losses came against Power-5 opponents such as Northwestern and Illinois.
KEY RETURNERS
Oakland returns 19 of its 20 players from a year ago. Key returners include ace pitcher Campbell and junior infielder Jones. Campbell led Oakland in ERA (1.92), wins (five), complete games (eight), strikeouts (47), and innings pitched (62.0) as a freshman. Jones finished the 2020 season with top-10 HL marks in runs (15), triples (two), hits (20), stolen bases (four), doubles (four), and RBI (11).
Returners who started 10 or more games last season include Brummitt, Griffith, Carr, Rachel Zerona, Sidney Rayba, Jen Krizka, Hannah Chadwell, Jessie Munson, and Kayla Gibson.
NEWCOMERS
OU welcomed six newcomers — all freshmen — to the program last fall. Four of the six freshmen come from Michigan. The other two newcomers arrive on campus from Ohio and Indiana.
#HLSB PRESEASON POLL
The Golden Grizzlies were picked fourth in the Horizon League Softball preseason coaches poll. Oakland was one of two teams (UIC) to receive a first-place vote in the poll. UIC was projected to win the conference with 99 points and nine of the 10 first-place votes.
