CANTON, Ohio – The Malone University softball team looks to continue their ascent towards the top of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) standings on Monday with a doubleheader at Hillsdale College. This will be a makeup of Saturday's postponed games due to weather.
 
GAME INFORMATION:
Malone Pioneers (13-6-1, 7-5 G-MAC) @ Hillsdale Chargers (19-11, 7-1 G-MAC)
Johnny Williams Field – Hillsdale, MI (3/5 DH)
Live Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/hillsdale/portal.htm?eventId=616364&streamType=video
Live Stats: https://www.hillsdalechargers.com/sports/sball/2020-21/boxscores/20210412_4wp0.xml
 
SOFTBALL SERIES HISTORY:
Malone is looking for their first win all-time versus Hillsdale after coming up short in 11 previous attempts.
 
MALONE PIONEERS TEAM NOTES:
Schedule | Roster | Statistics
 
Malone split their most recent doubleheader at Ohio Dominican on Friday and sit at 7-5 in conference play. The Pioneers are fourth in the conference standings as they travel out-of-state to do battle with the Chargers. After a red hot hitting day against Ohio Valley, the bats were surprisingly quiet at Ohio Dominican. Malone hit just .188 as a team and will have to find a way to hit the ball against the team with the most runs in the conference in 2021.
 
The last series seemed to be an offensive anomaly for the Pioneers, as they still sit the second-best hitting team in the G-MAC with a .332 team average. Malone has the most homeruns per game (.75) and highest slugging percentage (.508) in the conference. Six different players have hit one over the outfield wall, led by Lexi Betz and Bailey Byers with five longballs each.
 
April Howser was able to extend her on-base streak to 15 games against Ohio Dominican. Lauren Bennett was hit by a pitch in game two Friday, and has reached base the most times on walks (13) and hit by pitches (2) for Malone this season. Bennett leads the conference with an on-base percentage of .577.
 
On the pitching side, Kelsey Byers threw all 13 innings against Ohio Dominican and notched a complete game shutout in a 2-0 victory in game two. Byers has the most wins (13) and strikeouts (134) in the G-MAC, while allowing the fewest walks (6) out of eligible candidates.
 
HILLSDALE CHARGERS TEAM NOTES:
Schedule | Roster | Statistics
 
The Chargers have won three straight, including a doubleheader sweep over Walsh on Friday. Hillsdale is second in the conference standings with a 7-1 G-MAC record.
 
In the team's 30 games, Hillsdale has a team average of .300 and a 3.35 team ERA.
 
Madison Stoner has the highest batting average for the Chargers at .442, good for third in the G-MAC. Sam Catron is another dangerous hitter for Hillsdale, with a .356 batting average, and a conference-high nine homeruns and 29 RBIs and runs scored.
 
Dana Weidinger has made a team-high 15 starts and has a 12-4 record with 11 complete games in 94.1 innings pitched and a team-low 2.23 ERA.