Indiana University
University of Texas
Indiana Heads to Austin for Texas Invitational
2/15/2017 11:08:00 AM | Softball
All five games will be broadcast on the Longhorn Network. The Friday night showdown with South Carolina will be tape delayed until 10:30 p.m. ET, however the other four contests will be shown live.
WEEKEND AT A GLANCE
Thursday, Feb. 16
Indiana at Texas - 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT
Friday, Feb. 17
Indiana vs. Louisiana Tech - 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
Indiana vs. South Carolina - 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT
Saturday, Feb. 18
Indiana at Texas - 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
Indiana vs. South Carolina - 1:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. CT
CHECKING OUT THE COMPETITION
Texas: The Longhorns, who received votes in this week's Coaches Poll, opened the season at home over the weekend, posting a 3-2 mark. Texas picked up two victories against Colorado State and also defeated Maryland. The Longhorns' losses both came against another Big Ten opponent in Minnesota. Senior Tiarra Davis led the way at the plate, batting .538 with 7 hits, 4 RBI and 2 runs. The Longhorns used five pitchers over the weekend, with Brooke Bolinger seeing the most innings with a 1.75 ERA, while Kristen Clark logged the second-most time in the circle and posted a 2.00 ERA. Last season, Texas advanced to the NCAA Tournament, falling in the Lafayette Regional.
This weekend will mark just the second time Indiana and Texas have played. The Longhorns won the 2006 meeting, 3-0.
Louisiana Tech: The Bulldogs posted a perfect 5-0 record in their season-opening tournament in Ruston, La. The team picked up wins against North Dakota, Incarnate Word, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Missouri State and Samford. Louisiana Tech's well-balanced offensive attack consists of eight batters hitting above .300 with the team averaging .348. Krystal De La Cruz (2-0, 0.00 ERA in 10.0 IP) and Preslee Gallaway (2-0, 1.76 ERA in 15.1 IP) split the most time in the circle. In 2016, the Bulldogs finished the year 32-22.
Louisiana Tech leads the all-time series against Indiana, 8-6. The teams last did battle in 1995.
South Carolina: Indiana's third opponent of the weekend also opened the 2017 campaign 5-0 and earned votes in the Coaches Poll as the Gamecocks earned a pair of wins against Presbyterian, as well as victories against Ohio, Longwood and Charlotte. The South Carolina bats are led by Krystan White, who is hitting .600 with 8 RBI, 6 hits and 6 runs. Over the weekend, the pitching staff gave up just one run as Jessica Elliot picked up two shutouts, while Nickie Blue and Cayla Drotar each earned one. Over the course of the five games, opponents combined for just 12 total hits. The Gamecocks finished the 2016 season 38-23 and advanced to the Tallahassee Regional.
Indiana leads the all-time series against the Gamecocks, 11-5-1, with the last meeting coming in 2000.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hoosiers opened the season last weekend at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz. Indiana went 2-3 in the event, picking up victories against Seattle and Saint Mary's. Indiana's losses came versus No. 24 Fresno State, No. 18 Utah and Arizona State.
NEWCOMERS MAKE BIG IMPACT
Indiana saw impressive performances from many of the newest Hoosiers as all seven saw action over the weekend. Pitcher Emily Goodin, who graduated high school in December and joined the team in January, earned her first career win against Seattle on Friday. The pitcher from Evansville retired the first seven batters she faced in the win. For the weekend, she record a 0.98 ERA in 14.1 innings, allowing just two earned runs and a walk while striking out seven.
Catchers Bella Norton and Shayna Gamm also both saw time at home plate. Norton collected a pair of hits in Indiana's 2-0 win against Saint Mary's, including an RBI double. Gabbi Jenkins also collected her first hit in a Hoosier uniform in the win.
Katie Lacefield saw significant time in the field, making four starts at third base. In addition, she picked up a pair of hits and scored twice.
O'MALLEY IMPRESSES AT THE PLATE
Junior Rachel O'Malley posted an impressive weekend for the Hoosiers, hitting a team best .385 with 5 hits, 3 RBI and a run. She has collected a hit in each of the last four games.
TRAINER PICKS UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF
Sophomore pitcher Tara Trainer returns from a 2016 season where she set the Indiana freshman strikeout record with 183. Over the weekend, she tied her career-high with 13 strikeouts against Fresno State. In addition, she tossed a one-hitter in Indiana's 2-0 shutout of Saint Mary's. Trainer fanned nine in the game and didn't allow a hit through the first 5.2 innings. Her 23 strikeouts on the weekend is second in the Big Ten.
Trainer was named No. 21 in Fastpitch News' Preseason Top 50 NCAA Softball Pitchers List.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Juliana Sherry will be the voice of Indiana Softball in 2017. A broadcast of every game will be available on IUHoosiers.com.
Stay up-to-date with the Hoosiers by following @IUSoftball on Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram.
WHAT'S AHEAD IN 2017
The Hoosiers have 54 games on tap in 2017, including 16 to be played at Andy Mohr Field. Of Indiana's 32 opponents in 2017, six are ranked in this week's USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll, while another four received votes.
After the trip to Austin, Indiana travels to tournaments in Birmingham, Ala., Fullerton, Calif. and Memphis, Tenn. before opening home play on March 18 in the Hoosier Classic. Home Big Ten battles for Indiana includes Rutgers, Purdue, Maryland and Michigan State. IU will travel to Penn State, Minnesota, Ohio State and Michigan. The 2017 Big Ten Tournament will be hosted by Michigan in Ann Arbor May 11-13.
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