Softball 5/9/2023 8:15:00 PM

No. 4 UCO Opens Regional Play Thursday

No. 4-ranked Central Oklahoma begins its quest for the NCAA Division II national title Thursday when the Bronchos open play in the Central Regional I Tournament at Gerry Pinkston Stadium.

The Central Region is made up of teams from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, the Great American Conference and the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, with UCO hosting three GAC teams in one of two four-team regionals this weekend.

The MIAA regular season and tournament champion Bronchos, 47-6 and riding a 16-game winning streak, will open against Southeastern Oklahoma (33-25) at 1 p.m. Thursday. No. 18-ranked Harding (44-12) takes on No. 21 Oklahoma Baptist (43-10) at 3:30 p.m. in the other first-round game.

SOSU captured the GAC Tournament crown to qualify for the national tournament. OBU won the GAC regular season title, while Harding was runner-up.

Thursday's winners will play at 1 p.m. Friday, followed by the two first-round losers at 3:30 p.m. and another elimination game at 6 p.m. Saturday's finals are set for 1 p.m., with the "if necessary" game at 3:30 p.m.

"It should be a great tournament and we're looking forward to the challenge," head coach Cody White said. "We're in one of the toughest regionals in the country, so our players understand how hard it's going to be this weekend.

"We've been playing really well and just need to keep focusing on ourselves."

The Central Regional II Tournament will be held in Joplin, Mo. Host and No. 13-ranked Missouri Southern and No. 14 Rogers State of the MIAA are joined by GAC member Southern Arkansas and NSIC Tournament champion Minnesota-Duluth.

The two sub-regional winners meet in the best-of-three Central Super Regional series May 18-19 at a site to be determined. The champion joins seven other regional winners in the Division II World Series that will be held May 25-31 in Chattanooga, Tenn.

UCO IN THE NATIONAL TOURNEY: The Bronchos are making their 18th national tournament appearance, including the 15th in Division II.

Central is 36-30 in the Division II playoffs, highlighted by a 9-0 run to the national championship in 2013. The Bronchos won regional titles in 2006, '12 and '13 to advance to the Division II Championship Finals.

UCO is hosting a regional for the fourth straight time

UCO's Division II playoff record by season:
2002 (1-2)
2005 (2-2)
2006 (5-2 – 4-0 in South Central Regional, 1-2 in World Series)
2008 (1-2)
2010 (0-2)
2012 (7-4) – 5-2 in South Central Regional, 2-2 in World Series)
2013 (9-0 – 5-0 in Central Regional, 4-0 in World Series)
2014 (1-2)
2015 (1-2)
2016 (1-2)
2017 (1-2)
2019 (3-3) – lost in best-of-three Central Super Regional
2021 (1-2)
2022 (3-3) – lost in best-of-three Central Super Regional

SEASON RECAP: UCO was No. 8 in the preseason NFCA poll and has remained in the top 10 all season.

Central went 23-3 to capture its fifth MIAA regular season title (2013, '17, '19, '21, '23) and then outscored four teams 36-11 last weekend in Topeka, Kan. to claim the MIAA Tournament title for the third time (2017, '19. '23).

The Bronchos are 19-2 at Gerry Pinkston Stadium this season.

UCO had nine players earn All-MIAA honors, headlined by shortstop Emily Deramus' selection as Freshman of the Year. She was joined on the first-team squad by third baseman Shayla Harper, outfielder Jacee Minter and utility/non-pitcher Tatum Long.

Pitcher Jordyn Pipkin, catcher Amelya Huggins and utility/pitcher Terin Ritz were second-team picks, with outfielder Rylee Lemos earning honorable mention recognition.

Lemos and second baseman Mikayla Rutland were named to the Gold Glove team.

ABOUT UCO'S OFFENSE: The Bronchos are batting .335 as a team while averaging 9.0 hits and 7.25 runs per game.

UCO ranks in the top 10 nationally in seven offensive categories – fourth in sacrifice flies (26), fifth in doubles per game (1.91), sixth in doubles (101), seventh in walks (207), eighth in slugging percentage (.583), eighth in runs (384) and ninth in runs per game (7.25).

Six players are hitting .327 or better to lead a balanced offensive attack, led by Shayla Harper.

The senior slugger is batting a team-high .411 while also leading the Bronchos in runs (51), home runs (14), runs batted in (53), slugging percentage (.761) and on-base percentage (.463). She's reached base in 50 of UCO's 53 games this season, including a streak of 36 straight earlier in the year.

Harper's 14 homers are tied for seventh on the school single-season list and she's in the top 10 in four career categories – tied for second in triples (13), fourth in homers (39), eighth in runs (139) and eighth in RBI (138).

Sophomore Terin Ritz has a .364 average with 11 homers, six doubles and 47 RBI, while freshman Emily Deramus is at .362 with team highs in at bats (185) and doubles (18) to go along with 12 homers and 46 RBI.

Ritz tops the team in two-out RBI (19) and average when batting with two outs (.423). Deramus is tied for seventh on UCO's single-season doubles chart and is hitting a team-best .441 with runners in scoring position.

Junior Jacee Minter is batting .355 with 12 doubles, nine homers and 42 RBI in continuing her sensational career. She's started all 164 games the past three seasons and has already moved into the school's all-time top 10 in four categories – fourth in doubles (48), sixth in homers (33), fifth in RBI (150) and ninth in runs (134).

Freshman Rylee Lemos is hitting .333 with 16 doubles and a team-leading 15 stolen bases and senior Amelya Huggins is at .327 with 15 doubles, five homers and 33 RBI. Huggins is tied for the UCO career record in walks (105) and ranks ninth in doubles (42).

Senior Mikayla Rutland was named Outstanding Player of the MIAA Tournament after hitting .600 (6-for-10) with four homer and nine RBI. She's batting .288 with 10 homers and 35 RBI on the season.

ABOUT UCO'S PITCHING: The Bronchos own a team earned run average of 2.41. UCO allows 5.9 hits and 2.5 runs a game.

Sophomores Terin Ritz and Jordyn Pipkin combine for a formidable duo in the circle, having collected 40 of the team's 47 wins.

Ritz is 21-1 – tied for 10th on the school's single-season win list – with three saves and a 2.07 ERA in 152.1 innings. She's pitched in 31 games with 20 starts and has 12 complete games.

The right-hander has walked just 26 batters to go along with 93 strikeouts. Ritz went 4-0 with a 1.27 ERA in the MIAA Tournament last weekend, allowing 14 hits and four runs in 22 innings with five walks.

Pipkin carries a 19-2 record and 2.12 ERA into the weekend. The right-hander has struck out 82 and walked 51 in 144.2 innings while appearing in 29 games with 24 starts and 13 complete games.

ABOUT UCO'S DEFENSE: The Bronchos lead Division II in team defense with a stellar .982 fielding percentage. UCO has committed just 27 errors in 53 games.

Harper's 94 assists from her third base spot lead the team. Deramus is right behind with 90 from her shortstop position, while second baseman Rutland has 79.

ABOUT THE COACH: In his 10th season as UCO's head coach is Cody White, who is nearing his 400th career win. White enters the weekend with a 396-143 record with the Bronchos.

White has led UCO to eight Division II national tournament appearances, seven 40-win seasons and four regular-season MIAA titles. He's had four of the five winningest seasons in school history (48 in 2017, '19, '22 and 47 this season).

White was named MIAA Coach of the Year this season for the third time (2017, '19, '23).

ABOUT SOUTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA: The Savage Storm were the surprise of the GAC Tournament, winning the title as the No. 4 seed to earn the league's automatic berth into the national tournament and are 33-25 on the year.

SOSU is batting .261 as a team while averaging 6.7 hits and 3.5 runs per game. The Savage Storm give up 6.5 hits and 3.4 runs per contest behind a 3.93 team ERA.

First-team All-GAC pick Cheyenne Mahy leads the team, batting .315 with 12 doubles, six homers and 26 RBI at the plate while also sporting a 7-4 record and 3.89 ERA in the circle.

Sabetha Sands, a second-team All-GAC performer, is hitting a team-high .338 with 15 doubles and 19 RBI. Grace Ore has a .307 average and Kady Fryrear is at .303.

Amberlyn Walsworth has pitched a team-high 154.2 innings and is 14-11 with 150 strikeouts and a 3.90 ERA. Reese Taylor has a 12-9 record and team-best 3.27 ERA in 146.0 innings.

SOSU has a 39-33 lead in a series that started in 1997 and beat the Bronchos 2-0 in 2008 in their only previous national tournament meeting.

The teams played three times in the regular season, with UCO winning 5-4 on Feb. 19 before sweeping a road doubleheader April 18. The Bronchos took the opener 12-3 in eight innings, before pulling out a 1-0 second-game victory.

ABOUT HARDING: The Bison were runners-up in the GAC regular season standings before falling in the semifinals of the league tournament and are 44-12 on the season.

HU is hitting .305 as a team while averaging 8.6 hits and 4.5 runs per game. The Bison allow 6.3 hits and 2.5 runs a contest behind a paltry 1.86 team ERA.

A pair of first-team All-GAC pitchers lead the way. Abby Burch is 3-0 with a Division II-leading 19 saves and an 0.91 ERA in 46.1 innings, while Riley Price is 20-4 with an 1.65 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 148.2 innings.

First-team All-GAC pick Macy Smith is batting a team-high .377 with 17 stolen bases, while Madison Fraley is at .345 with 12 steals. Six players have 10-plus steals for the Bison, who have swiped 120 bases as a team.

UCO and Harding have met just once, with the Bronchos earning a 2-1 win last season.

ABOUT OKLAHOMA BAPTIST: The Bison captured the regular season GAC title with a 28-5 record before getting upset in the first round of the single-elimination conference tournament.

OBU nets 8.2 hits and 5.0 runs a game behind a .306 team average. The Bison give up just 5.3 hits and 1.9 runs a contest behind a stellar 1.48 team ERA that is the fifth-best in Division II.

GAC Pitcher of the Year Kayleigh Jones is the ringleader, sporting a 30-6 record and 0.74 ERA with 305 strikeouts and 13 shutouts in 218.0 innings.

GAC Player of the Year Emily Adler is hitting .419 with 35 RBI and 17 stolen bases to lead the offense. GAC Freshman of the Year Kennedy Clark is at .386 with 12 doubles and 27 RBI, while first-team All-GAC pick Adi Reese is hitting .313 with eight homers and 38 RBI.

The Bison are one of UCO's oldest rivals, with the two teams first meeting in 1975. The Bronchos have a 48-33 lead in the series and claimed a 5-1-win last year in the last meeting.

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Players Mentioned

#11 Shayla Harper: IF; 5' 7"; Senior; R/R

#25 Amelya Huggins: C/IF; 5' 5"; Senior; R/R

#12 Jacee Minter: OF; 5' 6"; Junior; R/R

#99 Terin Ritz: P/1B; 5' 8"; Sophomore; R/R

#3 Mikayla Rutland: IF; 5' 7"; Senior; R/R

#5 Emily Deramus: IF; 5' 8"; Freshman; R/R

#8 Rylee Lemos: OF; 5' 6"; Freshman; L/R

#15 Jordyn Pipkin: P; 5' 6"; Sophomore; R/R

#24 Tatum Long: IF; 5' 8"; Junior; R/R

Players Mentioned

#11 Shayla Harper
: 5' 7"; Senior; R/R
: IF

#25 Amelya Huggins
: 5' 5"; Senior; R/R
: C/IF

#12 Jacee Minter
: 5' 6"; Junior; R/R
: OF

#99 Terin Ritz
: 5' 8"; Sophomore; R/R
: P/1B

#3 Mikayla Rutland
: 5' 7"; Senior; R/R
: IF

#5 Emily Deramus
: 5' 8"; Freshman; R/R
: IF

#8 Rylee Lemos
: 5' 6"; Freshman; L/R
: OF

#15 Jordyn Pipkin
: 5' 6"; Sophomore; R/R
: P

#24 Tatum Long
: 5' 8"; Junior; R/R
: IF