OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha softball team hosts Western Illinois this weekend for the final series of the season.  The Maverick will play the Leathernecks on Saturday with a doubleheader set to start at noon.  Between games, Omaha will honor seniors Kat Barrow, Allie Mathewson, Carly Nielsen, and Tonya Peterson. UNO will wrap up the series on Sunday starting at 11:00 a.m. and links to live stats are available on OMavs.com.

Leading off for Omaha

• The Mavericks were limited to one hit and two walks in Tuesday's contest against Northern Iowa.
• Omaha batters drew four walks from the Panther pitching staff, but left five runners on base.
• Omaha left multiple runners on base in the 1^st and 5^th inning against UNI.
• Omaha was 2-2 this spring in games against teams from the state of Iowa.
• Omaha is 9-4 in home games this season.
• This weekend's match-up against Western Illinois will be the second consecutive year the two teams will end the regular season against each other.

D.Y.K.?  (Did You Know?)

1.      Catcher Campbell Ditto threw out her ninth runner of the season against Northern Iowa.

2.      Tonya Peterson drew two walks against the Panthers.  She has 31 walks on the season.

3.      Nicole Warren went 1-for-2 against UNI with a single in the fifth inning.

4.      Carly Nielsen made her 17 appearance in the circle on Tuesday evening.

5.      Nielsen, Peterson, Kat Barrow, and Allie Mathewson will be playing their final home series this weekend for the Mavericks.

About the Mavericks

Omaha enters the final league series in sixth place in the conference standings, a game behind Western Illinois for fifth place.  The Mavericks enter the weekend with a 21-26 overall record and a 5-8 mark in Summit League play.

Allie Mathewson and Tonya Peterson have the top two averages at the plate for Omaha.  Mathewson leads the way with a .306 average with six doubles, 12 home runs and 30 RBI.  She has also stolen 11 bases this season.  Peterson is batting .301 with 10 doubles and 27 RBI.  Lizzie Noble leads the team with 32 RBI.  Noble has six doubles and six home runs on the season with a .528 slugging percent.  Mathewson, Peterson, and Campbell Ditto have started all 47 games this season for Omaha.

In the circle, freshman Jaylee Hinrichs is 12-12 overall with a 3.72 ERA and 104 strikeouts.  Hinrichs has earned two Summit League Pitcher of the Week honors.  Senior Kat Barrow owns a 7-9 mark with a 3.15 ERA.  The senior has 80 strikeouts this season along with two shut-outs.  Carly Nielsen and Lizzie Noble each have picked up wins this season.  Nielsen also has the teams only save.

Collectively, the Mavericks are hitting .255 with 48 doubles, five triples, 48 homeruns and 193 RBI.  Omaha has a .427 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .339.  UNO is 40-for-46 in stolen base attempts and has drawn a total of 127 walks.  The Mavericks' pitching staff has posted a 3.91 ERA in 297.1 innings of work while striking out 208 and allowing 98 walks.  In the circle, Omaha has six shut-outs and threw back-to-back shutouts against Fort Wayne on March 21-22.

Mastering the Summit

• Allie Mathewson is fourth in the league with 12 home runs this season and ranks 14^th in RBI with 29.
• Campbell Ditto is 11^th in the league with eight home runs and 26^th with 20 RBI.
• Tonya Peterson has drawn 31 walks this season to lead the league.  Peterson is 18^th with 27 RBI. 
• Ditto is in fourth in the league with 25 walks and sixth in runners caught stealing (9).
• Allie Mathewson is tenth in the league with 37 runs scored, 11^th in stolen bases with 11, and 12^th with 47 hits.
• Lia Mancuso rankes fourth in the Summit League in being hit by pitches (5) and sixth in sacrifice hits (5).
• Lizzie Noble has 32 RBI this season, which ranks 11^th in the Summit League.  Noble's six home runs ranks her 15^th in the league.
• Pitcher Kat Barrow has pitched 115.2 innings which ranks ninth in the conference.  Barrow has a 3.21 ERA and 80 strikeouts which ranks fourth and eighth in the league.  She ranks 11^th in games won (7) and sixth in complete games (10).
• Pitcher Jaylee Hinrichs is third in the league with 12 wins.  Hinrichs' four shut-outs this season rank third in the league.  Hinrichs ranks third in the league with 104 strikeouts.

Series Information

This weekend will mark the 11^th all-time meeting between Omaha and Western Illinois.  The Mavericks are 8-2 all-time against Western Illinois.  Last season, UNO went 4-0 against WIU, including a three game Summit League sweep in Macomb, Ill. to end the season.

Looking at the Leathernecks

Western Illinois comes into the weekend having lost three of its last four games.  Illinois defeated Western Illinois on Tuesday evening, 9-0 (6 inn.).  The Leathernecks are sporting a 16-21 overall record and a 6-9 Summit League mark.  Western Illinois road record (6-4) is better than its home mark (3-10).  They also are 7-7 at neutral sites.

The Leathernecks feature three hitters who are hitting above .300 on the season.  Sammy Marshall leads the way with a .445 mark in 37 games this season.  Marshall has 53 hits and a .521 slugging percentage on the year.  She has been successful on the base paths as well, stealing 25-of-27 bases.  Teagan Walsh is hitting .368 on the year and is tied for the team lead with 26 RBI.  Tierney Bottino is hitting .316 with 26 RBI.

Four pitchers have picked up wins in the circle this spring for Western Illinois.  Kacyee Hart leads the team with an 8-9 record with one save in 24 appearances.  Hart sports a 3.54 ERA with 49 walks and 83 strikeouts.  Kayla Kirkpatrick is 5-8 in 18 appearances and has a 5.74 ERA with 27 strikeouts.  Teagan Walsh has appeared in seven games and has a 1-1 record with two saves.  Brooke Stulga has a 4.20 ERA and a 2-3 record with a save in 15 games.

Holly Van Vlymen is in her tenth year leading the Western Illinois softball program.  She owns a 220-254-2 career mark with the Leathernecks and is a three time Summit League Coach of the Year winner.

NCAA Women's Softball RPI Rankings Released

The NCAA RPI Rankings were released on Monday and Summit League leaders North Dakota State (37-9) have moved up to 39^th in the latest RPI poll.  IUPUI (30-12) have moved up to 124^th in the latest rankings. 

South Dakota (19-23-1) has reached 150^th this week.  Western Illinois (16-20) moves up two spots to 170^th overall.  Omaha (21-25) moves up two spots to 178^th overall, while South Dakota State (20-24) drops to 239^th from 222^nd.  Rounding out the Summit League is Fort Wayne (3-42, 273^rd).

Topping the All-Time Charts

• Senior Allie Mathewson ranks fourth in school history with a .672 slugging percentage.  Tracy Carey (1994-95) holds the school record with a .737 slugging percentage.
• Mathewson ranks 11^th in school history with a .356 batting average.  Deb Baetsie (1993-94) holds the school record with a .450 batting average.
• Mathewson also is sixth in school history with 11 triples and 11^th in on-base percentage (.422).
• Mathewson has hit the third most home runs in school history with 34, while junior Campbell Ditto is ninth with 26 homers.  Amber Lutmer (2011-14) holds the Maverick record with 51 home runs.
• Ditto ranks eighth all-time in walks with 72.  Amber Lutmer owns the school record of 121 walks in a career. 
• Ditto also ranks 10^th all-time in on-base percentage with a .426 average.  Deb Baetsle (1993-94) owns the career mark of .499.
• Ditto also is seventh all-time in slugging percentage (.579).
• Senior Tonya Peterson has been hit by a pitch 32 times in her Omaha career and holds the school record.  Peterson also ranks 10^th all-time with 71 walks.
• Kat Barrow ranks ninth all-time in most strikeouts per seven innings.  She averages 4.71 strikeouts.  Lindsey Slocum (2007-11) owns the career mark at 7.56 strikeouts per seven innings.
• Jaylee Hinrichs ranks fourth all-time in strikeouts per seven innings.  She averages 5.61 strikeouts per seven innings.
• Opponents are battings only .263 against Barrow for her career, which ranks her 11^th in the all-time charts.