By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The No. 23-ranked Washburn University softball team will return to action on Friday, hosting No. 9-ranked Pittsburg State at 4 p.m., and then wrap up its home schedule on Saturday, facing Missouri Southern at Gahnstrom Field.
Washburn University softball will honor seniors Hailey Neira, Sheyenne Cheek, Jaycee Ginter, Autymn Schreiner and Marrit Mead between games of Saturday's twinbill against Missouri Southern. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Between games on Saturday the Ichabods will honor Ichabod seniors Sheyenne Cheek, Jaycee Ginter, Hailey Neira, Marrit Mead and Autymn Schreiner, who will be playing their final games at Gahnstrom Field this weekend.
Washburn enters the weekend with a 34-10 overall and 15-5 in the MIAA after going 4-0 last weekend with sweeps over Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State.
No. 9-ranked Pittsburg State is 38-4 this season and 12-2 in the MIAA and the Gorillas have won their last six games. PSU has gone a perfect 20-0 in home games this season while going 5-2 on the road and 13-2 in neutral site games.
Missouri Southern is 29-12 and 9-5 in the MIAA and just outside the top 25 rankings entering the weekend.
The Washburn Ichabods have already secured their 19th season with at least 30 wins and their fourth under head coach Brenda Holaday.
Holaday won her 600th career game as a head coach against Fort Hays State in the second game of the doubleheader.
She had 351 career high school coaching wins and has 249 victories at Washburn entering the weekend.
Hitting the 30-win mark for the third straight season is the longest streak since the Ichabods won at least 30 games in six straight seasons from 2002-07. The Ichabods finished the 2023 season with a 37-16 record, going 15-11 in MIAA play.
Washburn has the third toughest remaining schedule in the country, with opponents having a combined winning percentage of .738 (186-66).
The Ichabods have the seventh-longest winning streak in the nation at 11 games.
Individually, sophomore Sadie Walker is third in the nation in wins (19) and first in games started (24) as well as fourth in shutouts and 17th in earned run average.
Ginter is 19th in the nation in wins (14) and offensively she is 54th in hits (51) while Mead broke the Ichabod career record for doubles with her 57th last weekend.
Ellington Hogle leads Washburn with 10 doubles this season while Erin Boles is batting .425 in MIAA play with a team-high 12 runs scored.
After this weekend, Washburn will be off until traveling to Emporia State on April 27.
The MIAA Tournament starts on May 1 in Edmond, Oklahoma.
