Softball travels to Kansas, baseball season begins
Jenna Peterson
Staff Writer
After starting their season in the brand new Maverick All-Sports Dome, the Minnesota State Mavericks women’s softball team will travel to Emporia, Kansas to participate in the Emporia State Softball Classic.
The Mavericks will start their busy weekend Friday afternoon with the first game against the Missouri Western State Griffons. The Griffons lost three of the four games they played in the Alvy Early Memorial Classic last weekend with their only win against Southwest Baptist University, compared to the Mavericks who hold an overall record of 4-1. In the past 10 games between MSU and MWS, the Mavericks have won six of them, with the most recent game resulting in a 9-6 win for the Mavericks.
Following this game, the Mavericks will play against the Missouri Southern State University Lions, who have a record of 5-3. The Lions might have more games under their belt this season, but this doesn’t mean the Mavericks will back down. The two teams have a short history, with only four games, and each were able to take two games.
On Saturday, the Mavericks will begin their day with a game against the Washburn University Ichabods. Despite the Ichabods having a game record of 5-7, the Mavericks have a high chance of winning this match up. In the past six games between the two teams, Minnesota State has won five of them.
The Mavericks will continue with a game against the Emporia State Hornets, who have a record of 5-4. These two teams have already played twice this season and it has resulted in two MSU wins. The game history between the Mavericks and the Hornets remains close, with Minnesota State taking six of the 10 most recent games.
To end the weekend, the Mavericks will play against the Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats, another team Minnesota State has already played against this season and have gone 1-1. The Bearcats currently hold an overall record of 2-7, giving the Mavericks a higher chance of winning their last game of the weekend. Looking at the past 10 games between the two, the Mavericks have won eight of them.
If the Mavericks carry in their strong attitude from the Minnesota State D-II Softball Classic into their upcoming games, they should have no problem racking in more wins.
On the other side of the field, the men’s baseball team will kick off their 2020 season this weekend with four games against the Maryville University Saint Bernard’s, who they have never played before.
Unlike Minnesota State, Maryville has already played five games this season, resulting in a 3-2 game record. The two teams will play two games on Friday and one game on Saturday and Sunday, leading for a long and interesting weekend.