CONWAY, Ark. – Back in Conway to host their second home tournament, the softball Bears are set to welcome four teams to Farris Field to participate in the Adam Brown Memorial Shamrock Classic this weekend. Central Arkansas will play four games, two against South Dakota, one against Omaha, and one against Iowa, with Alcorn State also in attendance for a set of games. First up for the Bears is a Friday afternoon battle with South Dakota, starting at 2:30 p.m.
The Adam Brown Memorial Shamrock Classic is played for Adam Brown, who attended UCA in the late 90's. Brown was a Navy SEAL and a member of SEAL Team Six, and was killed in action hunting a high-level Taliban target. After his passing, UCA Alumni and fraternity brothers of the Epsilon Phi Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha created a scholarship in his honor.
Last time out for Central Arkansas (11-3) saw just the third loss of the season on Wednesday, as the Bears fell to Louisiana Tech in Ruston. Despite putting runners on throughout the game, the offense had a tough time moving them all the way around, scoring on a
Morgan Nelson two-run home run and
McKayla Betts capitalizing on a wild pitch. The long ball was Nelson's second of the year, putting her atop the roster in the category, and moving her to second with seven RBI.
But early this season, the strength of the Bears has been the pitching;
Kayla Beaver and
Jordan Johnson both have sub-2.00 ERAs and are numbers one and two in strikeouts in the ASUN. Beaver, number one in the ASUN with 62 Ks, also leads the conference in ERA (1.30), wins (7) and shutouts (2), ranking in the top 15 in the country in strikeouts and wins.
After posting the league's second-best offense a year ago, Central Arkansas is still waiting to get the bats going. Last season, the team average at the plate was .300, whereas 14 games into the 2023 season, that number is just .227. Despite those struggles, however, the Bears have still struck out 40 fewer times than their opponents, while also walking at nearly a 2-to-1 ratio, at least staying competitive in at bats and forcing opposing defenses to make plays.
The first game of the weekend is against South Dakota. The Coyotes are 5-8 so far this season, most recently competing in the Lopes Up Classic in Phoenix, Arizona. There, South Dakota went 2-3, dropping a game to Utah State and a pair of outings to Grand Canyon.
Bela Goerke leads the Yotes in batting average, hitting .371 with a pair of home runs. Gabbu Moser leads the team with 13 RBI, and Courtney Wilson tops the roster with 16 hits. In the circle, Clara Edwards has a team-best 4.27 ERA, holding a 2-4 record and 22 strikeouts. In a win over Montana, Edwards pitched 7.0 innings, surrendering one unearned run and striking out five.
Omaha comes to town with a 7-3 record, with wins over Iowa State, Loyola-Chicago and Northern Iowa to its resume. The Mavericks' most recent tournament was at Texas, where they won two of five games. Senior Lynsey Tucker is off to a fast start near the top of the lineup, hitting .455 with 15 hits and a pair of stolen bases. The offense has gotten most of its runs from Rachel Weber, who has 10 of the team's 33 RBI, and two of its three home runs.
The Mavericks' pitching staff is led by Kamryn Meyer, who leads the team with a 1.77 ERA, two saves and 43 strikeouts. Sydney Nulsmer has the best record at 4-1, with her lone loss being against a nationally ranked Texas squad.
Finally, the Iowa Hawkeyes join the fray with an 8-6 record in 2023, win wins over Mississippi State and NC State, to name a couple. Last time out, the Hawkeyes narrowly dropped a game against Oregon State in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. The 2-1 final score came after Iowa scored a run in the bottom of the seventh, with runners on base to take the lead, but the Hawkeyes grounded into a fielder's choice to end the ballgame.
Iowa is led by Nia Carter, who hits .478 with 22 hits and 14 runs scored already in 14 games. The Hawkeyes hit .307 as a team, with four everyday starters at or above .345. In the circle, Jalen Adams holds a 0.79 ERA, but has a 2-3 record in six appearances.
The Adam Brown Memorial Classic will be played from Friday to Sunday, with five games on Friday and Saturday and one game on Sunday. Fans can find game times for all 11 games at the tournament home page. Central Arkansas games will be streamed on ESPN+, and live stats are available for all games.
