The Braves are on a six game winning streak after defeating Concordia University at Alumni Park last Saturday. OU won game one in six innings, 8-0, and game two, 10-2, in five innings. In those two games OU hit .409, scored 18 runs, hit three doubles, one triple, one home run, drove in 16 runs, had a .591 slugging percentage, walked eight times, was hit by a pitch once, had a .500 on base percentage, and was 4-for-4 in stolen bases.
This season, Ottawa is hitting .435, has a .497 on base percentage, and a .669 slugging percentage. OU has hit four home runs, and scored 64 runs. Ottawa is outscoring opponents 64-7 (10.6-1.1). Opponents are hitting .153 against the Braves and have struck out 25 times.
OU is ranked 11th in the NAIA in doubles, second in triples (6), 11th in home runs (4), second in RBI (60), seventh in extra base hits (22), ninth in total bases (103), 25th in walks (19), 16th in hit by pitch (4), third in sacrifice flies (4), 13th in stolen bases (15), fifth in batting average (.435), fifth in on base percentage (.497), fourth in slugging percentage (.669), second in shut outs (2), and 12th in opponent batting average (.153).
Through six games this season,
Katie Enneking leads OU in batting average (.600) and batting average (12).
Ashlynn Mercer is the Braves' leader in ERA (0.41) and strike outs (13).
Ottawa has a record of 3-11 against Bellevue University. The Bruins have won three straight against the Braves. The last time OU defeated BU was on April 5, 2012 in Bellevue, Neb. OU won the game 10-2 in six innings. The last time the two teams met was on March 19, 2014 in Bellevue. The Bruins swept the double header, taking game one, 4-1, and game two, 5-1. This will be the just the second time that Bellevue has made the trip south to Ottawa. The two teams met on March 10, 2009 at Alumni Park. Bellevue won the game 11-6. Game two of the double header was canceled due to the cold. The first meeting between the two teams happened on May 11, 1998 at the Region IV Tournament. Bellevue won the game 6-0.
This double header on Monday is Bellevue University's season opener. The Bruins finished the 2023 season with a team batting average of .331, a .421 on base percentage, and a .495 slugging percentage. They hit 31 home runs and scored 335 runs. They had an overall record of 41-12 and a NSAA mark of 26-2.
The Bruins were ranked, in 2023, 19th in runs (335), 31st in hits (458), fifth in doubles (110), 27th in home runs 17th in RBI (301), 10th in extra base hits (153), 21st in total bases (685), fourth in walks (189), 22nd in hit by pitch (40), 11th in sacrifice flies (19), 13th in sacrifice hits (50), 38th in stolen bases (98), 24th in batting average (.331), fourth in on base percentage (.421), 13th in slugging percentage (.495), 21st in shut outs (14), 37th in opponent batting average (.241).
Bellevue won the 2023 NSAA regular season title with a record of 26-2. The Bruins return 11 letterwinners, including Honorable Mention NAIA All-American Sami Reding. She was a First Team All-NSAA selection and earned NFCA All-Region honors. She was also a NSAA Gold Glove Team selection at center field. The Bruins return All-NSAA performers Savannah Gunn, Liana McMurtry, and Katie Cunningham.
The Bruins are picked to win its third straight NSAA softball regular season championship this season. They won the last two with a combined record of 50-4.
