Complete Game Notes
Games #47-48: Lincoln (4-42, 1-21 MIAA) at Central Missouri (31-17, 15-7 MIAA)
Date: Friday, April 26 at 3:00 & 5:00 p.m. CT
Site: South Recreation Complex in Warrensburg, Mo.
Live Stats: https://ucmathletics.com/sidearmstats/softball/
 
Games #49-50: Lincoln at Southwest Baptist (6-43, 3-19 MIAA)
Date: Saturday, April 27 at 1:00 & 3:00 p.m. CT
Site: SBU Softball Field in Bolivar, Mo.
Live Stats: https://www.sbubearcats.com/sidearmstats/softball/
 
THE LEAD OFF:  The Lincoln softball team ends the 2019 season on the road this weekend with four conference double-headers. The Blue Tigers first visit Warrensburg, Mo. to play Central Missouri in a 3:00 p.m. CDT twinbill on Friday (April 26). Lincoln then closes the season in Bolivar, Mo. on Saturday (April 27) as the Blue Tigers face Southwest Baptist in a 1:00 p.m. CDT double-header. After having just one batter hit above .300 and four with averages over .250 a year ago, the Blue Tigers enter the final weekend of the season with four batters hitting over .300 and two others above .250, and will try to end a year of improvement on a high note against UCM and SBU.
 
PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  The Blue Tigers are batting .276 as a team, with Camryn Pryor leading the way with 53 hits and a .381 average. Rachael Balke has hit five homeruns and is batting .309 with 42 hits and a team-highs 26 RBI. Mykenzie Livesay (.281 average, 32 hits) and Emily Williams (.311, 32) are also having strong offensive seasons, and Jordan Lawson, an All-MIAA honorable mention a year ago, is hitting .305 with 43 hits while scoring a team-high 22 runs. In the circle, Shannon Greene has two victories with 47 strikeouts while Trista Heavin and Lawson are also in the rotation.
 
HEAD COACH CHRISTINE ENGBERS:  Engbers was named the head coach of the Blue Tigers in 2018 after a successful two-year run at Covenant, where she won 45 games and became the first coach to lead the Lady Scots to back-to-back years with winning records. Engbers, in her first season at Lincoln, was an All-American as a player at Covenant.
 
LAST TIME OUT:  After playing Truman State on the road on April 9, Lincoln played twinbills vs. Lindenwood at home on April 12 and on the road on April 13 before playing Drury in Jefferson City, Mo. on April 16. Below are brief recaps of those contests:
 
Game 39: TSU 8, LU 0:  Rachael Balke, Mykenzie Livesay, Emily Williams and Tori Nienhueser all had hits, but a four-run fifth inning led to an 8-0 victory for Truman State in the first game on April 9. Shannon Greene had a strikeout in the circle.
 
Game 40: TSU 14, LU 1:  Emily Williams hit a home run in the top of the second, but Truman State scored six times in both the first and third frames to sweep the double-header. Bekah Kirker, Camryn Pryor and Tori Nienhueser also had hits.
 
Game 41: LWU 10, LU 5:  Lincoln scored three runs in the seventh inning, but couldn't complete the comeback as Lindenwood took game one of a four-game series on April 12. Mykenzie Livesay hit three doubles and Camryn Pryor had three hits to lead the Lincoln offense.
 
Game 42: LWU 11, LU 3:  Camryn Pryor scored on a single by Mykenzie Livesay to tie the game at one after the first inning, but Lindenwood pulled away for the win. Tori Nienhueser drove in Emily Williams on a double, then scored herself on a fielder's choice.
 
Game 43: LWU 8, LU 0:  Lincoln held Lindenwood to just one run through the first three innings, but a six-run fourth inning allowed the Lady Lions to earn the win. Camryn Pryor, Rachael Balke, Gabi McGinty and Bekah Kirker all had hits for the Blue Tigers.
 
Game 44: LWU 11, LU 3:  Lincoln took an early 2-0 lead on RBI singles by Rachael Balke and Emily Williams, but Lindenwood responded with nine runs in a row to sweep the four game series. The other Lincoln run was scored by Jordan Lawson on a base hit from Mykenzie Livesay.
 
Game 45: DU 6, LU 1:  Trista Heavin pitched five shutout innings to close the game, but Drury was still able to hold on for a win in the first game on April 16. Camryn Pryor drove in Jordan Lawson with a double, and Gabi McGinty also had a hit for the Blue Tigers.
 
Game 46: DU 14, LU 2:  Drury scored eight runs in the first inning and held off the Blue Tigers for a 14-2 victory. Jordan Lawson scored on a sac fly by Rachael Balke while Trista Heavin had the other run of the game for Lincoln.
 
SCOUTING THE JENNIES:  Central Missouri is batting .323 as a team, with eight player hitting better than .300 for the season. Jessica Sader leads UCM with a .381 average while Lauryn Deer has scored 40 runs on 65 hits, both team highs. Alexa Bradley owns a 2.95 ERA and has 12 victories on the year while Gentry Wishard (9-5), Jordan Johnson (6-5) and Shelby Clark (3-0) each have winning records in the circle.
 
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS:  As a team, SBU is hitting .205 while opponents are batting .317. The Bearcats are led offensively by Megan Schellert (41 hits) and Paige St. Pierre (32) while Miranda Aguilar has a team-high 12 RBI. Alexis Dock, Kaylee Schmidli and Maddie Massanelli all have two wins in the circle.
 
RECORD-BREAKING PACE:  Camryn Pryor broke Lincoln's single-season hit record with 53 this year, and will likely add to that total over the weekend. Pryor isn't the only Blue Tiger who could end the year holding a record, though, as Tori Nienhueser could break the single-season doubles record. Nienhueser has 15 two-base hits on the season, two short of the record of 17.