Storm to open conference tournament play against Nebraska Wesleyan

INDIANOLA, Iowa - The Simpson College softball team begins postseason play by facing off with Nebraska Wesleyan in the first round of the American Rivers Conference Tournament.

The Storm earned the No. 5 seed, assuring themselves of a spot in the tournament after sweeping Luther in the team's final regular season games last Saturday.

Simpson also moved up one spot in the NCAA Region IX Softball Rankings to No. 6 and are one of five conference programs in the top seven. The Storm have been regionally ranked for three straight weeks and have also faced off with 12 other regionally ranked teams throughout the year.

A-R-C TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND
No. 4 Nebraska Wesleyan (26-10, 9-6 A-R-C) vs No. 5 Simpson (26-12, 9-7 A-R-C)
Friday, May 10 | 2 p.m.
Central Softball Field | Pella, Iowa
Live Audio | Live Video | Live Stats

WHAT'S AT STAKE
The winner of the game will advance to the semifinal to take on top-seeded Central. That semifinal is currently scheduled to be held on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.

SERIES NOTES
The Storm swept the Prairie Wolves earlier this season, winning in six innings in each game. Madeline Petersen and Taryan Barrick-Wessels each threw six-inning shutouts, blanking the Nebraska Wesleyan offense in each contest. The Storm hold an 18-4 all-time series lead since its inception in 1992, winning the past three games.

ABOUT THE STORM

• Simpson brings in a record of 26-12, the most wins in the Brent Matthias era.
• The Storm have a team batting average of .338 that has led to 257 total runs, ranking second in the conference in each category.
• It will be crucial for the Storm defense to play cleanly, as the team is 19-2 when committing zero or one error, compared to a 7-10 mark when committing multiple errors.
• Ashlyn Steen (.445) and Megan Heidelbauer (.418) lead the Storm in batting average, while Alexis Ehlers has been the primary force driving them in to score, with eight home runs and 44 RBIs on the year.
• Ehlers is also one double and one RBI away from tying the Storm's single-season record in both categories.
• Barrick-Wessels has had the best season of her Storm career to this point, with a career-best 10 pitching wins and a career-low 1.60 ERA.

ABOUT THE PRAIRIE WOLVES

• The Prairie Wolves take a 26-10 record into the contest, including a 9-6 record in conference play.
• Nebraska Wesleyan picked up a sweep on the road against Luther, while also taking a game off the conference's top two seeds in Central and Coe.
• Lyndsey Roth is one of the conference's top hitters, leading the league in on-base percentage and also ranking in the top five in hits.
• The Prairie Wolves will likely call on Elise Warneke to pitch, as she ranks in the top three in innings pitched and strikeouts in the league.
• Nebraska Wesleyan also made its debut in the regional rankings, slotting in one spot behind the Storm in seventh.

STORM IN THE CONFERENCE RANKINGS
1st - Ashlyn Steen, batting average (.445), hits (57), stolen bases (31), triples (6)
1st - Alexis Ehlers, slugging percentage (.768), doubles (17), home runs (8)
2nd - Alexis Ehlers, RBIs (44)
2nd - Kate Kriegel, triples (4)
2nd - Maddie Luderman, walks (33)
5th - Megan Heidelbauer, batting average (.418)
1st - Kylee Tucker, runs allowed (18)
2nd - Taryan Barrick-Wessels, earned run average (1.60)

PRAIRIE WOLVES IN THE CONFERENCE RANKINGS
1st - Lyndsey Roth, on-base percentage (.559)
1st - Amber Kosmicki, sacrifice bunts (15)
3rd - Lyndsey Roth, walks (31)
2nd - Elise Warneke, wins (16)
3rd - Elise Warneke, strikeouts (92)