At 18-16, the Badger softball team still cannot break out of the middle of the pack in the Big Ten. This weekend, with matches against Indiana (6-4, 30-16) and Purdue (4-7 Big Ten, 26-24), Wisconsin has to take some strides if they want to make any noise in the Big Ten or NCAA tournaments.
This coming series really determines, I think, our fate as far as the Big Ten Tournament,\ UW head coach Chandelle Schulte said. ""We're trying to get better every day ... We're trying to take steps forward instead of steps back and really embrace the new tradition that we're trying to create at Wisconsin.""
Indiana is led by superstar senior Mariangee Bogado, who is one of the best pitchers and hitters the Hoosiers have. Bogado is batting .349 with five home runs, while her record as a pitcher is 13-8 with an impressive 1.64 ERA. The Hoosiers also have one of the best hitters in the Big Ten in senior Lauren Hines, who hits a very high .421.
Purdue boasts an well balanced offense, as they have four hitters batting over .300 and three players with at least 13 stolen bases. Much of the power comes from junior DaQueta Johnson, who leads the team with nine home runs and 40 runs batted in. The pitching is not quite as stellar, despite none of their pitchers having losing records.
The Badgers play in Indiana for Friday and Saturday's games, then travel to Purdue for a doubleheader Sunday.
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