ALVA, OKLA- Northwestern Oklahoma State Softball opens their season Friday morning traveling to Lubbock Texas for five games to open the season. The Rangers will be competing as a part of the Lubbock Christian Festival to start the season.

Northwestern will open with two games on Friday with the first game set for first pitch at Noon vs Colorado Christian University and at 6:00PM against Eastern New Mexico. 
 

The Rangers will be led by Ryan Wondrasek entering his first season with the program with K.C Beardsley as the assistant coach. 

Northwestern will bring back leading hitters this season first in Hannah Howell finished last season with a .383 batting average hitting 6 home runs and 25 RBI and being honored by making All-GAC honorable mention. Allison Zanca will make her return after hitting .295 with a team high 12 doubles with 2 home runs and 18 RBIs. The Rangers will then bring back Morgan La Neve who finished with a .294 batting average with 15 RBIs. Kalie Johnson will then make her return after starting in all 39 games played last season for the Rangers as she looks to continue that streak after hitting .287 on the season with seven doubles and a .348 slugging percentage. 
 

The Red-and-Black will also bring back both their leading pitchers in Hanna Scoggin who finished with the lowest ERA on the team last year while striking out 39 batters. Howell will also be back in the circle for Northwestern this season after a team high five wins last year in 17 starts made including nine complete games and one shutout. She struckout a team high 59 batters.
 

Scouting Colorado Christian: 

Colorado Christian opened their season last week in part of the South Central Region Crossover opening with four wins in that preseason tournament. They enter play against the Rangers 4-0 overall on the season after outscoring their opponents 28-14. 

Sami Edwards leads their team in hitting with a .643 average after hitting three doubles and a total of nine hits last weekend. Kenzie Middleton has driven in the most runs for Colorado Christain with 10 RBI on the season including one home run with an average of .625. Taylor Olsen is their last hitter over the .500 mark to start the year hitting a home run with six hits and 3 RBI in the weekend opener.
 

Their pitching staff is led by Alexias Hamilton who threw in two games starting one after pitching a complete game allowing just one run in her win. Sydney Rawlings started two games earning the win in both games with five strikeouts. Samaria Roope picked up the last win of the weekend for CCU in her one appearance in relief. 
 

Eastern New Mexico:

Eastern New Mexico enters play 2-2 overall on the season after opening in the South Central Region Crossover last weekend as well. Eastern New Mexico would fall in their game vs Colorado Christian 13-9. 
 

Jokaira Paredes led the team in hitting going 4-8 from the plate for an even .500 average and an OBP% of .636. Sierra Wooley hit .455 with two doubles and 4 RBI. Lisette Urquidez led the team hitting two home runs for 9 RBIs in the opening weekend festival. 

Brook Leger led the Eastern New Mexico pitching staff with two wins throwing a total of 14.2 innings including two complete games allowing six runs. She struck out 25 batters in those 14 innings of work. Taylor Harrison is the only other pitcher who threw over three innings as she struck out four batters. 
 

History: 

Overall Northwestern is 1-3 against Colorado Christian with the one win coming in Lubbock back in the 2017 season in a 13-5 win. The programs last played in the 2019 season in a 13-9 loss for the Rangers. 
 

The Rangers and Eastern New Mexico have only played once in series history as the Rangers dropped that game back in the 2017 season in Grand Prairie, Texas 12-2.