UIU Game Notes || NSIC Weekly Release

This Weekend in Peacock Softball...  With a strong 7-4 record to start the new season, the Peacocks are off to their best start under Head Coach Anna Van Wetzinga. The Peacocks have taken three out of four games in back-to-back weekends thanks to strong hitting and solid pitching. Now, UIU will head south to Joplin, Missouri to take part in the Missouri Southern Border Battle. On Saturday, the Peacocks will face Pittsburg State at noon, before playing Missouri Southern in back-to-back games at 4 and 6 p.m. On Sunday, UIU will face the University of Nebraska-Kearney at 10 a.m. before taking on Missouri Western State at noon.

The Series... UIU is just 5-12 against the MIAA over the past four seasons, but the Peacocks did take two out of three contests with MIAA teams two weekends ago in the NSIC/MIAA Crossover. Despite a win over Pittsburg State in 2009, UIU is just 1-2 against PSU over the last four seasons. Missouri Southern State and Missouri Western State also have winning records against the Peaccoks. MSSU is 3-1, while MWSU is 2-0 against UIU over the past four years. The Lopers and Peacocks have met only one time since 2009, with UIU emerging victorious, 4-0.

On Deck... Following this weekend’s action, the Peacocks will face two more MIAA teams as they head south for back-to-back double-headers with Lindenwood University and Truman state. UIU is 1-0 against TSU and 0-1 against LU this season.

NSIC Rankings... Upper Iowa is off to its best start under head coach Anna Van Wetzinga and a big part of that is due to the offensive firepower early in the year. The Peacocks are ranked seventh in the conference with seven home runs - five of which have come from freshman hitters. UIU is also ranked in the top five in the NSIC in six more offensive categories. The Peacocks are fourth in batting average, fourth in on-base percentage, fourth in hits, tied for third in doubles, tied for third in stolen bases and fifth in RBI per game. That offensive barrage combined with the second-best earned run average in the conference has pushed the Peacocks out to a 7-4 start.

"Duran" Her Thing... A full offseason has helped Tara Duran find her fit in the Peacock lineup. Not only has she posted a perfect fielding percentage from behind the plate, but she has hit the ball extremely well. Duran - a native of Colorado Springs - has four RBI in her last two games. She also leads the team with a .500 batting average and she has one of the Peacocks’ seven home runs this year.

Ankeny Slugger... Hitting your first home run in college is pretty exciting, but hitting your first two home runs of your collegiate career in back-to-back weekends is something else. Not only has Erica Kirgan hit two of the Peacocks’ seven home runs this season, but her first shot was a three-run home run and her second plated four as she connected on her first collegiate grand slam last weekend against Grand View College. With just four hits this year and two big home runs, Kirgan is slugging an eye-popping 79.2 percent and she’s only a freshman. The Ankeny High School slugger sure is off to a good start as a young Peacock.

Lucky Number 13... Rachael Anello’s walk-off hit on Saturday capped a strong weekend for the senior captain. The Bartlett, Illinois native started the season with two hitless game, but is now tied for sixth in the NSIC this season with four doubles - three coming in the past four games. She is also second on the team and 17th in the conference with a .406 batting average, while her 13 hits is tied for first on the team and her .531 slugging percentage is fourth on the squad.

Seeing "Redmond"... Freshman pitcher Brooke Redmond has been seeing red from the pitching circle this year. Her 1.73 earned-run average is the sixth best in the conference and she has four of the Peacocks’ seven wins early in the 2013 season. Redmond also has a team-high 20 strikeouts from the circle this year.

Follow Along... Follow Upper Iowa's double-header games against Missouri Southern State University on Saturday afternoon with the live stats links above.