Oregon State Hosts No. 10 Arizona State for Senior Weekend
CORVALLIS, Ore. - The Oregon State softball team will return home to host No. 10 Arizona State for their final weekend of play in Corvallis.
Both Oregon State and Arizona State have agreed for this weekend's series to include just three games of play. The second game of the doubleheader will not be played on Saturday.
Just before Sunday's game the softball class of 2021 will be honored. In addition to senior weekend, the team has elected to honor Dam Worth It for their final home series. Dam Worth It is a campaign at OSU that brings awareness to mental health issues in collegiate athletics.
Note: For all Pac-12 series, three of the four games will be included in the conference record. If all four games are played, the second game in the doubleheader will count as a non-conference game.
GAME INFORMATION
Oregon State vs #10 Arizona State
SITE: Kelly Field - Corvallis, Ore.
RECORD: Oregon State 16-23, 3-15 Pac-12; Arizona State 31-12, 11-7 Pac-12
SERIES RECORD: Arizona State leads, 83-38
STATS: OSUBeavers.com
STREAM: OSUBeavers.com
Game One
DATE: Friday, May 7
TIME: 5:00 PM PT
Game Two
DATE: Saturday, May 8
TIME: 1:00 PM PT
Game Three
DATE: Sunday, May 9
TIME: 12:00 PM PT
*records as of 5/2//21
Oregon State notes | Arizona State notes
ABOUT THE BEAVERS
• Before starting its conference series, Oregon State earned a 10-6 non-conference record. OSU now holds a 15-20 overall record with a 3-12 Pac-12 record.
• The Beavers opened the season with an undefeated weekend in the Los Angeles area (Feb. 12-14). They went on to garner a 3-5 record at the Wildcat Invitational (Feb. 26-28) and Colorado Classic (Mar. 5-7).
• For their first games at home, the Beavers defeated Sacramento State twice. Junior Mariah Mazon pitched for a perfect game before senior Trystan Melancon pitched her first no-hitter with OSU.
• Opening conference play with California at home, the Beavers won the series with a 3-1 record. On Friday, OSU won in a no-hitter shutout before splitting the doubleheader on Saturday and winning by one run on Sunday.
• After a full six weekends of conference play, the Beavers won the series against California, and have dropped the series against No. 9 Arizona, No. 3 Oregon, No. 6 Washington, No. 2 UCLA, and Stanford. Though OSU fell in the overall series, the team was able to earn a win over the Ducks, the Huskies, and the Cardinal.
• Junior pitcher Mariah Mazon ranks third in the Pac-12 with 176 strikeouts. Of all the pitchers in the conference, Mazon has pitched for the most innings (172.0).
• Sophomore Frankie Hammoude leads the team with a .348 batting average, a .696 slugging average, and a .444 on-base percentage.
• Mazon, Hammoude, and junior Missy Nunes have combined for over half of the team's 137 RBI and 37 home runs.
• Hammoude's 12 home runs are sixth in the conference. Nunes and Mazon follow with eight and five homers, respectively. The sophomore also leads the trio with 30 RBI with the juniors following with 22 (Mazon) and 21 (Nunes).
• In the field, Hammoude leads with 264 putouts while freshman Xiao Gin has assisted the most outs (60).
• Gin, Hammoude, junior Chance Burden, and freshman Grace Messmer have each played for multiple double-plays. Hammoude has played for seven with Gin (5), Messmer (3), and Buren (2) following. Five other Beavers have contributed to a double play.
ON THE MOUND
• Junior Mariah Mazon has won 11 games for the Beavers while senior Trystan Melancon has tallied four wins and senior Nerissa Eason has won one game.
• Earning the team's first shutout of the season, Mazon also pitched her first no-hitter of the season against Utah State (2/13) before she pitched a perfect game in the Beavers' first game at home (3/12).
• Melancon followed Mazon's perfect game with a no-hitter during the home-opening doubleheader before Mazon pitched for the Beavers' fourth no-hitter of 2021 against California (3/19).
• On April 2, Mazon became the first pitcher of 2021 to hold the Ducks to just one run and the second to complete a win over Oregon this season (4/2).
• In 172.0 innings pitched, Mazon has notched 176 strikeouts from 641 batters for a 2.16 ERA.
• Eason follows with 35 strikeouts, from 187 batters, in 46/1 innings pitched for a 3.47 ERA.
• Melancon owns a 3.56 ERA with 43 strikeouts, from 152 batters, in 39.1 innings pitched.
LAST WEEK IN REVIEW
• After a bye weekend, the Beavers visited Stanford for a four-game series in California (Apr. 30-May 2).
• Oregon State beat the Cardinal in the second game of the doubleheader but fell in the other three.
• Friday's game went into extra innings after both teams were unable to score a run in the first seven innings. Stanford scored the first, and game-winning, run in the bottom of the ninth inning.
• Saturday's first game went into extra innings once again. This time, the Cardinal jumped out to an early lead, scoring three runs in the first inning. After four full innings without another run scored, the Beavers closed the lead to just one run in the top of the sixth. Hitting two doubles in a row, junior Mariah Mazon and sophomore Frankie Hammoude assisted with an RBI each. In the following inning, with two outs, redshirt-freshman Bailey McLaughlin pinch hit and knocked the ball out of the park for the game-tying home run. The game went into 13 innings with Stanford eventually earning the game-winning run.
• The Beavers took a three-run victory for game two on Saturday. Oregon State continued the first of the bats from the first game and scored four runs in the first inning, gaining five hits including freshman Madison Simon's leadoff single. The Cardinal brought the game within two in the bottom of the inning but the Beavers answered with another run from a bases-loaded walk by junior Chance Burden. Stanford added a third run in the third inning but the Beavers sealed the 6-3 victory as Burden hit her second double of the day for her third RBI of the game.
• In the final game of the series, junior Missy Nunes hit the only two Beaver singles with the Cardinal taking the 2-0 win.
FIRST MARKS
Over the weekend:
• Junior Chance Burden notched her first hit of the season, a double, in the first game of the doubleheader on Saturday (May 1). She continued to earn four hits throughout the doubleheader, while also grabbing her first RBI, and two more, in the second game.
PAC-12 TEAM RANKINGS
Pitching:
• T-3rd; 29 home runs allowed
• 4th; 257 strikeouts
• 4th; 6.88 strikeouts/seven innings
• 5th; 2.71 ERA
Fielding:
• 3rd; 11 double-plays
• 4th; 784 putouts
PAC-12 INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS
Nerissa Eason
• 17th; 3.47 ERA
• 18th; 5.29 strikeouts/seven innings
Xiao Gin
• T-8th; 60 assists
• T-13th; 5 double-plays
• T-24th; 6 doubles
Frankie Hammoude
• 3rd; 264 putouts
• 6th; 12 home runs
• 7th; .696 slugging percentage
• T-9th; 7 double-plays
• T-11th; .444 on-base percentage
• 16th; .348 batting average
• T-17th; 30 RBI
• 18th; 40 hits
Rylee Maston
• 21st; 95 putouts
Mariah Mazon
• 1st; 172.0 innings pitched
• 3rd; 176 strikeouts
• 3rd; 15 complete games
• T-7th; 11 wins
• 8th; 2.16 ERA
• T-9th; 1 save
• 12th; 7.16 strikeouts/seven innings
• T-22nd; 37 hits
• 24th; 39 assists
• T-24th; 6 doubles
Bailey McLaughlin
• 23rd; 77 putouts
Trystan Melancon
• 8th; 7.65 strikeouts/seven innings
• 19th; 3.56 ERA
Grace Messmer
• 15th; 50 assists
• T-24th; 3 double-plays
Missy Nunes
• T-19th; 105 putouts
• T-20th; 8 home runs
Charity Sevaaetasi
• T-6th; 9 doubles
OREGON STATE CAREER RECORDS
Frankie Hammoude
• Needs three home runs to tie Missy Nunes for 10th place (26).
Mariah Mazon
• Ranks 5th in strikeouts (613) … Needs 82 more to pass Tara Beyster (1997-2000).
• Ranks 7th in wins (50) … Needs two more to pass Paige Hall (2009-12).
• Ranks 7th in complete games (66) … Needs two more to pass Joan Harvey (1982-85).
• Ranks 7th in complete game shutouts (17) … Needs 10 more to pass Crystal Draper (1999-2002).
Missy Nunes
• Ranks 10th in home runs (26) … Needs two more to pass Kelly Petersen (2002-05) for ninth place.
OREGON STATE SEASON RECORDS
Frankie Hammoude
• Ranks 7th in home runs (12); tied with five other seasons - Hope Brandner (2018), Lisa Allen (2005), Tarrah Beyster (1997, 1998, 1999) … Needs one more to tie Audrey Roderfield (2009) and Adrienne Alo (2005) for fifth place.
Mariah Mazon
• Needs 16 more strikeouts to tie Kelly Dyer (2008) and Crystal Draper (2001) for ninth place (192).
THE ROSTER
• Due to the shortened season of 2020, all members of the 2020 softball team have received another year of eligibility. Each of the members of the 2020 team has kept their athletic years from last season.
• All but one member of the senior class will be returning. Trystan Melancon, Fallon Molnar, and Nerissa Eason will play for Oregon State in 2021 while Karla Calderon graduated in 2020.
• All but two members, Paige Goodrich and Izzy Owen, of the rest of the team have chosen to return for the 2021 season.
• The fall of 2020 brought four new additions to the team: Charity Sevaaetasi, Jade Soto, Katie Hicks, and Madison Simon are all the newcomers for the 2021 season.
• Though 2020 was cut short, the Beavers were able to play 26 games. Four student-athletes - Xiao Gin, Mariah Mazon, Grace Messmer, and Missy Nunes - all started in all 26 games while Morgan Allen missed just one game and Ashton Zeiher and Maia Rader missed two games.
• 12 of the 16 returning softball players on the 2021 team competed in at least five games for the Beavers last season with six of those returning from 2019 seeing action in at least a third of the last full season's games.
• The Beavers have one player that hails from the state of Oregon, Ashton Zeiher (Scio), with one player that comes from outside the United States, Grace Messmer (British Columbia).
• California is the highest represented state on the 2021 Oregon State softball team with 13 student-athletes coming from the state to our south. Two players come from Washington with one student-athlete from Florida, Nevada, and Texas.
LAST SEASON
• Despite the 2020 season being cut short, the Beavers were able to play 26 games for a record of 17-9 record. The team was unable to start conference play before the season ended.
• Eight players participated in at least 75 percent of the games, with seven returning to the team in 2021. Mariah Mazon, Xiao Gin, Missy Nunes, and Grace Messmer started all 26 games with Morgan Allen starting 25 and Maia Rader and Ashton Zeiher starting 24.
• Nunes led the team with five home runs and 22 RBIs.
• Mazon and Fallon Molnar followed Nunes with four home runs. Mazon notched 15 RBIs while Molnar earned 11.
For those who competed regularly, Mazon's .377 batting average (29 hits, 77 at bats) led the 2020 squad.
• In the field, Morgan Allen led the team with 144 putouts while Nunes followed with 121.
• Allen and Grace Messmer both contributed to five double plays while Messmer led the team with 46 assists.
ON THE MOUND
• All four pitchers who saw action on the mound in 2020 will return for 2021.
• Mariah Mazon, returning to complete her junior season, was the leading pitcher in 2020. Mazon recorded a 1.18 ERA with 10 wins in 20 appearances.
• She pitched a total of 113 innings, 14 complete games, and six shutouts while striking out 130 batters.
• Mazon returns after being named to Softball America's All-America Third Team.
• Second to Mazon was Trystan Melancon, a graduate transfer from the University of Houston. With 11 appearances in 2020, Melancon notched a 1.81 ERA with five wins and three complete games. She earned one shutout and pitched for 67 strikeouts.
• Rounding out the 2020 pitching squad was freshman Xiao Gin and senior Nerissa Eason. Gin earned two wins with a 3.28 ERA and nine strikeouts while Eason pitched for a 1.75 ERA and three strikeouts.
A LOOK BACK AT 2019
• The Beavers finished the 2019 season with 26 wins and 19 losses with an 8-14 record in the Pac-12.
• Frankie Hammoude and Missy Nunes served as a large portion of Oregon State's offensive power, starting all 45 games on the season.
• Hammoude led the squad with 11 home runs and 36 RBIs. She earned 34 hits in 120 at bats for a .283 batting average.
• Missy Nunes followed Hammoude's lead with seven home runs and 27 RBIs. She earned 36 hits in 132 at bats for a .273 batting average.
• In the field, Hammoude led the team with 300 putouts while Nunes was the runner-up with 67 assists, and serves as the returner with the highest assists.
• Hammoude contributed to 12 double plays while Maia Rader helped in eight.
• Radar is the final returner who played in at least 75 percent of 2019's games. She made 38 starts at shortstop and was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team.
ON THE MOUND
• The Beavers returned three pitchers from 2019 to the 2020 season.
• Mariah Mazon was the leading returner for the Beavers. She recorded a 2.70 ERA, posting 17 wins in 30 appearances. She pitched 174 total innings, 20 complete games, and four shutouts while striking out 166 batters.
• Mazon was named to the NFCA All-Region Second Team and Pac-12 All-Conference Second Team in 2018 with a third-team conference nod in 2017, as well as being named to the conference all-freshman team.
• Nerissa Eason posted three wins in 10 appearances in 2019. She pitched 34.1 innings, recording 33 strikeouts, two complete games, and one shutout.
• Sophomore Payton Goodrich, who will not return for 2021, and freshman Xiao Gin rounded out the 2020 pitching lineup.
ABOUT NO. 10 ARIZONA STATE
• Arizona State is ranked 10th in the nation according to the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. The Sun Devils currently sit ninth according to the D1Softball.com Poll and eighth on the ESPN.com/USA Collegiate Top 25.
• The Sun Devils are 31-12 on the season with a Pac-12 record of 11-7.
• ASU opened the season with 12 games at home in February (one in March) for an 11-1 record. Arizona State hosted BYU (x2, 2/11), Seattle (2/12), Utah (2/13 & 3/1), Cal State Fullerton (x2, 2/16), New Mexico (2/26 & 2/28), Oklahoma (2/26), Portland State (2/27), and Iowa State (2/28). The one loss came from a 5-3 Oklahoma victory.
• Before starting conference play, the Sun Devils went on to play and win five run-rule games and split a two-games series against Baylor in March.
• Arizona State opened its Pac-12 season in Los Angeles at UCLA with four losses. Throughout the weekend, the Bruins held the Sun Devils to just two runs.
• Hosting Washington for their first conference series at home, ASU won the series' conference games but split the weekend evenly, taking games one and two and falling in games three and four.
• Opening April in Utah, ASU went 2-1 before hosting Stanford for three wins and one loss.
• For its rivalry series, the Sun Devils hosted Arizona and won each of the conference games but fell in the non-conference game on Saturday (4/17).
• Most recently, ASU hosted Oregon and won three of the four games in the series. The Ducks took Friday's games with the Sun Devils finding the victory in the final three.
• Maddi Hackbarth leads the team with a .400 batting average. She is also the only active player with a slugging percentage above a 1.00. Hackbarth also leads the team in doubles (13), home runs (20), and RBI (56).
• Starting every game on the season, Jazmine Hill ranks third on the team with her .352 batting average - Makenna Harper is second with a .356. Hill is tied with Hackbarth with 13 doubles and, with her two triples and nine home runs, she has brought in the second-most RBI (38).
• In the field, Denae Chatman leads with 245 putouts while Bella Loomis has assisted the most outs (60).
• Lindsay Lopez and Allison Royalty have combined for 227.1 innings in the circle with Lopez leading slightly, 117-110.1. Lopez has pitched for eight complete games with Royalty remaining in the circle for a full five games.
• Lopez leads with a 2.33 ERA while Royalty owns the most strikeouts (114). Royalty holds three shutouts with Lopez pitching for two.
AGAINST THE SUN DEVILS
• Arizona State holds the 83-38 lead in the all-time series.
• The Beavers last played the Sun Devils in 2019 for their conference series. They earned the victory on Friday (3/15) but fell on Saturday (3/16) and Sunday (3/17).
• In Friday's game, OSU jumped to a quick lead with three runs in the first inning. Missy Nunes earned the final two RBI in the second and fourth innings to make it a 5-1 win.
• In the final two games of the series, the Beavers tallied six total runs with Nunes hitting a double on Sunday for two of them.
• Oregon State last swept the series against Arizona State in 2016. In a two-game series at the end of May, the Beavers won on Thursday (May 12), 1-0, and Friday (May 13), 4-3.
NCAA TOURNAMENT
• The Beavers have reached the NCAA Tournament four times under the direction of head coach Laura Berg. As a program, OSU has made a postseason appearance 13 times.
• The Beavers are 30-22 all-time in their 13 tournament appearances following two wins and two losses at the Tuscaloosa Regional in 2018.
• The last time OSU won a regional was in 2006 when it played Nevada and No. 19 Baylor twice. OSU went on to play in the Women's College World Series that year.
• Berg and former head coach Kirk Walker (1995-2012) are the only head coaches in program history to reach the NCAA Tournament.
NATIONAL SOFTBALL
• Head coach Laura Berg is the most decorated USA Softball Olympic Athlete after joining the national team in 1994. Berg won three gold medals for the United States (1996 - Atlanta, 2000 - Sydney, 2004 - Athens) and one silver (2008 - Beijing).
• Berg joined the Women's National Team coaching staff in 2012 and has served as an assistant before being named the head coach for the Junior WNT in 2017. Most recently, Berg was an assistant coach with the WNY that won Gold at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru.
• On November 14, 2019, Berg was named an assistant to the 2020 WNT's coaching staff.
• Junior Frankie Hammoude made her National Team debut in the summer of 2019 after trying out and making the Junior Women's National Team.
• Hammoude helped the JWNT become the 2019 U-19 WBSC World Cup Champions after hitting a three-run home run to tie things up in the championship game against Japan. The USA went on to capture the title.
• Sophomore Grace Messmer helped Canada to a Bronze Medal finish at the WBSC World Cup after recording a sac fly against Australia.
ABOUT THE OREGON STATE COACHING STAFF
• Head coach Laura Berg hung up her cleats after nearly 20 years of playing softball and spent a year with the LAPD in 2010-11 before returning to the game as an assistant coach for the 2012 season at Oregon State.
• Berg enters her ninth season at the helm of the Oregon State program, recording four NCAA Tournament appearances.
• Associate head coach Marcie Green also has experience with law enforcement. Green studied criminology at Fresno State and spent five years as a prison guard at Corcoran State Prison in California following graduation before starting to coach. Green works primarily with the pitchers.
• Assistant coach Eric Leyba returns for his third season on staff, working with the infielders and batters. Under his first season with the infielders, Leyba coached Hammoude and Rader to All-Freshman honors at first base and shortstop.
• Volunteer assistant coach Shelly Prochaska is entering her second straight season with the Beavers. Prochaska, a member of the softball team from 2000-03, served as an undergraduate assistant in 2004. Before coming to Oregon State, she was an assistant coach for the Sonoma State softball program during the 2018-19 season.
• Heather Smith also returns for her 20th season as the Director of Operations.
UP NEXT
• The Beavers will close the regular season at Utah. Oregon State will begin their final scheduled series on Thursday, May 13.
The NCAA Selection Show will be on Sunday, May 16 at 9 p.m. ET.
For more information on the Oregon State softball team, visit OSUBeavers.com or follow the team on Twitter and Instagram, @BeaverSoftball.
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).