The University of Wisconsin softball team (16–13, 2–2 Big Ten) travels on the road to Iowa (15–17, 1–4 Big Ten) this weekend to play a three-game series versus the Hawkeyes. The teams will begin their series with a doubleheader on Saturday and one game Sunday afternoon.
Though the Badgers fell to an impressive Ohio State team last weekend, several players on the offensive end continued to heat up in the series. Brooke Wyderski and Kelsey Jenkins have been filling up the box score with impressive performances the past couple weeks.
In her past five games, Wyderski is batting .438 with five extra-base hits with a .875 slugging percentage and five RBIs. Though the shortstop went 0–3 when the Badgers got shutout last Sunday, Wyderski looks to be well into midseason form.
Jenkins, the leadoff hitter, has gotten on base at least once every game this season. Her streak currently rests at 29, just shy of her own record of 31 set last year.
Softball: Wyderski in midseason form at plate, helps Badgers gain early Big Ten wins
On the mound for the Badgers, Kaitlyn Menz will get an opportunity to impress family and friends this weekend as she visits her home state of Iowa.
To do this Menz will need to overcome some inconsistencies in her recent starts. Over her past six appearances, the pitcher allowed three or fewer runs on three occasions. In the other three, she gave up five or more going 1–4 in that time span.
The final loss at Ohio State on Sunday wasn’t entirely Menz’s fault though, as several fielding errors by Wisconsin gave her five unearned runs.
Iowa will counter with their ace Allison Doocy who has an impressive 1.34 era this year — but with only a 9–7 record as a result of a less than stellar performance for the Hawkeye offense. Iowa currently ranks third to last in the Big Ten with a .234 batting average.
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Mallory Kilian is the exception to Iowa’s slumping bats, hitting .341 on the year with five home runs, fourteen RBIs and five stolen bases on five attempts. Allie Wood also fared well, hitting .309 with two home runs and 16 RBIs.
But unless Iowa can get more offensive production than just these two players, the Badgers should be the favorites this series.
First pitch from Iowa City will begin in a doubleheader Saturday at 1:30 with streaming available on BTN Plus.
