Kansas City Opens Summit League Softball Championship Wednesday Against South Dakota

Wednesday, May 12

Fargo, N.D.

3:00 PM

Kansas City

University of South Dakota

Kansas City Opens Summit League Softball Championship Wednesday Against South Dakota

5/11/2021 2:57:00 PM | Softball

The Summit League Softball Championships Presented by U.S. Air Force Special Warfare Official Website

The Roos Preview to Championship Success

The Essentials to the First-Round:

#4 Kansas City will face #5 South Dakota on Wednesday, May 12^th at the Tharaldson Park at the Ellig Sports Complex in Fargo, N.D. The Roos and Coyotes split in their regular season matchup on the weekend of April 17-18. Expect a pitching duel that will need a good performance by the Roos' offense to send them to the second round against top-seeded South Dakota State.
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Kansas City's Accomplishments:

Kansas City had its best start in program history through the first 15 games of the season with an 11-4 record.
At 27-24, Kansas City finished the regular season with its first winning season since 2011. This is Kansas City's only third winning season since becoming NCAA Division I in 1990, three decades ago.
The Roos faced the most ranked opponents in a single season this year with five. They also earned their first win over a ranked opponent in program history defeating #6 Oklahoma State 6-5 on March 19^th.
This year will mark Head Coach Kerry Shaw's first full season with the Roos after a shortened 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He will also achieve his first winning season as a Head Coach. He previously was the Head Coach at the University of Mary (N.D.) from 2016-2018 before becoming the hitting coach with the Texas Longhorns softball program that reached the Super Regionals in 2019.

Roos to Watch:

Senior leadership has been the cornerstone of Kansas City's season. Fifth-year senior Faith Willis' leadership in the outfield has been impeccable, making diving catches, saving extra base hits and runs, as well as throwing out runners at the plate. She also sits top four on the team in nearly all offensive categories, currently second in batting average at .318, second in stolen bases with nine, and third in RBIs and runs scored with 21 and 33, respectively.
The Roos' first baseman, Lia Lombardini, has also been a force on offense all season long. She currently leads the team in RBIs with 43, doubles with 11, sacrifice flies, and walks. Lombardini adds power to the lineup with 5 homeruns thus far and a .493 slugging percentage. Her combination of power and ability to get on base is lethal, leading The Summit League in walks and currently ranking second in doubles and RBIs on the conference leaderboard.
Kloe Hilbrenner has done it all for the Roos this season, but most noticeably with her speed. She currently ranks third in NCAA Division I and leads The Summit League by a country mile in stolen bases this season with 43. The two-hole hitter leads Kansas City and The Summit League in runs scored with 39 and hits with 64. She also sits top two in batting average, slugging percentage, and total bases earned for the Roos this season. The Bates City, Missouri native has seen a ton of success in league play, batting .381 with 32 hits in 24 games and earned Player of the Week honors in the final regular season weekend against North Dakota.
Kansas City's pitching duo has been the heart and soul of the Roos' successful season. Mia Hoveland and Camryn Stickel combine for 318 innings pitched this season, at least one of them has appeared in all 51 games for the Roos. Hoveland has the most pitching production in The Summit League and currently ranks 24th in the NCAA in total strikeouts with 180 while also leading the league in total strikeouts. Stickel has the best winning percentage on Kansas City's staff with a 14-8 overall record. The freshman quickly made her way into the Kansas City record books, currently ranking fourth for most wins in a single season.
The pitching success wouldn't have came without Roos' catcher Alexis D'Ambrosio. While calling the pitches, she also sits top six in fielding percentage and putouts in The Summit League with five runners caught stealing. D'Ambrosio has been very successful at the plate in conference play, currently leading the team in doubles with four and hitting .295 in 22 games played.
Ally Vonfeldt is another threat in the Roos lineup to look out for this week. After only playing six games in her 2020 freshman season, the sophomore has unleashed her power to grab the attention of the league. Vonfeldt currently leads the team in homeruns with 12 thus far, good for second in The Summit League and tied for 68^th in the country. She currently leads the Roos in slugging percentage at .577, total bases with 94, and doubles with 11.
The infield is led by shortstop Katherine Karnatz who sees the most fielding assists on the infield and has only made eight errors this season through 50 games and 167 total chances while fielding .952. In the lead-off position, she has the second most hits on the team with 48 and fifth most runs scored with 27. She also leads the team in triples with three. Entering the conference tournament, she currently ranks second in The Summit League in total at-bats, fourth in hits, fifth in triples, fifth in sacrifice bunts, and fourth in hit by pitches.
Sydney McQuinn fought for a starting position at second base, splitting time, until she took ownership of the role as conference play neared. Her diving plays are the difference makers that don't make their way onto the stat sheet. Entering the conference tournament, 15 of her 21 hits and all three doubles have come in league play. The sophomore is also fielding .980 on the season. Her best league-series came against South Dakota where she hit .500 with 6 hits, 4 RBIs, three doubles, and scored 2 runs.
Ashley Thorne has earned a starting role in right field for Kansas City with two strong conference series to round out league play. Against Omaha in the first weekend of May, the junior went 4-for-9 with four RBIs and three runs scored. She also hit her second double and first homerun of the season in that series.
Delainey Fenoglio has power in the designated player position with five homeruns this season, good for second best on the Kansas City squad.