WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue softball team (31-27) makes its first non-conference postseason appearance since 2009 as one of 19 teams competing in the National Invitational Softball Championships (NISC). The Boilermakers hit off the double-elimination tournament against South Dakota at 11 a.m. ET at the Iowa State regional in Ames, Iowa.
The quartet makes up one of four regionals in the tournament. Nevada, Stephen F. Austin and 2017 NISC champion Liberty are also hosting regionals this weekend. Each regional champion will advance to a final double-elimination event to take place May 24-26 at TC Colorado Field in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Purdue and South Dakota open the Iowa State regional with the first game of the day. The winner of the contest advances to face Iowa State at 5 p.m. ET Thursday, while the loser will compete at 11 a.m. ET Friday against the loser of South Dakota State and Eastern Kentucky. A complete bracket can be found here.
The Boilermakers are coming off a quarterfinal finish at the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since 2015. Purdue opened the conference tournament with a 4-3 victory over Rutgers before falling to then-No. 12 Minnesota, 4-3, in the quarterfinals.
Purdue's offense saw six Boilermakers batting .333 or better in the conference tournament, including a team-best .600 average from senior Jenny Behan. Overall, Purdue finished the tournament with 18 runs on 24 hits.
In the circle Purdue was paced by the pitching duo of senior Kaitlynn Moody and redshirt sophomore Sydney Bates. Together, the veterans pitched 11.2 of Purdue's 18 innings, while accounting for all of Purdue's strikeouts in the tournament.
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA
Bringing a 33-26 overall record to Iowa, South Dakota is coming off a pair of conference tournament losses to Summit League Tournament champion North Dakota State. Through 59 games, USD owns a .288 team batting average that is fueled by five Coyotes hitting over .319.
In the circle, Dustie Durham leads USD with a 3.52 ERA and 14 wins on the year. The senior also owns 71 strikeouts in 131.1 innings pitched.
SERIES HISTORY
The Boilermakers and the Coyotes are currently tied, 1-1, since first meeting in 2018. Purdue claimed the first contest with an 11-2 victory at the 2018 Arizona State Kajikawa Classic, while USD evened the series with a 4-2 triumph at the Madeira Beach Tournament this season.
Purdue vs. South Dakota
Thursday, May 16 | 11 a.m. ET
Cyclone Sports Complex | Ames, Iowa
LIVE STREAM (FREE) | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
The Boilermakers and the Coyotes are also joined by Eastern Kentucky, South Dakota State and host Iowa State in this weekend's regional. Each team received an invitation to the tournament by virtue of owning a winning record and a top-100 RPI.
The quartet makes up one of four regionals in the tournament. Nevada, Stephen F. Austin and 2017 NISC champion Liberty are also hosting regionals this weekend. Each regional champion will advance to a final double-elimination event to take place May 24-26 at TC Colorado Field in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Purdue and South Dakota open the Iowa State regional with the first game of the day. The winner of the contest advances to face Iowa State at 5 p.m. ET Thursday, while the loser will compete at 11 a.m. ET Friday against the loser of South Dakota State and Eastern Kentucky. A complete bracket can be found here.
The Boilermakers are coming off a quarterfinal finish at the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since 2015. Purdue opened the conference tournament with a 4-3 victory over Rutgers before falling to then-No. 12 Minnesota, 4-3, in the quarterfinals.
Purdue's offense saw six Boilermakers batting .333 or better in the conference tournament, including a team-best .600 average from senior Jenny Behan. Overall, Purdue finished the tournament with 18 runs on 24 hits.
In the circle Purdue was paced by the pitching duo of senior Kaitlynn Moody and redshirt sophomore Sydney Bates. Together, the veterans pitched 11.2 of Purdue's 18 innings, while accounting for all of Purdue's strikeouts in the tournament.
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA
Bringing a 33-26 overall record to Iowa, South Dakota is coming off a pair of conference tournament losses to Summit League Tournament champion North Dakota State. Through 59 games, USD owns a .288 team batting average that is fueled by five Coyotes hitting over .319.
In the circle, Dustie Durham leads USD with a 3.52 ERA and 14 wins on the year. The senior also owns 71 strikeouts in 131.1 innings pitched.
SERIES HISTORY
The Boilermakers and the Coyotes are currently tied, 1-1, since first meeting in 2018. Purdue claimed the first contest with an 11-2 victory at the 2018 Arizona State Kajikawa Classic, while USD evened the series with a 4-2 triumph at the Madeira Beach Tournament this season.