Softball Hosts Butler for Tuesday Showdown

Tuesday, March 24

Muncie, IN

4 p.m.

Ball State University

Butler

March 23, 2026 | Softball

Ball State (12-12; 1-5 MAC) hosts Butler (13-9; 6-0 BIG EAST)
Games 25 hosts Butler	Tuesday, March 24 at 4 p.m. ET Live Stats \| ESPN+ PROMOTIONS: Picnic at the Park / Professor Appreciation Day
Tickets Info	FREE ADMISSION
Notes	Ball State \| Butler
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram

» THIS WEEK IN BALL STATE SOFTBALL: The Ball State softball team takes a brief break from Mid-American Conference play Tuesday, when it hosts Butler for a 4 p.m. first pitch at the Ball State Softball Stadium ... The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Jarin Matheny (PBP) and Rick Johnston (Analyst) calling the action.

» TUESDAY'S PROMOTIONS:
- PICNIC AT THE PARK - With limited concessions availability due to construction at the Ball State Softball Stadium, fans may feel free to bring either a soft-sided cooler, picnic baskets or reusable bags to hold any outside food, non-alcoholic beverages and sealed water bottles ... Prohibited items inside the stadium include alcoholic beverages, glass containers, hard-sided coolers, grills, heating elements and cooking equipment.
- PROFESSOR APPRECIATION DAY - Ball State's student-athletes invited a faculty member who has made an impact in their lives to be recognized during the game.

» THE OVERALL RECORD: Ball State enters Tuesday's game versus Butler with a 1222-1201-4 (.504) overall record dating back to the 1975 season ... The Cardinals finished the 2025 campaign with a 33-18 record to reach the 30-win mark for the 17th time in program history and the 12th time in the past 18 seasons.

» A QUICK LOOK AT THE CARDINALS:
OFFENSE: Senior first baseman Lindsey DeRoeck has made quite the impact in her first season at Ball State, ranking fourth the MAC and ranking 98th nationally with a .434 batting average ... DeRoeck also ranks second in the MAC and 54th nationally with 10 doubles, while her .711 slugging percentage is ninth in the league ... After a solid weekend at CMU, redshirt junior catcher / third baseman Skylinn Pogue climbed to second on the squad with a .368 average and is tied for the team lead with 23 runs scored ... Pogue lead the team with a .455 average last week, including three RBIs and a pair of runs scored ... Overall, Ball State's offense is sixth in the MAC with a .291 average, while ranking third in the league and 62nd nationally with a .406 on base percentage.

PITCHING: On the pitching front, sophomore Breanna Severino currently leads the pitching staff with a 2.47 ERA over 22.2 innings of work ... She picked up her first save of the season, and the second of her career, by pitching the final three innings in Saturday's 7-1 victory at Central Michigan ... Junior Brinkley Kita is second on the squad with a 2.90 ERA and owns a 3-1 record, while Ella Whitney has a team-best five wins over a team-high 44.1 innings of work ... Overall, Ball State's pitching staff is second in the MAC with a 3.51 ERA and is holding opposing batters to a .283 average.

DEFENSE: Ball State ranks third in the MAC and 105th nationally with a .966 fielding percentage ... The Cardinals have committed just 24 errors on the season, while turning 10 double plays ... Ball State has also limited opposing teams to 11 stolen bases this season which is tied for 22nd nationally.

» VERSUS BUTLER: Ball State holds a 22-6 lead in the all-time series versus Butler, including a 7-0 victory in the latest meeting March 18, 2025, in Indianapolis ... The Cardinals are 10-3 against the Bulldogs at home, including a 3-2 victory in the last game played at the Ball State Softball Stadium April 23, 2019 ... Butler, which is coached by 1999 Ball State alumnus Scott Hall, picked up its last win in Muncie by a score of 6-4 (11) on April 14, 2015.

BALL STATE NEWS & NOTES:
» NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK: After her solid play on both offense and in the circle at the Cardinal Classic, Ella Whitney was named the D1Softball Mid-Major National Player of the Week ... She helped guide the Cardinals to a 4-1 record at the event by driving in 12 RBIs and blasting three home runs, while earning a 2-0 record and 1.85 ERA in the circle ... She also finished the tournament with a .471 batting average and four runs scored, while diving in what proved to be the game-winning run versus Bellarmine (March 6) with her second grand slam of the season ... She registered a 1.235 slugging percentage and a 1.735 OPS, adding two doubles and one triple to her stat line for 21 total bases.

» PRESEASON ACCOLADES: Ella Whitney entered the 2026 season ranked as the No. 9 Pitcher/Utility Player in D1Softball's Preseason Player Position Rankings ... In addition, she was the 49th-ranked player in the D1Softball Preseason Mid-Major D100 Player Rankings.

» MORE ON WHITNEY: Including her two seasons at FIU, Whitney owns 29 pitching wins, a 3.74 ERA and 134 strikeouts ... She is also a .305 career batter with 127 hits, including 26 doubles, two triples and 22 home runs ... Her 100th career hit was an RBI single in the bottom of the third inning to drive in what proved to be the game-winning run in a 3-0 shutout over Central Michigan in the 2025 regular season finale ... Her 100th career RBI came courtesy of her solo home run in the 15-1 (5) victory over Bellarmine (March 6).

» CLIMBING THE BALL STATE CHARTS: Junior Maia Pietrzak enters the week tied for 11th in program history with a .337 (99-for-294) career batting average ... She is Ball State's active career leader with 97 career runs scored, with her 60 runs in 2025 ranking as the third-best total in a season in program history ... Pietrzak also currently ranks seventh in program history with a .444 on base percentage.

» TOUGHEST TO STRIKE OUT: In addition, Maia Pietrzak enters the Butler game as the toughest batter in the MAC to strikeout out, averaging one strikeout every 35.5 at bats ... The average also ties for 20th nationally ... Only two players in the nation to meet the NCAA minimum at bat requirements have yet to strike out, while 11 have just one ... Pietrzak is one of only 24 players nationally with just two strikeouts ... In fact, Pietrzak has only struck out 14 times in her collegiate career ... She finished her sophomore season ranked second in the MAC and 29th nationally with one strikeout per every 27.5 at bats.

» TAKING THE HIT: A pride point for the offense under the leadership of third-year associate head coach Matt Burns, Ball State batters have been hit by a pitch 23 times so far this season to rank fifth in the MAC and 67th nationally ... Last season, the Cardinals lead the nation by being hit 91 times, which was a BSU single season record topping the previous mark of 55 set in 2015 ... The next closest team was St. John's, which was hit 69 times over 57 games, six more than the 51 the Cardinals played ... Under Burns' offensive guidance Ball State batters have been hit by 166 pitches over the past two-plus seasons.

» WALK THIS WAY: The Cardinals have drawn 110 total walks so far this season, including tying the program's single game record with 14 walks in the 9-5 victory over Southern Indiana (Feb. 13) ... Ball State previously drew 14 walks in a 15-7 (6) victory over Kent State on April 4, 2018 ... The team's 110 walks currently rank third in the MAC and 72nd nationally, led by 13 each from junior third baseman Mandy Lauth, Skylinn Pogue, Ella Whitney and senior outfielder Ashlee Lovett.

» SPEAKING OF POGUE: Another first-year player for the Cardinals, Skylinn Pogue enters the Butler game ranked second on the squad with a .368 average, while tying for the team lead with 23 runs scored ... Pogue has also smashed a team-leading three triples to tie for second in the MAC ... A two-year starter at Iowa (2023-24), they are the first three triples of Pogue's collegiate career ... She has also collected her first four collegiate doubles this season, while picking up her second career home run with her fourth-inning solo shot in Ball State's 7-6 victory over Illinois (Feb. 27).

» SEVERINO SHUTTING THE DOOR: Sophomore pitcher Breanna Severino has been finding her groove in relief during the MAC season, boasting a 0.58 ERA over four appearances and a team-high 12.0 innings of work ... She picked up her first save of the season in last Saturday's win at Central Michigan, throwing the final 3.0 innings and allowing just two hits ... During #MACtion, Severino has allowed just 10 hits and one run, while boasting a 1.33 WHIP and a .233 average against, both leading the squad ... She also has a team-high six strikeouts during the span.