Beavers Open Pac-12 Play in Tucson

THIS WEEK:
• Oregon State begins Pac-12 play by traveling to Tucson, Ariz. to take on the Wildcats at Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium Friday through Sunday. OSU continues action on Tuesday, March 17 against Team USA in an exhibition matchup in Hillsboro, Ore. at Ron Tonkin Field, home of the Hillsboro Hops.

Friday, March 13
Oregon State at Arizona - 6 p.m. PT
Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium - Tucson, Ariz.

Saturday, March 14
Oregon State at Arizona - 6 p.m.
Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium - Tucson, Ariz.

Sunday, March 15
Oregon State at Arizona - 12 p.m.
Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium - Tucson, Ariz.

Tuesday, March 17
Oregon State vs. Team USA - 2 p.m. PT
Ron Tonkin Field - Hillsboro, Ore.
Stand Beside Her Tour (Exhibition game)

FOLLOW THE BEAVS:
• Live stats will be available this weekend through Statbroadcaster.com
• Links to live stats will be available on the softball schedule page at OSUBeavers.com
• Follow @BeaverSoftball on Twitter for the most up-to-date news on all things Beaver Softball.
• All three games this weekend will be live streamed through the Arizona Live Stream - 2 link. This link can be found on the softball schedule page.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW:
• Tickets for Oregon State's 14-home games are on sale now at BeaverTickets.com/softball.
• Season tickets are available for $50 for adults and $30 for youth and seniors. Single game tickets can be purchased at $7 for adults and $5 for youth.
• Tickets for the Oregon State vs. the USA National Softball Team in Hillsboro, Ore. on March 17 at Ron Tonkin Field can be purchased today on the Hillsboro Hops website.

MIGHTY MAZON:
• Mazon has thrown two no-hitters this season (at UNLV to open 2020 and at Houston in five innings).
• At the ASU Invitational, Mazon pitched 19.2 innings with 22 strikeouts and one save.
• At the Malihini Kipa Aloha Tournament, Mazon posted a 0.00 ERA with a 3-0 record and two shutouts. She threw 19 strikeouts and held opponents to a .189 BA.
• At the Mary Nutter, Mazon posted a .880 ERA, had one shutout, picked up a save and held opponents to a .170 BA.
• This season, Mazon has four saves - the season record is seven. On her career, Mazon has nine saves - the career record is 13.
• Mazon's performance at the Malihini Kipa Aloha Tournament helded her be recognized as one of the selected top performances by the NFCA.
• By the numbers: Mazon has 130 strikeouts (No. 9 in the season records is 192), has 14 complete games (No. 10 in season records is 24) and six complete-game shutouts (No. 8 in season records is eight).
• By the numbers for her career: Mazon has 437 strikeouts (No. 5 in career records is 478), has 12 complete-game shutouts (No. 7 in career records is 15) and nine career saves to sit third (No. 2 in career records is 12).
•Offensively, Mazon currently leads the Beavers with a .377 BA with 29 hits this season - including five doubles and four home runs. She has 15 RBI and has scored eight runs.

WELCOME TO THE XIAO:
• Freshman Xiao Gin has started 25 games this season at second base and one game in the circle.
• Gin is second amongst starters with a .298 BA with 25 hits this season - includign three doubles and one triple.
• Through 26 games, Gin has scored 13 runs, has hit nine RBI and leads the team with five stolen bases.
• She has appeared in the circle in four games. She has a 2-0 record with one save recorded through 10.2 innings pitched. She has struck out nine batters.

NUNES KNOWS:
• Junior Missy Nunes has started every game this season for the Beavers.
• Nunes is batting .291 with 25 hits this season - including six double and five home runs.
• The junior recorded her first-career grand slam against Hawaii on Feb. 28 in the fifth inning.
• Nunes leads the team with 22 RBI and 14 runs scored.
• Nunes has been a crucial part for the Beaver's defensively playing in three different positions this season based on the team's needs - Right field, third base and catcher.
• Behind the plate, Nunes has caught five runners attempting to steal.

FRESHMAN FOCUS:
• Grace Messmer have secured her spot in the Beaver's lineup starting all 26 games this season at shortstop.
• Messmer maintains a .268 BA with 22 hits and 14 runs scored. She has five RBI and has turned five double plays defensively.
• Messmer hit her first home run in the Orange and Black over the left-field fence against Seattle U on Feb. 29.
• Messmer had a big weekend at the ASU Invitational finishing with a .438 BA off seven hits - including three doubles. She brought in one RBI and scored five runs. The highlight of the weekend was when she went 3-for-4 against Ohio State with three runs scored.
• Val Pero and Ivana Perez have also made appearance at catcher and in the outfield, respectively, for the Beavers this season.
• Redshirt freshman Bailey McLaughlin made her first appearance of the 2020 season last weekend at the ASU Invitational and both a pinch hitter and the DP.
• McLaughlin is currently batting .375 with eight at-bats. She has three hits - including a double - and one RBI.

MAGNIFICENT MELANCON:
•, Grad-transfer Trystan Melancon has pitched 50.1 innings this season with 67 total strikeouts while limiting opponents to a .213 batting average.
• Melancon has a 5-3 record through 11 appearances. She has three complete games including one shutout.
• Against Hawaii on Feb. 28, Melancon pitched 3.2 perfect innings including striking out the side in the first and third innings. She finished the game with 11 strikeouts.
• She opened her career in the Orange and Black with 13 strikeouts against Southern Utah on Feb. 7.

BY THE NUMBERS:
• OSU is receiving votes in both major polls (USA Today/NFCA Coaches poll and ESPN.com/USA Softball). This is the third straight week OSU has received votes in the USA Today poll and the fourth straight week in the ESPN.com poll.
• In the Pac-12, OSU sits as followed in team categories: 1. Opponent BA (.179), 2. ERA (1.49) and 3. Batters Struck Out (209). In the NCAA, OSU is: 7. ERA and T-20. Shutouts (seven).
• In the Pac-12, Mazon currently sits: 1. Saves (four), 2. Opponent BA (.158), 2. Batters Struck out (130), T-2. Batters SO Looking (26), and 4. ERA (1.18).
• Mazon currently sits in the NCAA: T-1. Shutouts (six), T-4. Saves, 5. Strikeouts and 35. ERA.
• Trystan Melancon comes in at No. 8. Hits Allowed (33), No. 9. Batters Stuck out (67) and No. 10. ERA (1.83) in the Pac-12.

COACHING PROFILES:
• 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 picked up her 200th career victory as a head coach earlier this season against Idaho State at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic on February 20th. All 200 wins have come at OSU.
• Berg enters her eighth season at the helm of the Oregon State program, recording four NCAA Tournament appearances. Find more about Berg on the last page of these notes.
• 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 second season on staff working with the infielders and batters. Under his first season working with the infielders, Leyba coaches Hammoude and Rader to All-Freshman honors at first base and shortstop.
• Volunteer Assistant Coach Shelly Prochaska is new to the coaching staff, but not the Orange and Black. Prochaska played for former Beaver head coach Kirk Walker from 2000-03 before becoming an undergraduate assistant in 2004. Prochaska most recently served a stint as an assistant coach for the Sonoma State softball program during the 2018-19 season.
• Heather Smith also returns for her 19th season as Director of Operations.

NATIONAL SOFTBALL:
• Coach 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 with the WNT 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. She will join the Stars and Stripes on staff in the pursuit of another Olympic Gold Medal as softball makes a return at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
• Sophomore 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 the JWNT to 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. USA went on to capture the title.
• Freshman Grace Messmer was a member of the Junior National Canadian Team in the summer of 2019.
• Messmer helped Canada to a Bronze Medal finish at the WBSC World Cup after recording a sac fly against Australia.
• Freshman Xiao Gin is trying out for the Chinese National Team.
• Berg recently signed Tarni Stepto to the 2021 class. Stepto helped Australia qualify for the 2020 Olympics as a pitcher/hitter and was named one of 20 finalists for the Australian Olympic Team that will be announced later in June.

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.

KNOW WHAT IT TAKES:
• Oregon State's coaching staff is no stranger when it comes to the NCAA Tournament and WCWS.
• Both Berg and Green played at Fresno State in the '90s and gained plenty of experience in the path to the WCWS.
• Coach Berg played from 1994-95 and 1997-98 making it to the WCWS three times and won the national championship in '98.
• Coach Green played from 1990-93 and appeared in three WCWS, including a runner-up finish in 1990.
• Volunteer assistant coach Shelly Prochaska made a NCAA Regional appearance in all four seasons at Oregon State.

For more information on the Oregon State softball team, visit OSUBeavers.com or follow the team @BeaverSoftball on Twitter and Instagram.

OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).

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Players Mentioned

Xiao Gin

Frankie Hammoude

Bailey McLaughlin

Trystan Melancon

Grace Messmer

Missy Nunes

Ivana Perez

Val Pero