Panthers Look to Stifle Bulldogs in Des Moines

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Panthers (23-21, 8-10) travel to Des Moines as they look to upset the Drake Bulldogs (35-9, 18-0) on the road.

The Bulldogs have yet to lose a conference matchup, and Drake took two games from UNI earlier in the season in a doubleheader in Cedar Falls.

First pitch at Buel Field is set for 6:00 p.m.

PANTHERS HEADLINES –

The Panthers (23-21, 8-10) face off against conference foe Drake (35-9, 18-0) in Des Moines. The Panthers have played their last nine games at home and will return to Cedar Falls following their Tuesday game at Drake.
The Panthers are (5-7) so far in April games this season. Last year, UNI was (14-5) in April matchups.
Northern Iowa has a 70-59 all-time record against Drake. The Panthers' last victory against the Bulldogs came in 2017, in a 5-2 home win.
Under head coach Ryan Jacobs, the Panthers are 14-16 against the Bulldogs.
Prior to being swept by Drake last week, UNI had won six straight matchups over the Bulldogs.
UNI is 3-1 in its last four games played against Drake in Des Moines.
After struggling to find the long ball for a majority of the season, the Panthers drove three balls over the fence in their series against Indiana State. 3 of 15 home runs this season for UNI came against the Sycamores.
Following Tuesday's matchup against Drake, UNI returns home for a weekend series against Illinois State.
Olivia Brooks has been making the most out of her recent starting appearances. The sophomore outfielder has 10 hits in her last 14 at-bats and has also scored four runs and tacked on an RBI in her last five games.
Brittney Roby continues to be the energizer for the UNI offense out of the leadoff spot. Roby leads the Panthers' primary starters in batting avg. (.412), runs (26), hits (63) and stolen bases (11). Roby was named Second-Team all-MVC as a first-year transfer in 2017. The senior outfielder has also been named MVC Player of the Week once this season.
Sammey Bunch, the reigning MVC Freshman of the Year, has overcome the sophomore slump in 2018. The UNI shortstop leads the team in extra-base hits (14), home runs (5), RBI (28) and slugging percentage (.527). Bunch is one of two Panthers this season to be named MVC Player of the Week.
Brooke Craig has already set career-highs across the board in her third season of pitching at UNI. Craig leads the Panthers in wins (12), innings (121.0) and strikeouts (70). The righty's wins, strikeouts, and inning totals are higher than her first two seasons combined. The junior out of Waterloo also has four shutouts on the year.

HOW TO WATCH –

Tuesday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+, with links provided via social media as well as the UNI athletics website.

For game this season that are broadcast on ESPN+, there will be a subscription fee to use ESPN+ ($4.99/monthly, $49.99 annually).

LIVE STATS –

Live stats will be made available via the UNI athletics website (www.UNIPanthers.com). Fans and media can visit @UNISoftball on Twitter for links to the feed.

FUTURE PANTHER GAMES -

For more information on future Panther softball games, and to see their entire 2018 schedule, visit: http://bit.ly/2E0QlW5.

TICKETS –

Admittance for all UNI Softball home games will be free this season.

SOCIAL MEDIA -

For the latest information on Panther Softball, follow @UNISoftball on Twitter, unisoftball on Instagram and @UNIPantherSoftball on Facebook.

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