University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Evansville
Panther softball primes for a postseason run as the three seed in the MVC Tournament
5/7/2025 7:24:00 PM | Softball
UNI softball (28-17 / 16-8 MVC) vs. MVC Tournament
- Buel Field | Des Moines, Iowa
- Quarterfinals | May 8 | 7 p.m. CT
- Semifinals | May 9 | 4 p.m. CT
- Championship | May 10 | 1 p.m. CT
- ESPN+
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — The UNI softball team rolls into the 2025 Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Tournament riding the momentum of a dominant sweep over Valparaiso and a collection of individual accolades. The third-seeded Panthers will begin their postseason campaign on Thursday, May 8 at 7 p.m. CT in the quarterfinals at Buel Field on the campus of Drake University. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+, with UNI facing the winner of Wednesday's first-round matchup between No. 6 Indiana State and No. 11 Evansville.
UNI ended the regular season in commanding fashion, outscoring Valparaiso 17-2 over three games. Junior slugger Kate Lappe led the offensive charge with a .571 batting average, 1.429 slugging percentage, and two home runs - her second tying UNI's single-season team home run record of 73, set in 2023.
Kylee Sanders (.500), Addison McElrath (.444), and Skylar Benesh (.444) also delivered at the plate, with Sanders adding a 1.000 slugging percentage with a double, a home run, and three walks.
On the mound, Kara Maiers picked up her first two wins of the season with a 0.71 ERA across two starts, including a shutout. Carly Goodwin earned a complete-game win and recorded a career-high five strikeouts in game two.
Wednesday morning, UNI's postseason resume grew even stronger with the MVC's year-end honors. Lappe was named MVC Player of the Year - the fourth Panther in the last five seasons to earn the honor. She was joined on the All-MVC First Team by Sanders, McElrath, and Benesh, with Anna Wischnowski earning Second Team honors and Ella Smithson landing on the All-Defensive Team.
UNI swept Evansville in this year's conference-opening series (7-2, 14-13, 12-9), while not facing Indiana State during the regular season. The Panthers last faced the Sycamores in the 2023 MVC Tournament semifinals, where Indiana State eked out a 1-0 win. UNI leads the all-time series against the Sycamores 69-35.
This marks UNI's first time as the three-seed under the current MVC Tournament format. The last time the Panthers held the three-seed was in 2019, when they advanced to the championship game before falling to top-seeded Drake.
Statistically, UNI boasts one of the most dangerous lineups in the conference. As of May 6, the Panthers led the MVC in 12 categories and ranked top-20 nationally in seven, including 7th in walks (237), 11th in home runs per game (1.52), and 18th in stolen bases per game (1.94).
Individually, Lappe leads the MVC in batting average (.438), home runs (18), slugging percentage (.912), and on-base percentage (.543), while ranking among the top 20 nationally in multiple categories. Sanders leads the league in hits (65), assists per game (2.72), and runs per game (1.00), while Benesh is four stolen bases away from tying the program's single-season record (24).
Head coach Ryan Jacobs, UNI's all-time winningest coach, is two MVC victories shy of fifth all-time in league history. He recently picked up his 500th career win, becoming just the second coach in UNI history and eighth in MVC history to reach the milestone.
First pitch for Thursday night's quarterfinal is set for 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+ as the Panthers begin their pursuit of an MVC Tournament title.
UNI softball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Softball), X (@UNISoftball), and on Instagram (@unisoftball). The 2025 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
