Broncos Host Nevada in Final Series of 2021

THE SCHEDULE

Nevada (22-15, 14-7 MW) at Boise State (19-23, 10-11 MW)
Boise, Idaho (Dona Larsen Park)

Friday, May 14

GAME 43: Wolf Pack at Broncos | 1 p.m. MT | Live Scoring | MW Network
GAME 44: Wolf Pack at Broncos | 3:30 p.m. MT | Live Scoring | MW Network

Saturday, May 2

GAME 45: Wolf Pack at Broncos (Senior Day) | 12 p.m. MT | Live Scoring | MW Network

ADMISSION: Limited number (200) of fans will be allowed ... NOTE: COVID protocols, masks and social distancing are in place.
PARKING: Limited parking is available at Dona Larsen Park with overflow parking available in Albertsons Stadium's east parking lot.

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THIS WEEK FOR THE BRONCOS

WHAT IS NEXT: Boise State (19-23, 10-11 MW) will close out the season this weekend at home when the Broncos host third-place Nevada (22-15, 14-7 MW) for a three-game series at Dona Larsen Park. The action begins with a doubleheader on Friday starting at 1 p.m. (Mountain) and will wrap up on Saturday with a single contest beginning at 12 p.m.

SENIOR WEEKEND: This is Senior Weekend for the Broncos as their three seniors, Karlee Johnson, Isabelle Butler and Ashlyn Adams, compete in the blue and orange for the last time. There will be an official celebration honoring the trio following Saturday's game at Dona Larsen Park.

LIMITED SPECTATORS: Seating capacity at Dona Larsen Park is set at 200 (bleachers and outfield combined) for this weekend. Tickets may be purchased at the athletic ticket office on campus or at Dona Larsen Park the day of. COVID-19 protocols will be enforced with masks and social distancing being mandatory.

PARKING: Overflow parking is available at the east Albertsons Stadium Parking lot.

BOISE STATE VERSUS NEVADA: The Broncos and Wolf Pack have met 32 times prior to this weekend with the Broncos holding a 21-11 advantage in the all-time series. Boise State also leads the series in games played at Boise 11-7 and in conference play 19-11 dating back to 2009 and the Western Athletic Conference.

FOLLOW THE ACTION: The entire series versus Nevada will feature both a live stream via the Mountain West Network and live scoring. Fans who cannot attend this weekend can find all the links to follow the action by going to the softball schedule on BroncoSports.com.

SCOUTING BOISE STATE: Boise State enters the week at 19-23 overall and 10-11 in MW play, good for fifth place. The Broncos are coming off a 0-3 weekend at Mountain West champion Fresno State. As a team, Boise State hits .258 (MW 6th), has an ERA of 3.45 (MW 5th) and fielding percentage of .976 (MW 2nd / NCAA 18th).

The Broncos return seven position starters and two pitchers from the 2020 campaign that saw the Broncos go 14-11. In addition, they welcomed back 13 veterans while adding two transfers and eight freshmen. Among the returners are two All-Mountain West honorees in Karlee Johnson and Alison Seng. This year's Boise State team was picked to place fourth out of nine teams in the 2021 league race.

SCOUTING NEVADA: The Wolf Pack enter the week in third place in the conference standings and are 22-15 overall and 14-7 in league play. They are coming off a home sweep over their rival and second-place UNLV last week. As a team, Nevada hits .285 (MW 2nd), has a team ERA of 3.70 (MW 6th) and a team fielding percentage of .966 (MW 5th). Nevada was picked to place seventh out of nine teams in the Preseason Mountain West Coaches Poll.

ABOUT THE BRONCOS

ROCCO NAMED MW CO-FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Bella Rocco is the third Bronco all-time to be named Mountain West Freshman of the Year joining Rebekah Cervantes in 2016 and Alison Seng in 2018. The redshirt-freshman from Fontana, Calif., has had a standout season in 2021 starting 41 games at third base. She ranks second on the team and 10th in the MW for batting average at .333; second on team and tied for 12th in the league for hits with 38; in addition to 14 runs, 23 RBI, four doubles and five home runs. Rocco currently has a slugging percentage of .500 and an on base percentage of .419, which is 10th in the MW.

ROCCO AND HUTCHINS NAMED ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST FIRST TEAM: Bella Rocco — who was also named MW Co-Freshman of the Year — and Jordyn Hutchins have been named to the All-Mountain West First Team. Hutchins, a true freshman from Knights Landing, Calif., is hitting .274, has a slugging percentage of .528 and on base percentage of .358. She has started 39 of 41 games in left field where she has a perfect fielding percentage of 1.000. The left handed hitter currently has 18 runs, 29 hits, team-high 28 RBI, seven doubles, one triple and six home runs.

ADAMS, BAILEY AND SARA JOHNSON NAMED ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST SECOND TEAM: Ashlyn Adams is the eighth Bronco ever to earn two or more postseason all-conference honors during a career having earned first team recognition in 2020 and second-team accolades this year. The senior currently ranks seventh in the Mountain West in hitting percentage at .358 and is tied for first in hits with 49. She has a slugging percentage of .438 and an on base percentage of .397. In addition to the 49 hits, the left handed batter has 20 runs, 12 RBI, team-high eight doubles and one triple. Adams has started all 42 games in right field where she has recorded a fielding percentage of .982.

Hannah Bailey is in her second year at Boise State after transferring from Minnesota for the 2020 campaign. The second-team All-MW honoree has had a standout season in 2021 ranking among the top pitchers in the Mountain West Conference. The redshirt-junior leads the team and is third in the MW for ERA at 2.36. She has an opponent batting average of .233 which ranks sixth in the league and has 55 strikeouts to rank ninth. Bailey has made 25 appearances this season and has won eight, which is tied for fifth in the conference for victories. In addition, the native of Vista, Calif., leads the league in relief appearances with 19.

Sara Johnson is the final All-MW honoree making the second team in 2021. The transfer from Towson University leads the team and ranks fifth in the conference for strikeouts with 91, which currently ranks 11th all-time for a season in program history. Her opponent batting average of .267 is ninth in the conference. Johnson has made 22 appearances with 11 starts and has an ERA of 3.06, second on the team and eighth in the MW. The native of Lake Stevens, Wash., has 22 appearances to rank ninth while her 11 games in relief is tied for eighth in the league.

HEAD COACH HUFFAKER: Boise State is in its third season under the guidance of Maggie Huffaker who has recorded a 69-50 overall record with the Broncos. Some of Huffaker's accomplishments at Boise State include: one NCAA Regional appearance and one NCAA regional championship appearance; two winning seasons; student-athletes have earned three NFCA All-Region honors and eight All-MW accolades. Academically, her team has earned one NFCA Academic Team Award, nine NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete accolades, 29 Academic All-MW and 20 MW Scholar-Athlete (3.5 or better cumulative GPA) honors.

OFFENSIVE LEADERS: Ashlyn Adams is hitting a league-high .358 (MW 1st) with a league-high 49 hits, 20 runs and 12 RBI. Bella Rocco is hitting .333 (MW 10th) with 14 runs, 38 hits and 23 RBI. Kelsey Lalor is hitting .260 with 34 hits, 24 runs, eight home runs and 19 RBI. Jordyn Hutchins is batting .274 with 18 runs, 29 hits, six home runs and team-high 28 RBI (MW t-7th).

PITCHING LEADERS: Hannah Bailey leads the pitching staff with a 2.36 ERA (MW 3rd) and 55 strikeouts (MW 9th). Sara Johnson has a 3.06 ERA (MW 8th) and a team-high 91 strikeouts (MW 5th). Freshman Taylor Caudill's ERA is 3.40 (MW 11th) with 84 strikeouts (MW 6th). On the year, all three are ranked in the top-10 in the league for lowest opponent batting average: Caudill is fourth (.220), Bailey is sixth (.233) and Johnson is ninth (.267).

MULTIPLE HITS: Ashlyn Adams leads the Broncos with 16 multiple-hit games this season, followed by Kelsey Lalor and Alison Seng with 10 each.

HITTING STREAKS: Bella Rocco, Ashlyn Adams, Alison Seng and Isabelle Butler are tied for the longest active hitting streak at two consecutive games. Ashlyn Adams, Bella Rocco and Kelsey Lalor have the longest streak this season at seven.

ACTIVE REACHED BASE STREAKS: Ashlyn Adams, Bella Rocco, Alison Seng, Karlee Johnson and Isabelle Butler are tied for the longest active reached base streaks at two games each. Ashlyn Adams has the longest streak overall on the season at 15.

THE SCHEDULE

THIS WEEK FOR THE BRONCOS

ABOUT THE BRONCOS

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Players Mentioned

Ashlyn Adams

Hannah Bailey

Isabelle Butler

Taylor Caudill

Rebekah Cervantes

Jordyn Hutchins

Karlee Johnson

Sara Johnson

Kelsey Lalor

Bella Rocco

Alison Seng