Washington opens Columbia Regional against Indiana

The Washington Huskies begin their quest for a spot in the Women’s College World Series against the Indiana Hoosiers.

The Washington Huskies have a tough road ahead of them to reach the Women’s College World Series, and it starts in the Columbia Regional against a future Big Ten opponent, the Indiana Hoosiers.

After an early exit in the Pac-12 Tournament, coach Heather Tarr’s team was forced to hit the road and face off with an interesting Indiana squad that went 40-18 in the regular season. The Hoosiers offense is led by Aly VanBrandt, who leads the team with a .370 batting average, and Taylor Minnick, who has a team-high 64 hits, 53 runs batted in, and 1.072 OPS.

Sophomore Ruby Meylan’s tallest task against the Hoosiers will be limiting baserunners as much as possible. Washington’s ace holds a 1.35 WHIP this season and will need to be cautious because Indiana loves to run. The Hoosiers have stolen 107 bases this season, tied for the No. 10 mark in the country.

In the circle, coach Shonda Stanton will turn to one of Brianna Copeland or Sophie Klieman to start, who have handled the majority of the workload this season. Copeland holds a 2.81 ERA and is a high-risk/high-reward arm. She has struggled with walks this season, allowing 94, but has also struck out 170 batters.

Klieman has a 2.54 ERA over 60 fewer innings than Copeland but is an intriguing counter for Washington’s offense, which has displayed loads of power this season. She has only allowed 7 home runs across 121 1/3 innings.

First pitch is scheduled for noon pacific time, as the Huskies look to record the first of three victories that would allow them to advance to the Super Regionals.