The RoundHouse | 4/20/2022 7:26:00 AM

 
 
It is fun to look at statistics and think about the history in progress and the awards to come for the top of the Wichita State softball lineup.
 
Fun, but not important for shortstop Sydney McKinney and outfielder Addison Barnard. The Shockers have 10 games remaining in the regular season and those are important, either to winning the American Athletic Conference title or building an NCAA at-large resume.
 
"I take a moment to look at the numbers and be like 'Wow, that's awesome,'" Barnard said. "I have to just keep moving forward and do what's best for the team. Get base hits and continue to be a team player."
 
The Shockers (24-13) play Kansas (14-25) at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Wilkins Stadium to start a four-game homestand.
 
Conference opponent Memphis visits starting Friday. Wichita State is No. 40 in the NCAA's power rankings, meaning it needs wins to continue to strengthen its case. It is second in the AAC at 7-2 behind UCF (37-10), which is No. 15 in the RPI and 9-0 in the American. Those teams meet in Wichita in the final series of the regular season. UCF, ranked No. 18 in the D1Softball poll, is at third-place Houston this weekend.
 
The Shockers kept themselves close to UCF with a sweep at Houston last weekend. The Shockers held the Cougars without an earned run in a 10-1 win the opener. They won the second game 7-3 with a four-run seventh inning and took the series 7-6 with back-to-back-to-back home runs by Barnard, Lauren Lucas and Zoe Jones in the fifth inning.
 
"We pitched really well this past weekend, and that was the bright spot for us," coach Kristi Bredbenner said. "A lot of good things from our pitchers. We know we're going to hit the ball. To see our pitchers really step up this past weekend in a crucial conference series is hopefully something we're going to see here these next couple weeks."
 
 

Guess who just went and done it again?!

ADDIE THE BADDIE, THAT'S WHO 😤

No. 20 for No. 30@addieb30 is the first player in school history with multiple 20+ HR seasons. pic.twitter.com/tgNDQvvZS5

— Wichita State Softball (@GoShockersSB) April 16, 2022

The Shockers rank second nationally in home runs per game (2.11) and their 78 rank fifth. Their batting average of .332 is eighth and they are fourth in scoring at 7.41 runs a game. They lead the conference in all of those categories and more.
 
Wichita State pitchers don't need to be perfect. They can count on plenty of run support in most games. Freshman Alison Cooper led the staff's recent surge with two strong starts. She held USF to four hits in a 2-1 win against 2021 third-team All-American Georgina Corrick. Cooper backed that up by limiting Houston to two hits over six innings in the 10-1 run-rule win.
 
Cooper, Bredbenner said, is beginning to understand she can throw strikes, let her defense work and rely on the offense to help.
 
"She doesn't have to be bigger than she is; she doesn't have to try harder than she can," Bredbenner said. "If she throws the way she is capable of and trusts her stuff, she's got really good stuff."
 
Wichita State's success over the rest of the season will start with McKinney and Barnard at the top of the order. Both are in line for more conference and All-American honors, similar to 2021 when McKinney earned third-team All-American and conference Player of the Year honors and Barnard added third-team All-American and conference Rookie of the Year honors.
 
This season, McKinney leads the nation with a .477 batting average and is second with 63 hits. Her 11 home runs rank second in the American.
 
"Syd, to me, is a no-brainer for conference player of the year," Bredbenner said. "Phenomenal hitter. She's aggressive. She doesn't mind if the pitch is a little up or the pitch is a little down. She's going to go after it."
 
Barnard is hitting .388, fourth in the conference, and her 20 home runs are second nationally and first in the conference. She is third nationally at 1.41 runs batted in per game and fourth with 52 total. She is the first Shocker to hit the 20-20 mark and the first with back-to-back seasons of 20 (or more) home runs.
 
She also has 24 steals, No. 24 nationally and second in the American, and is the lone player in the nation with 20-plus steals and homers.
 
The follow-up to a great freshman season forced Barnard to make adjustments when pitchers tried to tempt her with bad pitches or work around her.
 
"The biggest change is I have to realize that I'm not going to get a lot of good pitches," she said. "Sometimes, I get anxious and I want to hit the ball. I have to realize this year is going to be more of a year where I have to be more selective because more people know what I can hit because they scouted me."
 
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.