Kansas (21-24, 6-15) at Wichita State (26-22-1, 13-10-1)
Wednesday, April 30 | 6:00 PM
Wichita, Kan. | Wilkins Stadium
Video: ESPN+ 
Stats: Statbroadcast.com
 

---

Promotions

Shocker Store Pop-Up Shop & End-of-Season Sidewalk Sale

---

QUICK HITS
• Wichita State welcomes Kansas to Wilkins Stadium for its 2025 home finale Wednesday night at 6 p.m.
• Wichita State is coming off a 2-1 weekend vs. Charlotte. The Shockers now have six series wins in conference play, but still searching for their first sweep of the season. Wichita State has won four straight conference series.
• The tie with South Florida on March 30 was just the third game in program history to end in a tie. Two of those three have come under Kristi Bredbenner. The last tie came four years ago on April 18, 2021 when the Shockers and UCF Knights ended in a 0-0 tie in 9 innings.
• The bats are heating up at the right time for Wichita State. The Shockers have hit 20 home runs over their last 7 games. Ten of those came in the three-game series vs. Charlotte last weekend.
• Wichita State has 69 home runs this season, 5th most in a single season. They now rank 16th nationally in home runs per game.
• Wichita State hit 5 home runs in last Tuesday's win over Kansas City, tied for the most in a game this season. Three of those homers came off the bat of Ellee Eck. Her three homers tied a single game school record.
• Lauren Lucas was named the American Player of the Week on April 28 after hitting .583 with 5 HR, 8 R, 9 RBI in four games last week.
• Taylor Sedlacek leads the American in doubles and walks per game.
• Sedlacek's 34 career home runs rank 8th all-time at Wichita State. Her 15 home runs this season are tied for 7th on the single season charts.
• Ellee Eck's 21 stolen bases lead the American and are 4th on the Wichita State single season list.
• Lauren Lucas joined former All-American Sydney McKinney as the only Shockers in school history to have at least 10 triples, 40 doubles and 20 home runs in a career.
• The Shockers bring back only two pitchers that recorded innings in 2024: Chloe Barber (Sophomore, AAC All-Rookie Team) and Alex Aguilar (Junior, 2023 AAC Rookie of the Year).
• Nine newcomers (six freshman, three transfers) join the team in 2025.
• Head Coach Kristi Bredbenner recorded her 400th career win at Wichita State on Feb. 23 vs. Abilene Christian. She is the all-time winningest coach in program history.

SCOUTING KANSAS
Led by seventh-year head coach Jennifer McFalls, Kansas is 21-24 and 6-15 in Big 12 play. The Jayhawks are coming off their first ranked win of the season on Sunday, defeating No. 23 Oklahoma State. Presley Limbaugh leads the Jayhawks in hits (53) and average (.373). Olivia Bruno is the top run producer and home run hitter with 10 homers and 38 RBIs. In the circle, KU relies on a staff approach between five pitchers. All five have thrown at least 42.2 innings and no more than 76.1. Katie Brooks leads in starts and innings and is 7-6 with a 4.77 ERA.

SERIES HISTORY
The series between Wichita State and Kansas dates back to 1978 when the two programs met for the very first time. Kansas leads the all time series, 76-24-1. Wichita State didn't record its first win in the series until 1986. The two teams have traded three-game win streaks dating back to 2016. Wichita State snapped a three-game losing streak vs. the Jayhawks last month in Lawrence.

LAST MEETING VS. THE JAYHAWKS
Wichita State claimed the first matchup with KU this season back on March 12 in Lawrence. The Shockers led 7-0 after a 4-run third inning and held on for a 7-3 win. A pair of freshmen came up big for the Shockers, as Gabby Scott and Brookelyn Livanec combined for 5 RBI.

LAST TIME OUT
Wichita State won its fourth straight conference series, defeating Charlotte 7-3 and 9-6, while dropping the second game, 10-8. Wichita State hit 10 home runs over the three-game series, four of those belonging to Lauren Lucas and three more to Taylor Sedlacek.

ECK YEAH!
Over the last month Ellee Eck has provided power at the top of the lineup for the Shockers. Ten of her 11 home runs this season have come since the March 26 game vs. #2 Oklahoma. Over her last 18 games she's hitting .377 (23-for-61) with 2 doubles, 10 home runs, 20 RBIs, 25 runs and slugging .902. Her slugging percentage during that time is second highest on the team. She also has 55 total bases in that stretch, most on the team. In 148 career games over three seasons at Stanford, Eck had zero home runs. She has three multi-home run games in her last 16 games, including a school record-tying three-home run game vs. Kansas City on April 22. She became just the fourth Shocker to hit three home runs in a single game, joining Lauren Mills, Addison Barnard and CC Wong.

LUCAS GRABS SECOND PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONOR
Lauren Lucas picked up her second American Athletic Conference Player of the Week honor of the season on April 28. The Little Elm, Texas, native was 7-for-12 (.583) with 5 home runs, 8 runs scored, 9 RBIs and a slugging percentage of 1.833 over four games. She homered in all four games, including a two-home run game in the finale vs. Charlotte.

FRESHIE MAKING AN IMPACT
Wichita State's offense has received a boost in conference play from freshman Brookelyn Livanec. Livanec has taken a hold of the DP position since the start of conference play at Florida Atlantic. Through 23 AAC games, Livanec is hitting .338 (22-for-65) with three doubles, a triple, 11 runs scored and 10 RBIs. Her .338 batting average in conference games is third highest on the team.

SOONER SHOOTOUT
Wichita State took No. 2 Oklahoma (19-16) to the wire Wednesday night at Wilkins Stadium. The 35 combined runs were the most in program history, edging out a March 9, 2014 contest vs. Iowa State when the Shockers defeated the Cyclones, 18-16. Oklahoma's 19 runs were the second most Wichita State has allowed in a game in program history. Wichita State's 16 runs were the most an Oklahoma team has allowed since June 3, 2019 when UCLA scored 16 against the Sooners in the WCWS Championship series. Wichita State belted five home runs, the most Oklahoma has given up in a game since Feb. 29, 2020 vs. North Texas. It marked the first time since March 17, 2018 vs. Creighton a Shocker team scored 10 or more runs in a loss.

RPI AT A GLANCE
Wichita State checked in at No. 62 in this week's RPI rankings. The Shockers have already faced 17 teams in the Top 70, including No. 1 Texas A&M, No. 3 Oklahoma (twice), No. 5 Florida State, No. 19 Oklahoma State (twice), No. 25 Nebraska, No. 27 Liberty, No. 30 Florida Atlantic (three times), No. 31 Kentucky, No. 32 Missouri, No. 33 Grand Canyon, No. 34 San Diego State, No. 36 South Florida (three times), No. 44 North Texas (three times), No. 55 Charlotte (three times), No. 57 Texas State, No. 64 Kansas (twice) and No. 67 Central Arkansas.

WELCOME BACK
Wichita State welcomes back a pair of super seniors in Lauren Lucas and Camryn Compton after missing the entire 2024 season due to injuries. The duo have 161 combined starts between the two of them. Lucas is a two-time First Team All-Conference performer and earned Third Team All-America honors in 2023 after hitting .384 with 16 doubles, 7 triples, 4 home runs and 62 RBIs. Her 62 RBIs ranked Top 10 nationally. Compton has battled injuries throughout her career at Wichita State, but her experience will be key in 2025, as she looks to end on a high note.

TOUGH SLEDDING
Wichita State has never shied away from playing a tough schedule, and that is no different in 2025. The Shockers are scheduled to play 10 teams ranked or receiving votes in the Preseason NFCA Top 25: No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 4 Oklahoma State, No. 8 Texas A&M, No. 9 Florida State, No. 15 Missouri, No. 19 Nebraska. Kentucky, Texas State, Grand Canyon and Liberty all received votes.

PRESEASON TOP 100 LOVE
Lauren Lucas was named to the Softball America Preseason Top 100 list and the D1 Softball D100 Player Rankings. Lucas checked in at No. 78 on the Softball America Top 100 and No. 88 on the D100. Lucas was also named the No. 21 outfielder according to D1 Softball. Freshman pitcher Ava Sliger was named to the D1 Softball D100 Freshman Watch List on Jan. 8.

UP NEXT
Wichita State travels to Memphis for the final weekend of the regular season, May 2-4.