2023 Marshall Thundering Herd softball team

2023 Marshall Thundering Herd softball
Conference	Sun Belt Conference
Record	45–10 (17–5 SBC)
Head coach	Megan Smith Lyon (5th season)
Assistant coaches	Corey Lyon Maddie Holub
Home stadium	Dot Hicks Field
Seasons ← 2022 2024 →

2023 Sun Belt Conference softball standings

v t e	Conf.									Overall
Team	W		L		T		PCT			W		L		T		PCT
Louisiana  ‍†‍‡‍y	22	–	2	–	0		.917			47	–	14	–	0		.770
South Alabama  ‍‍‍	20	–	4	–	0		.833			39	–	14	–	0		.736
Marshall  ‍‍‍	17	–	5	–	0		.773			45	–	9	–	0		.833
Troy  ‍‍‍	14	–	9	–	1		.604			33	–	19	–	1		.632
Texas State  ‍‍‍y	13	–	9	–	1		.587			34	–	23	–	1		.595
James Madison  ‍‍‍	13	–	11	–	0		.542			28	–	19	–	0		.596
Coastal Carolina  ‍‍‍	11	–	13	–	0		.458			36	–	20	–	0		.643
Louisiana-Monroe  ‍‍‍	7	–	17	–	0		.292			25	–	32	–	0		.439
Georgia State  ‍‍‍	7	–	17	–	0		.292			18	–	36	–	0		.333
Southern Miss  ‍‍‍	6	–	17	–	0		.261			22	–	24	–	0		.478
Georgia Southern  ‍‍‍	6	–	18	–	0		.250			17	–	34	–	0		.333
Appalachian State  ‍‍‍	4	–	18	–	0		.182			23	–	28	–	0		.451
† – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of May 28, 2023 [1] Rankings from NFCA/USA Today

The 2023 Marshall Thundering Herd softball team represented Marshall University during the 2023 NCAA Division I softball season. The Thundering Herd played their home games at Dot Hicks Field and were led by fifth-year head coach Megan Smith Lyon. They were members of the Sun Belt Conference.

Preseason

Sun Belt Conference Coaches Poll

The Sun Belt Conference Coaches Poll was released on February 2, 2023. Marshall was picked to finish sixth in the conference with 80 votes. ^[2]

Coaches poll
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Louisiana	144 (12)
2	Texas State	130
3	South Alabama	118
4	Troy	99
5	James Madison	93
6	Marshall	80
7	Southern Miss	68
8	Appalachian State	63
9	Louisiana–Monroe	44
10	Coastal Carolina	43
11	Georgia State Georgia Southern	27

Personnel

2023 Marshall Thundering Herd softball team
Players	Coaches
# Pos. Name Bats/throws Height Year Home town 00 C Autumn Owen / — Jr Mill Spring, North Carolina 1 OF Grace Chelemen / 5 ft 3 in(1.6 m) Sr Woodhaven, Michigan 2 OF Kasey Wilhoit  / — Jr Trafalgar, Indiana 3 OF Erica Holt / — Jr Newport Beach, California 4 OF Alex Coleman / — So Asheboro, North Carolina 5 P Savannah Rice / — Jr Marshall, North Carolina 6 OF Aaliyah Crews / — Fr Loxahatchee, Florida 8 C Abby Darnley / — Fr Eleanor, West Virginia 9 INF Lauren Love / — So Matthews, North Carolina 11 INF Sydney Bickel / — Jr Peoria, Arizona 13 INF Rielly Lucas / — So Huntington, West Virginia 14 P Cailey Joyce  / — Sr Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania 17 C Emily Allen / — So Parkersburg, West Virginia 20 INF Camryn Michallas  / — Jr Huntington, West Virginia 21 P Sydney Nester  / — Sr Hillsville, Virginia 24 P Bri Godfrey / — Fr Deerfield Beach, Florida 48 P Bub Feringa / — So Glendale, Arizona 49 INF Brooklyn Ulrich  / — Fr Mesa, Arizona	Head coach Megan Smith Lyon (North Carolina) Assistant coach(es) Corey Lyon (Baker) Maddie Holub (Fort Hays State) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: 9 April 2023

Schedule and results

Legend
	Marshall win
	Marshall loss
	Postponement/Cancellation
Bold	Marshall team member

2023 Marshall Thundering Herd softball game log
Regular season (43–9)
February (11–3) Date Opponent Rank Site/stadium Score Win Loss Save TV Attendance Overall record SBC record Florida Spring Games Feb. 10 vs. Portland State Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex • Leesburg, FL W 8–1 Nester (1-0) Nakoa-Chu (0-1) None 205 1–0 Feb. 11 vs. Butler Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex • Leesburg, FL L 6–7 Dyer (1-0) Joyce (0-1) None 128 1–1 Feb. 11 vs. Colgate Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex • Leesburg, FL W 5–4 Nester (2-0) Acker (0-1) None 133 2–1 Feb. 12 vs. Butler Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex • Leesburg, FL W 7–3 Nester (3-0) Dyer (1-2) None 304 3–1 Chattanooga Challenge Feb. 17 vs. Maine Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN W 16–05 Nester (4-0) Rieth (0-1) None 107 4—1 Feb. 18 vs. Indiana State Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN W 3–2 Rice (1-0) Newbanks (0-1) None 189 5–1 Feb. 18 at Chattanooga Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN L 4–7 Long (1-0) Nester (4-1) None 5–2 Feb. 19 vs. Western Illinois Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN W 14–15 Godfrey (1-0) Rodriguez (0-1) None 103 6–2 Feb. 19 vs. Indiana State Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN W 1–0 Nester (5-1) Newbanks (0-2) None 215 7–2 Liberty Classic Feb. 24 vs. Northern Illinois Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium • Lynchburg, VA W 5–0 Nester (6-1) Cassell (0-1) None 117 8–2 Feb. 24 vs. Morgan State Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium • Lynchburg, VA W 11–05 Rice (2-0) Raubuch (1-3) None 117 9–2 Feb. 25 vs. Princeton Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium • Lynchburg, VA W 10–26 Nester (7-1) Chambers (1-1) None 117 10–2 Feb. 26 at Liberty Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium • Lynchburg, VA L 4–58 Keeney (3-5) Nester (7-2) None 409 10–3 Feb. 26 vs. Elon Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium • Lynchburg, VA W 7–3 Rice (3-0) McCard (1-2) Godfrey (1) 217 11–3
March (17–0) Date Opponent Rank Site/stadium Score Win Loss Save TV Attendance Overall record SBC record Thundering Herd Round Robin Mar. 2 Morehead State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 9–16 Nester (8-2) Ogden (1-3) None ESPN+ 234 12–3 Mar. 2 Morehead State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 9–15 Rice (4-0) Spicer (1-2) None 234 13–3 Mar. 4 Kent State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 8–1 Nester (9-2) Bowers (1-4) None ESPN+ 670 14–3 Mar. 5 Kent State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 10–25 Feringa (1-0) Irelan (2-6) None ESPN+ 545 15–3 Mar. 5 Pittsburgh Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 4–3 Nester (10-2) Drogemuller (4-3) None ESPN+ 545 16–3 Mar. 8 Ohio Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 6–4 Nester (11-2) Miller (3-5) None ESPN+ 396 17–3 Thundering Herd March Madness Mar. 9 Cleveland State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 9–16 Godfrey (2-0) Jenkins (0-4) Rice (1) 243 18–3 Mar. 10 Winthrop Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 8–1 Nester (12-2) Boulware (5-2) None ESPN+ 139 19–3 Mar. 11 Cleveland State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 9–15 Rice (5-0) Watts (1-1) None ESPN+ 243 20–3 Mar. 1 Rider Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 7–0 Nester (13-2) Schmierer (1-3) None ESPN+ 293 21–3 Mar. 18 at Appalachian State Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium • Boone, NC W 8–06 Nester (14-2) Northrop (6-2) None ESPN+ 241 22–3 1–0 Mar. 18 at Appalachian State Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium • Boone, NC Game cancelled Mar. 19 at Appalachian State Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium • Boone, NC Game cancelled Mar. 22 vs. UT Martin Knights Field • Louisville, KY W 4–1 Rice (6-0) Linneman (4-4) None 50 23–3 Mar. 22 Bellarmine Knights Field • Louisville, KY W 17–26 Godfrey (3-0) Jensen (1-4) None 80 24–3 Mar. 25 Southern Miss Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 4–0 Nester (15-2) Leinstock (8-8) None ESPN+ 671 25–3 2–0 Mar. 25 Southern Miss Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 17–96 Godfrey (4-0) Lee (3-3) None ESPN+ 641 26–3 3–0 Mar. 26 Southern Miss Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 4–0 Nester (16-2) Leinstock (8-9) None ESPN+ 683 27–3 4–0 Mar. 28 Northern Kentucky Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 13–15 Rice (7-0) Flores (4-10) None ESPN+ 567 28–3
April (12–6) Date Opponent Rank Site/stadium Score Win Loss Save TV Attendance Overall record SBC record Apr. 1 Georgia State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 6–1 Nester (17-2) Doolittle (6-5) None ESPN+ 495 29–3 5–0 Apr. 2 Georgia State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 5–1 Rice (8-0) Adams (3-8) Godfrey (2) ESPN+ 393 30–3 6–0 Apr. 2 Georgia State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 6–0 Nester (18-2) Hodnett (4-8) None ESPN+ 618 31–3 7–0 Apr. 7 at Louisiana–Monroe Warhawk Field • Monroe, LA W 13–26 Nester (19-2) Abrams (4-8) None ESPN+ 364 32–3 8–0 Apr. 8 at Louisiana–Monroe Warhawk Field • Monroe, LA W 4–3 Rice (9-0) Chavarria (5-4) Nester (1) ESPN+ 402 33–3 9–0 Apr. 8 at Louisiana–Monroe Warhawk Field • Monroe, LA L 3–5 Chavarria (6-4) Nester (19-3) None ESPN+ 402 33–4 9–1 Apr. 12 at Morehead State University Field • Morehead, KY W 4–2 Rice (10-0) Begley (4-5) None ESPN+ 72 34–4 Apr. 14 at Coastal Carolina St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC L 3–4 Picone (8-2) Nester (19-4) None ESPN+ 315 34–5 9–2 Apr. 15 at Coastal Carolina St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC W 5–3 Godfrey (5-0) Picone (8-3) Nester (2) ESPN+ 312 35–5 10–2 Apr. 16 at Coastal Carolina St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC W 3–2 Nester (20-4) Brabham (10-7) None ESPN+ 298 36–5 11–2 Apr. 18 No. 18 Alabama Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV L 1–3 Esman (4-2) Nester (20-5) Fouts (4) ESPN+ 2,768 36–6 Apr. 21 James Madison Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 10–26 Nester (21-5) Muh (4-2) None ESPN+ 457 37–6 12–2 Apr. 22 James Madison Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV L 6–7 Muh (5-2) Godfrey (5-1) None ESPN+ 650 37–7 12–3 Apr. 23 James Madison Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 8–4 Nester (22-5) Berry (9-3) None ESPN+ 626 38–7 13–3 Apr. 25 No. 21 Virginia Tech Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 2–1 Nester (23-5) Lemley (19-10) None ESPN+ 1,064 39–7 Apr. 28 Texas State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV L 0–3 Mullins (17-9) Nester (23-6) None ESPN+ 293 39–8 13–4 Apr. 29 Texas State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV W 2–1 Rice (11-0) Glende (1-1) Nester (3) ESPN+ 479 40–8 14–4 Apr. 30 Texas State Dot Hicks Field • Huntington, WV L 1–96 Mullins (19-9) Nester (23-8) None ESPN+ 393 40–9 14–5
May (3–0) Date Opponent Rank Site/stadium Score Win Loss Save TV Attendance Overall record SBC record May 4 at Georgia Southern Eagle Field at GS Softball Complex • Statesboro, GA W 4–0 Nester (24-7) Barnard (1-10) None ESPN+ 238 41–9 15–5 May 5 at Georgia Southern Eagle Field at GS Softball Complex • Statesboro, GA W 7–2 Rice (12-0) Belogorska (1-3) Feringa (1) ESPN+ 249 42–9 16–5 May 6 at Georgia Southern Eagle Field at GS Softball Complex • Statesboro, GA W 8–1 Nester (25-7) Belogorska (1-4) None ESPN+ 254 43–9 17–5
Post-season (2–1)
SBC Tournament (2–1) Date Opponent (Seed)/Rank Site/stadium Score Win Loss Save TV Attendance Overall record Tournament record May 11 vs. (7) Coastal Carolina (2) Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA W 2–1 Nester (26-7) Brabham (12-12) None ESPN+ 44–9 1–0 May 12 vs. (3) South Alabama (2) Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA W 3–2 Nester (27-7) Hardy (17-8) None ESPN+ 918 45–9 2–0 May 13 vs. (1) Louisiana (2) Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA L 0–1 Landry (17-4) Nester (27-8) None ESPN+ 1,574 45–10 2–1

Schedule source: ^[3]

*Rankings are based on the team's current ranking in the NFCA/USA Softball poll.

References

1. "2023 Softball Standings". SunBeltSports.org. Sun Belt Conference. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
2. "Louisiana Tops Sun Belt Softball Preseason Coaches Poll". sunbeltsports.org. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
3. "Marshall Softball Releases 2023 Schedule". Marshall University Athletics. Retrieved April 10, 2023.