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5.21.03.pdf
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HAWAII AND FRESNO STATE FALL IN NCAA REGIONALS Despite strong efforts, both Fresno State and Hawaii fell in the NCAA Tournament.Both teams went 3-2 in regionals. The last time that the Rainbow Wahine won three games in a regionals was 1999 when they went 3-2 in Seattle, Wash. The Bulldogs last won three games in 2000.
No. 6-seeded Southwest Texas scored unearned single runs in the first and third innings, and used a four-hit, three-strikeout performance by junior hurler Nicole Neuerburg to post a 2-1 victory over No. 5 regional seed Hawaii in the final elimination bracket game. Hawaii ends its season at 40-20 after losing to Southwest Texas State, 2-1. Sophomore right-hander Melissa Coogan took the loss for the Rainbow Wahine. Coogan (32-11) went the distance, yielding two unearned runs, striking out five and walking one.
The Rainbow Wahine did defeat No. 2 Northwestern, 1-0, and No. 3 Arizona State, 4-2. Hawaiis losses came against SW Texas State and No. 4 LSU.
Michigan State defeated Fresno State 2-0 in an elimination game in the NCAA Softball Regional in Fresno, Calif. Only two Fresno State players managed hits, Mitzi Ing and Jamie Southern. The Bulldogs advanced only one runner as far as second base the entire game.
Southern pitched all of Fresno State's 36 innings in the regional. She allowed only four earned runs in five games, striking out 39 while walking just nine. Despite that, Southern took the loss against Michigan State, dropping her record on the year to 25-12.
THREE NAMED TO REGIONAL ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS Three WAC players were named to regional all-tournament teams.
Hawaiis Stacey Porter and Trisha Ramos were named to the NCAA Region 3 All-Tournament Team, while Fresno States Jamie Southern was nameded to the NCAA Region 2 All-Tournament Team.
Porter batted .615 in five games with four doubles, four runs, and four RBI. She was 2-of-2 from the basepaths, had a .923 slugging and .703 on-base percentages, and walked four times. Ramos hit .125 in five games with two RBI. One of her RBI propelled UH past No. 2 seed Northwestern in the 11th inning. The major reason for her selection was her dynamic defense displayed during the regional fielding .952, converting on 20-of-21 total chances.
Southern pitched all of Fresno State's 36 innings in the regional. She allowed only four earned runs in five games, striking out 39 while walking just nine. At the plate, the sophomore hit .312 with five hits and three RBI.
SIX EARN REGIONAL TEAM HONORS Six WAC softball players were named to the Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association's (NFCA) Division I Region Team. In the West Region Hawaii's Stacey Porter, Melissa Coogan and April Crowell were honored along with Fresno State Christina Clark and Jamie Southern. Tulsa's Katie Torres earned Central Region second team honors.
Fresno State utility player Southern and shortstop Clark were both named to the West Region First Team. A first team selection at utility player, Southern picks up her second consecutive first team all-West region accolade, while Clark is honored for the first time. Clark, who has been an offensive powerhouse at the plate, is the WAC's Freshman of the Year.
Hawaii's Porter earned first team honors, while teammates Crowell and Coogan were second team honorees. Porter was the WAC Player of the Year, leading the WAC in hitting in league games with a .458 batting average. Coogan split WAC Pitcher of the Year honors with Fresno State's Southern. Coogan won a league-leading 14 WAC wins, while designated player Crowell was third in the league in home runs with 11.
Torres, the first ever Tulsa freshman to earn a spot on the all-region team, makes 2003 the second consecutive season for the Hurricane to have a player make the squad. Torres played in 56 of Tulsa's 63 games. The first baseman led the team in batting average (.314), slugging percentage (.503) and on-base percentage (.381).
Since Clark, Southern and Porter were named to the 12-member first team, they will go on for All-America consideration, which will be announced Thurs., May 22, in Oklahoma City.
HAWAII CLINCHES FIRST WAC TITLE Hawaii swept both ends of a doubleheader at Louisiana Tech on May 3 by the scores of 6-3 and 7-0 to secure its first-ever WAC title.
Hawai'i wins its first WAC title after finishing second to Fresno State four of the last five years. The Bulldogs have won six of the last eight league titles. This is the first time that Fresno State was not WAC champion since 1997.
Hawaii last went to a NCAA regional in 2001. The Rainbow Wahine lost to Texas Tech and SW Texas State in Tucson, Ariz. This is the sixth appearance for the Rainbow Wahine in the NCAA tournament, third as a member of the WAC.
HAWAII AT NCAA REGIONALS Hawaii is 11-12 overall in the postseason, 7-6 as a member of the WAC. The Rainbow Wahine have advanced to the NCAA Tournament six times, last appearing in 2001. This is the first time since 1999 that the Rainbow Wahine have won at least three games at a regional. Hawaii defeated second-seeded Northwestern and third-seeded Arizona State along with eighth-seeded Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
FRESNO STATE AT NCAA REGIONALS Fresno State made its 22nd-straight appearance and hosted its 18th NCAA Regional out of 22 postseason tournaments. The Bulldogs are the only program in the nation to have qualified for each of the 22 NCAA Division I womens softball championships. With 12 NCAA Regional championship titles to its credit, Fresno State owns a 75-45 (.625) record in NCAA Tournament play.
CAREER RECORDS Several WAC players are climbing up the WAC career record list.
Fresno State All-American Jamie Southern moved into third in career strikeouts this season with 740 in only two complete seasons. Former Bulldog All-American Amanda Scott (1997-00) is the career leader with 851 strikeouts. Southern needs 69 strikeouts to take control of second place. Southern is also 10th in wins with 60 and tied for fifth in saves with five. The two-time WAC Pitcher of the Year has a career ERA of 0.51 which places her first in the WAC.
Hawaiis Kate Judd moved into seventh all-time in doubles with 42. Teammate Stacey Porter is second in home runs with 38 after hitting out 17 this season.
San Jose States Courtney Lewis is tied with Southern and two others for fifth in saves with five.
THREE NAMED TO VERIZON DISTRICT TEAM Three WAC softball player were named to the Verizon Academic District teams. Tulsas Brandi McGuire was named to the Verizon Academic All-District VI First Team. San Jose States Tara Hall and Fresno States Mitzi Ing were named to the Verizon Academic All-District VIII Team.
McGuire has earned a first-team honors two-straight seasons. McGuire has a 3.92 grade point average in accounting. She lead the team in doubles with 13. Earlier this season, McGuire broke the school record for doubles in a career. As a member of the districts first-team, McGuire is now eligible for the Academic All-American ballot.
Hall is just the third San Jose State softball player to receive this honor. She is a radio, television, film major with a minor in communications. Hall, a native of Tucson, Ariz., carries a 3.48 grade point average. She is a two-time SJSU Scholar Athlete and was named to the SJSU All-Academic team with the highest GPA on the team.
Ing sported the highest GPA of the District VIII selections with a cumulative GPA of 3.92 in business administration. Ing, who along with Hall will also go on for national consideration as a Verizon Academic All-American, receives her first Verizon All-District VIII accolade after recently being honored as a 2003 first team.
To be selected for the Verizon Academic All-District Team the nominee must be a starter or important reserve with legitimate athletic credentials and at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average.
NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS Overall WAC schools was 114-122 (.483) in non-conference meetings. WAC schools were 8-21 (.276) against teams ranked in the top 25. Fresno State was 3-10, including losses to No. 4 Nebraska, No. 12 Texas, No. 24 Texas A&M and No. 4 Michigan. Fresno State has wins against No. 12 Stanford and No. 3 Nebraska. The Bulldogs were 1-2 against ranked team at regionals with a win against No. 7 Georgia and losses to No. 2 UCLA and No. 25 Michigan State. San Jose State was 0-4 with losses two losses to No. 2 California and two to No. 16 Stanford. Hawaii was 4-6, defeating No. 4 Texas, No. 23 Oregon State and No. 3 California. At regionals, Hawaii was 1-1 against ranked teams with a win over No. 15 Arizona State and a loss to No. 12 LSU. Tulsa was 1-3 against ranked teams this season, recently defeating No. 5 Oklahoma. (rankings at time of meeting).
HAWAIIS PORTER TIES WAC RECORD Hawaii junior Stacey Porter had a stellar season at the plate. With four home runs to end the regular season, Porter tied the WAC record for long balls in a season with 17. Porter is second in career home runs with 38. The first baseman needs only eight more to tie for first with Cal State Northridges Scia Maumausolo (1993-96). Last season, Porter hit 15 home runs which was tied for second for single-season highs. Porter also set the WAC record for home runs in league games with nine. She broke the record of eight set by three people. Her slugging percentage of 1.017 in WAC games was the second-best ever behind UNLVs Kim Rondina (1.033) in 1997.
NEWS AND NOTES Fresno State pitcher Jamie Southern is Softball West/Akadema Top 10 Finalist Softball West Magazine, in conjunction with softball/baseball equipment manufacturer, Akadema, will present their inaugural SWM/Akadema Collegiate Player of the Year Award at the end of the 2003 season. Southern is one of 10 softball players selected from around the country and is the only player who has the dual role of a hitter and pitcher.
Hawaii posted a 40-20 mark, including a 17-3 record in WAC record, earning the programs first WAC title. Head coach Bob Coolen completed his 12th season at the helm of UH and owns a 456-278-1 mark at UH and an overall record of 528-371-1 in 17 years. Coolen won his first WAC Coach of the Year honor this season. He is Hawaiis all-time leader in softball wins. Coolen picked up his 500th career win against UC Riverside March 8.
Louisiana Tech sophomore Brittany Stanley and freshman Mary Cohn were selected as first-team all-WAC performers giving Lady Techsters their first such accolades. Cohn, the only freshman on the team to play in all 58 games, joined the all-WAC squad on the strength of her .283 conference batting average and three doubles. Last season, Louisiana Tech did not post anyone on either the first or second team.
Nevada finished its first season in the WAC with a 22-35 overall mark and a 5-15 record in league games. The Wolf Pack were led by Stacy Mueller, who started all 57 games, the only player to do so. She led the team in batting average (.321) and hits (52).
San Jose State finished the season with a 26-35 overall record and an 8-10 WAC mark. The team finished in third place in the conference, the best for a Spartan team in school history. The Spartans ended the season strong winning five-straight WAC games. San Jose State won one against Hawaii and swept doubleheaders against Tulsa and Louisiana Tech to end the season.
Tulsa senior Crissy Strimple tied her own school record for assists in a single season, with four on the last day of the season. She had 170 in 2003, which matches the number she had last season. Tulsa finished the season 34-29, only the second squad in the programs history to finish above a .500 winning percentage.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS The following players have been named to all-tournament teams.
Lori Hoffman, FS Campbell/Cartier
Jamie Southern, FS Campbell/Cartier
No. 2 Regional
Bridget Broadnax, LT Panther Classic
Melissa Coogan, UH Malihini Tournament*
April Crowell, UH Chevron Classic
UNC Tournament
Stacey Porter, UH Chevron Classic
Hawaii Invitational
No. 3 Regional
Trisha Ramos, UH No. 3 Regional
Tracie Uchima, UH Chevron Classic
Cindy Elkins, UN Troy Cox Invite
Becca Baldridge, SJSU NMSU Tournament
Ami Day, TU Mardi Gras Classic*
Hoos Who*
Maren Genow, TU Mardi Gras Classic
Compass Bank Invite
Stephanie Sliepen, TU Compass Bank Invite
Brandi McGuire, TU Metrodome Classic
Danielle Olsen, TU Mardi Gras Classic
Crissy Strimple, TU Metrodome Classic
Mardi Gras Classic
Stacey Walkingstick, TU Mardi Gras Classic
*Tournament MVP