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PLAYER OF THE WEEK Hawai'i's Trisha Ramos was named the WAC Player of the Week. This is the first honor this season for Ramos, but the fifth player of the week this season for the Rainbow Wahine.
Ramos, a senior from Lihue, Kauai, (Kauai), led the Rainbow Wahine to their first WAC title, batting .400 in six games. Ramos had seven hits in the four-game sweep of Louisiana Tech to clinch the title for Hawai'i. For the week, Ramos was 8-for-20 with seven RBI. She hit two home runs to increase her season total to three. The third baseman is now hitting .291. Ramos also added two doubles in the five Rainbow Wahine wins.
Other player of the week nominees included: Stacy Mueller, Nevada and Crissy Strimple, Tulsa.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK Tulsa's Ami Day was named the WAC Pitcher of the Week. Day has earned pitcher of the week honors twice already this season.
Day, a sophomore from Catoosa, Okla., (Catoosa), picked up her 14th and 15th wins of the season, including a 5-4 win over No. 5 Oklahoma in Norman. She is guaranteed to finish the season as one of only three Tulsa pitchers to finish a season with a winning record. She is the first pitcher to accomplish the feat in consecutive seasons. Her seven shutouts on the year are also the second most in school history. The right-hander ended the week with a 2-1 record and 1.67 ERA. Day allowed only five earned runs in 21.0 innings, earning a win against instate rival Oklahoma and a win against WAC foe Nevada.
Other pitcher of the week nominees included: Melissa Coogan, Hawai'i and Candice Rainwater, Nevada.
END OF THE LINE In the final week of WAC play, WAC Champion Hawaii and last place Nevada have completed their WAC schedules. Fresno State can clinch second place with one win this weekend. The Bulldogs host Louisiana Tech on May 8 and third-place Tulsa on May 10. The Lady Techsters and the Golden Hurricane will also travel to San Jose to take on the Spartans during the final weekend. If Louisiana Tech holds on to fourth place, it will be the Lady Techsters highest WAC finish. The last time that Fresno State finished second was in 1997 when Colorado State took the title. The Bulldogs ended that season 23-9.
Last season, Fresno State won the title with an 18-6 WAC record. Much-improved Tulsa tied with Hawaii for second with 15-9 records. Former affiliates Loyola Marymount and Portland State finished fourth and fifth, respectively. San Jose State finished sixth (8-16), while Louisiana Tech finished seventh with a 3-21 record.
HAWAII CLINCHES FIRST WAC TITLE Hawaii swept both ends of a doubleheader at Louisiana Tech 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.
The Bulldogs, who sit in second place in the WAC standings, close out their regular-season next week at home. Fresno State will host Louisiana Tech on May 8 and Tulsa on May 10. Fresno State had its doubleheader against San Jose State rained out. The game will likely not me made up.
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.
The pairings for the NCAA Softball Championship will be announced May 11.
FRESNO STATE CHOSEN AS ONE OF EIGHT SOFTBALL REGIONAL SITES Fresno State earned one of the eight 2003 Women's Softball Regional site, the NCAA Division I Women's Softball Committee announced today.
The eight regional sites, with host institutions are as follows: Tuscaloosa, Alabama (University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa); Tucson, Arizona (University of Arizona); Fullerton, California (CS Fullerton); Gainesville, Florida (University of Florida); Fresno, California (Fresno State); Ann Arbor, Michigan (University of Michigan); Lincoln, Nebraska (University of Nebraska, Lincoln); Austin, Texas (University of Texas).
Each regional field will feature eight teams, playing a double-elimination format. All regional games are scheduled to be conducted Thursday, May 15, through Sunday, May 18. This is the first time regional sites have been named in advance of the team selections in softball. Site selections were based on geographic location, quality of facilities and quality of the experience for the student-athletes, including attendance history. Host institutions are not guaranteed a bid to the tournament.
Twenty-six Division I conferences receive an automatic berth in the field of 64, along with 38 at-large selections.
NCAA SELECTIONS THIS WEEK Hawaii knows that it has advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Rainbow Wahine will fill find out where they have been sent this week. The at-large teams, top-eight national seeds and first-round regional pairings will be announced Sunday, May 11, at 10 p.m. Eastern time live on ESPNEWS. The bracket, which will not be reseeded prior to the Women's College World Series, will be the first to include 64 teams, since the championship began in 1982. Last year's field included 48 teams.
The 22nd Women's College World Series begins play Thursday, May 22, at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City. All of the games will be broadcast live on ESPN or ESPN2, and the television schedule, as well as more information on the championship, is available at http://www.ncaasports.com/.
NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS Overall WAC schools are 108-116 (.482) in non-conference meetings. WAC schools are 6-16 (.273) against teams ranked in the top 25. Fresno State is 2-8, 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. San Jose State is 0-2 with losses two losses to No. 2 California. Hawaii is 3-5, defeating No. 4 Texas, No. 23 Oregon State and No. 3 California. Tulsa is 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 is having a stellar season at the plate. With four home runs last week, Porter tied the WAC record for longballs in a season with 17. Porter is now 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 is the second-best ever behind UNLVs Kim Rondina (1.033) in 1997.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS Hawaii pitcher Melissa Coogan is currently tied for sixth in single-season highs with 29 wins this season. Fresno States Maureen Brady set the single-season record for wins with 36 in 1994. Coogan is also fifth in single-season WAC wins with 14 this season. Fresno State pitcher Jamie Southern is third in career strikeouts with 660 in two seasons.
NEWS AND NOTES Fresno State freshman Christina Clark has been the Bulldogs offensive leader all season. As the second Bulldog freshman to reach the 100 total base plateau in school history, Clark continues to add to her rookie mark in total bases with 123. (ranks seventh-best at Fresno State). In addition, her current slugging percentage of .737 ranks third-best at Fresno State. With 13 home runs on the season, Clark is two shy of tying a new single-season school record and four from tying a new WAC single-season home run record. Clark currently is tied for tied for seventh in career home runs and tied for ninth in the WACs single-season list.
Hawaii junior Stacey Porter broke her own school record for single-season home runs. She now has 17 this season, her old mark of 15 was set last season. Hawaii won its first WAC title behind a strong 17-3 WAC season. The 17 wins are the most ever by Hawaii in WAC play since going to a 20-game format and going 16-4 in 2001, but not winning league crown. It is the Rainbow Wahine's second-ever conference title. Hawaii won the Big West Conference title once in 1994 going 25-7. The Rainbow Wahine now take the week off to prepare for the NCAA Tournament. Hawaii returns to the NCAA Tournament after one season away from postseason action.
Louisiana Tech looks to break its seven-game losing streak during its final road trip of the season. The Lady Techsters dropped four-straight to Hawaii during its final home stand. Louisiana Tech has not won a road game since a, 9-1, win over Nevada on April 19. The Lady Techsters are looking to even out their road WAC record.
Nevada won the second end of a doubleheader against Tulsa 8-1 on May 3 to conclude its first softball season in 14 years and first ever in the WAC. The Wolf Pack ended the season 5-15 in WAC action and 22-34 overall. Nevada split a pair of doubleheaders on the road against Tulsa to end the year. The Wolf Pack handed the Golden Hurricane their only WAC home losses of the season, while earning their first WAC road wins. Stacy Mueller ended the season leading the WAC in triples with five.
San Jose State had its doubleheader with Fresno State cancelled due to rain and poor field conditions. The game was moved from May 3 to May 4 but the field conditions did not improve. The game will not be rescheduled. This week, the Spartans host Tulsa and Louisiana Tech to end the regular season. Before hosting the Hurricane and the Lady Techsters, the Spartans make the tough trip to face No. 16 Stanford on May 6. It is the only non-conference game in the WAC this week.
Tulsa senior Crissy Strimple hit her 10th home run of the season, against Nevada. Her 2-for-4 performance against Oklahoma helped lead TU past the fifth-ranked Sooners in Norman, Okla. Strimple went 5-for-6 against Nevada on May 4, including a double and a home run. Strimple now has 166 assists on the season, only four behind the school's single-season record of 170 that she set last year. She owns the top-two spots on the single-season chart. In two years, she has amassed the sixth most doubles and fifth most assists for a career at Tulsa.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS The following players have been named to all-tournament teams.
Lori Hoffman, FS Campbell/Cartier
Jamie Southern, FS Campbell/Cartier
Bridget Broadnax, LT Panther Classic
Melissa Coogan, UH Malhini Tournament*
April Crowell, UH Chevron Classic
UNC Tournament
Stacey Porter, UH Chevron Classic
Hawaii Invitational
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