Five Conference USA teams will compete in the first round of the NCAA Championship today. Southern Miss and Louisville will each contend at regionals in California at Los Angeles and Palo Alto, respetively. USF and Houston begin tournament action in their respective states at regionals in Tallahassee, Fla. and Waco, Texas while DePaul plays at Ann Arbor, Mich. for the second consecutive year.

NATIONAL POLLS
USA Today/NFCA Poll (as of May 9)
1. Arizona (19)
2. California
3. LSU
4. Florida State
5. UCLA
6. Michigan
7. Washington
8. Stanford
9. Louisiana-Lafayette
10. Georgia
11. Tennessee
12. Auburn
13. Oregon
14. Nebraska
15. Alabama
16. Fresno State
17. USF
18. Long Beach State
19. Baylor
20. Oregon State
21. Oklahoma
22. Texas A&M
23. Florida
24. Notre Dame
25. Tulsa




ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll (as of May 16)
1. Arizona (20)
2. California
3. LSU
4. UCLA
5. Florida State
6. Stanford
7. Michigan
8. Washington
9. Louisiana-Lafayette
10. Tennessee
11. Georgia
12. Oregon
13. Alabama
14. Nebraska
15. Auburn
16. Fresno State
17. Long Beach State
18. Oregon State
19. USF
20. Oklahoma
21. Florida
22. Baylor
23. Georgia Tech
24. Texas A&M
25. Notre Dame

ARV: SOUTHERN MISS (2)




C-USA SENDS FIVE TEAMS TO NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

Conference USA will send a league-record five teams to the 2004 NCAA Softball Championship. The league sent a previous high of three teams in 2001 when DePaul, USF, and Southern Miss all claimed bids. With five teams earning selections this year, C-USA claims the fourth-most behind the Pac-10 (8), SEC (7), and the Big Ten (6) conferences, along with the Big 12 who will also send five. DePaul, Houston, Louisville, USF and Southern Miss will all compete in the first round of their respective regionals on Thursday, May 20.

DE PAUL CLAIMS THIRD STRAIGHT C-USA TOURNEY TITLE

DePaul clinched the 2004 Conference USA Softball Tournament crown for the third straight year with a 4-2 victory over Houston on May 16 at Ulmer Stadium in Louisville, Ky. The Blue Demons entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed and posted a 4-1 mark. It is first time in league history that any team with a seed lower than No. 2 has claimed the title. Sarah Martz was named MVP of the Tournament. The senior broke tournament records after tossing five complete games, including four wins, and pitching 37.0 innings. DePaul is the only team in the league to make it to the championship game every year.

All-Tournament Team
C: Arelis Ferreris, Houston
IF: Saskia Roberson, DePaul
IF: Carmela Liwag, USF
IF: Christine Sheridan, East Carolina
IF: Jenilee Skender, Houston
OF: Brooke Johnson, Houston
OF: Shannon Nord, Louisville
OF: Linda Secka, DePaul
P: Crystal Briscoe, Houston
P: Sarah Martz, DePaul
UT: Sarah Douglas, DePaul

Tournament MVP: Sarah Martz, DePaul


C-USA NCAA All-TIME APPEARANCES
Since Conference USA began sponsoring softball in 2000, the league has sent 13 teams to the NCAA Division I Softball Tournament including a league-record five this season. The most in a single season had been three when DePaul, USF, and Southern Miss all earned bids to the tournament in 2001. Here’s a look at the league’s all-time NCAA appearances:

Year Team Tournament Record
2003 DePaul 2-2
USF 1-2

2002 DePaul 4-2

2001 DePaul 1-2
USF 2-2
Southern Miss 0-2

2000 DePaul 4-2 (College World Series)
Southern Miss 6-3 (College World Series)



AROUND THE HORN

CHARLOTTE (23-29, 6-17 C-USA): Charlotte closed out the 2004 season on May 9, dropping a 9-0 decision to East Carolina. It was the final game for seniors DENISE ATMAR and AUTUMN LAWSON. The 49ers' 23 wins are the second-most for the program since 1997, when the team won 29. Freshman JESSICA MOORE ended the year with nine home runs, a single-season record, and is tied for fourth on the school's career list. KRISTEN BOWEN finished with 134 strikeouts, which is third in Charlotte’s program history.

DE PAUL (29-29-1, 13-9 C-USA): DePaul clinched its third consecutive C-USA Tournament crown on Sunday in Louisville, Ky. to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. SARAH MARTZ was named tournament MVP for pitching four complete-game wins to break a C-USA tournament record. SASKIA ROBERSON, LINDA SECKA, and SARAH DOUGLAS also made the all-tournament team. In their eighth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, the Blue Demons will travel to Ann Arbor, Mich. to battle Notre Dame on Thursday in Regional 6. DePaul made the trip to Ann Arbor last year for the first round of the tournament and beat the Fighting Irish, 4-1.

EAST CAROLINA (47-24-1, 10-14 C-USA): East Carolina ended its season at the C-USA Tournament in Louisville, Ky. last weekend. The Pirates dropped their first game to USF but bounced back to pick up a 6-0 win on day two against top-seeded Southern Miss. ECU fell to eventual champion DePaul on Saturday to conclude its season. CHRISTINE SHERIDAN went 3-for-7 including a double, and collected two runs and a stolen base. The sophomore also made the C-USA All-Tournament team for her efforts.

HOUSTON (38-23, 12-11 C-USA): The Cougars will make their first trip to the NCAA Tournament after earning an at-large bid. UH is prepared for the caliber of competition as it has posted three victories over nationally-ranked opponents this season. The Cougs will face Big East champion Seton Hall (44-17) on May 20 in Waco, Texas at 3 p.m. Houston also made it to the championship round of the C-USA Tournament for the first time last weekend where it fell, 4-2, to three-time champion DePaul. ARELIS FERRERIS, BROOKE JOHNSON, JENILEE SKENDER, and CRYSTAL BRISCOE all made the C-USA All-Tournament Team for leading their squad to the title game.

LOUISVILLE (40-17, 19-5 C-USA): Louisville earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship for the first time in the program’s five-year history. U of L (40-17) will travel to Los Angeles to play Missouri (27-24) on Thursday, May 20 at 5 p.m. The Cardinals registered 16 shutouts this season and strung together 13 straight wins at one point for the eighth-most in league history. The U of L squad is coming off of two straight losses at the C-USA Tournament last weekend. The Cards were edged by USF, 1-0, and eventual champion DePaul, 5-3. SHANNON NORD set a new tournament record for batting average after going 4-for-6 (.667) and was named to the C-USA All-Tournament Team.

SAINT LOUIS (16-45, 1-23 C-USA): Saint Louis closed its season with a three-game loss to Houston at home on May 8-9. Sophomore ASHLEIGH WILLIAMS led the Billikens on offense throughout the 2004 season, batting .309 and collecting 28 RBI. Williams was also the home run and doubles leader after registering six and nine, respectively. Freshman ELIZABETH NIELSEN led the Bills from the mound with a 13-27 record. The rookie pitched 236.2 innings in her first collegiate year and struck out 132 batters.

USF (57-12, 18-5 C-USA): USF earned its second consecutive, and sixth overall NCAA at-large bid despite falling short at the C-USA Tournament. The Bulls will travel to Tallahassee, Fla. to face Ohio State (34-23) on Thursday in the first round of competition. Of the seven other teams in its regional, USF has already played three, resulting in four victories. The Bulls defeated Bethune-Cookman twice and posted wins over Florida and Long Island. USF went 2-2 at the league tournament last weekend. The Bulls posted their 56th and 57th wins on Thursday over East Carolina and host Louisville. With their 57th victory, the Bulls have registered the second-most wins in C-USA history and have tied a USF program best.

SOUTHERN MISS (32-24, 19-4 C-USA): Southern Miss earned its fourth bid to the NCAA Division I Softball Championship on Sunday as an at-large pick. The Golden Eagles made appearances in 1999, 2000, and 2001. In the first two trips, USM made it all the way to the College World Series. The Golden Eagles are 8-2 in their last 10 games after dropping a pair at the C-USA Tournament in Louisville, Ky. to Houston and East Carolina. USM will face Pacific (34-21) on Thursday in the first round of NCAA competition at Regional 7 in Palo Alto, Calif.

UAB (20-36, 7-17 C-USA): UAB concluded its campaign with its first win in five seasons against DePaul. Prior to the victory, UAB trailed in the all-time series versus DePaul, 18-0. With the victory, the Blazers reached the 20-win plateau for a fifth-consecutive season and solidified a seventh-place finish in the C-USA standings. BETH MULLINS hit her fifth home run of the season against the Blue Demons. She is now tied for first place on UAB's all-time home run list at 15 with former Blazer Cliffanie Engram.


WINNING BIG
Houston and Louisville have combined to post five wins over nationally-ranked teams. USF has also recorded a win, beating then-No. 7 Stanford. Here's a look at this season's ranked wins:

2004 RANKED NON-CONFERENCE WINS
Feb. 18 Houston 6, (15) Texas A&M 5
Feb. 18 Houston, 3, (15) Texas A&M 0
Feb. 20 Louisville 3, (4) Oklahoma 1
Feb. 28 (22) USF 8, (7) Stanford 0
Feb. 29 Louisville 2, (19) Iowa 0
Mar. 6 Houston 2, (5) Oklahoma 1

FLAWLESS ON THE BASES
East Carolina’s LACASSA HILL stole a conference-leading 53 bases in 53 attempts for a perfect record this season. As of May 16, her mark ranked fourth in the nation for stolen bases per game (0.83).


ONE-RUN GAMES
Charlotte 10-5
DePaul 7-8
East Carolina 14-6
Houston 8-11
Louisville 9-7
Saint Louis 10-9
USF 9-6
Southern Miss 12-1
UAB 12-12


MAKING PROGRESS
For the fifth year in a row, Conference USA teams have posted a winning record in non-conference action. League teams won nearly 60 percent of their non-league games in 2004. Here’s a look at how the league has fared in non-conference action in all five years the league has had softball:

2004: 185-124-2 (.598)
2003: 156-92-1 (.628)
2002: 180-125-1 (.589)
2001: 94-81-1 (.537)
2000: 78-71(.523)


MARTZ NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
DePaul’s SARAH MARTZ was named Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I Player of the Week for the period ending April 18. Martz led the Blue Demons to a 7-0 record over the week as she recorded four wins from the circle, including her second career perfect game, and hit 15-for-25 (.600). This is the third time that a DePaul player has received a national player of the week award and the seventh time in league history. Earlier this year, USF’s LEIGH ANN ELLIS garnered the honor for pitching four wins and one save while holding a 0.00 ERA at the over the week ending March 7.

THE 50-WIN CLUB
With a 6-3 win over DePaul on May 2, USF (57-12) reached the 50-win plateau. Last year, the Bulls became only the fourth school in league history to claim 50 or more wins. Southern Miss set the C-USA record for victories when the Golden Eagles notched a 63-13 mark in 2000. DePaul followed with back-to-back 50-plus win seasons in 2001 (51-16-1) and 2002 (50-11).

COACHING MILESTONES
EUGENE LENTI of DePaul recorded his 800th career win on May 15 at home against Northwestern. Lenti has been at the helm of the Blue Demon program for 23 seasons and becomes the 16th softball coach in NCAA Division I to reach the 800 mark.

Charlotte head coach AIMEE DEVOS earned her 200th win of her career on April 9, with the 49ers’ win over Saint Louis. Devos is in her 10th year as head coach and 11th year with the Niners’ program.

Louisville’s head coach SANDY PEARSALL recorded her 400th career win in the Cardinals’ 5-0 shutout against UAB on March 28. In her fifth season with U of L, Pearsall has accumulated 167 victories.

ERIKSEN NAMED TO USA SOFTBALL COACHING STAFF
USF’s KEN ERIKSEN will serve on the 2004 Olympic Team coaching staff. Eriksen joins John Rittman (Stanford University) as an assistant to head coach Mike Candrea (University of Arizona). The trio will attempt to lead the Women’s National Team to its third (of a possible three) consecutive gold medal, in Athens, Greece this summer.

Eriksen’s teams met up on March 6 as USF matched up against the USA Olympic team at Clearwater, Fla. in an exhibition game. LEIGH ANN ELLIS struck out five batters and held USA scoreless until the bottom of the sixth inning but the Olympians rallied to win 3-0. Team USA also met up with DePaul at the Kia Klassic in Fullerton, Calif. on March 18. The Blue Demons fell 9-0.

SOUTHERN MISS CAPTURES REGULAR SEASON TITLE

The Golden Eagles captured the Conference USA regular season title for the first time since 2000, the first year that the league sponsored softball as a sport. It is the Golden Eagles’ first crown under head coach GAY MCNUTT. USM has two tournament titles under its belt from 2000 and 2001.

Southern Miss laid claim to the title in dramatic fashion as AURIEL JENKINS connected on a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to edge Louisville, 3-2, in the deciding game on May 9. The win gave USM a 19-4 (.823) league record that edged the Cardinals 19-5 mark (.792) and earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament.


RE-WRITING THE BOOKS
This season, HOLLY GROVES of USF has set two new league single-season records. She had made her mark in the record books with 17 home runs and also with 80 RBI. Groves’ record-setting longball led the Bulls to a 5-0 victory at Jacksonville last Wednesday.

KATE MANUSE of East Carolina has claimed the league single-season record for doubles. She has tallied 26 this year and has outdone former Pirate Angela Manzo who set the record with 21 in 2002.

Houston’s JENNY JOHNSON has also made the C-USA annals after recording 10 saves this season. The previous record of five was held by Jamie Peterka of USF (2001) and Lindsay Chouinard (2000, 2002).


JUST SAY NO
AJA SHERMAN of Louisville became the fourth player in C-USA history to record three or more no-hitters in a single season. Here’s a look at the top four single-season leaders:
No-Hitters
2001 Felicia Gonzales, Southern Miss 4
2000 Courtney Blades, Southern Miss 3
2002 Lindsay Chouinard, DePaul 3
2004 Aja Sherman, Louisville 3