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USU Softball Heads To Hazelnut State For Cascade Clash Invite
March 14, 2007
LOGAN, Utah -
Complete USU Softball Notes in PDF Format
Utah State (8-12, 0-0 WAC) at Cascade Clash Invitational
Utah State's Weekend Schedule - All Times MT
QUICKLY - After a 12-day layoff, Utah State (8-12, 0-0 WAC) softball will return to action by traveling to the Willamette Valley for the Cascade Clash Invitational. USU will take on 16th-ranked Oregon at Eugene, Ore., on Friday, March 16 for a twinbill starting at 2 p.m. (MT). The Aggies will then head to Corvallis, Ore., on Saturday and Sunday, March 17-18, where USU will face Portland State on Saturday at Noon (MT), followed by taking on #15 Oregon State at 4 p.m. (MT). On Sunday, USU returns to the diamond to conclude the Cascade Clash action by facing Towson in the doubleheader starting at 10 a.m. (MT). USU is not scheduled to participate in any square dancing, the official dance of the state of Oregon.
This weekend will be a bit of a homecoming for some Aggie softball players, as five hail from in or around the Portland area: freshman OF Emily Reilly (Portland/Central Catholic HS), junior C Heather Haak (Salem/McKay HS), redshirt-freshman OF Michelle Workman (Tigard/Tigard HS), junior OF Whitnie Ray (Portland/Jesuit HS/James Madison), and senior P Lexy Perry (Vancouver, WA/Mt. View HS/Mt. Hood CC). Two more Aggies are from the state of Oregon in senior OF Ashley Bellum (Grants Pass/Grants Pass HS/Corban College), freshman C Simone Hubbard (Medford/South Medford HS).
Utah State is a combined 11-20 against this weekend's opponents, as Sunday's meeting with Towson will be the first-ever meeting.
The Aggies take an 8-12 record into the weekend, matching last season's win total (8-38). USU has won four of its last six games, stringing together the program's first three-game win streak since 2005. In their last action, the Aggies beat Northern Colorado in a doubleheader on March 1 with a pair of one-run victories, 6-5 and 5-4, then drubbed UNC again in the first game of the Colorado State Tournament, 12-4, on March 3. USU got run-ruled by Colorado State, 10-1 in five innings later in the day, only to turn around and avenge that loss with a 3-2 win over the Rams on March 4. The Aggies wrapped up tournament action with a 9-5 loss to Northern Colorado.
Oregon is ranked #16 in the NFCA Poll, as the Ducks have a 24-3 record, matching last season's win total (24-29), winning three in a row and six of the last seven. UO lost its season-opener before reeling off an 18-game winning streak. Oregon has played two WAC teams, beating Hawai'i, 7-1, on March 1 at the Hawai'i Tournament, and beating New Mexico State, 8-3, at the UNLV Classic on March 9. The Ducks went 4-1 at the UNLV Classic, splitting two games with host UNLV (winning 10-1 and losing 5-1), before beating New Mexico State (8-3), Miami, Ohio (5-0) and Longwood (3-1).
Portland State is 7-12 on the year, on a two-game losing skid after winning three in a row. The Vikings and Aggies tangled once already this season, with Portland State winning 6-5 at the UNLV Louisville Slugger Desert Classic on Feb. 17. PSU has a 2-1 record against WAC teams, losing to Hawai'i, 17-0 in 5 innings on Feb. 8, beating Utah State on Feb. 17 and New Mexico State, 8-0 in 5 innings last weekend. The Vikings returned to Las Vegas this past weekend to play in the UNLV Classic, posting a 3-2 mark by beating Longwood (8-7), Miami, Ohio (8-5) and New Mexico State (8-0 in 5 inn), before losing a pair of extra-inning contests to Harvard (6-5 in 9 inn) and UNLV (3-2 in 8 inn).
Oregon State is #15 in the NFCA Poll. The Beavers were Women's College World Series participants last year, the first appearance in the program's history. OSU has a 15-9 record this season, losing two of its last three, both to Hawai'i this past weekend at the Hawai'i Tournament. Those were the Beavers' only two losses in their six games at Hawai'i, beating Boston College (11-1 in 5 inn.), Pacific (3-2) and Liberty twice (4-2 and 3-1). Besides OSU's two losses to Hawai'i, the Beavers have also played Nevada, winning 3-0 on March 2.
The Tigers of Towson are 8-4 on the season, winning three of the last four. Towson made its home-opener on Tuesday against Georgetown and the Tigers swept the Hoyas, 6-0 and 6-3. Towson hosts Northern Illinois in a twinbill Wednesday before heading to Oregon. Towson went 2-3 last weekend at the Winthrop Invitational, beating Providence (5-4), then losing to Gardner Webb (10-0) and UNC Greensboro (4-3 in 8 inn), before topping Charleston Southern (6-4 in 8 inn) and then losing to UNC Wilmington (4-3).
LETTS ERA OPENS WITH WIN - First-year Candi Letts won her first game at the helm of the Aggies with the 11-2 win over Southern Utah on Feb. 9. Letts becomes the first USU head coach to win their opener since Pam McCreesh won her first game in 1998. SEASON 32 - The 2007 season marks the 32nd year of softball at Utah State... the Aggies enter the season with a 741-768-3 (.491) overall record... USU has one college World Series appearance (1984, tied for 7th) and four NCAA Tournament appearances (1984, 1989, 1992, 1993)... Utah State won the 1980 and 1981 AIAW National Championships... this is USU's second year in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). ADMISSION - All games at LaRee and LaGrande Johnson Field are free admission to the public. RETURNING - First-year head coach Candi Letts returns five starters among 14 returning letterwinners from last season's 8-38 overall and 3-14 WAC ledger... junior 3B Amy Schaible (5-6, Red Bluff, Calif.) headlines the returners, as she batted .248 with three doubles, three triples and nine RBI... Jamie Fife (SR, 1B, 5-10, Plain City, Utah) hit .243 with four RBI, and had a .983 fielding percentage... Whitnie Ray (JR, OF/2B, 5-6, Portland, Ore.) had a .230 average with six RBI, and did not commit an error last season, posting a 1.000 fielding pct... Lexy Perry (SR, P, 5-9, Vancouver, Wash.) is USU's leading returning pitcher, posting a 3.79 ERA last season in only nine appearances for 20.1 innings... Lindsey Benson (SO, P, 5-7, Novato, Calif.) has the most appearances among the returning pitchers with 15, throwing 50.2 innings and posting a 5.80 ERA. TIDBITS ABOUT UTAH STATE - - USU is second in the WAC statistics in team batting (.287) and are second in the conference in home runs with 21... The Aggies also are second in the league in stolen bases (28-38). - Defensively, USU is seventh in team pitching, with a 5.32 team ERA... The Aggie pitching staff is fourth in strikeouts (101) and fourth in fewest walks issued (60). - USU's pitching staff is fast approaching last season's strikeout total, currently with 101 K's... last year USU pitchers logged 106 strikeouts. - Last season the Aggies hit a total of 18 home runs in 46 games... this season through 20 games, USU surpassed last year's total, belting 21 so far this season, including five in a wild 13-12, 8 inning win over Idaho State on Feb. 10. - Junior 3B Amy Schaible leads the team with seven HR's, while senior 1B Jamie Fife has four HR, and four others have two apiece. - USU has also topped last season's stolen base total, nearly matching last season's total of 13 stolen bases with 12 swipes in the six games in Colorado... On the year, the Aggies now have 28 stolen bases in 38 attempts. - Freshman OF Emily Reilly leads USU with a .387 average, and would rank fourth in the WAC, but she doesn't reach the minimum requirement... Reilly also is tied for third on the team with 10 RBI. - Senior 1B/OF Jamie Fife is fourth in the WAC in individual batting with a .377 average, as well as ranking second on the team and tied for eighth in the league with 14 RBI. - Junior 3B Amy Schaible has slipped to 10th in the WAC in individual batting hitting .350, as well as ranking tied for second in home runs (7), sixth in total bases (44), 10th in hits (21), and eighth in runs scored (16). - USU holds three of the top 10 batting spots as sophomore 1B Aubrie Stroman is 10th (.364). - Sophomore P Lindsey Benson is 11th in the WAC in ERA (3.24) and fifth in strikeouts (47). Benson's 22 strikeouts in three appearances March 1-4 nearly matched her season total of 25 K's last year in 15 appearances. - Freshman P Stacey Ellingsworth is tied for 10th in strikeouts (32). - Stroman has the longest active hitting streak at three games... Schaible had a season-opening eight-game hitting streak snapped in the loss to UNLV on Monday, going 0-2... Stroman had a five-game hitting streak earlier in the season as well. - Schaible, Fife and Stroman share the lead for USU with five multi-hit games each... Fife and Evans lead the team with four hits in a game. - Schaible leads the team for multi-RBI games with six... senior OF Ashley Bellum leads the team with five RBI in USU's 12-4 win over Northern Colorado on March 3, blasting a grand slam... Stroman and Reilly each have a four RBI outing. - Reilly leads the team in both average with runners in scoring position (.583, 7-12), and average with runners on (.533, 8-15). - Reilly also leads USU in average with two outs (.600, 6-10), highlighted by her two-run home run in the top of the seventh against Portland State on Feb. 17. - USU turned a rare triple play last season on April 28 against New Mexico State, one of only two WAC teams to pull off the feat (Louisiana Tech). - USU led the WAC and was third in the NCAA in double plays turned per game, turning 23 double plays, for an average of 0.5 per game... and the Aggies were the only WAC team ranked in the top 50 in the NCAA in the category. - USU twice turned three double-plays in the one game, one of which came on May 6, the same day that Fresno State turned three double-plays, and was the only other team in the WAC to turn three double-plays. - USU was swept in four of its six WAC series, the only team other than Hawai'i (by Nevada and Fresno State) to be swept in more than one WAC series. - USU had the latest home opener in the WAC last season (March 31 vs. Fresno State) and does again this season, as the Aggies' make their 2007 home debut on April 3... The April 3 home opener is one of the top 10 latest home openers in the country. - Utah State had the most student-athletes earn WAC all-Academic Team honors with eight, twice as many as the next school. BENSON NAMED USU ATHLETE OF WEEK
Benson, a sophomore pitcher went 2-0 in three appearances, and logged a career-high 10 strikeouts in USU's 3-2 win over Colorado State on March 4, as her career-high topped Benson's three-day old previous career-high of nine K's in USU's 6-5 win at Northern Colorado on March 1.
She had at least one strikeout in each inning in the March 4 game, ringing up two in the third, fifth and sixth innings. Her 22 strikeouts in three appearances this week nearly matched her season total of 25 K's last year in 15 appearances. She now has 47 strikeouts on the season.
REILLY NAMED WAC SOFTBALL HITTER OF THE WEEK - March 5
Reilly, a freshman from Portland, Ore. (Central Catholic) posted a .462 average for the week, going 6-for-13 with a double, triple and a home run, as well as three RBI. She had a .923 slugging percentage and a .462 on-base percentage in four games during the week. The outfielder went 2-for-4 with a triple in Utah State's 5-4 win over Northern Colorado on March 1. She was also 3-for-4 with a double two RBI and two runs scored in the Aggies' 12-4 win over the Bears on March 3.
Reilly is the first Utah State player to earn hitter of the week honors from the WAC and just the second overall. Last season, Heather Straight earned pitcher of the week honors for the week of May 1. Reilly's honor is the first conference hitter of the week award since Sara Fleming was named the Big West Player of the Week on April 25, 2005.
LETTS' BITS - Letts is in her first year at the helm of the Aggies, but has 12 years of experience as a Division I head coach. - Letts came to USU from Northern Illinois, where she was an assistant for one season... Prior to NIU, Letts was the head coach at the University of Mississippi, where she spent seven seasons guiding the Ole Miss program from 1999-2005, compiling a 153-246 (.372) record, including leading the Rebels to a school-record 30 wins in 2005. - Before Ole Miss, Letts was head coach at Colorado State University from 1994-98, amassing a 160-106-1 (.602) record in her five seasons there, as she re-established the softball program after it had been eliminated for one season. The .602 winning percentage is the highest in school history. In 1997, Letts led the Rams to a 51-14 mark, winning the Western Athletic Conference championship and finishing ninth in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) final poll. That season Letts was named the WAC Coach of the Year, as well as the NCAA West Regional Coach of the Year. - Letts has a career head coaching mark of 313-352-1 (.471) in 12 seasons, reaching the 200 and 300 win milestones while at Ole Miss. - This is Letts' second go-round in the WAC, as she posted a 79-62 (.560) mark in WAC games while at Colorado State. - As a head coach, Letts has coached four All-Americans, seven all-region players, 12 all-conference winners, one conference player of the year, and one freshman of the year. - As a pitcher at Creighton University from 1979-1983, Letts helped the Bluejays to three-straight trips to the College World Series. In her career in the circle, Letts compiled 43 wins to go with 16 saves, while logging an ERA of 0.76 and firing 276 strikeouts. In the 1982 season, Letts led the country with nine saves, a mark that still ranks as the fifth-most single-season saves in NCAA history. - After graduating from Creighton in 1983 with a bachelor's degree in physical education, Letts began her coaching career at the high school ranks, including head coach at Burlington, Iowa, for five seasons. Letts moved up to the college level in 1988, returning to Creighton, where she served as an assistant for six years, helping the Bluejays to two NCAA Regional trips, as well as making three appearances in the Top 25 poll and coaching one All-American. In 1991, Letts and Creighton played Utah in the longest game in NCAA history, a 31-inning contest.
ABOUT TOURNAMENT OPPONENTS -
Oregon - Oregon is ranked #16 in the NFCA Poll, as the Ducks have a 24-3 record, matching last season's win total (24-29), winning three in a row and six of the last seven. UO lost its season-opener before reeling off an 18-game winning streak. Oregon has played two WAC teams, beating Hawai'i, 7-1, on March 1 at the Hawai'i Tournament, and beating New Mexico State, 8-3, at the UNLV Classic on March 9. The Ducks went 4-1 at the UNLV Classic, splitting two games with host UNLV (winning 10-1 and losing 5-1), before beating New Mexico State (8-3), Miami, Ohio (5-0) and Longwood (3-1).
The Ducks are led by freshman OF Blair Williamson's .591 average in 22 at bats.
Jennifer Salling, a redshirt-freshman SS is hitting .459 with 27 RBI, belting four HR, as well as swiping eight stolen bases.
Senior OF Ann Marie Topps leads UO and the Pac-10 with 10 HR and a team-leading 29 RBI, as well as posting a .373 average.
In the circle, junior righthander Alicia Cook has a 13-1 record with a 0.86 ERA in 98 innings pitched, logging 67 strikeouts.
Head coach Kathy Arendsen is in her fifth season at Oregon, posting a 163-97 record, and her 18th year overall with a career record of 537-376. Arendsen led the Ducks to the NCAA Tournament in her first three seasons at the helm, before missing last season's Tournament. At the age of 37, Arendsen became the youngest player ever inducted into the ASA Hall Of Fame in 1996 and was the only American in the record class of 19 inductees elected into the International Softball Federation Hall of Fame in 2004. While playing at Texas Woman's University and Cal State-
Chico, Arendsen helped guide her teams to AIAW Division I National Championships in 1979 and 1980.
Portland State - Portland State is 7-12 on the year, on a two-game losing skid after winning three in a row. The Vikings and Aggies tangled once already this season, with Portland State winning 6-5 at the UNLV Louisville Slugger Desert Classic on Feb. 17. PSU has a 2-1 record against WAC teams, losing to Hawai'i, 17-0 in 5 innings on Feb. 8, beating Utah State on Feb. 17 and New Mexico State, 8-0 in 5 innings last weekend. The Vikings returned to Las Vegas this past weekend to play in the UNLV Classic, posting a 3-2 mark by beating Longwood (8-7), Miami, Ohio (8-5) and New Mexico State (8-0 in 5 inn), before losing a pair of extra-inning contests to Harvard (6-5 in 9 inn) and UNLV (3-2 in 8 inn).
The Vikings are led by junior OF Laura Segall with a .326 average, while freshman C/IF Brandi Scoggins has a .298 average and a team-leading 13 RBI.
Junior righthander Mandy Hill leads PSU with a 3.18 ERA and a 5-8 record, including getting the win against Utah State on Feb. 17. Hill also has a team-leading 70 strikeouts. At the plate, Hill has helped her own cause with a team-high four HR's.
Portland State head coach Amy Hayes (Evansville, 1992) is in her second season leading the Vikings, and has a 35-32 record. Overall, Hayes has a 166-127 record in her sixth year as a collegiate head coach, leading the Boston University program from 2001-04. Hayes was an assistant at Oregon in 2005 before taking over the Portland State program in 2006.
Oregon State - Oregon State is #15 in the NFCA Poll. The Beavers were Women's College World Series participants last year, the first appearance in the program's history. OSU has a 15-9 record this season, losing two of its last three, both to Hawai'i this past weekend at the Hawai'i Tournament. Those were the Beavers' only two losses in their six games at Hawai'i, beating Boston College (11-1 in 5 inn.), Pacific (3-2) and Liberty twice (4-2 and 3-1). Besides OSU's two losses to Hawai'i, the Beavers have also played Nevada, winning 3-0 on March 2.
Natalie Johnson, a senior OF, leads the Beavers with a .382 average, while junior UT Cambria Miranda has a team-leading 15 RBI and four RBI, as well as a .270 average.
Freshman catcher Tarah Black has three career hits, but all three are home runs, hitting a game-winner in OSU's 3-1 win over Liberty and her first career grand slam in 11-1 triumph over Boston College. With her seven RBI, Black earned All-Tournament accolades.
In the circle, senior Ta'Tyana McElroy has a 1.24 ERA with a 7-4 record in 14 appearances, ringing up 51 strikeouts. Classmate Brianne McGowan has a 1.64 ERA with an 8-5 ledger in 15 appearances, chalking up 62 strikeouts.
Oregon State head coach Kirk Walker (UCLA, 1988) is in his 13th season leading the Beavers, posting a 421-324-3 career record, winning at least 40 games in the last three seasons and seven of last eight. Walker is the all-time winningest coach in Beaver softball history and has been named Pac-10 Coach of the Year twice. Last season Walker led OSU to its first ever Women's College World Series appearance.
Towson - The Tigers are 8-4 on the season, winning three of the last four. Towson made its home-opener on Tuesday against Georgetown and the Tigers swept the Hoyas, 6-0 and 6-3. Towson hosts Northern Illinois in a twinbill Wednesday before heading to Oregon. Towson went 2-3 last weekend at the Winthrop Invitational, beating Providence (5-4), then losing to Gardner Webb (10-0) and UNC Greensboro (4-3 in 8 inn), before topping Charleston Southern (6-4 in 8 inn) and then losing to UNC Wilmington (4-3).
Towson is 5-0 when limiting the opponent to two runs or less and 4-0 when scoring six or more runs, as well as 5-1 when scoring in the first inning.
Senior SS Megan Zwoyer leads TU with a .474 average and 10 RBI, sharing the team lead with two HR.
Jen Hastings, a senior C/OF shares the HR lead with Zwoyer, and is third on the team in RBI with six.
In the circle, freshman Shannon Johnston has allowed just one earned run for a 0.24 ERA and 4-0 record in five appearances, with 17 strikeouts. Johnston received the Colonial Athletic Association Softball Rookie of the Week award last week, earning two victories, including firing a two-hitter in TU's 6-4 eight inning win over Charleston Southern.
Lisa Costello (Trenton State, 1990) is in her 12th season as head coach of the Towson program, posting a 324-285-2 ledger. Costello has guided the Tigers to four seasons with at least 35 wins and have won at least 30 games in the last eight years. Under Costello's guidance, Towson has been conference runner-up five times.
SERIES HISTORY vs. WEEKEND OPPONENTS -
UP NEXT - Utah State travels to Orem, Utah to take on Utah Valley State on Tues., March 27, before opening WAC action with a three-game series at preseason conference favorite and defending regular-season champ Fresno State on Fri. and Sat., March 30-31.
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