Tournament Notes

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif.—The No. 10/11 University of Hawai`i softball team (11-1) travels to the Palm Springs, Calif. area to play in the 2011 Cathedral City Classic, hosted by Oregon State. The 'Bows will battle tough competition starting with No. 6/6 Oklahoma, No. 18/22 Nebraska, Syracuse, and Virginia at the Field of Dreams sports complex in Cathedral City, Calif.

 

The Rainbow Wahine have won their last four games straight and hope to bring that momentum in to the tournament. Hawai`i has a .302 team-batting average and has outscored its opponents thus far, 84-32 and seven of its starting nine offensive players are hitting above .300. Leading the charge is sophomore shortstop Jessica Iwata who is leading UH with 15 runs scored, 16 hits, eight home runs, 15 RBI and a slugging percentage of .976.

 

Sophomore centerfielder Kelly Majam has also come back strong, with a team-high four doubles and 16 walks. She is hitting .379 (11-for-29) with 14 runs scored, three home runs and 10 RBI. Junior first baseman Sarah Robinson has also got off to a hot start, hitting .375 (9-for-24) with two doubles and one home run.

 

In the circle, junior Stephanie Ricketts has seen the bulkload of the pitching duties, throwing 46.0 innings out of the team's 76.0 innings played. Ricketts is 6-1 with a 2.89 ERA, six complete games and three shut outs. She has 55 strike outs to just eight walks while holding opponents to a .218 batting average. Sophomore Kaia Parnaby is 4-0 with a 1.35 ERA with four complete-game wins. She has thrown 26.0 innings and has fanned 29 batters to eight walks while keeping the opponents batting .172. Senior utility player, Jenna Rodriguez, is 1-0 on the season and has made two appearances and thrown four innings with no walks and three strike outs.

 

5:30 pm            No. 6/6 Oklahoma

Feb. 25

5:30 pm            No. 18/22 Nebraska

8:00 pm            Syracuse

 

3:00 pm            Virginia

 

Live Stats: Live in-game stats are available at HawaiiAthletics.com

 

Big 12 Conference

2011: 11-1

No. 6/6 Oklahoma's offense—which features nine left-handed hitters—has been dominant through their first 12 games of the season, with 11 of their batters hitting over the .300 mark, four are hitting over .400, and two are batting .500 and above. Jessica Shults leads OU with a .538 batting average (21-for-39) with a team-high 21 hits, four doubles, nine home runs and 29 home runs. Destinee Martinez is a speedster who is batting .476 (20-for-42) with 13 runs scored and she is 4-for-5 in stolen bases. Brittany Williams is right behind Martinez with a .467 average (19-for-41) with seven home runs and 19 RBI. She has been walked a team-high nine times. Keep an eye out for Brianna Turang who has scored a team-high 16 runs and is 5-for-7 in stolen bases.

 

In the circle, a familiar name and number is the Sooners' ace. Sophomore south paw Keilani Ricketts, younger sister of UH pitcher Stephanie Ricketts, has been solid, throwing a team-high 30.0 innings with a team-low 1.40 ERA. She is 5-0 with four complete games and a shut out with nine walks to 57 strike outs. It will be the second time that a pair of Ricketts sisters have squared off against each other. In 2009 when the Sooners came to Honolulu for the season-opening tournament, oldest sister Samantha Ricketts played first base and hit against Stephanie.

 

Oklahoma's staff features four pitchers, led by Ricketts. Michelle Gascoigne is 3-1 on the season, throwing 20.2 innings with a walk and 27 strike outs with a 2.71 ERA. Allee Allen is 2-0 with a 1.45 ERA in 9.2 innings pitched while KirstenAllen is 1-0 with a 2.17 ERA.

 

Series Record: OU and UH split their two games in the 2009 Oceanic Time Warner Classic in Honolulu. The 'Bows won the first game, 8-5 but the Sooners came back to overpower UH 14-0.

 

Big 12 Conference

2011 Record: 10-1

 

The Cornhuskers have outscored their opponents 60-22 in their first 11 games of the season and are hitting .320 as a team. They are led by Taylor Edwards who is hitting a whopping .405 (15-for-37) with a team-high two doubles, seven home runs and 19 RBI. Nikki Haget is hitting a solid .394 (13-for-33) with a team-high 12 runs scored. She also leads the team with 4-of-5 stolen bases. Megan Southworth is third on the team with a .391 batting average (9-of-23) with a double.

 

The 'Huskers pitching staff has been stingy, posting a 1.87 team ERA, led by Ashley Hagemann's 1.51 ERA. She is 7-1 on the season with 46.1 innings pitched and five complete games. She already has 62 strike outs while walking 26. Haley Workman is 1-0 on the year with a 2.25 ERA in 18.2 innings and Tatum Edwards is 2-0 with a 2.80 ERA in 10 innings.

 

Series Record: Hawai a 4-3 edge over Nebraska, with the 'Bows winning the last two games in Honolulu, 4-3 and 6-5 in 2007.

 

 

Big East Conference

2011 Record: 7-2

 

The Orange have gotten of to a good start, going 4-0 in their opening tournament at Georgia State and 3-2 at the 'Bama Bash, losing two games to No. 7/3 Alabama. Syracuse's Kohl has hit a team-high .435 at the plate (10-for-23), two home runs and 11 RBI. Helman is hitting .400 (8-for-20) with five runs scored and a double, while L. Daniels leads the Orange with 11 hits and is hitting .379 thus far. She has a double and seven RBI and is 4-of-5 in stolen bases. Grant is hitting .292 and is 6-of-7 in stolen bases.

 

The pitching staff is led by Caira who is 4-1 with a 2.68 ERA in 37.0 innings pitched with 17 walks and 30 strike outs. Kuwik is 3-1 with a 4.34 ERA in 18.2 innings pitched.

 

Series Record: First meeting

 

Atlantic Coast Conference

2011 Record: 6-3

 

The Cavaliers are led by Stephanie Harris who is hitting .414 (12-for-29) with two doubles and a triple. She is also 4-of-5 in stolen bases. Taylor Williams is second with a .355 batting average (11-for-31) with two triples and eight RBI, while Alex Skinkis is 9-for-28 for a .321 batting average with eight RBI.

 

The pitching staff is led by their ace Melanie Mitchell who had thrown 51.0 out of the team's 61 innings played. She is 4-2 with a 2.61 ERA with six complete games and three shut outs. She has 10 walks with 60 strike outs while holding opponents to a .245 batting average.

 

Series Record: Virginia leads with a 2-1 record over the 'Bows. UV won their last meeting 4-1 over Hawai`i on March 11, 2005.

 

                                                                                                                                      -UH-