Softball Heads to Arizona
3/5/2009 4:00:00 PM | Softball
Creighton at Hillenbrand Invitational
vs. Saint Joseph's (DH) ? March 6 ? Tucson, Ariz. ? 12 p.m.
at No. 13 / 11 Arizona (DH) ? March 7 ? Tucson, Ariz. ? 5 p.m.
vs. Minnesota ? March 8 ? Tucson, Ariz. ? 11:30 a.m.
This Week: The Bluejays head to Arizona for the third straight season, playing five games in the Hillenbrand Invitational in Tucson. Creighton will play a doubleheader with Saint Joseph's at 12 p.m. (CST) on Friday. The Jays then play their nationally-ranked hosts in a twinbill on Saturday at 5 p.m. (CST) before concluding play on Sunday with a single game against Minnesota at 11:30 a.m. (CST). All five Bluejay games at the event can be followed via live stats on www.gocreighton.com.
Last Week: Creighton managed to play just one of four scheduled games at the Sooner Legends Invitational in Norman, Okla. Both of CU's games with Saint Louis were cancelled because of cold weather, while the Jays got just one of two games in against No. 7 Oklahoma. The Jays took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning against OU, but the Sooners bounced back to score three in the bottom of the frame. CU tied the game at 3-3 in the fifth, but two unearned runs by the Sooners meant the difference in the bottom of the fifth inning. Bailey Dawson led off the game with a home run and Renae Sinkler went 2-for-3 to extend her hitting streak to eight games.
Scouting Creighton (5-5): Creighton is the defending Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champions and is coming off of its fifth NCAA Tournament in six years ... The Jays return all but one every day starter from last year, along with two-time MVC Pitcher of the Year, junior Tara Oltman ... CU has been picked to win the MVC title this year, aiming for its third straight regular-season crown ... The Bluejays are hitting .279 as a team this year, while opponents are hitting just .232 off of CU pitching ... Renae Sinkler leads five starters hitting better than .300 with her .400 average, while her 11 RBI lead the team and she has yet to strikeout this season ... Senior Bailey Dawson (.313), who has started all 162 games of her career at shortstop, leads the team with two home runs and 10 runs scored ... Junior transfer Sara Loeffelholz (.313) leads the team four doubles and two triples ... Freshman pitcher Kylie Hovinga (1-1) has performed well, leading the team with a 1.78 ERA, while she has 17 Ks and just three walks in 19.2 innings ... Oltman (4-4, 2.42 ERA, 43 K) has allowed more than two earned runs in three of her first eight appearances this year after allowing more than two earned runs in two of her 48 appearances last year ... The Bluejay ace is 61-21 with a 1.19 ERA, 10 saves and 555 Ks in 99 career appearances.
Head Coach: Head coach Brent Vigness (Central College, 1988) is in his 16th season at Creighton, owning a record of 486-341-2 with the Bluejays. Vigness also served as head coach at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., for five years prior to coming to Creighton. His career record in 21 years as a head coach is 634-412-3. He has led the Jays to five MVC Tournament titles (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007), five regular-season MVC crowns (1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2008), six NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008) and was named MVC Coach of the Year in 1998 and guided the MVC Coaching Staff of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
Scouting Saint Joseph's (4-3): The Hawks are 4-3 on the season, following a 19-23 2008 season ... SJU is hitting .285 as a team, while holding opponents to a .208 average ... Laura Cardone and Monica Aguilar are both hitting a team-best .455 (10-22) on the season, with Carone leading the team with nine runs scored ... Aguilar has SJU's only two home runs on the year and leads the team with eight RBI ... Erin Gallagher (1-2) has a 0.86 ERA, with 19 Ks in 16.1 innings and Dani Gonzales (3-1) has a 1.75 ER with 19 Ks in 20 innings ... SJU's team ERA is 1.71.
Scouting Arizona (16-4): The Wildcats are coming off of their 20th Women's CWS appearance in the last 21 years and a 41-19 overall mark ... UA is hitting .346 as a team with 36 home runs and a .606 slugging percentage through 20 games, averaging 8.3 runs per game ... The Cats have a 2.27 team ERA with Sarah Akamine (9-2) leading the way with a 2.19 mark, while Lindsey Sisk (7-2, 2.40 ERA) splits time with Akamine in the circle ... Three UA starters are hitting better than .465, led by Lauren Schutzler's .485 mark ... Stacie Chambers (.469) has a team-best 10 home runs and 38 RBI ... Brittany Lastrapes (.465) leads the team with nine doubles and 26 runs scored.
Scouting Minnesota (10-11): The Golden Gophers posted a 29-16 record last year ... Minnesota has played three games against MVC foes this year, with wins over Illinois State and Northern Iowa and a loss to Drake ... The U of M is hitting just .227 as a team, with just one home run and 3.0 runs per game ... Opponents are hitting .195 against U of M, while the pitching staff own a 2.81 ERA ... Colleen Conway leads the team with a .301 average, 12 runs, 22 hits and five stolen bases ... Briana Hassett (10-6, 2.02 ERA) has 156 strikeouts in 107 innings, while Alissa Koch is 0-5 with a 5.29 ERA.
Series History: Creighton and fellow Jesuit institution Saint Joseph's have never met on the softball field ... The Bluejays are 4-10 all-time against Arizona, including a 2-1 win at Hillenbrand Stadium last year ... The Jays lead the all-time series history with Minnesota, 8-7, but have not played the Golden Gophers since a 3-0 win on March 9, 2001.
Here Last Year: Creighton turned its season around last year during its trip to Tucson, but not before some adversity. CU lost to Arizona on March 6, 6-0 and followed with a disappointing 4-2 loss to La Salle and 15-1 romp by the Wildcats on March 7 ? tied for the worst margin of defeat in CU history. Those losses moved CU's season-long losing streak to four games and put their record at 12-9 on the year. The Jays rebounded to knock off La Salle 9-0 and shock Arizona 2-1 on March 8 and would close out the year on a 31-8 run.
Topping Arizona: Head coach Brent Vigness picked up his 600th career win in style, by defeating two-time NCAA Champion and seventh-ranked Arizona in Tucson last March 8. Tara Oltman struck out nine, allowed just three hits and one run in a 2-1 Bluejay victory. Renae Sinkler homered and Laura Kratochvil drove home the game-winning run.
Land o' Lakes: For the first time in three years, the Bluejays will play in Tucson without a Tucson native on the roster. California native Laura Kratochvil and New Mexico native Cassidy Nee will both be playing close to home in their final collegiate campaigns. Minnesota natives Liz McKewon (Rosemount) and Jessica Wakasugi (Woodbury) will get a chance to battle their state school for the first time in their careers on Sunday.
Sinkler's Rise: Junior first baseman Renae Sinkler is hitting a team-best .400 on the year. After going 0-for-7 in CU's first two games on Feb. 13, she has put together an eight-game hitting streak in which she is 12-for-23 (.522). Sinkler had the longest hitting streak by a Bluejay this decade with a 17-gamer last year, while she also reached base in 26 consecutive games last year.
Keeping the Lead: In 2008, Creighton went through its first 59 games without losing a game in which it held a lead at the conclusion of any inning, before blowing a lead in its final game of the year. This year the Bluejays lost twice in their first four games when they had the lead at the conclusion of an inning, while they are just 5-3 on the year when scoring first.
Not Time to Panic: Creighton was receiving votes in the preseason national polls and is the preseason MVC favorite, but is just 5-5 through 10 games this season. Last year the Bluejays were 12-9 to start the year and then went 31-8 to conclude the season, with the season-ending run starting during its Spring Break trip to Tucson. Similarly, CU's NCAA tournament teams in 2003, 2004 and 2005 had slow starts. In 2003, the team was 4-5 after nine games, the 2004 team was 5-4 and the 2005 team was 6-3 through nine games.
Milestone Numbers: Junior pitcher Tara Oltman is quickly moving up the CU career charts. With four wins this year she is now 61-20 in her career, making her just the third player in school history to reach 60 career victories. Oltman has moved into the top 10 in CU career starts with 72 - to rank ninth. Her next appearance will make her the seventh player in school history with 100 career appearances. Her career 1.19 ERA ranks 10th in CU history.
? Senior Bailey Dawson has five RBI this year to give her 104 in her career to make her the seventh player in CU history with 100 RBI.
? Senior Jessica Wakasugi's career .324 average ranks seventh in school history.
Odds n' Ends: CU is 0-1 against top-25 foes this year (#7 Oklahoma) after a 1-4 mark against nationally-ranked teams last year (#7 Arizona) ... Creighton has scored first in each of its five wins ... The Jays are hitting just .284 with runners in scoring position and only .293 with runners on base ... CU has averaged 7.5 runners left on base in its first 10 games ... CU has scored 18 runs in the fourth inning this year, 30 runs in all other innings ... CU pinch-hitters are 2-for-17 (.118) this year ... Cassidy Nee leads the team with seven pinch-hit at bats ... Jessica Wakasugi has started 175 straight games for Creighton in center field ... Freshman Lauren Larson hit a pinch-hit home run against Saint Louis on Feb. 20 ... Laura Kratochvil has four multi-hit games in her first 10 games this year, after collecting four multi-hit contests in 46 games played last year ... Six of Renae Sinkler's 11 RBI this year came in CU's 18-5 win over Saint Louis ... CU's 18 runs against SLU were the most runs the Jays have ever scored against a Division I opponent.
vs. Saint Joseph's (DH) ? March 6 ? Tucson, Ariz. ? 12 p.m.
at No. 13 / 11 Arizona (DH) ? March 7 ? Tucson, Ariz. ? 5 p.m.
vs. Minnesota ? March 8 ? Tucson, Ariz. ? 11:30 a.m.
This Week: The Bluejays head to Arizona for the third straight season, playing five games in the Hillenbrand Invitational in Tucson. Creighton will play a doubleheader with Saint Joseph's at 12 p.m. (CST) on Friday. The Jays then play their nationally-ranked hosts in a twinbill on Saturday at 5 p.m. (CST) before concluding play on Sunday with a single game against Minnesota at 11:30 a.m. (CST). All five Bluejay games at the event can be followed via live stats on www.gocreighton.com.
Last Week: Creighton managed to play just one of four scheduled games at the Sooner Legends Invitational in Norman, Okla. Both of CU's games with Saint Louis were cancelled because of cold weather, while the Jays got just one of two games in against No. 7 Oklahoma. The Jays took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning against OU, but the Sooners bounced back to score three in the bottom of the frame. CU tied the game at 3-3 in the fifth, but two unearned runs by the Sooners meant the difference in the bottom of the fifth inning. Bailey Dawson led off the game with a home run and Renae Sinkler went 2-for-3 to extend her hitting streak to eight games.
Scouting Creighton (5-5): Creighton is the defending Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champions and is coming off of its fifth NCAA Tournament in six years ... The Jays return all but one every day starter from last year, along with two-time MVC Pitcher of the Year, junior Tara Oltman ... CU has been picked to win the MVC title this year, aiming for its third straight regular-season crown ... The Bluejays are hitting .279 as a team this year, while opponents are hitting just .232 off of CU pitching ... Renae Sinkler leads five starters hitting better than .300 with her .400 average, while her 11 RBI lead the team and she has yet to strikeout this season ... Senior Bailey Dawson (.313), who has started all 162 games of her career at shortstop, leads the team with two home runs and 10 runs scored ... Junior transfer Sara Loeffelholz (.313) leads the team four doubles and two triples ... Freshman pitcher Kylie Hovinga (1-1) has performed well, leading the team with a 1.78 ERA, while she has 17 Ks and just three walks in 19.2 innings ... Oltman (4-4, 2.42 ERA, 43 K) has allowed more than two earned runs in three of her first eight appearances this year after allowing more than two earned runs in two of her 48 appearances last year ... The Bluejay ace is 61-21 with a 1.19 ERA, 10 saves and 555 Ks in 99 career appearances.
Head Coach: Head coach Brent Vigness (Central College, 1988) is in his 16th season at Creighton, owning a record of 486-341-2 with the Bluejays. Vigness also served as head coach at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., for five years prior to coming to Creighton. His career record in 21 years as a head coach is 634-412-3. He has led the Jays to five MVC Tournament titles (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007), five regular-season MVC crowns (1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2008), six NCAA Tournament appearances (1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008) and was named MVC Coach of the Year in 1998 and guided the MVC Coaching Staff of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
Scouting Saint Joseph's (4-3): The Hawks are 4-3 on the season, following a 19-23 2008 season ... SJU is hitting .285 as a team, while holding opponents to a .208 average ... Laura Cardone and Monica Aguilar are both hitting a team-best .455 (10-22) on the season, with Carone leading the team with nine runs scored ... Aguilar has SJU's only two home runs on the year and leads the team with eight RBI ... Erin Gallagher (1-2) has a 0.86 ERA, with 19 Ks in 16.1 innings and Dani Gonzales (3-1) has a 1.75 ER with 19 Ks in 20 innings ... SJU's team ERA is 1.71.
Scouting Arizona (16-4): The Wildcats are coming off of their 20th Women's CWS appearance in the last 21 years and a 41-19 overall mark ... UA is hitting .346 as a team with 36 home runs and a .606 slugging percentage through 20 games, averaging 8.3 runs per game ... The Cats have a 2.27 team ERA with Sarah Akamine (9-2) leading the way with a 2.19 mark, while Lindsey Sisk (7-2, 2.40 ERA) splits time with Akamine in the circle ... Three UA starters are hitting better than .465, led by Lauren Schutzler's .485 mark ... Stacie Chambers (.469) has a team-best 10 home runs and 38 RBI ... Brittany Lastrapes (.465) leads the team with nine doubles and 26 runs scored.
Scouting Minnesota (10-11): The Golden Gophers posted a 29-16 record last year ... Minnesota has played three games against MVC foes this year, with wins over Illinois State and Northern Iowa and a loss to Drake ... The U of M is hitting just .227 as a team, with just one home run and 3.0 runs per game ... Opponents are hitting .195 against U of M, while the pitching staff own a 2.81 ERA ... Colleen Conway leads the team with a .301 average, 12 runs, 22 hits and five stolen bases ... Briana Hassett (10-6, 2.02 ERA) has 156 strikeouts in 107 innings, while Alissa Koch is 0-5 with a 5.29 ERA.
Series History: Creighton and fellow Jesuit institution Saint Joseph's have never met on the softball field ... The Bluejays are 4-10 all-time against Arizona, including a 2-1 win at Hillenbrand Stadium last year ... The Jays lead the all-time series history with Minnesota, 8-7, but have not played the Golden Gophers since a 3-0 win on March 9, 2001.
Here Last Year: Creighton turned its season around last year during its trip to Tucson, but not before some adversity. CU lost to Arizona on March 6, 6-0 and followed with a disappointing 4-2 loss to La Salle and 15-1 romp by the Wildcats on March 7 ? tied for the worst margin of defeat in CU history. Those losses moved CU's season-long losing streak to four games and put their record at 12-9 on the year. The Jays rebounded to knock off La Salle 9-0 and shock Arizona 2-1 on March 8 and would close out the year on a 31-8 run.
Topping Arizona: Head coach Brent Vigness picked up his 600th career win in style, by defeating two-time NCAA Champion and seventh-ranked Arizona in Tucson last March 8. Tara Oltman struck out nine, allowed just three hits and one run in a 2-1 Bluejay victory. Renae Sinkler homered and Laura Kratochvil drove home the game-winning run.
Land o' Lakes: For the first time in three years, the Bluejays will play in Tucson without a Tucson native on the roster. California native Laura Kratochvil and New Mexico native Cassidy Nee will both be playing close to home in their final collegiate campaigns. Minnesota natives Liz McKewon (Rosemount) and Jessica Wakasugi (Woodbury) will get a chance to battle their state school for the first time in their careers on Sunday.
Sinkler's Rise: Junior first baseman Renae Sinkler is hitting a team-best .400 on the year. After going 0-for-7 in CU's first two games on Feb. 13, she has put together an eight-game hitting streak in which she is 12-for-23 (.522). Sinkler had the longest hitting streak by a Bluejay this decade with a 17-gamer last year, while she also reached base in 26 consecutive games last year.
Keeping the Lead: In 2008, Creighton went through its first 59 games without losing a game in which it held a lead at the conclusion of any inning, before blowing a lead in its final game of the year. This year the Bluejays lost twice in their first four games when they had the lead at the conclusion of an inning, while they are just 5-3 on the year when scoring first.
Not Time to Panic: Creighton was receiving votes in the preseason national polls and is the preseason MVC favorite, but is just 5-5 through 10 games this season. Last year the Bluejays were 12-9 to start the year and then went 31-8 to conclude the season, with the season-ending run starting during its Spring Break trip to Tucson. Similarly, CU's NCAA tournament teams in 2003, 2004 and 2005 had slow starts. In 2003, the team was 4-5 after nine games, the 2004 team was 5-4 and the 2005 team was 6-3 through nine games.
Milestone Numbers: Junior pitcher Tara Oltman is quickly moving up the CU career charts. With four wins this year she is now 61-20 in her career, making her just the third player in school history to reach 60 career victories. Oltman has moved into the top 10 in CU career starts with 72 - to rank ninth. Her next appearance will make her the seventh player in school history with 100 career appearances. Her career 1.19 ERA ranks 10th in CU history.
? Senior Bailey Dawson has five RBI this year to give her 104 in her career to make her the seventh player in CU history with 100 RBI.
? Senior Jessica Wakasugi's career .324 average ranks seventh in school history.
Odds n' Ends: CU is 0-1 against top-25 foes this year (#7 Oklahoma) after a 1-4 mark against nationally-ranked teams last year (#7 Arizona) ... Creighton has scored first in each of its five wins ... The Jays are hitting just .284 with runners in scoring position and only .293 with runners on base ... CU has averaged 7.5 runners left on base in its first 10 games ... CU has scored 18 runs in the fourth inning this year, 30 runs in all other innings ... CU pinch-hitters are 2-for-17 (.118) this year ... Cassidy Nee leads the team with seven pinch-hit at bats ... Jessica Wakasugi has started 175 straight games for Creighton in center field ... Freshman Lauren Larson hit a pinch-hit home run against Saint Louis on Feb. 20 ... Laura Kratochvil has four multi-hit games in her first 10 games this year, after collecting four multi-hit contests in 46 games played last year ... Six of Renae Sinkler's 11 RBI this year came in CU's 18-5 win over Saint Louis ... CU's 18 runs against SLU were the most runs the Jays have ever scored against a Division I opponent.
Players Mentioned
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