April 14, 2005
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# 8 BAYLOR (37-7, 5-4) at KANSAS (18-16, 2-5)
April 16, 2005, 2:00 p.m.
April 17, 2005, 1:00 p.m.
Arrocha Ballpark - Lawrence, Kan.
# 8 BAYLOR (37-7, 5-4) at # 5 OKLAHOMA (40-7, 8-1)
April 18, 2005, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Marita Hynes Field - Norman, Okla.
THE SERIES
Baylor vs. Oklahoma: Oklahoma leads 25-4
Baylor vs. Kansas: Kansas leads 18-8
LIVE COVERAGE
Radio: Fox Sports Radio 1580 AM (Mon. only)
Live Audio: www.BaylorBears.com (Mon. only)
Live Video: None
Live Stats: www.BaylorBears.com
Television: None
No. 8 Baylor (37-6, 5-3) continues its five-game road swing through the Big 12 Conference as the Lady Bears travel to face Kansas (18-16, 2-5) in a two-game weekend series before facing No. 5 Oklahoma in a doubleheader on Monday, April 19, at 4:00 p.m.
Baylor enters the contest with the Jayhawks in fourth place in the Big 12 Conference after falling at Texas to open the five-game road trip. Kansas, which currently stands eighth in the conference after winning at Missouri, owns an 18-8 advantage in the series and a 5-1 edge in games played in Lawrence, Kan. Baylor, however, has won three straight in the series, including a season sweep of the Jayhawks last year.
Following the series with Kansas, Baylor travels to Norman, Okla., to face the Sooners, who currently stand one-half game behind Texas A&M for first place in the conference. Last season, Baylor swept OU at Getterman Stadium before the Sooners defeated the Lady Bears in the first round of the conference tournament. Oklahoma leads the series with Baylor, 25-4, and owns a 9-2 edge in games played at Marita Hynes Field.
SCOUTING KANSAS
Kansas enters the weekend alone in eighth-place in the Big 12 Conference after a 5-3 mid-week victory over No. 15 Missouri. The Jayhawks rank eighth in the conference with a .262 average as the team ranks ninth in the conference in pitching with a 2.80 ERA.
At the plate, Kansas is led by Destiny Frankenstein, who leads the team with a .355 average on the season. The junior infielder also leads the team with eight home runs and 25 runs scored and ranks second on the squad with 18 RBI.
In the circle, Kansas is paced by Christina Ross. The freshman left-hander leads the team with a 1.77 ERA in 71.1 innings of work and has posted a 6-5 record on the season. Junior right-hander Serena Settlemier has also seen significant time in the circle for Kansas, posting a 9-6 record and 2.79 ERA in 95.1 innings of work for the Jayhawks.
SCOUTING OKLAHOMA
No. 6 Oklahoma, which currently stands one-half game behind Texas A&M for the conference lead, boasts the nation's top-ranked offense as the Sooners lead the nation and the conference with a .346 team batting average on the season.
With four players currently batting above .370 on the season, Oklahoma is led at the plate by Kristin Vesely, who leads the conference with a .503 average. Through 47 games, Vesely leads the team with 79 hits and 51 runs scored. All-conference selection Heather Scaglione provides the power in the Sooners line-up, leading the team with eight home runs on the season. Jessica Leslie also has had a strong hand in the Sooners success at the plate, leading the team with 52 RBI this season.
In the circle, Oklahoma is led by all-conference selection Kami Keiter. The senior left-hander has posted an impressive 22-4 record on the season. In 148.1 innings of work, Keiter has posted a 0.90 ERA on the year while holding opponents to a .178 average on the season.
QUICK NOTES
• Baylor remained No. 8 in the latest USA Today/NFCA Top 25 and ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25. The Lady Bears are No. 11 in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25.
• Baylor is 107-3 over the past four seasons when scoring at least four runs.
• Baylor is 89-8 over the past four seasons when collecting at least eight hits.
• Baylor is 133-12 over the past four seasons when out-hitting its opponent.
• Baylor is 89-23 over the past three seasons at Getterman Stadium, including a 27-4 mark at home last season.
• With its opening win of the season over Louisiana-Monroe, Baylor earned its 100th victory at Getterman Stadium. Baylor is now 119-42 all-time in games played at Getterman Stadium.
• Baylor's Chelsi Lake has established new school single-season home run and RBI marks this season. Currently, she has 13 home runs and 50 RBI this season.
• Baylor players earned the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week honor for three consecutive weeks to start the season (Chelsi Lake, Kim Wilmoth and Tessa Lynam).
• Baylor has established a new school records with 35 home runs and 386 runs scored this season.
LAKE SETS PAIR OF SINGLE SEASON RECORDS
In a year that has seen a number of single season team and individual batting records fall, sophomore Chelsi Lake has provided the biggest spark for the Lady Bears at the plate. Heading into this week's action, Lake leads the team in three key categories as she leads the Lady Bears with a .405 batting average and ranks first with 13 home runs and 50 RBI.
The designated player's 13 home runs and 50 RBI have already established new single season records at Baylor, surpassing the 11 home runs hit by Bri Chambliss in 1997 and 40 RBI by Kristin Barton in 1996.
BAYLOR PASSES HOME RUN AND RUNS MILESTONES
Forty-four games into the 2005 season, this year's version of the Lady Bears have already established new school records for most home runs and runs scored in a season. Through 44 games this season, Baylor has blasted 35 home runs, surpassing the 27 home runs hit by the 2002 squad as the most in a single season. Chelsi Lake leads the team and is second in the conference lead with 13 home runs on the season with Stephanie Pomes second on the team with eight home runs. Currently, Baylor is fourth in the conference in the category.
This year's version of the Lady Bears have also established a new single-season runs scored record as well. Through 44 games, Baylor has scored 280 runs, an average of 6.36 runs per game, surpassing the 1996 squad (249 runs) for the most runs in a single-season in school history.
OSBURN SETS CAREER HOME RUN MARK
While the team shattered the school single-season home run record, Kelly Osburn established a new Baylor career home run mark with the 21st home run of her career in the 18-3 win over Oklahoma Christian. On a 1-2 pitch from Lindsey Lawson to lead-off the second inning, Osburn drove the ball over the left field wall for her fifth homer run of the season and 21st of her career, surpassing Ryan Stukel, who hit 20 from 2000-03, for most career home runs.
OSBURN ALSO ESTABLISHES RUNS SCORED RECORD
With a run scored in Baylor's 2-0 win over No. 4 Texas on March 30, Kelly Osburn pushed her team-leading runs scored total to 42, establishing a new single-season school record in the category. Osburn's total, which has now reached 45 runs, eclipses the previous record of 41 runs, held by Sheeley Green, who established the mark during the 1996 season. In two-plus seasons as a Lady Bear, Osburn has scored 110 runs, 18 runs shy of the Baylor career mark of 128 held by Michelle Sorrels.
FERGUSON ONE SHY FROM CAREER SAVE MARK
After tossing 1.2 innings of relief in Baylor's 10-2 victory over Massachusetts at the Speedline Classic, Lisa Ferguson earned her second save of the season and 10th of her career, moving her into a tie for the Baylor career mark.
Former Baylor pitcher Joni Miller established the standard with 10 saves from 2000-2003. Ferguson is on pace to shatter the school record after finishing second in the NCAA with eight saves her freshman season.
800TH CAREER STRIKEOUT IN SIGHT FOR VITEK
Senior left-handed pitcher Cristin Vitek continues to climb up the career charts in several categories, including strikeouts where she entered the season as Baylor's career leader with 645. In fact, Vitek has a good shot at becoming Baylor's first-ever 800 strikeout performer as the lefty currently has 742 strikeouts and is now only 58 strikeouts shy of the milestone.
Last season, she became only the second player in school history to record 600 strikeouts in her career when she struck out Tina Boutelle of Texas in the sixth inning at the Big 12 Conference Tournament.
LAKE NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE FINALIST
Baylor softball designated player Chelsi Lake has been named one of 25 finalists for the 4th Annual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award the Amateur Softball Association announced. The award, which is considered the Heisman Trophy in women's collegiate softball, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by female collegiate softball players across the country.
Lake has helped lead the Lady Bears to a 37-6 record as Baylor has been ranked among the nation's top ten teams for seven consecutive weeks.
Her selection as a finalist for the award marks the second consecutive year a Baylor softball player has been chosen as a finalist. Last season, left-handed pitcher Cristin Vitek was named a finalist for the award as she finished the 2004 season with a 31-7 record and 0.89 ERA.
On May 10, just days before the start of post-season play, a list of 10 finalists will be named. On May 31 the list will be cut to three and those final three players will travel to Oklahoma City for the announcement of the winner at the 2005 NCAA Women's College World Series.
A replica of the award will be placed in a permanent display in the ASA National Softball Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, along with photos of the winner. An additional replica of the award will be presented to the player's academic institution.
Florida State's Jessica Van der Linden was selected as the 2004 winner after leading her Seminole's to the ACC title and a berth to the Women's College World Series.
BAYLOR FOURTH IN BIG 12 PRESEASON POLL
Returning seven starters and two pitchers, the Baylor softball team has been tabbed to finish fourth in the Big 12 Conference.
Texas is the Big 12 softball coaches' preseason favorite to win the league title this season. The Longhorns, with 77 points, received six of the possible 10 first-place votes to edge out Oklahoma, which tallied four first-place votes and 75 points. Texas A&M (61 pts.) ranked third followed by Baylor (fourth - 58 pts.), Nebraska (fifth - 48 pts.), Missouri (sixth - 43 pts.), Oklahoma State (seventh - 32 pts.), Kansas (eighth - 24 pts.), Texas Tech (ninth - 20 pts.) and Iowa State (10th -12 pts).
It is the highest Baylor has been picked in the preseason poll since 2002, when the Lady Bears were picked to finish fourth in the conference. The fourth-place preseason selection ties the 2002 squad for the highest predicted league finish in school history.
BAYLOR IN THE NATIONAL POLLS
The Lady Bears entered the season ranked in both of the national polls and have climbed into the top 10 for the first time in school history as Baylor is currently No. 8 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 and No. 9 in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25.
After going 4-1 this past weekend, including earning a split in the series against No. 25 Nebraska, the Baylor softball team remained at No. 8 in the latest ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25.
The Michigan Wolverines sit atop this week's poll at No. 1 with 13-of-20 first-place votes.
Baylor is one of six Big 12 Conference teams in this week's rankings, and one of four in the top eight, as Texas (No. 4), Texas A&M (No. 6), Oklahoma (No. 5), Missouri (No. 18) and Nebraska (No. 25) join Baylor in this week's poll.
Baylor's No. 11 ranking in the latest USA Today/NFCA Top 25 marks the first time in six weeks the Lady Bears have not been ranked in the top ten in the poll.
Michigan, with 20 first-place votes, is ranked No. 1 in the poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.
Oklahoma (No. 5), Texas (No. 4), Texas A&M (No. 7) and Missouri (No. 15) join the Lady Bears in this week's rankings.
The USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 poll is voted on by 30 NCAA Division I coaches, representing each conference. The first regular season poll will be released on Wednesday, Feb. 16.
The ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 poll is voted on by NCAA Division I coaches representing 15 different ASA regions and 11 different collegiate conferences. The poll is also voted on by selected softball media members. First-place votes are in parentheses.
BAYLOR LADY BEARS IN THE CAREER CHARTS
Several Lady Bears are aiming to continue making their way up the career charts in 2005. Below is a list of Lady Bears who currently rank in the top ten in one of the career categories:
BATTING RECORDS AT-BATS: Kim Wilmoth (t-5th, 609) RUNS: Kelly Osburn (3rd, 110); Kim Wilmoth (5th, 100); Harmony Schwethelm (7th, 88) HITS: Kim Wilmoth (4th, 186); Harmony Schwethelm (6th, 158); Carrie Leerberg (9th, 145) MULTIPLE-HIT GAMES: Kim Wilmoth (t-3rd, 52); Harmony Schwethelm (5th, 45) DOUBLES: Kelly Osburn (t-2nd, 29); Stephanie Pomes (8th, 23) TRIPLES: Carrie Leerberg (1st, 9); Kim Wilmoth (t-2nd, 8); Kelly Osburn (t-6th, 6) HOME RUNS: Kelly Osburn (1st, 21); Stephanie Pomes (3rd, 16); Chelsi Lake (t-5th, 14) TOTAL BASES: Kelly Osburn (3rd, 250); Kim Wilmoth (5th, 223) WALKS: Kelly Osburn (1st, 74) HIT BY PITCH: Kelly Osburn (2nd, 16); Kim Wilmoth (t-9th, 8) Carrie Leerberg (t-6th, 9) SACRIFICE FLIES: Stephanie Pomes (1st, 7); Kelly Osburn (t-7th; 3) SACRIFICE HITS: Kim Wilmoth (t-8th, 21); Harmony Schwethelm (t-8th, 21) STOLEN BASES: Kim Wilmoth (1st, 87); Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 69); Carrie Leerberg (3rd, 66); Kelly Osburn (4th, 60) STOLEN BASE ATTEMPTS: Kim Wilmoth (1st, 109); Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 82); Carrie Leerberg (3rd, 77); Kelly Osburn (4th, 71)
PITCHING RECORDS APPEARANCES: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 154); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 66) GAMES STARTED: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 103); Lisa Ferguson (6th, 44) RELIEF APPEARANCES: Cristin Vitek (1st, 51); Lisa Ferguson (t-6th, 22) WINS: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 72); Lisa Ferguson (t-4th, 30) LOSSES: Cristin Vitek (t-3rd, 36); Lisa Ferguson (6th, 10) DECISIONS: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 108); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 40) COMPLETE GAMES: Cristin Vitek (3rd, 46); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 19) SHUTOUTS: Cristin Vitek (3rd, 18); Lisa Ferguson (4th, 10) SAVES: Cristin Vitek (3rd, 9); Lisa Ferguson (t-1st, 10); Tessa Lynam (t-6th, 2); Nicole Jackson (t-8th, 1) INNINGS PITCHED: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 708.1); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 295.1) STRIKEOUTS: Cristin Vitek (1st, 742); Lisa Ferguson (6th, 195); Tessa Lynam (8th, 64)
UP NEXT...
Baylor returns to action when the Lady Bears travel to San Marcos, Texas, for a non-conference contest with Texas State on Thursday, April 21, at 6:00 p.m.
