April 8, 2005

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

# 8 BAYLOR (36-5, 4-2) vs. # 25 NEBRASKA (23-13, 1-4)
April 9, 2005, 2:00 p.m. - Getterman Stadium - Waco, Texas
April 10, 2005, 12:00 p.m. - Getterman Stadium - Waco, Texas

THE SERIES
Baylor vs. Nebraska: Nebraska leads 25-4
Waco, Texas: Nebraska leads 7-1
Lincoln, Neb.: Nebraska leads 7-1
Neutral: Nebraska leads 11-2
Streak: Nebraska won 6
Last Meeting: Nebraska 10, Baylor 1 (5/15/04)

LIVE COVERAGE
Radio: Fox Sports Radio 1580 AM (Sat. only)
Live Audio: www.BaylorBears.com
Live Video: None
Live Stats: www.BaylorBears.com
Television: None

No. 8 Baylor (36-5, 4-2) returns to conference action this weekend when the Lady Bears host No. 25 Nebraska (23-13, 1-4) for a two-game series beginning on Saturday, April 9, at 2:00 p.m. Game two of the series will take place on Sunday, April 10, at 12:00 p.m.

Baylor enters the key series with the Huskers riding a four-game winning streak after three mid-week non-conference wins over Texas-Arlington and Stephen F. Austin. The Lady Bears will look to end a six-game losing streak against Nebraska. In the last meeting between the teams, Baylor fell to the Huskers 10-1 at the Big 12 Conference Tournament last season.

Nebraska, last year's Big 12 Conference regular-season and tournament champions, enters the series fresh off a pair of shutout wins over North Dakota State. The Huskers own a commanding lead in the series as Nebraska is 25-4 all-time against Baylor.

SCOUTING NEBRASKA
Nebraska enters the contest with the Lady Bears riding a two-game winning streak after a pair of shut-out victories against North Dakota State. The Huskers currently stand in eighth place in the Big 12 Conference with a 1-4 record; however, Nebraska has a commanding edge in the series against Baylor as NU stands 25-4 all-time against the Lady Bears.

The Huskers, fifth in the conference with a team .302 batting average, are led at the plate by Anne Steffans, who leads the team with 61 hits and a .460 average. Sheena Lawrick provides the power in the Nebraska line-up, leading the team with five home runs and 22 RBI.

In the circle, Nebraska is led by Ashley DeBuhr, who has posted a record of 13-11 on the season. In 145.1 innings of work, DeBuhr has posted a 1.64 ERA on the season, recording 164 strikeouts on the year while holding opponents to a .204 average against her.

Jordan Keen has also seen significant time in the circle for Nebraska, posting a 8-2 record and 1.73 ERA in 18 appearances this 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. 9 in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25.

• Baylor is 106-3 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 88-22 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 118-41 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 12 home runs and 45 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 record with 34 home runs 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 is tied for the lead on the Lady Bears with a .410 batting average and ranks first with 12 home runs and 46 RBI.

The designated player's 12 home runs and 46 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.

LADY BEARS SET ATTENDANCE RECORD
Baylor's match-up with Texas A&M to open conference play established a Getterman Stadium attendance record as a crowd of 1,288 attended to catch a battle between a pair of top 10 teams. The announced crowd surpassed the listed capacity of 1,250, marking the first time in school history Getterman Stadium has been sold out.

The crowd surpassed the previous Getterman Stadium high of 1,136 who watched Baylor take on LSU at last year's NCAA Waco Regional on May 22, 2004. Baylor fell to the Tigers 7-3 in 10 innings in the contest.

The previous high for Baylor in a Big 12 Conference game at Getterman Stadium occurred on May 5, 2004, when 984 fans saw the Lady Bears defeat the Texas Longhorns 7-2.

BAYLOR PASSES HOME RUN AND RUNS MILESTONES
Forty-one games into the 2005 season, this year's version of the Lady Bears have already established new school record for most home runs and runs scored in a season. Through 41 games this season, Baylor has blasted 34 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 12 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 41 games, Baylor has scored 273 runs, an average of 6.7 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 737 strikeouts and is now only 63 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 36-5 start as Baylor has been ranked among the nation's top ten teams for six 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 defeating No. 4 Texas and splitting a weekend series against Oklahoma State, the Baylor softball team remained at No. 8 in the latest ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25.

The Michigan Wolverines, who won 32-straight before falling to Iowa this week, sit atop this week's poll at No. 1 with 15-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. 7), Missouri (No. 17) and Nebraska (No. 25) join Baylor in this week's poll.

Baylor's No. 9 ranking in the latest USA Today/NFCA Top 25 marks the sixth consecutive week the Lady Bears have been ranked in the top ten in the poll.

Michigan, with 21 first-place votes, is ranked No. 1 in the poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.

Oklahoma (No. 6), Texas (No. 5), 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 (6th, 601)
RUNS: Kelly Osburn (3rd, 110); Kim Wilmoth (5th, 100); Harmony Schwethelm (7th, 87)
HITS: Kim Wilmoth (4th, 186); Harmony Schwethelm (6th, 155); Carrie Leerberg (9th, 145)
MULTIPLE-HIT GAMES: Kim Wilmoth (3rd, 52); Harmony Schwethelm (5th, 44)
DOUBLES: Kelly Osburn (t-4th, 27); 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-6th, 13)
TOTAL BASES: Kelly Osburn (3rd, 245); Kim Wilmoth (5th, 223)
WALKS: Kelly Osburn (1st, 73)
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 (8th, 21); Harmony Schwethelm (9th, 20)
STOLEN BASES: Kim Wilmoth (1st, 87); Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 68); Carrie Leerberg (3rd, 65); Kelly Osburn (4th, 60)
STOLEN BASE ATTEMPTS: Kim Wilmoth (1st, 109); Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 81); Carrie Leerberg (3rd, 76); Kelly Osburn (4th, 71)

PITCHING RECORDS APPEARANCES: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 152); Lisa Ferguson (t-5th, 63)
GAMES STARTED: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 102); Lisa Ferguson (6th, 42)
RELIEF APPEARANCES: Cristin Vitek (1st, 50); Lisa Ferguson (t-7th, 21)
WINS: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 72); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 29)
LOSSES: Cristin Vitek (4th, 35); Lisa Ferguson (t-6th, 9)
DECISIONS: Cristin Vitek (2nd, 107); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 38)
COMPLETE GAMES: Cristin Vitek (3rd, 46); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 18)
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, 703.1); Lisa Ferguson (5th, 277.1)
STRIKEOUTS: Cristin Vitek (1st, 737); Lisa Ferguson (6th, 182); Tessa Lynam (8th, 64)

GETTERMAN STADIUM KIND TO LADY BEARS
With a win over Louisiana-Monroe to open the season, Baylor claimed its 100th win at Getterman Stadium as the Lady Bears now own a 118-41 career mark on their home field, opened in 1999. The Lady Bears had their best year ever at Getterman Stadium last season as Baylor went 27-4 at home on the year.

Baylor went undefeated in conference play at home last season as the Lady Bears swept season series with Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas Tech and Iowa State. Prior to the NCAA Softball Championships the Lady Bears were 27-2 at Getterman Stadium on the year.

Baylor has lost less than 10 games at home four of the five years the stadium has been open and has never posted a losing record in a season at home.

Arizona's 1-0 win over Baylor at the Compass Bank Invitational was the first loss for Baylor at home since a 3-2 setback to Oklahoma Christian on April 1, 2004, a span of 15 games.

UP NEXT...
Baylor will continue Big 12 Conference play when the Lady Bears travel to Austin, Texas, to face in-state rival Texas on Wednesday, April 13, at 6:30 p.m.