May 18, 2006
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#19 BAYLOR (36-20) TRAVELS TO THE NCAA CORVALLIS REGIONAL
MAY 19-21, 2006
OREGON STATE SOFTBALL COMPLEX
CORVALLIS, ORE.
THE SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES CT)
FRIDAY, MAY 19
Game 1 - (2) Baylor vs. (3) Portland State, 3:00 PM
Game 2 - (1) Oregon State vs. (4) Nevada, 6:00 PM
SATURDAY, MAY 20
Game 3 - Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 12:00 PM
Game 4 - Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 3:00 PM
Game 5 - Loser Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 6:00 PM
SUNDAY, MAY 21
Game 6 - Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5, 3:00 PM
Game 7 - If necessary game, 6:00 PM
THE SERIES
Baylor vs. Portland State: Portland State leads 1-0
Baylor vs. Nevada: Never met
Baylor vs. Oregon State: Oregon State leads 2-1
LIVE COVERAGE
Radio: ESPN Radio 1660-AM and KWGW 104.9 FM
Live Audio: www.BaylorBears.com
Live Video: None
Live Stats: www.BaylorBears.com
Television: None
The No. 19 Baylor softball team makes its third consecutive appearance at the NCAA Softball Championships as the Lady Bears open play at the Corvallis Regional as the No. 2 seed and will face No. 3 Portland State on Friday, May 19, at 3:00 p.m. Top-seeded, and No. 7 overall seed, Oregon State will face No. 4 Nevada at 6:00 p.m.
Last season, Baylor claimed the Auburn Regional title before falling to No. 2 Cal in a best-of-three super regional series played in Waco. Should the Lady Bears claim a victory against Portland State, Baylor will face the winner of the Oregon State-Nevada contest on Saturday, May 20, at 12:00 p.m. A loss would send Baylor to the loser's bracket, where they will face the loser of game two at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Baylor owns a 1-3 record all-time against the field as the Lady Bears faced Oregon State earlier this season, falling 3-1 to the Beavers at the Palm Springs Classic.
Portland State earned an automatic berth into the championships by claiming the Pacific Coast Softball Conference regular season title while Nevada earned an automatic berth by claiming the WAC post-season title. Oregon State and Baylor received at-large berths into the championships.
Baylor fans can listen to all the action at www.baylorbears.com. In addition, the radio broadcast will be available in the Waco area on ESPN Radio 1660-AM for the Portland State game while all other contests can be heard on KWGW 104.9 FM.
SCOUTING PORTLAND STATE (37-18)
The Lady Bears first opponent, Portland State, finished the season with a 37-18 record after defeating Loyola Marymount, 9-3, to earn a sweep over the Lions and claim the Pacific Coast Softball Conference title.
The Vikings are led by Mandy Hill in the circle as the right-hander has posted a 23-7 record and 1.93 ERA in 213.2 innings of work. Hill also shines at the plate as she leads the team with a .322 batting average, 11 home runs and 45 RBI.
In addition to Hill, Portland State features junior LF Kimi Daniel and freshman RF Jackie Heide, who have each hit 10 home runs so far this season.
Portland State, which claimed its first, regular-season, conference title, is making its first-ever NCAA Regional appearance.
SCOUTING NO. 7 OREGON STATE (38-13) AND NEVADA (32-31)
Oregon State, the No. 7 overall seed and the host for the Corvallis Regional, enter the tournament led by pitcher Brianne McGowan. McGowan is 24-6 with a 1.33 ERA in 38 appearances on the season as the junior has made 31 appearances this season. At the plate, Oregon State features Mia Longfellow, the teams top hitter at .331 on the season.
Nevada, which has won nine straight heading into the championships, is led by Sara Hunt who is leading the team with a .333 average. Pitcher Jordan McPherson leads the way in the circle with a 21-20 record and a 2.66 ERA in 49 appearances.
BAYLOR SOFTBALL PLACES SIX ON THE ALL-BIG 12 CONFERENCE SQUAD
The No. 19 Baylor softball team placed a league-leading six players on the All-Big 12 Conference squad as third baseman Brette Reagan was named Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year the conference office announced Wednesday. The Lady Bears placed three players on the first team and three on the second team as Reagan became the first Baylor softball player in school history to pick up an individual league honor.
Chelsi Lake, Ashley Monceaux and Kelly Osburn each earned first-team honors for the Lady Bears as Baylor, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas each placed three members on the first-team, all-conference squad.
The selection for Lake marked the second consecutive season the junior has been named first-team all-conference.
Monceaux, a junior college transfer, picked up her first all-conference nod as the left-hander.
Osburn earned her third consecutive selection to the all-conference team, her first as a member of the first team, as the senior becomes the first player in school history to be a three-time all-conference selection.
Reagan became the first Baylor player in school history to earn a post-season, individual conference honor as she earned second-team all-conference honors.
Senior Tessa Lynam earned her second consecutive selection to the all-conference squad as the right-handed designated player earned second team honors.
Junior pitcher Lisa Ferguson earned her first selection to the all-conference squad as the right-handed hurler made the second-team after posting an 18-12 record and 1.64 ERA during the regular season.
The six selections to the all-conference squad marked the most in school history as Baylor and Nebraska led the way with six players named All-Big 12.
In other Big 12 honors, Serena Settlemier of Kansas was named Big 12 Player of the Year as Cat Osterman of Texas was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Year. Texas head coach Connie Clark was named Coach of the Year as catcher Megan Willis was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.
LADY BEARS TAKING ADVANTAGE OF CLUTCH HITTING
With a 36-18 record on the season, the Baylor softball team has taken advantage of clutch hitting in key situation as high percentage of the Lady Bears' runs have come with two outs in the inning. Of the 282 runs scored by Baylor so far this season, 101 (34 percent) have come on two-out RBI hits.
Freshman Brette Reagan leads the team with 22 RBI with two outs as the tandem is currently leading a Baylor team that is hitting .284 (124-of-438) on the year with two outs while opponents are only hitting .221 (99-of-448) in the same situation.
Kelly Osburn ACCOMPLISHES BIG 12 FIRST
With a walk against Nebraska, senior outfielder Kelly Osburn became the first player in Big 12 history to surpass 200 hits, 150 runs scored, 30 home runs, 40 doubles, 100 RBI, 100 walks and 75 stolen bases for her career.
For her career, the senior has posted 219 hits, 159 runs scored, 36 home runs, 43 doubles, 106 RBI, 104 walks and 77 stolen bases as she helped lead Baylor to three consecutive NCAA Softball Championship appearances. A three-time all-Big 12 Conference selection, Osburn is Baylor's career leader in five categories.
SCHWETHELM REACHES 200 CAREER HITS
With four hits in the double-header sweep of Texas State, Baylor outfielder Harmony Schwethelm became only the fifth player in school history to reach the 200-hit plateau for her career. Schwethelm has pushed her career total to 231 after collecting a hit at the Big 12 Championships.
Schwethelm ranks second on Baylor's career hits list and is now 17 hits shy of breaking the Baylor career record of 247 held by Naomi Fitzgerald (1998-2001).
Senior Kelly Osburn also joined Schwethelm in the 200-hit club after collecting five in the sweep of Sam Houston State. The senior left fielder now has 219 for her career.
SCHWETHELM BREAKS CAREER STOLEN BASE RECORD
With a steal of second in the 6-5 win over No. 13 Washington, Harmony Schwethelm became Baylor's career stolen base leader, surpassing Kim Wilmoth (91, 2002-05) with 92 in her career. For her career, Schwethelm now has 97 stolen bases in 112 attempts as the senior closes in on 100 stolen bases for her career.
Schwethelm, who has only been caught stealing 15 times in her career, has a stolen base percentage of .865 to rank second on the Baylor career charts.
CHELSI LAKE BREAKS CAREER RBI MARK
With a RBI single to make the score 6-4 against No. 13 Washington, junior Chelsi Lake recorded the 102nd of her career as she became Baylor's career leader in the category, surpassing Sarah Caudle who drove in 101 runs from 2000-2003.
Earlier in the year, Lake became only the second player in school history to pass the career 100-RBI club as the junior will shatter the previous career record. Heading into this week, Lake has recorded 130 RBI during her two-plus year career.
Senior Kelly Osburn recently became the third player in school history to surpass the 100-RBI plateau as the outfielder has reached 105 RBI for her career.
LADY BEARS PLACES SIX ON ACADEMIC ALL-BIG 12 CONFERENCE SQUAD
The No. 19 Baylor softball team placed six players on the first team Academic All-Big 12 Conference squad the conference office announced . Harmony Schwethelm (Sr., Health Science Studies) and Kelly Osburn (Sr., Health Science Studies) led the way for Baylor on the squad, earning their third consecutive first-team academic all-conference selection.
Tessa Lynam (Sr., Health Science Studies), Kylie Conroy (Jr., Biology) and Chelsi Lake (Jr., Political Science) each earned their second consecutive selection to the academic all-conference squad as senior Sarah Hausner (Sr., Telecommunications) was named to the academic all-conference squad for the first time of her career.
Nominated by each school, the softball academic all-league squad consisted of 43 first team members combined with 16 on the second team. First team members include those who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA, and the second team are those who have a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
BAYLOR SOFTBALL IN THE NATIONAL POLLS
After dropping a pair of games at the Big 12 Conference Championships, the Lady Bears are ranked No. 20 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 poll released Tuesday. In addition, Baylor earned a No. 19 ranking in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25.
Baylor is one of six Big 12 Conference schools ranked in the current polls as Texas (No. 2 ESPN.com/No. 3 USA Today), Texas A&M (No. 16, No. 16), Oklahoma (No. 20, No. 18), Kansas (NR, No. 24) and Nebraska (No. 14, No.14) join Baylor in the rankings.
Baylor's appearance in both polls marks the 40th consecutive week the Lady Bears have appeared in the NFCA Top 25 and the 40th consecutive week the team has appeared in the USA Softball Top 25. The last time Baylor failed to appear in either poll was March 16, 2004.
Chelsi Lake SETS SINGLE SEASON HOME RUN MARK
With a pair of home runs in the series split against Nebraska, junior Chelsi Lake broke the Baylor, single-season home run mark as the catcher blasted her 15th and 16th home runs of the season. Lake broke the record she had set last year after hitting 15 round-trippers during the 2005 campaign.
Lake, who ranks second on the career list with 32 home runs, is only five home runs shy of teammate Kelly Osburn (36) from establishing a new career mark.
BAYLOR SETS SINGLE SEASON HOME RUN MARK
After blasting 57 home runs a year ago to set a school record, the Baylor softball team would need a significant power surge in order to break the mark this season. However, behind the power of four players with at least 10 home runs, Baylor has established a new single-season school record with 63 home runs so far this season.
Chelsi Lake leads the way with 16 home runs as Kelly Osburn and Tessa Lynam currently ranks second with 13 round-trippers. Brette Reagan has recorded 12 home runs on the year as Baylor leads the Big 12 Conference in the category.
BAYLOR LADY BEARS IN THE CAREER CHARTS
Several Lady Bears are aiming to continue making their way up the career charts in 2006. Below is a list of Lady Bears who currently rank in the top ten in one of the career categories:
BATTING RECORDS
RUNS: Kelly Osburn (1st, 159); Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 133); Tessa Lynam (9th, 81)
HITS: Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 231); Kelly Osburn 5th, 219); Chelsi Lake (8th, 165)
MULTIPLE-HIT GAMES: Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 62); Kelly Osburn (6th, 52); Chelsi Lake (7th, 39)
DOUBLES: Kelly Osburn (1st, 43); Chelsi Lake (3rd, 36); Tessa Lynam (t-7th, 26)
TRIPLES: Harmony Schwethelm (t-1st, 9); Kelly Osburn (t-5th, 7); Chelsi Lake (t-10th, 4)
HOME RUNS: Kelly Osburn (1st, 36); Chelsi Lake (2nd, 32); Tessa Lynam (3rd, 27)
RBI: Chelsi Lake (1st, 130); Kelly Osburn (2nd, 105); Tessa Lynam (5th, 94)
TOTAL BASES: Kelly Osburn (1st, 384); Harmony Schwethelm (5th, 272); Chelsi Lake (3rd, 305)
WALKS: Kelly Osburn (1st, 104)
HIT BY PITCH: Kelly Osburn (2nd, 23); Kylie Conroy (6th, 11)
SACRIFICE FLIES: Kelly Osburn (t-6th; 4); Chelsi Lake (t-6th, 4); Tessa Lynam (t-8th, 3)
SACRIFICE HITS: Harmony Schwethelm (6th, 25)
STOLEN BASES: Harmony Schwethelm (1st, 97); Kelly Osburn (3rd, 77)
STOLEN BASE ATTEMPTS: Harmony Schwethelm (2nd, 112); Kelly Osburn (3rd, 94)
PITCHING RECORDS
APPEARANCES: Lisa Ferguson (4th, 123); Tessa Lynam (8th, 40); Nicole Jackson (10th, 29)
GAMES STARTED: Lisa Ferguson (5th, 84); Tessa Lynam (8th, 14)
RELIEF APPEARANCES: Lisa Ferguson (2nd, 40); Tessa Lynam (5th, 26); Nicole Jackson (5th, 26)
WINS: Lisa Ferguson (4th, 54); Tessa Lynam (8th, 15)
LOSSES: Lisa Ferguson (5th, 27); Tessa Lynam (t-9th, 4)
DECISIONS: Lisa Ferguson (4th, 81); Tessa Lynam (8th, 19)
COMPLETE GAMES: Lisa Ferguson (4th, 43); Tessa Lynam (10th, 4)
SHUTOUTS: Lisa Ferguson (3rd, 20); Tessa Lynam (t-9th, 1)
SAVES: Lisa Ferguson (1st, 15); Tessa Lynam (t-5th, 4); Nicole Jackson (t-8th, 1); Sarah Hausner (t-8th, 1)
INNINGS PITCHED: Lisa Ferguson (4th, 556.0); Tessa Lynam (8th, 115.2)
STRIKEOUTS: Lisa Ferguson (4th, 402); Tessa Lynam (8th, 102)
Kelly Osburn BREAKS TRIO OF CAREER RECORDS
With her solo home run to lead-off the game against Houston, Baylor senior Kelly Osburn pushed her career runs scored total to 129, breaking Michelle Sorrels (1996-99) career record of 128 runs scored. In three-plus seasons as a Lady Bear, Osburn has now scored 156 runs.
In addition, in the 7-0 win over Missouri, Osburn hit two doubles to push her career total to 39, breaking the career record of 38 previously held by Sarah Caudle (2000-2003).
The records are just one of several where Osburn will hold the career lead once her career is over. Already Baylor's career leader in home runs (36), walks (104), runs scored (160), total bases (384) and doubles (43), Osburn ranks fourth in triples (7) and third in stolen bases (77).
UP NEXT...
Should Baylor advance out of the Corvallis Regional, the Lady Bears will face the winner of the Iowa City Regional in a best-of-three series beginning on Friday, May 26, at a site and time to be determined.
