April 17, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF softball team continues its eight-game road stretch this weekend when it travels to Texas for a three-game, Conference USA showdown league-rival Houston at the Cougar Softball Stadium. The action is schedule to get underway with a 2 p.m. ET doubleheader on Saturday, before concluding with a 1 p.m. ET single game on Sunday.
GAME DAY ESSENTIALS
? Schedule
Saturday, April 18
2:00 p.m. ET - UCF at Houston
4:00 p.m. ET - UCF at Houston
Sunday, April 19
1:00 p.m. ET - UCF at Houston
? The Coaches
UCF: Renee Luers-Gillispie
UH: Kyla Holas
? Records
UCF: 21-23, 6-9 C-USA
UH: 18-19, 7-7 C-USA
? Series
UH leads UCF, 8-2
? Last Meeting
UCF 4, Houston 2 (2008)
C-USA Championship Final
? UCF'S Last Time Out
4.15.2009
at No. 1 Florida, L, 0-3
? Live Stats
Gametracker
(UCFAthletics.com)
? The UCF softball team continues its eight-game road swing this weekend when it travels to Texas to face-off with Conference USA-rival Houston in a three-game series. The Knights are 21-23 on the season and 6-9 in C-USA action following a league-series victory over Marshall last weekend and a tough loss at No. 1 Florida on Wednesday. The action in Houston begins Saturday at 2 p.m. ET with a doubleheader, before concluding with a single contest Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
? The Cougars welcome the Black and Gold to Cougar Softball Stadium this weekend with an 18-19 record on the season. Houston, the 2008 C-USA regular-season champion, is currently 7-7 in league play after dropping all three games in its series with Memphis last weekend on the road. Offensively, the UH is led by seniors Elaina Nordstrom and Laurie Wagner. Nordstrom paces the Cougars with a .364 batting average and 36 hits, while both batters have knocked in a team-leading 31 RBI.
? With a hit in the top of the seventh inning Wednesday against top-ranked Florida, freshman Natalie Land extended her hitting steak to a career-high eight games. The eight-game stretch is the longest for the Knights this season.
? Heading into this weekend's league series, UCF, along with head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie, is only one win away from reaching the 300-win milestone as a program. The Knights won two games in the Conference USA series with Marshall last weekend, putting them one game away from the benchmark.
ON DECK FOR THE KNIGHTS
The Knights continue their eight game road swing Wednesday when they travel to Daytona Beach for a contest at Bethune-Cookman. UCF leads the all-time series with the Wildcats, 12-4, after posting a 7-1 win over the in-state rival last season on the road. The Black and Gold has come out victorious in the teams' last four meetings, outscoring BCU, 36-5, during the four-game stretch.
FRESHMEN STEPPING UP
In Wednesday night's match-up with the top-ranked Gators, the Knights only totaled three hits, but found ways to get runners on base throughout the contest. Two of the three hits in the game were off the bats of rookies, with Vanessa Perez and Natalie Land each producing base knocks. Perez hit a double past Florida's left fielder to open the second inning and also reached on an error in the fourth, before Land closed out the game with a two-out single in the top of the seventh. Junior Morgan Bullard also posted a hit for the Knights in the fourth inning.
EXTRA INNINGS
Fans can catch up with the Knights each week by watching `Extra Innings with Renee Luers-Gillispie' on Knights All-Access, exclusively at UCFAtheltics.com. The skipper reviews the week that was, previews the Knights' upcoming contests and answers fan questions on every episode of the broadcast. Curious Knight enthusiasts can also find out Gillispie's pick for the team's player of the week in each installment.
Season tickets are on sale now for the 2009 softball season, which features 34 home games at the UCF Softball Complex. For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
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