April 21, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF softball team concludes its non-conference slate Wednesday when it travels to Daytona Beach for a single contest with Bethune-Cookman. The match-up is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Sunnyland Park.
GAME DAY ESSENTIALS
? Schedule
Wednesday, April 22
4:00 p.m. - UCF at Bethune-Cookman
? The Coaches
UCF: Renee Luers-Gillispie
BCU: Chris Cochran
? Records
UCF: 22-24, 7-10 C-USA
BCU: 15-28, 7-1 MEAC
? Series
UCF leads BCU, 13-4
? Last Meeting
UCF 2, BCU 0 (2.25.2009)
? UCF'S Last Time Out
4.19.2009
at Houston, W, 3-1
? Live Stats
Gametracker
(UCFAthletics.com)
? The UCF softball team enters Wednesday's non-conference match-up at Bethune-Cookman with a 22-24 record on the season and a 7-10 league-record after splitting a pair of contests with Conference-USA rival Houston in Texas last weekend.
? The Wildcats welcome the Knights to Sunnyland Park for the non-conference contest on Wednesday with a 15-28 overall record and a near-perfect 7-1 MEAC mark after sweeping Winston-Salem State at home on April 11-12 in a three-game league series. BCU is led at the plate by both Simone Ceasar and Allison Garcia. The pair has combined for 84 hits, 35 runs, 11 doubles, three triples and three home runs for the Wildcats.
? The Knights and Bethune-Cookman have met each other on the diamond 17 times in the last eight seasons, with the Black and Gold holding a 13-4 advantage in the all-time series. The two teams last met earlier this season at the UCF Softball Complex, where UCF shutout the Wildcats, 2-0, behind a solid outing on the mound from Magon Paul. The senior's shutout in the circle against BCU was the first for the Knights in 2009.
? UCF has been victorious in its last five meetings with the Wildcats, outscoring its opponent 38-5 during the five-game stretch. The largest margin of defeat during that time was an 18-2 win at the UCF Softball Complex in the first game of a doubleheader in 2007.
STREAKER
Freshman Natalie Land (Mayo, Fla.) enters Wednesday's contest in Daytona Beach with a career-high 10-game hitting streak, which began in the first game of the doubleheader vs. Southern Miss at home on April 4. During the span, Land has led the team with a .462 (12-for-26) batting average, while adding four runs scored, two doubles and a RBI. The 10-game streak is the longest for the Knights this season and is the longest since Breanne Javier's record-setting 15-game hitting streak last season. The mark also matches the ninth-longest streak in program history.
UCF Hitting-Streaks
1. Breanne Javier, 15 (2008)
2. Jania Shinhoster, 14 (2005)
3. Stephanie Best, 13 (2002)
4. Bryttani Lindheim, 12 (2004)
Stephanie Best, 12 (2003)
Jania Shinhoster, 12 (2002)
7. Tiffany Lane, 11 (2008)
Cici Alvarez, 11 (2006)
9. Natalie Land, 10 (2009)
Kacie Feaster, 10 (2007)
Stephanie Best, 10 (2004)
Rachelle Schmidt, 10 (2003)
Rachelle Schmidt, 10 (2002)
CONTINUING HER REIGN ON TOP
Sophomore Tiffany Lane continues to share the national lead for triples in 2009 heading into the Knights' final non-conference contest. The speedy shortstop has nine triples on the season, a mark that matches Southern University's Audrey Phillips for the top spot in the nation. Lane belted her eighth triple of the year, a three-RBI shot, in the C-USA series finale against Marshall at the UCF Softball Complex on April 11. Lane also bested her single-season record from 2008 with the three-bagger, while also taking sole possession of the No. 3 spot on the C-USA all-time register, with the triple marking 15 for her career.
BRIGHT-HOUSE STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Kristina DeMello earned the nightcap victory in the doubleheader at Houston Sunday afternoon, allowing only one run on three hits in a complete-game outing, her eighth of the season, to earn Bright House Student-Athlete of the Week honors. The junior struck out seven batters in the contest and did not give up an extra-base hit to the Cougars, holding them to a .136 batting average. In her first year with the Knights after transferring from Miami Dade Community College, DeMello has quickly become a cornerstone of the Knights pitching staff. She pitched a no-hitter earlier in the season in a 3-0 victory over Marshall on April 10, and has lowered her ERA on the season to 2.73, good for second on the team. She is also second with 79 strikeouts and has notched two shutouts for the black and gold this season.
MAKING A NAME FOR HERSELF
Sophomore Abby McClain is quickly making a name for herself in 2009. McClain helped the Knights to a series split with Houston last weekend, batting .500 (3-for-6) with a home run, a double, two runs scored, two RBI, a sacrifice hit and seven total bases. The sophomore posted a whopping 1.167 slugging percentage in the doubleheader, while registering a .571 on-base percentage. McClain recorded a RBI single in the opening contest, before going 2-for-2 with a double and a home run, two runs scored with a sac and a hit-by-pitch in the nightcap. With her performance over the Cougars, McClain claimed the top spots for UCF in batting average (.354), runs scored (32), hits (52), doubles (14), home runs (5), total bases (87), slugging percentage (.592) and on-base percentage (.431). The sophomore now also ranks in C-USA's top-five in six offensive categories and in the top-10 in nine.
The UCF softball team will play its final C-USA series of 2009 against UTEP at the UCF Softball Complex on May 2-3. 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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