March 4, 2010
| Game Day Essentials UCF Tournament |
Schedule
Friday, March 5
? 3:30 p.m. - UCF vs. Harvard
? 8:00 p.m. - UCF vs. College of Charleston
Saturday, March 6
? 1:30 p.m. - UCF vs. Providence
? 6:00 p.m. - UCF vs. Boston College
Sunday, March 7
? 1:00 p.m. - UCF vs. Georgia Southern
Team Records
? UCF: 7-8
? Harvard: 0-0
? College of Charleston: 4-7
? Providence: 2-7
? Boston College: 5-3
? Georgia Southern: 7-4
Series Records
? vs. Harvard: First Meeting
? vs. College of Charleston: 0-1
? vs. Providence: First Meeting
? vs. Boston College: 3-0
? vs. Georgia Southern: First Meeting
Broadcast Information
? Radio: UCFAthletics.com
- Stretch Radio - On the Call: Eric Lopez
? Live Stats: UCFAthletics.com
- Gametracker
? Live Video: UCFAthletics.com
- Knights All-Access
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF softball team opens a season-long 17-game homestand this weekend when it hosts the UCF Tournament at the UCF Softball Complex. The event, which is set for March 5-7, will have the Knights faceoff against Boston College, College of Charleston, Georgia Southern, Harvard and Providence.
UCF opens its portion of the tournament Friday with a 3:30 p.m. contest against Harvard, before facing off with College of Charleston in the nightcap at 8 p.m. Saturday's action will see the Knights battling both Providence and Boston College at 1:30 p.m. and 6 p.m., respectively. The Black and Gold will close out play in the event Sunday at 1 p.m. against Georgia Southern.
QUICK HITS
? The Knights host the UCF Tournament with a 7-8 record on the year after posting a 2-3 record at the NFCA Leadoff Classic last weekend. During the event, UCF defeated both Nebraska and No. 9 Alabama in its final two contests.
? With the pair of victories on the final days of the NFCA Leadoff Classic, the Black and Gold enters this weekend's tournament with a two-game winning streak.
? Heading into the UCF Tournament senior Ashleigh Cole is only four wins away from claiming the No. 2 spot on the UCF career register. The hurler currently sits in fourth all-time with 43 wins.
? Of the five teams UCF will face during the UCF Tournament this weekend, the Knights have only played two of them in previous seasons. The tournament will serve as the first meeting place for UCF against Harvard, Providence and Georgia Southern.
? With 18 in her career, junior Tiffany Lane enters the weekend only one triple short of matching, and two triples short of claiming, the Conference USA record for career triples.
? Every game of the UCF Tournament will be available for viewing via gametracker on UCFAthletics.com. Fans interested in keeping up with the tournament and the Knights may do so at the UCF Tournament Central page on the UCFAthletics.com homepage, as well as the UCF softball homepage and schedule page.
LAST TIME OUT
In their last outing, the Knights participated in the prestigious NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga. After opening the tournament with three-straight losses to No. 11 Georgia Tech (0-1), Arkansas (0-6) and Maryland (2-3), UCF bounced back to post convincing victories over Nebraska (5-4) and No. 9 Alabama (3-2).
BIG WIN
UCF's win over No. 9 Alabama Sunday improved the team's record to 2-2 on the year against ranked opponents, while also improving the Knights' record to 3-2 this season against teams from the SEC. In its opening game of 2010, the Black and Gold defeated then-No. 16 Tennessee and also opened the 2010 UCF Invitational with a win over South Carolina. The Knights have also faced Georgia and Arkansas from the conference, while they are still scheduled to play Florida.
ON DECK FOR THE KNIGHTS...
After hosting the UCF Tournament this weekend, the Black and Gold will continue its season-long 17-game homestand as it will host two midweek contests and then open its Conference USA schedule Friday versus Memphis. On Tuesday, UCF welcomes Maine to Orlando, before entertaining UConn Wednesday. The Knights lead the all-time series against the Black Bears, 4-1, and also the all-time series against the Huskies, 2-0. Lastly, UCF is 7-5 when taking on the Tigers.
GAME WINNER
Freshman Marissa Menendez is not one to cave under pressure, as the rookie has drove in the game-winning run in both of UCF's victories this season over ranked opponents. Menendez hit a two-run single in the seventh inning to give the Black and Gold the win over Tennessee, before hitting a RBI single to plate the game winner Sunday vs. Alabama.
TWO IN ONE
In its win over Nebraska last weekend at the NFCA Leadoff Classic, UCF had two players hit home runs in the contest. Freshman Arielle Palafox blasted her first collegiate round-tripper, a two-run shot, in the second inning, while junior Abby McClain hit a solo shot, her first of 2010, in the fifth. The last time the Knights hit two home runs in a single contest was on April 8, 2009 at Stetson, when McClain and Lindsay Dean hit home runs to help the Black and Gold to a 4-3 victory.
FOUR TO GO
With a spectacular outing Sunday against No. 9 Alabama, Ashleigh Cole is now only four wins away from overtaking the No. 2 spot on the UCF career register. The senior currently has 43 wins all-time as a Knight, which places her at No. 4, but needs two wins to replace Dottie Cupp in the No. 3 spot and four to claim the No. 2 spot from Lindsay Enders.
HOLDING UP Ks
With three strikeouts against No. 9 Alabama on Sunday, senior Ashleigh Cole tallied her 300th career strikeout in the outing. The hurler now ranks fourth on the UCF all-time register with 302 Ks, while needing only 19 more strikeouts to overtake the No. 3 spot from Lindsay Enders, who tallied 302 strikeouts from 2004-05.
Season tickets for the 2010 season are only $40 and are on sale now, while single-game tickets are also available for purchase. Tickets can be purchased online at UCFAthletics.com or through the Athletics Ticket Office by calling (407) 823-1000.
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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