April 6, 2010
| Game Day Essentials UCF vs. No. 16/19 Florida State |
| Where ? UCF Softball Complex (600) Orlando, Fla. Schedule Team Records Series Record Promotions |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF softball team concludes a five-game homestand Wednesday when it welcomes No. 16/19 Florida State to the UCF Softball Complex. First pitch for the contest is slated for 5 p.m., with the first 150 fans receiving a free pink UCF "Armor Up" t-shirt.
The Knights enter the contest with a 22-16 record on the season and a 7-4 Conference USA clip after falling in all three games of their C-USA series against East Carolina last weekend. But, the Black and Gold is hoping that a big non-conference victory against a tough in-state opponent will get them back on track mid-week as it prepares for a road trip to Marshall this weekend.
The Seminoles, who are ranked No. 16 in the latest ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and No. 19 in the latest USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Coaches poll, are coming off an ACC series victory over Maryland last weekend. Florida State posted two wins in the opening-day doubleheader against the Terrapins, before suffering a loss in the series finale Saturday. But, the squad has tallied wins over Michigan State, North Carolina, Syracuse, Georgia and Boston College already this season, while holding a 33-7 overall record and a 6-3 ACC mark.
UCF entertains the Seminoles with a 1-2 record against ACC teams this season, posting a 2-1 win over Boston College at the UCF Tournament, after suffering one-run losses to both Georgia Tech and Maryland at the NFCA Leadoff Classic.
However, the Knights are 3-3 in 2010 against ranked squads, recording big wins over No. 16 Tennessee, No. 9 Alabama and No. 22 Ohio State this season. Their losses have come at the hands of No. 7 Georgia, No. 11 Georgia Tech and No. 6 Florida.
Sophomore Natalie Land (Mayo, Fla.) paces the Black and Gold offensively, as she is batting .304 with 31 hits, 10 sacrifice hits and 14 stolen bases. Junior Tiffany Lane (Moreno Valley, Calif.) trails just behind Land with a .283 average, while leading the squad in doubles (7), triples (6) and slugging percentage (.489).
Lane upped her batting average 23 points and her slugging percentage 47 points last week after pacing UCF with six hits, five of which were doubles, while extending her hitting streak to six games. She entered the week fourth on the team with a .260 batting average, third on the squad with a .442 slugging percentage and ranked in a tie for fifth with only two doubles.
Florida State has seven players batting .300 or better, led by senior Carly Winn, who is hitting a team-best .400 with 52 hits, 15 doubles, six triples, three home runs, 25 RBI and 20 stolen bases.
Dolly Konwinski, one of the original members of the All-American Girls Pro Baseball League, will be throwing out the first pitch for the contest.
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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