Weekend Recap
As the 2007 softball regular-season concludes this week, BYU continues to lead the MWC race with a 13-3 conference record after sweeping the series with New Mexico and splitting with Colorado State. UNLV (10-6) holds on to second place, going 1-1 vs. San Diego State. The Lobos (8-8) are the only other league team with a conference record at or above .500.
Television Tidbits
The Mountain West Conference 2007 softball broadcast schedule includes an unprecedented 11 games on national and regional television. The television exposure provided by the MWC broadcast partners far exceeds the softball coverage in the previous seven-year history of the league. Seven games will be shown on the MountainWest Sports Network - The Mtn., while four games will be broadcast live nationally on CSTV.
This week's UNLV at BYU game on Thursday, May 10, will be televised live on CSTV, beginning at 6 p.m. MT. The Cougars' match with San Diego State on Friday, May 11 will also be televised. The game will be shown live on BYUTV at 6 p.m. MT and via tape delay on The Mtn., Saturday, May 12, at 6 p.m. MT.
National Honors
San Diego State's Erin Floros was named to the initial "Watch List" for the 6th Annual USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award. This award is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by collegiate softball players across the country. Last season, Floros became SDSU's first softball All-American when she was named to the Louisville Slugger/NFCA third-team and the Easton-Bell Sports first-team.
BYU
As a team, BYU has hit 80 home runs this season, shattering the previous record of 68 set in 2005...The team needs to win at least three of its last five games to secure its third consecutive 40-win season...Senior Jodi Norton has set a new BYU single-season home run record and tied the MWC record with 22 dingers...Jennifer Whiteley's four triples this season makes her the team's all-time leader in the category (13)...BYU is 12-0 at home with four more home games left in the season...The Cougars have never finished a season with an undefeated home record.
Colorado State
Freshman Ashley Munoz enters this weekend's matchups riding a 12-game hitting streak...She is just one game shy of tying Lauren Cusick's season-high hitting streak of 13 games...Last weekend, Munoz also recorded three home runs in as many games to become the team-leader on the season with 12...The Rams are one of three teams in the nation to have 13 different players who have hit home runs this season...The Rams join No. 1/1 Alabama and No. 14/14 Hawai'i on that list...The Rams are also one of five teams to have eight different players with four or more home runs (Alabama 10, CSU 8, Tennessee Tech 8, Illinois State 8 and Arizona State 8).
New Mexico
UNM is led by the offensive production of sophomore Analise Rubalcava and junior Lindsey Elcess...Rubalcava leads the team with a .382 batting average and 30 RBI, while Elcess has eight doubles to go along with a .333 average and has started every game...Junior Kelly Ninemire leads the rotation with a 13-12 overall record and a 3.68 ERA in 146 1/3 innings...Under the direction of head coach Ty Singleton, New Mexico has already doubled its conference win total (4) from last year and has the most MWC victories since the 2002 season...UNM has an opportunity to finish the year at or above .500 for the first time since the 2001 campaign.
San Diego State
Freshman Brittany Knudsen is batting a team-best .394 this season, which would be a single-season school record if the season ended today...Her .466 on-base percentage (2nd) and .529 slugging percentage (6th) would also be among single-season bests...Christina Ross has logged 211 2/3 innings so far this season, the most by an Aztec since Sandra Durazo threw 211 2/3 in 2002...Ross is also just 10 strikeouts away from the 200 barrier, something only two other SDSU athletes - Celena Velasquez (211, 2005) and Durazo (203, 2001) - have done.
UNLV
UNLV trails BYU by three games for first place in the MWC standings...The Rebels and Cougars clash in a doubleheader Thursday night in Provo...In the first weekend of MWC play, the Rebels swept the doubleheader against Utah and took the two-game series against BYU.
Utah
Staci Hemingway turned in the team's top effort last weekend as she led the team in hitting .556 (5-for-9)...Among her five hits were two doubles and a home run, for a 1.111 slugging percentage...Utah's top-two hitters in the batting order accounted for 40 percent of the team's hits last weekend...Leadoff hitter Meghan Crouse hit .455, going 5-for-11, while the No. 2 hitter, Kristie Keller, hit .500, batting 4-for-8...Utah's batting average is .274 for the year...That number ups to .292 when there are runners on base and is even higher (.410) when there's a runner on third and less than two outs.
