Softball Travels to Houston for Cougar Invitational
2/12/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 12, 2004
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Baylor travels on the road for the first time this season, as the Lady Bears head to Houston, Texas, for the Cpugar Invitational. Baylor will play against five teams at the tournament, facing Northern Iowa, Louisiana-Monroe, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Houston and Sam Houston State. Baylor opened the season with a 4-1 record at the Getterman Classic. Tournament highlights included a no-hitter by freshman pitcher Lisa Ferguson and a Big 12 single-game record of 11 steals in an 8-4 victory over Wichita State. Game times for this weekend's tournament have changed as the Baylor-Northern Iowa contest has been moved up to 9:00 a.m. on Friday due to the threat of rain. Game times for the rest of Friday's action is TBA.
HEAD COACH Glenn Moore
Glenn Moore is in his fourth season as Baylor's head coach, coming to Waco after a stellar three-year stint at Louisiana State. In his first season at Baylor, Moore led the Lady Bears to a 38-22 overall record and a sixth-place, 7-9 mark in the Big 12 Conference. The following season, he guided the Lady Bears to even greater successes with more than 50 team and individual, single-game and single-season school records. Baylor finished 46-18 overall and 10-8 in the Big 12 Conference, establishing school marks for victories in a season, conference victories in a season and highest conference finish (fourth). Moore led Baylor to a third straight 30-win season in 2003, and the Lady Bears cracked the NFCA Top 25 for the third consecutive year. During the 2003 season, Moore claimed his 100th victory as Baylor's head coach with the Lady Bears 3-0 triumph against Texas Tech. He is now 119-70 (.627) in three seasons at Baylor. Moore has a career record of 258-112 (.697); he posted a 22-17 mark in his first year as a collegiate head coach at William Carey in Mississippi. Moore is 236-93 (.716) at the Division I level.
BAYLOR TRAVELS to HOUSTON INVITATIONAL FOR SECOND TIME UNDER COACH MOORE
Baylor will travel to Houston, Texas, for the Cougar Invitational, the second time the Lady Bears have participated in the tournament since Glenn Moore took over the program in 2000. The Lady Bears posted a 4-1 record at the 2002 version of the tournament. In 2000, after opening the tournament with a 2-0 loss to Ohio State University, the Lady Bears reeled off four straight wins in the tournament by defeating Stephen F. Austin, Houston and McNeese State twice. Baylor has a all-time series record of 41-35 against teams participation in this season's tournament. The Lady Bears own all-time series leads against Louisiana-Monroe (7-6), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (5-1) and Houston (1-0). The Lady Bears series against Northern Iowa and Sam Houston State are tied as Baylor is 1-1 all-time versus the Panthers and 27-27 against the Bearkats.
LADY BEARS SHINE AT GETTERMAN CLASSIC
Baylor had another outstanding Getterman Classic this past weekend, as Baylor went 4-1 during the tournament, with the only loss coming in a 2-1 decision against Pacific. Baylor is now 16-1 all-time at the Getterman Classic, out-scoring opponents at the tournament 115-16. Several Lady Bers earned recognition for their performance at the tournament, as Kelly Osburn, Cristin Vitek, Carrie Leerberg and Lisa Ferguson were named to the all-tournament team. Prior to the Lady Bear's loss to Pacific on day two of the event, Baylor had won 15 straight games while hosting the tournament. With the 5-1 season opening victory against Northwestern State, Baylor is now 7-2 in home openers since the programs re-instatement in 1996.
,b>FRESHMAN THROWS SEVENTH NO-HITTER IN PROGRAM HISTORY,/b> Freshman Lisa Ferguson tossed the sevnth no-hitter in Baylor history with her eight-inning, complete game performance against Auburn University. The Lady Bears won the game with two runs in the top of the eighth inning as Ferguson retired the Tigers in order in the bottom of the inning to record the first no-hitter since Cristin Vitek and Katie Decker combined to shut-down Stephen F. Austin on Feb. 22, 2002. FERGUSON ALSO CLAIMS BIG 12 Honor Lisa Ferguson's no-hitter, as well as her 2-0 record at the Getterman Classic, earned her 2004's first Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Week honor the conference office announced. In addition to the no hitter, Ferguson earned the victory in her first career start as Baylor defeated Wichita State 8-4. Ferguson is the fourth Lady Bear pitcher to earn Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors, the first since Cristin Vitek was tabbed on March 12, 2002. Allison was honored once in 1997, and Miller was a four-time honoree, three times in 2001.
BAYLOR ESTABLISHES BIG 12 RECORD Last season, the Lady Bears established a new single-season record for stolen bases with 119. This season, Baylor is off to another fast start in the category as the Lady Bears swiped 15 bases during the Getterman Classic. Baylor also established a new Big 12 Conference record for most steals in a game, with 11 in an 8-4 victory over Wichita State. Kelly Osburn had three, April Luce had two as six others added a steal each. The 11 steals marked the 10th highest total in NCAA history.
Kelly Levesque MOVING UP CAREER CHARTS
With her performance at the Getterman Classic, Kelly Levesque continued her steady climb up the Baylor career charts as she moved up in three categories. Levesque now ranks tenth in Baylor history for career hits (116), tied for seventh in steals (18) and tenth in total bases (159). Levesque will continue to move-up in almost every major offensive category thoughout the season, as she ranks near the top in every category except for sacrafice hits. She is currently Baylor's career leader in the hit by pitch category with 16. She is curently tied with past Baylor standouts in four categories as she ranks tied for seventh in career doubles (19), third in triples (6), sixth in walks (47) and fourth in sacrafice flies (3).
BAYLOR IN ROAD OPENERS
After opening the season at home hosting the Getterman Classic, Baylor travels to play on the road for the first time this season. Since 1979, Baylor is 8-10 in road or neutral-site openers. However, Baylor has won four out of the last five road or neutral-site openers. The Lady Bears won four straight from 1999-2002 before falling to DePaul 2-0 last season in Baton Rouge, La.
BIG 12 COACHES TAB LADY BEARS SIXTH
Baylor was picked to finish sixth in the Big 12 Conference this season, according to the preseason coaches' poll. The Lady Bears garnered 44 total points in the poll, one point behind fifth-place Missouri. Oklahoma edged Nebraska for top billing in the preseason picks. The Sooners received six of 10 first-place nods and 78 total points. The Huskers collected each of the four remaining first-place votes and 75 total points. Texas A&M (62 points) and Texas (57) were picked third and fourth, respectively. Oklahoma State (34), Kansas (25), Iowa State (19) and Texas Tech (11) rounded out the poll in that order.
GETTERMAN ATTENDANCE CONTINUES TO GROW
In 18 home dates, Getterman Stadium attracted 8,157 fans last season. Baylor ranked 13th nationally in total attendance for the second consecutive season. Getterman's average attendance of 453 fans established a school record, breaking the 2002 mark of 402, and ranked 18th nationally, a program best. Six of the 13 largest crowds in the stadium's five-year history came last season, including the two largest crowds - 979 vs. Texas (April 16) and 840 vs. Nebraska (April 5). Baylor has finished 21st or better in total attendance and 23rd or better in average attendance nationally each of the past three seasons.
BAYLOR-TEAM USA TICKETS ON SALE
Tickets for Baylor softball's March 11 two-game exhibition with the U.S. Olympic Team at Getterman Stadium are on sale through the Baylor Ticket Office. The Lady Bears and Team USA play at 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. The games are part of the Olympic Team's college tour in preparation for the Games of the 28th Olympiad in Athens, Greece this summer. The event is in association with Texas ASA District 23. Single-game tickets are $15; tickets for both games can be purchased together for $25. The Team USA doubleheader is not part of the Baylor softball season ticket package. The Baylor Ticket Office is located in the North end zone complex at Floyd Casey Stadium. Ticket orders also can placed via phone at (254) 710-1000 or (800) BAYLOR-U ext. 7.
BAYLOR RECEIVES VOTES IN ESPN.COM POLL
For the second straight year, Baylor begins a season listed among teams also receiving votes in the national rankings. The Lady Bears are the ninth team out of the ESPN.com/USA Softball Preseason Top 25. Baylor began the 2003 season as the second team out of the NFCA Preseason Coaches Poll and eventually cracked the rankings at No. 25 for two weeks in March. The Lady Bears have been ranked nationally during each of the past three seasons. Defending national champion UCLA opens the season at No. 1 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball rankings, garnering 18 of 19 first-place votes. Baylor plays UCLA Feb. 20 at the Palm Springs Classic in California. 2002 national champion and second-ranked California received the 19th first-place vote. Arizona, Oklahoma and Washington round out the top five, followed by Alabama, Michigan, Nebraska, Louisiana-Lafayette and Georgia. Texas is ranked 11th, Texas A&M is 17th and Oklahoma State is 22nd, giving the Big 12 Conference five teams in the Top 25. Baylor is the next-highest ranked Big 12 school. Including UCLA and the five Big 12 schools, nine 2004 Baylor opponents are in the ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason rankings. Baylor plays No. 16 Cal State Fullerton Feb. 21 at the Palm Springs Classic, No. 18 Iowa March 4 at the Speedline Classic in Clearwater, Fla., and the Lady Bears host No. 25 Tennessee Feb. 27-29 for the Compass Bank Invitational. Other 2004 Baylor opponents Pacific, Texas State and South Florida also received votes.
TRANSFERS FIND HOME AT BAYLOR
Six members of the 2004 Lady Bears' squad transferred to Baylor from other schools, two coming in this season and four coming from four-year schools. In 2002, Danelle Arnold and Katie Decker transferred to Baylor from Nebraska, while Kelly Levesque transferred from Louisiana State. Last season, Amber Daniel joined the Baylor program after two all-America seasons at Temple [Texas] College. This year, Baylor adds two more transfers. Melissa Maler followed Daniel from Temple College, while Tessa Lynam followed Levesque from Louisiana State. Both are juniors for the 2004 season.
Player Prev. School Status Danelle Arnold Nebraska senior OF/C Amber Daniel Temple College senior 3B/C Katie Decker Nebraska senior RHP Kelly Levesque Louisiana State senior CF Tessa Lynam Louisiana State junior RHP/IF Melissa Maler Temple College junior UTL
BAYLOR ADDS 4 EARLY SIGNEES
Head coach Glenn Moore signed four student-athletes to National Letters of Intent during the fall early signing period: Jordan Daniels, Tiffany Hartsell, Nicole Jackson and Katie Ottens. Daniels is a senior at Tomball [Texas] High School where she competes in track for the Cougars. She plays softball for the Impact Gold travel team. Last year, she a member of the ASA national qualifier Spring-Klein Sliders, with whom she hit .523 with a .787 on base percentage. Hartsell will be a sophomore this spring at Navarro Junior College in Corsicana, Texas. She earned all-region honors as a freshman at Navarro. Hartsell prepped at Poteet High School in Mesquite, Texas, where she earned District 13-4A MVP honors in 2001 and 2002. She was a second-team all-area selection by the Dallas Morning News in 2002 after hitting .541 with five home runs and 36 RBI. Jackson, a left-handed pitcher from Midway High School in Hewitt, Texas, posted a 15-1 record with a 0.21 ERA last spring for the Pantherettes. She registered 102 strikeouts with only six walks and 39 hits allowed in 102.0 innings pitched. Jackson led Midway to the 2003 regional finals and was named District 15-4A Most Valuable Player. She played club ball for the Texas High Voltage Gold. Ottens, a shortstop, will come to Baylor from Hollywood Christian School in Sunrise, Fla. She was named second-team all-state by the Florida Sports Writers Association and first-team all-Broward County by The Miami Herald after hitting .430 with 37 runs scored and 21 RBI last spring. Ottens led Hollywood Christian to the 2003 state title, the school's fourth since 1995. Ottens played club ball for the Davie Power.
BAYLORBEARS.COM
Baylor's official athletic web site can be found at www.BaylorBears.com. The comprehensive site, which includes releases, photos, biographical sketches and audio broadcasts, is part of the Official College Sports Network. OCSN currently hosts sites for more than 100 universities, including four Big 12 schools.
BAYLOR SOFTBALL RADIO NETWORK
For the third straight season, the Baylor Radio Network provides live play-by-play broadcast for selected Baylor softball games. Larry Little handles play-by-play duties, while Lady Bear Katie Decker provides color analysis. Broadcasts can be heard on KRZI-AM 1660/1580AM in Waco, the flagship station of the Baylor Radio Network. Broadcasts also are available worldwide on the Internet at www.BaylorBears.com and Yahoo!Broadcast.com.
2004 Radio Schedule March 29 OKLAHOMA (DH) 3:00 p.m. March 31 TEXAS A&M 6:30 p.m. April 9 TEXAS TECH 2:00 p.m. April 10 TEXAS TECH 1:00 p.m. April 14 at Texas A&M 6:30 p.m. April 21 at Texas 6:30 p.m. April 24 IOWA STATE 2:00 p.m. May 5 TEXAS 6:30 p.m. May 13-16 at Big 12 Tournament TBA May 19-23 at NCAA Regionals TBA May 26-31 at NCAA College World Series TBA
INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW
Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout Central Texas and the region. The program, co-hosted by John Morris and Lori Scott-Fogleman, airs on KCEN-TV Channel 6, Fox Sports Net Southwest and the College Channel (Waco cable channel 18). KCEN carries the show at 10:30 p.m. Sundays, and it airs at 1 p.m. Wednesdays on FSN Southwest.
UP NEXT...
Baylor returns to action on Friday, Feb. 20, at the Palm Springs Classic in Palm Springs, Calif. The Lady Bears will take on two nationally-ranked teams at the tournament as they face top-ranked UCLA (1/1) and Cal State Fullerton (13/16). Baylor will also face Tennessee, Bethune-Cookman and Coastal Carolina.
