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The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Softball To Host Brigham Young, Friday
4/30/2001 12:00 AM | Softball
April 30, 2001
Salt Lake CIty -
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COMING UP: The University of Utah softball team (34-20-1, 10-5-1 MWC) continues its 2001 campaign at home, in a doubleheader with the Brigham Young Cougars (29-22, 8-5 MWC), on Fri., May 4 at 2:00 p.m. (MDT) at Ute Field. Utah travels to Provo, Utah on Sat., May 5, taking on in-state rival BYU (29-22, 8-5 MWC) for a twinbill at 12:00 p.m. (MDT).
A QUICK LOOK AT UTAH: Utah enters this week's games 34-20-1 overall, 10-5-1 in MWC play. The Utes are currently leading the conference standings and are among the MWC statistical leaders as well.
Last week, the Utes defeated Southern Utah, 6-3 in Salt Lake City. Utah swept UNLV, 1-0 and 3-2 at Ute Field, on Fri., Apr. 27. The Utes lost both games against San Diego State, 6-2 and 5-0, on Sat., Apr. 28, at Ute Field.
The Utes received 13 votes in the Apr. 24th USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll. Utah entered the 2001 season ranked No. 25 and has received votes in the past 11-out-of-13 weeks. The Utes return five starters and eight letterwinners from last year's squad. The Mountain West Conference regular-season and tournament champion, Utah ended its 2000 campaign with a 42-23 (.646) overall record and a 15-5 (.750) conference mark. Last year, Utah made its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 1997 and its ninth NCAA appearance overall. The Utes own a 16-21 NCAA record, including a 15-13 mark in NCAA regional play, and have advanced to the Women's College World Series four times (1982, `85, `91 and `94) with a 1-6 slate.
The Utes received 67 votes and a No. 25 ranking in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 preseason poll, released Fri., Jan. 26. The Division I Women's Softball Committee produces a poll which is used as part of the championship tournament selection process. They rank the top ten teams in each region and last year, Utah was ranked fourth in the West Region in the Mar. 30, April 13, April 27 and May 11 poll. Utah received 156 votes to rank 20th in the 2000 final USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Poll.
UP NEXT: The Utes will vie for their second-consecutive MWC Tournament Championship on May 10-12, in Albuquerque, N.M.
SCOUTING BRIGHAM YOUNG: The BYU Cougars are currently 29-22 overall, 8-5 in MWC play. Brigham Young swept UNLV with a 7-1 and a 10-2 win over the Rebels at Gail Miller Field in Provo, Utah on Sat., Apr. 28. On Fri., Apr. 27, the Cougars split with the Aztecs. San Diego State won the first game, 3-1 and BYU won the nightcap, 4-0. Brigham Young is currently 2nd in the MWC standings and is just two games behind the Utes.
BRIGHAM YOUNG HEAD COACH: A former assistant coach at the University of Utah, Mary Kay Amicone was named BYU's first varsity softball coach on May 6 of last year, three months after the announcement was made to upgrade the softball team from club to varsity status. Last year, the Cougars ended the season with a 16-27 overall record, 7-13 in MWC play.
Prior to coming to BYU, Amicone worked as an assistant coach at Utah for seven years, during which time the team finished 5th and 7th in the NCAA College World Series and were three-time NCAA regional participants.
She also brings high school coaching experience, working as the head coach at Bingham High School in Salt Lake City for three seasons. Amicone guided the team to a 2nd place Region Championship in 1998, a 5th place finish in 1997 and the 5A State Championship in 1996 with a 26-1 record.
SAN DIEGO STATE RECAP: Sandra Durazo had the Utes' number on Sat., Apr. 28th, holding them to just seven hits and pitching San Diego State to a doubleheader sweep of Utah on Senior Day at Ute Field. The Aztecs took the opener 6-2 and shutout the Utes in the night cap 5-0. San Diego State improved to 32-21 overall and 7-7 in the MWC.
After Utah manufactured a run in the first, Lyndsey Trevis hit a solo home run to left field in the bottom of the third to give the Utes a 2-0 lead. Trevis went 2-for-2 in the game, accounting for half of Utah's hits. The Aztecs tied the game with a run in the top of the fourth and got another in the fifth before blowing the game open in the sixth. With two outs, Utah's defense fell apart and committed three errors that led to four Aztec runs, all of which were unearned. Ute starter Kristin Arbogast gave up nine hits and struck out six in seven innings.
Tiffany Goudy's solo home run with one down in the first inning set the tone for the second game. The Aztecs pushed across single runs in the third and fourth, and a put up a two spot in the fifth. Arbogast, who was honored with fellow seniors Amberly Jeppson and Carrie Kosderka after the doubleheader, gave up all five runs, two of which were unearned, off seven hits in six innings. Utah committed four errors behind Arbogast and her record fell to 26-15.
Utah was limited to just three hits by Durazo, who improved to 21-11 with the two complete game wins. She struck out five Utes in the first game and three in the finale.
UNLV RECAP: The Utes scored in the first inning of the first game in a double header with UNLV and went on to win 1-0 on April 27, 2001. Molly McLean led off the bottom of the first inning for the Utes with a single. McLean advanced to third on an error by the catcher and then to third on a sacrifice bunt by Amberly Jeppson. Lindsey Trevis singled to right bringing home Jeppson for the only run in the game.
Trevis and McLean posted two hits and Christa Pfeninger notched one hit in the win. Kristen Arbogast picked up the win for Utah. Arbogast gave up two hits, two walks and struck out five batters in seven innings of work. Geney Orris (6-11) took the loss for UNLV despite striking out four batters and not giving up an earned run.
"Lindsey Trevis did a great job to step in the box and single home Molly McLean. Orris pitched well against us and kind of had our number," said Head Coach Mona Stevens.
In the nightcap, senior Amberly Jeppson went 4-for-4 from the plate with one RBI and one run scored. Melissa Stahnke went 2-for-4 from the plate with two RBI and Molly McLean added two hits for the Utes in the 3-2 win over UNLV. UNLV dropped to 25-23, 6-8 MWC.
UNLV posted two runs in the top of the second inning to jump out to a 2-0 lead over the Utes. Geney Orris doubled to lead off the inning and scored on a single by Linda Garza. Garza advanced on a wild pitch by Kristen Arbogast and later scored on a single by Melissa Inouye.
Utah scored three runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 3-2 lead over the Rebels. Angie Kenney singled to lead off the inning and advanced to third on a double by Molly McLean. Kenney scored on a single by Jeppson, and McLean and Jeppson scored on a two-run RBI single by Stahnke.
Arbogast earned her second win of the day. She is now 26-13 on the season. Kacey Ellis earns the loss for UNLV after allowing eight hits and three runs in four innings of work. She drops to 11-9 on the season.
"Amberly Jeppson had an awesome game by going 4-for-4 from the plate. She was 0-for-2 in the first game and stepped it up in the second. I'm upset we left the bases loaded twice, but I'm happy with the win. Kristen Arbogast pitched a great game for us, despite getting hit on her pitching hand by a line drive," said Coach Stevens.
SOUTHERN UTAH RECAP: Sophomore Niki Hayhurst racked up two three-run homers as the Utes went on to defeat the Southern Utah Thunderbirds 6-3, on Tues., Apr. 24, at Ute Field. Southern Utah dropped to 23-31 overall.
For the Utes, Hayhurst went 2-for-3 with two runs and six RBI. Molly McLean went 1-for-3 with a triple and one run, while Melissa Stahnke notched a hit and a run. Angie Kenney and Christa Pfeninger each had one hit in the game. Kristin Arbogast went the distance on the mound, giving up eight hits, three earned runs, two walks and struck out six in 33 batters faced. Arbogast improved to 24-13 on the season. As a team, the Utes went 6-for-26, with six runs and six RBI in the game.
For the Thunderbirds, Kelly Grundy notched two hits and one RBI. Teammate Anna Leeman also had two hits and an RBI. Lori Shepard took the loss for SUU. She dropped to 9-13.
SOFTBALL REACHES 750TH WIN: Utah, as a team, reached its 750th career win. The Utes notched their 750th win on Fri., Feb. 23, with a 7-0 shut-out win over UC Riverside.
MWC PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Apr. 24): Utah shortstop Melissa Stahnke is the Mountain West Conference Softball Player of the Week. This is the second player of the week honor for Stahnke this season.
Stahnke, a freshman from Ridgefield, Wash. (Ridgefield HS), hit .353 (6-for-17) with nine RBI, six runs scored, three home runs, and a double in six games last week. The Utes swept Southern Utah (5-2, 9-0) and Colorado State (5-1, 9-1), while splitting with New Mexico (1-2, 9-1). Stahnke went 2-for-7 with a double and an RBI in the two games vs. Southern Utah, while batting .500 (2-for-4) with three RBI and a home run in the Colorado State series. Stahnke concluded the week going 2-for-6 at the plate vs. New Mexico with both hits resulting in home runs and five RBI. The two round-trippers vs. the Lobos helped Stahnke set a new Utah single-season home run record with 19 on the year.
MWC PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Apr. 4): Utah first baseman Niki Hayhurst was named the Mountain West Conference Softball Player of the Week, for the week of April 4th. This was the first player of the week honor for Hayhurst this season.
Hayhurst, a sophomore from Keizer, Ore. (McNary HS), hit .600 (9-for-15) with 11 RBI, six runs scored, three home runs and a triple in four games last week. She recorded multiple-hits in three of the four contests, while drawing two walks and striking out twice. In the first game of a double-header at New Mexico, Hayhurst went 3-for-5 with two runs and nine putouts in the Utes 14-5 victory. In the second game of the twinbill, she went 1-for-4 as the Utes and Lobos tied 5-5. Her lone hit of the game was a two-run single to center field that gave Utah a 5-2 lead. Hayhurst went 2-for-3 with two RBI and a double in the 6-2 win at Colorado State Sunday. In the second contest vs. the Rams, she was a perfect 3-for-3, with all three hits being home runs. The three home runs tied a Utah single-game record as did her seven RBI.
MWC PLAYER OF THE WEEK (MAR. 19): Utah shortstop Lindsey Trevis, a junior from Glendora, Calif. (Glendora HS), was named the Mountain West Conference Player of the Week on Mar. 19. Trevis went 9-for-19 (.474) with seven RBI, seven runs scored and a pair of home runs and doubles in six games last week at the Florida State Tournament. She recorded at least one hit in five of six contests, including three multi-hit games, while striking out four times and walking once. Her best outings of the week came against Georgia State, Connecticut and Bethune-Cookman. In the 2-0 win over Georgia State, she went 1-for-2 with a home run and two runs scored. In the 4-2 victory vs. Connecticut, Trevis connected on 2-of-3 from the plate with a home run and two RBI. Her best performance came in the Utes 10-0 victory over Bethune-Cookman where she went 3-for-4, with three RBI, two doubles and one run scored. The Utes went 4-2 last week and Trevis was one of nine players selected from 14 teams to the all-tournament team. This was the second player of the week honor in a row for Trevis.
MWC PLAYER AND PITCHER OF THE WEEK (MAR. 12): Utah third baseman Lyndsey Trevis and right-handed pitcher Kristin Arbogast were the Mountain West Conference Softball Player and Pitcher of the Week, on Mar. 12. This was the first player and pitcher of the week award for both players this season.
Trevis, a junior from Glendora, Calif. (Glendora HS), went 11-for-24 (.458) with 11 RBI, three home runs, two doubles, and eight runs scored, while walking five times in eight games last week. She had at least one hit in seven of the eight contests, with her best outing coming in the Utes 10-0 victory over Massachusetts where she went 3-4 at the plate, with all three hits coming via the home run (Utah school record). Trevis also tallied seven RBI and three runs scored vs. the Minutemen. She collected two more multiple-hit games in the tournament vs. Georgia Southern and Temple. She went 2-for-4 vs. Georgia Southern with a double and a run scored, while recording three RBI and three runs scored in a 2-for-3 day at the plate vs. Temple. The Utes went 6-2 and finished third out of 24 teams at the South Florida Speedline Tournament.
Arbogast, a senior from Eugene, Ore. (North Eugene HS), went 5-2 in eight appearances for Utah at the South Florida Speedline Tournament. She pitched 44.1 innings and had five complete games, while posting a 1.43 ERA. In those eight appearances, Arbogast gave up only nine earned runs and nine walks, while striking out 35. She was also one of nine players (out of 24 teams), along with teammate Lyndsey Trevis, selected to the all-tournament team.
Arbogast's best performances came in two shutouts vs. Temple (11-0) and Massachusetts (10-0). Against the Owls, she allowed a pair of hits and walks, while striking out four in five innings of work. In six innings on the mound vs. the Minutemen, she gave up just one run and struck out six.
MWC PRESEASON POLL: Utah has been selected to repeat as Mountain West Conference softball champions in a vote by the league coaches. Utah received five first place votes for a total of 25 points to capture the top spot in the poll. New Mexico was picked second after collecting 20 points and the only other first place vote. San Diego State was third with 15 points followed by Colorado State (11), BYU (10) and UNLV (9).
UTES IN THE POLLS: Utah entered the 2001 season ranked No. 25 and has received votes in the past 10-out-of-12 weeks. The Utes received six votes in the Apr. 17th USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll. Utah broke into the national rankings (25th in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll, 67 votes) for the first time this season on Fri., Jan. 26.
Utah climbed into the Top 25 for the first time ever during the 1980 season (6th in the 1980 national final poll.
USA TODAY/NFCA PRESEASON POLL (Jan. 24): The University of Utah softball team received 67 votes and a No. 25 ranking in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 preseason poll released on Jan. 24. The Mountain West Conference regular-season and tournament champion, Utah ended its season with a 42-23 (.646) overall record and a 15-5 (.750) conference mark. Utah made its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 1997 and its ninth NCAA overall. The Utes own a 16-21 NCAA record, including a 15-13 mark in NCAA regional play, and have advanced to the Women's College World Series four times (1982, `85, `91 and `94) with a 1-6 slate.
"I think it is good that we made the Top 25," said head coach Mona Stevens. "I'm glad we are No. 25 because I think it will give our kids motivation to work harder. There are a lot of teams in the Top 25 that we beat last year, but that was last year, and this year, we need to prove ourselves once again. I'm glad that we had the recognition to get in the Top 25 and we'll have our work cut out for us. We want to move up in the poll and, although we are excited to be recognized, it will motivate us towards moving higher."
Utah was the only Mountain West Conference team to enter the 2001 season in the top 25. New Mexico was the other MWC team recognized in the preseason poll with 10 votes.
HEAD COACH MONA STEVENS: Mona Stevens, who has built a reputation as one of the top coaches in the nation on both the national and international levels, is in her fifth season as head coach at Utah.
A former Ute player and assistant coach, the Provo, Utah, native came home in September of 1996, following a two-year stint at the University of Massachusetts. Stevens was the associate head coach for the Minutewomen during the 1995 and `96 seasons, and was named head coach at UMass in June of `96, three months prior to being hired by her alma mater.
Stevens has the best winning percentage in school history. She currently posts a 184-109-1 (.628) career overall record and a 75-44-1 (.629) career conference record in five seasons. Her 2000 team was the NCAA Region 1 Tournament runner-up, and placed third in the NCAA Regional Tournament in 1997. Stevens was selected as the 2000 Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year and posted her 150th career win at the NCAA Region 1 Tournament with a 4-1 win over Mississippi State on May 20.
STAHNKE AND TREVIS PURSUE THE UTAH SINGLE-SEASON rbi RECORD: Freshman Melissa Stahnke is just two RBI away from setting the single-season RBI record. Teammate Lyndsey Trevis is just eight RBI away from setting the single-season RBI record. The current record of 59 RBI was set by Sunny Smith on Fri., May 19, 2000 in the NCAA West Regionals vs. Mississippi State.
UTAH VS. RANKED OPPONENTS: Utah is 1-7 (.125) vs. ranked opponents this season. The Utes lost to the then-No. 20 ranked Oregon Ducks 4-1 on Feb. 9. The then-No. 6 ranked Arizona State softball team shut-out Utah, 4-0 on Feb. 11. The Utes lost 4-0 to then-No. 7 ranked California on Feb. 16. Utah upset then-No. 16 ranked Oregon State, 12-6, on Feb. 18. The Utes lost, 8-0 to the then-No. 12 ranked Washington Huskies on Mar. 2. On Mar. 23 and 24, the then-No. 3 ranked Arizona Wildcats defeated Utah, 8-3 and 10-2.
Utah played two other teams that are currently ranked, but weren't ranked when the Utes matched-up with them. The now-No. 3 ranked Stanford defeated Utah, 8-1 on Mar. 3. The Utes defeated the now-No. 22 ranked UMass, 10-0, in six innings on Mar. 10.
FABULOUS FRESHMEN: Utah continues to receive a boost this season from its four freshmen Heather Bowlin, Sidney Lewis, Masie Ota and Melissa Stahnke. Stahnke is second on the team with a .347 batting average and leads the team as the single-season home run record holder with 19 home runs. She posts a .741 slugging percentage (1st on team) and has recorded 58 RBI (1st on team) to date. Bowlin is second on the team with a 3.16 ERA in 79.2 innings pitched. Ota has seen time in 46 games and posts a .244 on base percentage. Lewis has seen time in 14 games this season and has a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage.
STAHNKE CLAIMED THE UTAH SINGLE-SEASON HOME RUN RECORD: Utah freshmen Melissa Stahnke set the single-season home run record in the series with New Mexico. The current record is now 19 home runs and was set by Stahnke in Utah's 9-1 victory over New Mexico at Ute Field on Sat., Apr. 21. The old record of 18 home runs was set by Sunny Smith on Fri., May 12, 2000.
NCAA STATISTICAL LEADERS: Many Utes ranked among the nation's statistical leaders in the individual categories this season. Lyndsey Trevis is currently 24th in the nation with a .400 batting average and 12th in RBI (52). Melissa Stahnke is 5th in home runs (19) and 11th in RBI (58), while Niki Hayhurst is 25th in home runs (13). Molly McLean is 12th in stolen bases (32) and Kristin Arbogast is 11th in saves (3).
Last year, Utah was sixth in the nation in home runs (58), ninth in slugging percentage (.450), 17th with a .301 team batting average and 18th in scoring (5.14).
COVERING THE UTES: The sports information office at the University of Utah welcomes your interest in the Utah softball program and will make every effort to ensure that your coverage of the Utes is an enjoyable experience. Press credentials, weekly releases and game results are available by calling Assistant Sports Information Director Julie Lapomarda at (801) 581-3771. To request permission to broadcast Utah home games, send a request on station letterhead to the attention of: Julie Lapomarda, Assistant Sports Information Director, University of Utah, 1825 E. South Campus Dr. Front, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-0900.
WEEKLY INTERVIEWS: Members of the media who wish to interview head coach Mona Stevens should contact her at her office (801) 581-3514 in the morning on weekdays. Interviews with the athletes should be arranged through Julie Lapomarda (801) 581-3771.
POST-GAME SERVICES: Head coach Mona Stevens and Utah players will be available for interviews outside the Utah dug out following a 10 minute cooling off period. A member of the Utah sports information staff will gather interview requests immediately following the game. Box scores will be provided and faxed upon request.
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE MEDIA INFORMATION: Javan Hedlund, Assistant Director of Communications, handles all information requests related to softball at the Mountain West Conference office. The MWC address is 15455 Gleneagle Drive, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80921. The MWC telephone number is (719) 488-4040. The fax number is (719) 487-7241. Hedlund can be reached at (719) 487-4051.
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