Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirls Head To Florida For Final Tournament
March 11, 2005 | Cowgirl Softball
OSU's Schedule (all times central)
Thursday
10 a.m. - OSU vs. Western Michigan
Noon - OSU vs. Villanova
Friday
Noon - OSU vs. Purdue
Saturday
9 a.m. - OSU vs. Hofstra
2 p.m. - Bracket play begins
Sunday
Bracket play continues
Live stats will not be available for the tournament but scoring updates will be posted on the tournament site. The official site can be accessed by clicking on the link at the top of this page.
HEAD COACH MARGARET REBENAR
Margaret Rebenar is in her 26th season season as a softball coach at Oklahoma State and fourth as a head coach. Rebenar joined the Cowgirl softball program in 1980 after serving as a pitching coach at UCLA for one season. After filling the assistant coach role for 22 seasons, Rebenar was named the head coach in 2001. Rebenar led the 2003 Cowgirls to a second-place finish in the Big 12 regular season race and their first NCAA Regional appearance in five years. Under her guidance, 23 players have earned All-American status 29 times, including Olympians Michele Smith, Melanie Roche and Lauren Bay. Rebenar brings a 111-74 record as a head coach into the tournament. Hitting the century mark was an exciting game for Rebenar as the Cowgirls staged a come-from-behind victory at UNLV, scoring four runs in the top of the seventh to earn a 4-1 win.
THE SPEEDLINE INVITATIONAL FIELD
Western Michigan
Western Michigan brings a 2-7 record into the game with the Cowgirls. Offensively the Broncos are led by Katie Niemi with a .367 batting average and Amanda Heckman with two doubles and two home runs. Kyla Sullivan and Tricia Vanderslik have seen the bulk of the time in the circle. Sullivan is 1-3 on the year with a 4.14 ERA in 22.0 innings. In 28 innings, Vanderslik is 1-4 with a 4.50 ERA. The all-time series between the Cowgirls and Broncos is tied 4-4. OSU won the last two contests, including a 7-1 win in the most recent meeting at the Speedline Invitational in 1999.
Villanova
The Wildcats are 14-6 on the season and won eight of their last nine outings. Villanova's only loss in that span was a 4-0 setback to then-fifth-ranked Tennessee. Sheri Donley leads the team with a .391 batting average, 15 runs and six doubles. Sarah Wall has a team-high 13 RBI and is hitting at a .373 clip. Kristen Haynes leads the Wildcats pitching staff with a 1.14 ERA and 7-3 record in 61.2 innings. Shannon Williams is also solid in the circle, tossing 59.2 innings en route to a 1.76 ERA and 7-3 record. The duo is averaging 7.6 Ks per game. Thursday's game will be the first-ever meeting between the Cowgirls and Wildcats.
Purdue
The Boilermakers enter the tournament 11-8 overall, having lost three of their last four. Andrea Hillsey leads the team with a .392 average and four doubles. DeQueta Johnson has the big stick on the team, connecting on five long balls and earning 16 RBI. Four different players have at least four stolen bases and the team is averaging 1.4 steals per game. Brooke Baker leads the pitching staff with a 2.51 ERA and 5-6 record in 61.1 innings. Diana LaRiva is averaging 9.1 Ks per game in relief, tossing 41.2 innings en route to a 2.02 ERA. The series with Purdue is tied 1-1. OSU won the last meeting, a 2-0 shutout at the 2003 Speedline Invitational.
Hofstra
Hofstra enters the weekend riding a four-game winning streak with a 5-6 overall record. Ashley Lane leads the Pride with a .423 batting average. Hailey Clark is hitting .259 but has a team-high three doubles, six RBI and seven runs scored. Adrienne Clark (3-3) and Callie Osborne (5-6) lead the pitching staff. Clark has a 1.93 ERA in 32.2 innings. Osborne has tossed 20.1 innings for a 4.74 ERA. The Cowgirls leads the series with Hofstra 2-1. The teams have not played in 10 years but OSU won the last contest, a 5-0 victory at the South Florida Classic in 1995.
IN THE POLLS
Oklahoma State will face nine opponents ranked in the NFCA preseason Top 25, including three of the top four. OSU's opponents and their preseason rankings are UCLA (2), Arizona (3), Oklahoma (4), Washington (11), Oregon (13), Texas (15), Baylor (17), Nebraska (18) and Illinois (22). Currently, nine are ranked including four in the top 10.
LOOKING AHEAD
OSU returns to Stillwater for three games over Spring Break. The Cowgirls host Texas A&M Kingsville on Tuesday, March 15 at 5 p.m. Wichita State comes calling on Wednesday and North Texas on Friday.
COWGIRL SOFTBALL ON THE AIR
Oklahoma State's home conference games, as well as the OU game in Norman, the Border War in Fayetteville, Ark., and all postseason contests will be broadcast live on Stillwater Radio. Bill VanNess will provide the play-by-play for the seventh consecutive season. Any game starting prior to 5 p.m. will air on KSPI 780 AM. Any game starting at 5 p.m. or later will be broadcast on KGFY 105.5 FM.
COWGIRL SOFTBALL ON THE WEB
For the latest information on 2005 Cowgirl Softball visit the official web site of Oklahoma State Athletics at www.okstate.com. Live stats will be available online for all home events and select away games. The games listed below will be broadcast via a live video feed on the web site as part of the MVP package.
