May 6, 2008
2008 Big Ten Softball Tournament Bracket in PDF Format
IOWA CITY – On Deck ? The University of Iowa softball team will compete in the 2008 Big Ten Tournament this weekend. Below is a tournament schedule.
Thursday, May 8
Game 1 – #2 Michigan vs. #7 Michigan State, 2 p.m.
Game 2 – #1 Northwestern vs. #8 Ohio State, 4:30 p.m.
Friday, May 9
Game 3 – #3 Iowa vs. #6 Illinois, 9 a.m.
Game 4 – #4 Minnesota vs. #5 Purdue, 11:30 a.m.
Game 5 – Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 3, 2 p.m.
Game 6 – Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 4, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 10
Game 7 – Championship, Noon
Hawkeyes on TV ? Games 3-7 will be telecast live on the Big Ten Network. Leah Secondo will call play-by-play and Amanda Scott will handle color commentary.
Hawkeyes on the Web ? All of Iowa’s postseason games will be broacast live via hawkeyesports.com, where free audio will be available. The broadcasts are free, but fans do have to go through a quick registration. Friday’s game against Illinois will also be joined in progress on AM-800 KXIC.
Fans can also find Gametracker links and other Big Ten Tournament information at nusports.com.
Big Ten Tournament Notes ? Iowa is 19-20 all-time in the Big Ten Tournament, including a 2-1 record vs. Illinois.
? The Hawkeyes are tied with Michigan for the most tournament appearances in the Big Ten Tournament with 15. Iowa and Michigan are also the only two schools that have participated in every Big Ten Tournament.
? Iowa and Michigan are the only two schools to win multiple Big Ten Tournament titles. Iowa claimed the 2000 and 2003 Big Ten Tournament championships while Michigan has won the league tournament eight times.
? The Hawkeyes are 7-10 all-time as the No. 3 seed. Iowa has advanced to the championship game three times as the No. 3 seed, most recently in 2005, when it was defeated, 7-2 by Michigan in the championship.
? The last time Iowa was a No. 3 seed was in 2006 when the tournament was hosted in Evanston for the first time. The Hawkeyes were upset by No. 6 seeded Indiana, 5-4, in eight innings in the first round.
? Northwestern joins Iowa and Michigan as the only three schools to host the Big Ten Tournament multiple times. Michigan has hosted nine times and Iowa has entertained three tournaments.
Last Year at the Big Ten Tournament ? Iowa was defeated by Purdue, 4-1, in first round action of the 2007 Big Ten Tournament at Ohio State. Purdue scored all four of its runs in the second inning to down the Hawkeyes.
Scouting Illinois ? The Illinois Fighting Illini are 30-31 overall and finished tied for sixth place in the Big Ten with an 8-12 conference mark. The Fighting Illini lead the conference in hits (464), home runs (76), RBI (299) and runs scored (331).
Angelena Mexicano is batting .365 and leads the Big Ten with 24 home runs and is second with 62 RBI.
Claire Devreese has thrown 221.2 innings and has a 20-18 record with a 3.92 earned run average and 146 strikeouts. Ashley Wright is 8-8 with a 5.71 earned run average and has 47 strikeouts.
Last Time vs. the Fighting Illini ? Iowa won two slugfests at Illinois to close the regular season last weekend. The Hawkeyes won game one, 5-2, and game two, 12-6.
Iowa Goes Deep In Game One ? The Hawkeyes hit three solo home runs en route to a 5-2 win in game one last Saturday.
After Illinois jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, sophomore Katie Brown and junior Erin Riemersma responded with solo shots to tie the score. Junior Colleen McGlaughlin gave Iowa a 3-2 lead with the team’s third-straight solo home run. The Hawkeyes tacked on two more runs off an RBI double by Brown and a sacrifice fly from Riemersma.
Junior pitcher Brittany Weil limited the potent Fighting Illini offense to just three hits while striking out six with no walks. After giving up a home run in the first, Weil sat down 14 of the next 15 batters.
More of the Same in Game Two ? Sophomore Katie Brown hit two home runs and collected four RBI to lead Iowa past Illinois, 12-6, in game two.
Iowa manufactured two runs in the top of the third and added two more un the fourth off Brown’s first home run and an RBI double by junior Quinn Morelock.
Illinois fought back to tie the game at four in the fourth, but Brown delivered once again, this time with a three-run round-tripper, for a 7-4 Hawkeye lead.
The Hawkeye offense exploded for five runs on six hits in the top of the seventh to take a commanding 12-6 lead.
Brown Named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week ? Sophomore Katie Brown was named co-Big Ten Player of the Week May 5 for her efforts against Illinois last weekend. The award was the first weekly accolade for Brown.
The Spirit Lake, IA, native led Iowa’s offense in the two-game sweep over the Fighting Illini. She finished the weekend with an .833 (5-6) batting average along with three home runs, one double, six RBI, one intentional walk and four runs scored. Brown also tallied an impressive 2.500 slugging percentage and an .857 on base percentage.
Lucky Number Three ? Before Saturday’s game at Illinois, the last time Iowa had three home runs in a single game was April 25, 2006, when the Hawkeyes tallied three round-trippers in an 11-0, five inning win over Northern Iowa.
Kylie Murray, along with current Hawkeyes Summer Downs and Quinn Morelock, all had home runs against the Panthers.
Offensive Surge ? Iowa plated a season-high 12 runs off a season-high 17 hits Sunday at Illinois.
The last time Iowa scored 12 or more runs and collected 17 or more hits was March 16, 2007, when the Hawkeyes defeated Mercer, 13-6. Iowa crossed home 13 times off 19 hits, which tied a school record for hits in a single game.
Going For Three in a Row ? Iowa has not defeated a Big Ten opponet three times in a single season since 2005, when it knocked off Penn State twice during the regular season and again in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. The Hawkeyes advanced to the Big Ten Tournament championship game that season.
Iowa will also be looking to collect three-straight wins over Illinois in consecutive games. The last Iowa squad to defeat a Big Ten foe three-straight times was the 1999 team that defeated Michigan State three-straight times. The third win came in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.
Downs On a Roll ? Senior Summer Downs is curretnly on a 10-game hitting streak.
The San Diego, CA, native is batting .344 with 11 hits, one home run, one double, four RBI and three runs scored over the past 10 contests.
Hot Over the Last 13 Games ? Junior Quinn Morelock is batting .500 (10-20) in the past 13 games.
Morelock has played in 11 of the last 13 games and has started six. She has collected two doubles, two RBI and is a perfect 3-3 in stolen bases.
Base Thefts ? As a team, the Hawkeyes lead the Big Ten in stolen bases (85) and attempts (109).
Junior Rachel West leads the team with 17 swipes, while sophomore Lindsey Digmann has 16 and freshman Chelsey Carmody has 12.
Staff One of the Best ? Iowa’s pitching staff is establishing itself as one of the best, not only in the Big Ten, but in the nation.
Entering the week, the Hawkeyes rank ninth in the country in earned run average (1.14), while junior Brittany Weil is 20th in victories (24), 26th in earned run average (1.09) and hits allowed per seven innings (3.86) and 65th in strikeouts per seven innings (7.4). Sophomore Amanda Zust is 17th in hits allowed per seven innings (3.86) and 33rd in both earned run average (1.22) and saves (3).
Iowa ranks in the top three in nearly every pitching category and leads the Big Ten in opposing batting average (.164) and is tied for the lead in saves (5).
McGlaughlin Everywhere ? Junior Colleen McGlaughlin has played wherever she has been needed this season.
McGlaughlin has started 24 games at third base, 23 at first base, five at shortstop and three in left field.
In addition, the Morton, IL, native is batting .371 while at third, .328 at first, .308 at shortstop and .154 in the outfield.
Weil in the Record Books ? Junior Brittany Weil is the first Hawkeye in school history to be named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week four times in a single-season and five times in a career.
Weil is also the first Big Ten pitcher since 2006 to earn the award four times in a season. Northwestern pitcher Eileen Canney was given the award four times in 2006. The record is held by Michgan’s Marissa Young, who was tabbed Pitcher of the Week six times in 2002.
Opponents in the Polls ? Seven Iowa opponents are ranked in both the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 and ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 polls. Florida (1st/1st), Arizona State (2nd/2nd), Michigan (6th/5th), Northwestern (12th/12th), North Carolina (13th/13th), Louisiana-Lafayette (16th/18th) and DePaul (20th/23rd) are all ranked.
In addition, Central Florida is receiving votes in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll.
Tough Schedule in 2008 ? Twelve of Iowa’s opponents are inside the top 50 of the latest NCAA RPI, released April 23. The Hawkeyes have seven wins over top 50 RPI teams (No. 4 Michigan, No. 12 Northwestern, No. 29 Louisiana-Lafayette, No. 45 Purdue, No. 46 Illinois State).
Fifteen of Iowa’s 17 losses have also come to opponents with an RPI of 100 or better, including No. 1 Florida, No. 4 Michigan, No. 6 Arizona State, No. 12 Northwestern, No. 13 North Carolina, No. 23 DePaul, No. 30 Central Florida, No. 32 Florida State, No. 39 Arkansas, No. 48 Tulsa, No. 55 Ohio State, No. 72 Minnesota, No. 80 Stetson, No. 81 Drake and No. 95 Cornell.
Keeping Late Leads ? Iowa is 27-3 when leading after four innings, 33-3 when leading after five innings and a perfect 30-0 when leading after six frames.
Queens of the Road ? The Hawkeyes have played 42 of their 55 games this season on the road. Iowa has an away record of 11-9 and a neutral site mark of 16-6.
No Need to Wait ? Freshman Jenny Schuelke wasted no time in recording her first career home run as a Hawkeye. The Solon, IA, native’s first hit in Black and Gold was a towering, solo home run to left field in Iowa’s 4-1 win over Drake Feb. 17.
First Hit Was a Long One ? Junior Quinn Morelock’s first hit of the 2008 season was a two-run home run in game one of Iowa’s doubleheader against Northern Illinois March 26.
Morelock smacked a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth to give Iowa a commanding 7-0 lead over the Huskies.
Carmody in the Books ? Freshman Chelsey Carmody tied two school records in Iowa’s 11-1, five-inning win over Utah Valley State March 9.
Carmody roped triples in her first two at-bats to tie the school record for triples in a single game. She also scored four runs, which tied the school record for runs scored in a single game.
Nichols Named to Watch List ? Senior catcher Emily Nichols has been named to the 2008 USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List. The Portland, OR, native is one of 50 players to be selected. Nichols is the first Hawkeye player named to the USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List.
The Amateur Softball Association (ASA) sponsors the award, which is considered one of the most prestigious honors in collegiate softball. This is the seventh year the ASA has given the award.
Nichols Drafted ? Senior Emily Nichols was selected by the Chicago Bandits in the National Professional Fastpitch (NPF) Draft. Nichols was the third pick in the second round and the ninth overall selection.
New Assistant Coach ? Shane Bouman is in his first season as pitching coach for the Hawkeyes.
Before coming to Iowa, Bouman served as head coach at South Dakota State for six seasons. He is the winningest coach in school history with 140 victories.
Bouman is also an accomplished softball pitcher. He is a four-time ASA all-American and a two-time NAFA all-American. He led five teams to ASA national championships and competed in nine International Softball Congress Tournaments.