April 5, 2011
- 2011 Iowa Softball Media Guide
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPhone app!
- Iowa and the Big Ten Network
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
Complete Release in PDF Format
THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa softball team hits the road Wednesday afternoon for a mid-week game at Drake. The game will be contested at Buel Field beginning at 4 p.m.
ON THE RADIO
Both Wednesday’s game at Drake and Saturday’s game against Michigan State will be broadcast on AM-800 KXIC in Iowa City with Rob Brooks handling the play-by-play duties.
LISTEN LIVE ONLINE
Fans can follow the Hawkeyes online via the All-Access page at hawkeyesports.com. Rob Brooks, the voice of Iowa softball, will call the action live at all home and away events for the remainder of the season. Hawkeye All-Access is a subscription service that charges $9.95 per month.
ON THE WEB
Fans can follow the action at hawkeyesports.com, where live stats (Gametracker) will be available. The live “GT” can be found under the calendar tab on the right-hand side of the hawkeyesports.com home page, or on the softball schedule page.
LAST WEEK
The Hawkeyes dropped a pair of Big Ten games at Purdue last weekend, falling 12-1 in five innings in the opener and 3-0 in the finale. The Boilermakers hit a total of four home runs in the two games and Purdue pitcher Suzie Rzegocki allowed a single run in 12 innings with 12 strikeouts.
THE OPPONENT
Drake enters Wednesday’s game winners of 11-of-13 games to push its overall record to 21-12 on the year. The Bulldogs also sit atop the Missouri Valley Conference with a perfect 8-0 record. Five Drake batters are hitting over .300 on the year with Jenna DeLong leading the team with a .354 average, 25 RBI and 24 runs scored. DeLong also is the team’s ace in the circle, compiling an 11-4 record with a 2.27 ERA. She has 13 complete games and five shutouts and has struck out 123 batters in 114.1 innings.
SERIES/OPPONENT NOTES
? The Hawkeyes hold a 33-7 advantage in the all-time series against Drake. Iowa won a pair of games during the 2010 season, claiming 3-2 and 7-3 victories in Minneapolis. Prior to the victory, the Bulldogs were on a two-game winning streak, claiming a 4-3 win in 12 innings in 2008 and a 1-0 triumph in 2009.
? Drake head coach Rich Calvert served as an assistant coach at Iowa from 1997-2002 and as an assistant at Ohio State from 1993-96. He helped lead the Hawkeyes to five NCAA Tournament berths and two Women’s College World Series appearances.
? Amanda Zust, who graduated from Iowa in 2010, serves as the Bulldogs’ pitching coach. Zust closed out her playing career at Iowa last season, finishing with a 56-27 overall record. She ranks among the top 10 in five different categories.
? Drake and Iowa have two common opponents this season in Ohio State and California. The Bulldogs downed the Buckeyes, 10-4, and dropped a 3-0 decision against the 11th-ranked Golden Bears.
? The Bulldogs are 7-1 at Buel Field in the 2011 season. The lone defeat came against South Dakota State (6-5) on March 31.
WATKINS NAMED CO-BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior Liz Watkins was tabbed as the Co-Big Ten Player of the Week March 28 after hitting .714 with six RBI and three runs scored in Iowa’s series sweep at Ohio State. The catcher went 4-for-4 in the opener with three RBI before tallying her fifth straight hit on a three-run long ball to send Iowa to the sweep. It was Watkins’ second career honor.
OCHOA TABBED BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior Stephanie Ochoa was named the Big Ten Player of the Week March 21 after hitting .612 to lead the Hawkeyes to a 4-2 record. The California native went 4-for-4 in a game at No. 11 Tennessee, which were a career high in hits. She then closed out the week going 5-for-6 with four runs and an RBI in the doubleheader sweep of South Dakota.
TWO STRAIGHT GAMES WITH JACKS
Junior Liz Watkins hit home runs in back-to-back games at Ohio State and Western Illinois. She connected on a three-run long ball in Iowa’s 7-2 victory over the Buckeyes before hitting her seventh jack of the season in the road win at Western Illinois. The Illinois native now has 21 career home runs, which are the fifth most in Iowa history.
TEAM TIDBITS
? Senior Chelsey Carmody has hit safely in 30-of-32 games this season. The shortstop has a team-leading 12 multi-hit games, and she is third in the Big Ten with 47 hits.
? Senior Stephanie Ochoa is fifth in the Big Ten with a .430 batting average. Carmody is sixth with a .423 average.
? Junior Liz Watkins is tied for the Big Ten lead (conference games only) with six RBI, while Johnnie Dowling is tied for the league lead with five runs scored.
? Iowa finished with 16 hits in the road win at Western Illinos, which were the second most for the squad in a game this season (18, at FGCU). It was the team’s second straight game with 10 plus hits and its eighth of the season.
? Iowa is aggressive on the base paths, as the squad has 44 stolen bases on the season, which is fourth most in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes have swiped more than one base in 11 games on the year.
? Sophomore Chelsea Lyon has gone the distance to register complete games in nine of her last 11 starts.
? Freshman Kayla Massey has allowed four hits or fewer in seven starts this season. Massey has 10 complete games and three shutouts on her resume.
IOWA IS…
? 17-3 when scoring three or more runs.
? 14-3 when giving up two or fewer runs.
? 13-3 when hitting a home run.
? 18-5 when scoring first.
3 HAWKEYES, 4 HITS
Three different Hawkeye players have posted perfect 4-for-4 games at the plate this season. Chelsey Carmody accomplished the feat against Liberty on March 12 in Florida, Stephanie Ochoa went 4-for-4 at No. 11 Tennessee, and Liz Watkins went 4-for-4 in the Big Ten opening win at Ohio State.
MULTI-HIT HAWKEYES
Eleven different Iowa players have tallied at least one multi-hit game this season. Senior Chelsey Carmody leads the squad with 12 multi-hit games, including three contests with at least three hits. Fellow senior Stephanie Ochoa is also in double digits with 10 multi-hit games, while Liz Watkins and Katie Keim have seven and six, respectively.
CARMODY’S STREAK SNAPPED
Senior Chelsey Carmody had her 25-game hitting streak snapped on March 18 at No. 11 Tennessee. The streak was the longest in the nation and the longest in the NCAA in two years.
LYON STRONG ON THE MOUND
Sophomore Chelsea Lyon has a 7-2 record on the rubber over her last nine appearances with a 2.61 ERA and 37 strikeouts. The Oklahoma native tallied her first career complete game shutout in the 10-0 victory over South Dakota, scattering two hits in five innings with seven strikeouts.
Lyon has a 3.19 earned run average in 22 appearances. She is 10-9 overall with 82 strikeouts in 105.1 innings.
HAWKEYES WIN STETSON CLASSIC
Iowa posted a 4-1 record to win the round robin formatted Stetson Classic Mar. 11-13 in DeLand, Fla. After opening the tournament with a loss to Liberty, the Hawkeyes won four straight games, including beating Liberty, 4-3, in the championship game.
MASSEY TIED FOR TEAM LEAD IN WINS
True freshman Kayla Massey has posted a 9-5 record with a team-leading 2.74 ERA in 22 appearances. The California native has three complete game shutouts on her resume, which includes a four-hitter with nine strikeouts in her first career start against Maryland on Feb. 11.
MOVIN’ ON UP
A pair of Hawkeyes are among the career statistical leaders in school history. Below is the breakdown.
Liz Watkins
5th – Home runs – 21
Chelsey Carmody
6th – Hits – 222
7th – Batting Average – .342
8th – Runs – 119
t10th – Triples – 10
12th – Doubles – 33
TEAM CAPTAINS
Senior Chelsey Carmody and junior Katie Keim were chosen by their teammates as the team captains for the 2011 Hawkeyes.
FIVE GAMES TO BE TELEVISED ON BTN
Five Iowa softball games will be televised live on the Big Ten Network this season. Hawkeye road games at Purdue (Apr. 3), the doubleheader at Minnesota (Apr. 13) and home contests against Northwestern (Apr. 17) and Penn State (May 8) will all be broadcast live.
YOUTH DOMINATED
The Hawkeyes have a youth-filled roster in 2011, as 11 of the 16 student-athletes are underclassmen. The Iowa roster is comprised of three seniors, two juniors, six sophomores and five freshmen.
TWO-TIME ALL-BIG TEN SELECTION RETURNS
Two-time all-Big Ten selection Liz Watkins returns behind the plate for her junior season in Black and Gold. Last season, Watkins was a second team all-Big Ten selection after batting .328 with seven doubles, five triples, five home runs and 26 RBI. As a freshman, Watkins was a third team all-Big Ten honoree, hitting .331 with nine jacks and 45 RBI.
FORMER HAWKEYE RETURNS TO STAFF
Four-year letterwinner Stacy Johnson (formerly Stacy May) returns to the Hawkeye coaching staff after wrapping up a stellar professional player career in the National Professional Fastpitch league.
Johnson, who started every game in her Iowa career, was a three-time NFCA all-Mideast Region selection for the Hawkeyes. In 2003, she was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year after leading the Hawkeyes to the regular season and conference tournament titles.
TOUGH SCHEDULE IN 2011
The Hawkeyes will play a challenging schedule in 2011, as 12 of their opponents participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago. Two of Iowa’s foes — Tennessee and Georgia — both advanced to the 2010 Women’s College World Series.
HAWKEYE TRADITION
Iowa has made four Women’s College World Series appearances (1995, 1996, 1997, 2001) and it has played in 16 NCAA Tournaments in school history. The 16 appearances are the second most in Big Ten history.
The Hawkeyes have won four Big Ten Conference regular season championships and two Big Ten Tournament titles.