March 19, 2003
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Briefly
The Loyola Marymount University softball team had a week off from competition after its doubleheader at Cal Poly was rescheduled due to rain. The game will be made up on Wednesday, Apr. 23 at 12 p.m. on the Cal Poly campus. Prior to that, the Lions went 2-3 at the Chevron Malihini Tournament hosted by the University of Hawaii two weeks ago. The Lions had losses against Kent State (4-3), Hawaii (9-2) and Buffalo (4-3) while recording come from behind wins against Baylor (9-8) and UC Riverside (5-4). Both of LMU's wins in Hawaii came in extra innings; the contests against Baylor and UCR each went eight innings. Starting freshman shortstop Brittany Bassett was named to the 2003 Malihini all-tournament team.
Up Next
The Lions are still looking to erase some of the road woes they have experienced away from home this season. LMU travels north to Santa Barbara to take on the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos on Sunday, Mar. 23. The doubleheader is scheduled for a 12 p.m. start. The Gauchos are the only opponent the Lions will face this week.
The Pacific Coast Softball Conference - A League Of Their Own
The NCAA Division I Management Council Administrative Committee announced the approval of the Pacific Coast Softball Conference (PCSC) for Division I conference membership in women's softball on October 17, 2002. The inaugural season of PCSC softball is slated to begin on April 5, 2003. Wendy Guthrie, former Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator at the University of San Diego and current professor in the Sport Management Masters program at the University of San Francisco, will serve as Commissioner of the new conference. Dr. Bill Husak, Director of Athletics at Loyola Marymount University, has taken on the role of President of the Conference Officers. The conference is comprised of six schools: California State University- Sacramento, Loyola Marymount University, Portland State University, Saint Mary's College of California, Santa Clara University, and the University of San Diego. Prior to joining the PCSC, the schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference, Western Intercollegiate Softball League, and Big West Conference for softball league play. Sacramento State and Loyola Marymount have been selected by the PCSC Coaches as the preseason favorites to finish first in the 2003 Pacific Coast Softball Conference standings. Sacramento State finished the 2002 season 18-33 overall and 7-17 in Big West Conference play. The Hornets went on to finish their fall season with a record of 7-0, including two victories over defending national champion California. After falling to Santa Clara in the Western Intercollegiate Softball League title game, Loyola Marymount ended its 2002 season with a record of 38-34. The Lions won 16 of their final 20 contests and earned a ranking of No. 8 in the West Region. Portland State earned the third spot in the preseason poll. The Vikings enter the PCSC following an 11-13 run in the Western Athletic Conference. Portland State's 11 conference wins were the most since the team joined the WAC in 2000. The Vikings finished 22-35 overall. Santa Clara was picked to finish fourth in the poll, followed by St. Mary's and San Diego.
Lions Love Extra Time
Extra inning games don't seem to bother the Lions to much. LMU is 3-1 in extra inning games with all three wins coming in eight innings. The Lions one loss beyond regulation came in a 10-inning contest against Sacramento State. All three wins were by one run.
Close Calls
The Lions have definitely made things interesting for themselves this season playing in 18 games decided by three runs or less. LMU has posted a 9-9 record in those games and has not fared so well in the games decided by four or more runs. The Lions have played six games decided by more than four runs and only won two. Both wins came at home against St. John's University each by a score of 6-0. In the four losses, LMU was outscored 2-28 by its opponents.
Bassett Breaks Out
Freshman Brittany Bassett put on a hitting clinic at the Chevron Malihini Tournament hosted by the University of Hawaii last weekend. Bassett finished the weekend going 7-for-16; driving in five RBI while also scoring three runs. The starting shortstop hit the first collegiate home run of her career against Kent State and then followed with another against No.25 Baylor the next day. Bassett posted a blistering .438 batting average on the weekend and was named to the 2003 Malihini all-tournament team.
Kaminaka/Kehr Named PCSC Player/Pitcher Of The Week
Loyola Marymount sophomore Danielle Kaminaka and freshman Krystal Kehr were selected as the PCSC Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, last week. Kaminaka led LMU to a 6-0 record in the LMU Tournament last week after hitting .500 (10-20). The Lions' third baseman tallied four RBI, six runs scored, one double, two home runs, and five putouts on the weekend. Both of Kaminaka's tournament home runs came on Sunday. Against San Diego, her solo home run came in the top of the seventh inning to seal LMU's 8-5 victory. Kaminaka's two-run shot in the final game of the tournament against St. John's came in the first inning, when she cleared the outfield fence on a 2-1 pitch. The home run gave the Lions an early 2-0 lead on their way to a 6-0 victory. At that point, Kaminaka led the PCSC in total bases (42), slugging percentage (.712), and home runs (5) and ranked third in batting average (.390). Kehr led the Lions on the mound during their undefeated tournament run, going 4-0 and picking up three shutouts with an ERA of 0.00. Kehr allowed just 14 hits on 23.2 innings pitched, while striking out seven batters. Her record stands at 7-4 and she owns an ERA of 2.21.
Head Coach Gary Ferrin
LMU's all-time winningest coach enters his ninth season with the Lions' program. His all-time coaching record stands at 302-264-1, which includes five straight 30-plus win seasons. He was honored in 2000 as the WAC Coach of the Year and has had just two years in which the Lions have finished below .500.
Gauchos Garb
UC Santa Barbara welcomes LMU with an impressive 21-7 overall record. The Gauchos are looking to extend its current six game winning streak. UCSB's last four wins have come against PCSC members Saint Mary's and San Diego. The Gauchos shutout the two schools in three of the four contests and outscored them by a combined total of 18-1. Jami Trinidad leads the UCSB bats with a blistering .370 batting average. Trinidad is also the team leader in hits (30) and RBI (16). Loren Thornburg has been tough on the mound for UCSB. Thornburg owns a 10-4 record which includes nine shutouts. She leads the pitching staff with a 0.97 ERA and has struck out 113 batters this season.
Lions vs. Gauchos: The Series
Sunday's games will be the 21st and 22nd meetings between the two schools. UC Santa Barbara is 11-9 in the all-times series with LMU. The teams first met for a doubleheader in 1994. They matched up three times in 2002. First for a single game at the UCSB softball tournament which the Lions won 10-6. They met again in a doubleheader at LMU, splitting the games one win apiece.
The Long Ball - Record Watch
Sophomore Danielle Kaminaka and junior Sami Strinz are in fighting for the title of all-time home run leader at LMU. Strinz and Kaminaka have each hit five so far this season. They are No.1 and 2 in the record book with 15 and 14 career home runs, respectively. Also getting into the mix is junior Trisha Gomes. Gomes has hit four home runs this season placing her third on the list.
