Cards Set for BIG EAST Softball Tournament
May 06, 2009 | Softball
May 6, 2009
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format 
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The third-seeded U of L softball team will open BIG EAST Tournament play against sixth-seeded Connecticut in the final game of quarterfinal action Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
The BIG EAST Softball Championship will be held May 7-9 at Ulmer Stadium in Louisville, Ky. Thursday's quarterfinal action will begin at 10 a.m. and streamed live on BIG EAST TV with Sean Moth providing play-by-play. Friday and Saturday's games will be broadcast on CBS College Sports with Ann Schatz and Jason Knapp announcing.
About the Cardinals
Louisville stands in at No. 17 in the USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association and No. 18 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll, marking the twelfth consecutive week in the top 25. The Cards are hitting a healthy.323 as a team with seven starters above the .300 mark. Junior catcher Melissa Roth leads the pack with a .436 batting average. The leadoff hitter also has a team and conference-best 62 runs and 16 homers.Sophomore third baseman Chelsea Bemis follows with a.394 average and 16 doubles. Sophomore shortstop Colby Wherry rounds out the top three at .373 with 27 runs and 31 RBI.
Junior RHP Kristen Wadwell has been a workhorse for the Cardinals, posting nation-leading 39-7 record and a 1.42 ERA in 285.0 innings of work. She also has 231 strikeouts and is limiting opponents to a .203 batting average. Wadwell owns the single season (39) and career (73) records for wins
Louisville vs. UConn
Thursday, 6:30 p.m.
Series History: Tied 4-4
Series in the BIG EAST Tournament: First meeting
In 2009: April 17 - Kristen Wadwell tossed two shutouts as Louisville swept UConn 1-0 and 6-0 at Ulmer Stadium.
Scouting the Huskies: Sixth-seeded UConn is making its third-straight BIG EAST Conference tournament appearance after finishing the regular season at 29-21 and going 11-12 in league play. The Huskies recently split a doubleheader with Providence, taking the first game 4-0, but falling 10-4 in the second game. Julianne Towers leads the team with a .378 batting average and 39 runs scored. 2008 BIG EAST Player of the Year Micah Truax follows with a .329 batting average and a team-leading nine homers. Danielle DePonte has driven in a team-best 29 runs.
Rachael Cossin (11-12) carries a 2.05 ERA with 171 strikeouts in 139.2 innings.
The winner of the Louisville UConn game will face the winner of Notre Dame/St. John's Friday at 5 p.m.
Louisville in the BIG EAST Tournament
Since joining the BIG EAST Conference in 2006, the Cards have posted a 6-2 record with a championship and a runner-up finish. In their first two seasons in the league, the Cardinals advanced to the Championship game, where they faced Notre Dame. Last season, regular season champion USF ousted the Cards 2-1 in the semifinals.
The Cards were the No. 1 seed in 2006 after winning the regular season championship and were a No. 5 seed in 2008. This year, they earned a No. 3 seed - like they did in 2007 when they won the conference tournament.
Up Last
A four-run seventh inning, sparked by Melissa Roth's two-run homer gave the No. 18 University of Louisville softball team 6-5 win over host Notre Dame in the first game of a the final BIG EAST doubleheader of the season. The Irish came back to take the second game 7-4. Louisville (46-8) set a new single season record for victories and finished third in the regular season standings with a 19-5 mark in league play.
On Deck
Louisville will gather at Ulmer Stadium Sunday evening for the NCAA selection show which will begin at 10 p.m. (Eastern) on ESPNU.
The Cards appear to be in good shape for their sixth NCAA tournament bid with an RPI of 17 (as of April 28). The BIG EAST Conference has two other teams in good standing with DePaul at 15 and Notre Dame at 31.
Cardinals Set New Record for Wins
U of L's 6-5 victory over Notre Dame gave the Cards a school record 46th win. They surpassed the previous record of 45, set in 2006 when the Cards went 45-11 and advanced to the NCAA regional finals.
• The 7-0 victory over Eastern Kentucky on April 29 tied the school record.
•The 8-2 decision over Syracuse on April 19 gave Louisville its 40th victory of the season, marking the fourth 40 win campaign in the 10 year history of the program.
Stanfill and Cunningham - Been There Done That
Seniors Kassie Stanfill and Kristi Cunningham were freshmen on the 2006 Louisville team that set the record for wins with 45. That team cracked the top 25 for the first time, achieved the highest school ranking at 17, won the BIG EAST regular season championship and advanced to the NCAA regional finals for the best finish in school history.
As seniors, they have led the Cards to 46 wins, have been a mainstay in the top 25 for 12 straight weeks, peaking at a new program-high 14 on March 24 and are poised to make the school's sixth straight NCAA appearance.
Roth Named BIG EAST Player of the Week
Melissa Roth has been named BIG EAST Conference Player of the Week on May 4 - marking the second consecutive week and fourth time this season she has earned the honor.
Roth (Long Beach, Calif.) led the Cardinals to a 3-1 performance on the week, batting .545 (6 for 11) with a double, a triple and two home runs which produced six runs and five RBI. Roth was also hit by three pitches and drew a walk to notch a .667 on base percentage and registered a 1.364 slugging percentage. In conference play, she batted .600 (3 for 5) with all three of her hits falling in for extra bases - including a timely home run in the top of the seventh to pull Louisville within a run - in the 6-5 win over Notre Dame. She had at least one hit and one run in each of her games on the week and her home run in the sixth proved to be the game winner in the 2-0 victory over in-state rival Kentucky
Cardinals Among Nation's Best
U of L is tied with Florida Gulf Coast for the second most wins in Division I softball at 46. Top-ranked Florida leads the pack with 52, while Alabama is fourth with 45. Only 12 schools in the nation have 40 or more wins this season.
Card Notes
• The last time the Cards received a No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Conference tournament was in 2007 - when they won their first conference tournament title and won the BIG EAST automatic bid.
• Melissa Roth holds the single season record with 62 runs, surpassing Audrey Rendon's mark set in 2005.
• Kristen Wadwell now owns the school records for single season wins (39) and career wins (73).
• The Cardinals are an impressive 25-1 at Ulmer Stadium this season.
• U of L is in its twelfth consecutive week in the national rankings. The Cards rejoined the top 25 on Feb. 17, after a two-year absence and reached as high as No. 14 - a program-best.
• The Cardinals have outscored their opponents 304-123
• Louisville set a new record for single season runs with 304, surpassing the 2005 total of 300
• U of L has a 5-0 record in extra inning games
• Kristen Wadwell leads the nation with 39 wins and now owns Louisville's single season and career marks for victories.
• Louisville leads the BIG EAST in team batting average (.323), hits (477), runs scored (304), doubles (78), triples (17), ERA (1.70) and and wins (46) •Melissa Roth leads the conference in runs scored (62). Roth also leads the league in slugging percentage (.878) and home runs (16).
• Junior Vanessa James tied a school record with two triples against Albany (2/21). She has seen time at second base, in the outfield and at designated player. She now has a conference-best five triples on the season.
• Kristen Wadwell (39-7) has shouldered the majority of the pitching duties, logging 285.0 innings and posting a 1.42 ERA with 231 strikeouts. Freshman Tori Collins (7-1) has a 3.44 ERA with 18 starts in 77.1 innings of work.
• Senior centerfielder Kristi Cunningham is second on the school's all-time home runs list with 31. Courtney Moore holds the record with 42.
• Senior Kassie Stanfill snapped a 14 game hitting streak in the March 29, 6-1 win over Seton Hall. Prior to that, Stanfill had been tied for third for the longest hitting streak in Louisville program history. The longest hitting streak was 16 and was held by Coleen Coughlin in 2001.
Wadwell Owns Career Wins Record
Kristen Wadwell tossed a two-hitter to get the complete game win in Louisville's 8-2 win over Syracuse on April 19. The victory was her 68th career win, surpassing Catherine Bishop's mark of 67 (2004-07). She now has 73 career victories.
Roth on the Run
With 62 runs on the season, Melissa Roth now holds the single season record for runs. In the April 19, 8-2 win over Syracuse, Roth scored two runs to surpass Audrey Rendon's mark of 50 set in 2005. She is currently third on the career list with 139 runs.
Wadwell Sets Single Season Wins Record
In the April 14, 9-4 win over Middle Tennessee, Kristen Wadwell picked up the win in four innings of relief to set a new record for single season wins with 31. She surpassed Catherine Bishop's record set in the 2005 season.
In the 6-5 win over Pittsburgh, junior Kristen Wadwell tied the school record for single season wins with 30.
Wherry Tough to Strike Out
Colby Wherry is currently the toughest players in the nation to strike out according to the NCAA statistical rankings on April 21. She went the first 35 games of the season without striking out... until the April 3 game against Villanova when she fanned twice, once against VU starter Caitlyn Delahaba and then reliever Megan Hord.
Wherry now has two Ks in 158 at bats.
Louisville on the National Scene
As of May 5, the Cardinals are ranked among the nation's leaders in several categories. As a team, Louisville is fourth in winning percentage (0.855), seventh in batting average (.323), 23rd with a 1.85 ERA , 23rdd in scoring (5.65 runs per game) and 18th in slugging percentage (0.492). Kristen Wadwell leads the nation with 39 wins, is 13th with 10 shutouts. Colby Wherry leads the `toughest to strike out' category with two strikeouts in 134 at bats. Melissa Roth is 6th in runs per game (1.15) and 7th in on-base percentage (0.563). Vanessa James is 15th in the nation with five triples.
Bombs Away
The Cardinals have hit 46 home runs this season, more than doubling last year's total of 21. In fact, Louisville has now belted out the second most home runs in a season. The school record is 57, set in 2005. Melissa Roth leads the team with 16 home runs,Kristi Cunningham has 12 and is second on the school's all-time list with 31.
There's No Place Like Home
The Cardinals have been tough at home this season posting a 25-1 record at Ulmer Stadium. Louisville's only home loss came at the hands of No. 14/16 Ohio State on March 14.
Austin Named U of L Freshman of the Year
Kristin Austin was named University of Louisville Female Freshman Athlete of the Year at the Cardinal Athletics All-Sport Banquet Monday, April 27.
Austin earned a starting role as an outfielder early in the season and has played in 48 of Louisville's 54 games with 45 starts. She leads the team with 16 stolen bases, is second with 39 runs and fourth on the team with a .353 batting average.
Cards Earn NCAA Academic Performance Program Recognition
The University of Louisville's softball team, along with the men's indoor track program earned special recognition with the NCAA Division I Academic Performance Program (APP) public recognition awards released on Wednesday April 22.
The NCAA is honoring NCAA Division I sports teams that posted multiyear Academic Progress Rates in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports. The APR includes eligibility, retention and graduation in the calculation and provides a clear picture of the academic culture in each sport.
Working Overtime
The Cardinals are 5-0 in extra inning games this season. Below is a list of the extra inning game results.
Feb. 15 UL 6 - Virginia 5 8 innings @UNLV Desert Classic
March 7 UL 3 - Michigan 2 8 innings @ Ulmer Stadium
March 14 UL 3 - Minnesota 2 8 innings @ Ulmer Stadium
March 20 UL 5 - USF 4 9 innings @ Ulmer Stadium
April 25 UL 4 - Georgetown 2 8 innings @ Ulmer Stadium
Roth's Grand Slam in the Books
In the April 10, 5-2 win over Pittsburgh, Melissa Roth recorded her first career grand slam and the ninth in program history. The only other active player on the roster with a grand slam is Brittany York, how registered one on March 30,2007 against Villanova.
Cards Earn Highest Rankings in Program History
On March 24, the Cardinals moved to No. 14 in the USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) and were at No. 16 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball and coaches polls released on Tuesday, March 23. The Cards were also No. 14 in the Ultimate College Softball rankings.
The rankings marked the highest in program history in each of the polls. The Cards matched their highest rankings on March 17, when they were No. 15 in the NFCA poll and No. 16 in the USA Softball rankings. They were also No. 17 and 18 respectively in the 2006 season. This is their first year in the UCS poll.
Pearsall Reaches 600 Wins
On March 22, 2009, the University of Louisville defeated Rutgers 9-0 in game two of a BIG EAST Conference doubleheader. With the win, U of L head coach Sandy Pearsall reached 600th career victory Pearsall is in her 23rd year as a head coach, and her tenth season since starting the program at U of L where the Cards have compiled a 370-214 record.
Wadwell Sets School Record for Strikeouts in a Game
In the March 16, 3-2 win over Eastern Michigan, Kristen Wadwell set a new school record with 16 strikeouts in the game, breaking Aja Sherman's mark set on March 25, 2005 against Western Kentucky.
Roth Sets New Home Run Record
Melissa Roth set a school record with three home runs in Louisville's 12-3 win over Albany. She also tied a school record with four runs. Her six RBI fell one short of tying a school record.
Bruggeman Gets 500th Career Win
On Feb. 14, the Cards defeated No. 18/21 Nevada 3-2 in the UNLV Louisville Slugger Desert Classic. With the victory, Associate head coach Carol Bruggeman reached her 500th career win. She has been Louisville's Associate Head coach since 2006 and spent 12 years as the head coach at Purdue, where she started the program and amassed 380 wins.
Cards in Tenth Season
Louisville softball is in its tenth season since beginning the program in 2000. Over the past nine years, with Pearsall at the helm, the Cards have amassed 370 wins, earned five consecutive NCAA tournament bids, earned their first top 20 ranking and won three conference championships.
