Softball Headed to San Diego Classic II
March 16, 2011 | Softball
March 16, 2011
Complete Release in PDF Format 
The University of Louisville softball team will go back on the road this weekend when it travels to San Diego for the San Diego Classic II.
The Cards will open the tournament on Friday, March 18 against CS Northridge and San Diego State. Action continues Saturday when they face Wisconsin and Ohio. Louisville will wrap up the tournament Sunday against Ohio State.
About Louisville
The Cardinals (14-8) are led by senior third baseman Chelsea Bemis who is batting .407 with 10 doubles, four home runs and 23 RBI. Sophomore first baseman Alicja Wolny follows closely with a .406 average, seven doubles, 18 runs and 22 RBI. Freshman Katie Keller rounds out the top three, batting .357 with 15 runs. Junior LHP Tori Collins (8-5) carries a 2.99 ERA with 84 strikeouts in 82.0 innings and is holding opponents to a .217 batting average. Freshman Caralisa Connell (5-2) has a 2.89 ERA with 45 Ks in 55.2 innings of work.
Cards Against the Field
CS Northridge
Series: Louisville leads 1-0
Last Meeting: March 18, 2010
Scouting the Matadors: CS Northridge brings a 10-12 record into the weekend following Tuesday's doubleheader sweep of North Dakota. The Matadors are led offensively by Jaci Carlsen who is batting .323 with 10 runs. Mikayla Theilgas has belted out eight home runs and leads the team with 25 RBIs. Hannah Fraijo (7-2) has a 4.85 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 78.0 innings of work.
San Diego State
Series: First meeting
Scouting the Aztecs: San Diego State (11-13) but has played a tough schedule with games against 11 top-25 teams including (then) No. 1 UCLA. The Aztecs are led by Lindsey Marquez who is batting .342. Lorena Klopp has a team-best seven home runs and has 18 RBI. Bailey Micetich (7-7) carries a 2.46 ERA and has 63 strikeouts in 65.1 innings. Samantha Beasley (3-4) has a 3.56 ERA with 70 Ks in 59.0 innings.
Wisconsin
Series: Wisconsin leads 1-0
Last meeting: March 18, 2000
Scouting the Badgers: Wisconsin (8-7) is led by Jennifer Krueger. 442 batting average and 12 stolen bases. Karla Powell follows at .350 with five homers and 12 RBI. Cassandra Darrah (6-1) carries a 2.05 ERA with 37 strikeouts in 58.0 innings.
Ohio University
Series: Louisville leads 4-1 Last meeting: March 8, 2003 - UL won 8-0 at Ulmer Stadium Scouting the Bobcats: Ohio brings a 6-6 record into the weekend. The Bobcats are led by Emily Wethington who carries a .407 batting average with four doubles and six RBI. Lauren Gellerman is batting .300 and has two homers and 11 RBI.
Ohio State University
Series: OSU leads 2-0
Last meeting: Feb. 14, 2010 - The Buckeyes beat Louisville 2-0 at Ulmer Stadium
Scouting the Buckeyes: Ohio State enters the weekend with a 5-14 record. The Buckeyes are led by Alicia Herron who is batting .431 with three homers, 16 runs, 16 RBI and six stolen bases. Brittany Goodchild follows with a .389 average. Kasie Kelly (2-3) carries a 5.15 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 51.2 innings.
Cardinal Quick Hits
• Six of the Cards' eight losses have come to teams ranked in the top 15: twice to No. 5/6 Michigan, twice to (then) No. 15 Texas and No. 3/7 Alabama.
• Sophomore Jennifer Esteban is a perfect 8-for-8 in stolen bases this season and is currently on streak of 21 perfect attempts dating back to Feb. 28 5-3 win over Northern Illinois.
• Chelsea Bemis is now second on the career RBI list with 165 She needs nine to tie Courtney Moore's mark of 174.
Up Last for Louisville
Louisville is coming off of a 3-2 performance on the week. The Cards scored a season-high 12 runs in the 12-1 win over Morehead State. Their two-losses came at the hands of No. 5/6 Michigan, Louisville fell 4-1 in the first game of the Louisville Softball Classic and were shut out for the first time this season in a 2-0 setback. U of L also picked up two wins against in-state rival Western Kentucky (3-2, 6-2).
Up Next...
U of L will return to Ulmer Stadium to face in-state rival Kentucky in a single game on March 23 at 6 p.m.
Hitting for average - youngsters stepping up to the plate
Louisville is batting .312 as a team with six active players batting at, or above .300. Senior Chelsea Bemis leads the way at .407. Alicja Wolny is right behind her a .406. Katie Keller carries a .357 average. Jennifer Esteban is hitting .347. Freshman Maggie Ruckenbrod (.333), and Colby Wherry (.317) round out the top hitters.
Four of the Cards' top six hitters are underclassmen Ruckenbrod and Keller are freshmen while Wolny and Esteban are sophomores. Sophomore Jordan Trimble was also batting .410 before suffering a season-ending ankle injury.
Cards in the Tennessee Tech Combat Classic
Louisville is coming off of a 2-0 performance in the weather-shortened Tennessee Tech Softball Classic. The Cards opened tournament action with a 10-5 win over Middle Tennessee and followed with a 3-2, nine inning win over North Carolina State.
Senior Chelsea Bemis led the Cards to a 2-0 record in a weather-shortened weekend with an .875 batting average (5-for-6). She went 4-for-4 with a double and three runs in the 10-5 win over Middle Tennessee. In the 3-2 win over North Carolina State, her two-run homer in the sixth tied the game and eventually sent the contest into extra innings, resulting in a victory for the Cards.
March 23 Kentucky Game Time Moved to 6 p.m. The first pitch for the March 23rd University of Louisville's softball game against the University has been moved to 6 p.m. - an hour later than the originally scheduled 5 p.m. start. Tickets for that game are $5 and may be purchased by calling the U of L ticket office at 502-852-5151.
