Huskers Continue Road Trip With Kia Klassic

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The Nebraska softball team, fresh off a 5-1 performance at the Florida State Invitational over the weekend, returns to action on Wednesday, when it faces UNLV at 7 p.m. (CST) at the Kia Klassic in Fullerton, Calif.

 

The 19th-ranked Huskers will face UNLV, fifth-ranked Florida State and No. 20 Arizona State in pool play before single elimination bracket play begins on March 19.

 

The Kia Klassic features nearly half of the top-20 teams in the nation, as well as the United States Olympic Team, which is competing in pool play only. In addition to Nebraska, Florida State and Arizona State, second-ranked Arizona, sixth-ranked Oklahoma, No. 8 Washington, 10th-ranked Louisiana-Lafayette, No. 15 Fresno State and 17th-ranked Pacific account for the nine top-20 teams competing in the tournament. Rankings are based on last week’s USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll.

 

Nebraska (16-9) heads into this week’s tournament winners in seven of its last eight games. Last weekend, NU outscored its six opponents 44-5 in making it to the semifinals of the Florida State Invitational.

 

At the invitational, Nebraska produced its best offensive showing of the season. In averaging over seven runs a game, NU hit .363 (57-for-157) and drew 24 walks en route to a .445 on-base percentage. The Huskers also showed power, hitting eight doubles, five triples and three home runs, in posting a slugging percentage of .535.

 

In the circle, NU was dominant, allowing only two earned runs in 37 innings (0.35 ERA). Senior right-hander Peaches James (11-4) threw 22 innings over the weekend, allowing only one unearned run on seven hits in posting a 3-1 record. James tossed three shutouts and stuck out 32. For her effort, James was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.

 

Fellow right-hander, sophomore Summer Tobias (4-4), went 2-0 at the tournament. Like James, Tobias did not allow an earned run in her 13 innings, holding opposing batters to a .149 average. Tobias tossed her second no-hitter of the season?and second in three starts?in the Huskers’ 8-0 win over Florida A&M on Saturday.

 

Scouting the Field

The Nebraska softball team is in Pool A of the Kia Klassic in Fullerton, Calif., along with UNLV, fifth-ranked Florida State and No. 20 Arizona State. The Huskers have not faced any of these teams in 2004, despite participating in at least one tournament that featured each of these opponents. The combined record of the Huskers’ three pool play opponents is an impressive 73-29 (.716).

 

UNLV (16-14)

UNLV is led offensively by Bridget Byrne, who is hitting .438 (42-for-96) in 2004. Byrne is also the team leader in runs (18), stolen bases (seven), total bases (50), on-base percentage (.460) and doubles (six).

 

In the circle, Jacquel Kerrigan(13-10) is the Rebels’ top pitcher. In 148 innings this season, Kerrigan has allowed 28 runs (1.32 ERA), tossing six shutouts and 15 complete games. In holding opponents to a .191 average, Kerrigan has struck out 151.

Florida State (31-3)

The fifth-ranked Seminoles enter the Kia Klassic riding an 11-game winning streak, including a title at last weekend’s Florida State Invitational where the Huskers went 5-1.

 

Florida State relies on a balanced offense that currently has seven starters hitting better than .300. As a team, FSU is hitting .330. Jessica van der Lind is hitting a team-high .380 (35-for-92). The Seminoles have seven more players with double-digit RBI totals, led by Lesley Palmer with 30. As a team, FSU has hit 24 home runs so far this season, already the third highest total in school history.

 

In the circle, Jessica van der Lind has been dominant. Van der Lind (15-2) boasts a miniscule 0.26 ERA, allowing only four earned runs in 106 innings. Opponents are hitting only .117 against her, and have struck out an astounding 185 times. Casey Hunter (16-1) is the Seminoles’ leader in innings pitched. In 114.1 innings, opponents are hitting only .136 against her and she has struck out 137 batters. Hunter has allowed only 14 earned runs in posting a 0.86 ERA.

 

Arizona State (27-12)

Arizona State is led offensively by Phelan Wright, who is hitting .423 (47-for-111) on the season with team highs in hits, runs scored (29), triples (one), home runs (10), RBIs (38), total bases (91), slugging percentage (.820), walks (17) and on-base percentage (.500).

 

In the circle, Desiree Serrano (12-4) is the Sun Devils’ top pitcher. In throwing a team-high 124.1 innings, Serrano has allowed only 21 runs for a 1.18 ERA. Opponents are hitting .208 against her, and have struck out 143 times.

 

Offensive Surge

A trip to Florida proved to be a good thing for the Husker offense. Nebraska increased its overall team batting average from .227 (104-for-458) on March 10, to .262 (161-for-615) after last weekend’s Florida State Invitational.

 

Before last weekend, NU had only two players hitting .300 or better, junior Anne Steffan (.333) and senior Nicole Trimboli (.321). After last weekend, when Nebraska hit .363 (57-for-157) as a team, five Huskers are now hitting .300 or better. Steffan leads the team with a .390 average (32-for-82), followed by sophomore Katie Linke, who is hitting .348 (8-for-22). Sophomore Trisha Tannahill is third on the team with a .348 average (24-for-69) and junior Sheena Lawrick is fourth with a .344 average (21-for-61). Trimboli also boasts an average above .300, as she is currently batting .342 (16-for-76).

 

Besides batting average, the Huskers used an excellent weekend at the plate to show marked improvement in several other categories as well.

 

Triples

Nebraska, which had two triples in 19 games prior to last weekend, pounded out five triples in six games in Florida, including back-to-back games where NU had two triples (Saturday vs. Penn State and North Carolina). The Huskers’ fifth triple of the weekend came against Penn State on Friday.

 

Tannahill, Trimboli, Lawrick and seniors Peaches James and Liz Lawhorn each tripled over the weekend. For the season, Lawrick and Trimboli are tied for the team lead with two triples apiece.

 

Stolen Bases

Nebraska was an impressive 16-for-18 (89 percent) in stolen bases over the weekend. In the Huskers’ 19 games prior to last weekend, NU had been successful on 25 of 29 attempts. During that time, Nebraska was averaging just over one stolen base per game. Last weekend, the Huskers averaged just over two-and-a-half stolen bases per game.

 

Steffan led the way by stealing six bases in six tries over the weekend. Tannahill and fellow sophomore Jessica Yoachim were each 3-for-3 in that department, while Trimboli swiped two bases in three tries. James and sophomore KoKo Tacha also recorded stolen bases for NU over the weekend.

 

For the season, Steffan leads the team with 17 stolen bases. Both Steffan and Trimboli are nearing the top-10 in school history. Trimboli, who has 39 stolen bases in her career, needs three more steals to move into 10th-place on the all-time chart at NU. Steffan (36 career steals) needs six more stolen bases to move into the top-10.

 

Walks

Nebraska, building on its success as the Hampton Inn Classic March 6-7, continued to show great discipline at the plate last weekend. The Huskers drew 24 walks in their six games over the weekend, an average of four walks per game. Two weeks ago at the Hampton Inn Classic, NU drew 16 walks in four games, also an average of four per game.

 

The Huskers’ 24 walks last weekend and 40 walks the last two weekends shows significant improvement from the first three weeks of the season. In their first 14 games, NU drew 47 walks. In its last nine games, Nebraska has almost matched that total, drawing 40 free passes. Over the last two weekends the Huskers have increased their number of walks by almost one walk per game.

 

Don’t Forget About the Pitching

Not to be outdone, NU’s trio of right-handers, senior Peaches James, sophomore Summer Tobias and freshman Ashley DeBuhr, combined to post a microscopic 0.35 ERA over the weekend, allowing only two earned runs in 37 innings.

James (11-4) threw 22 innings over the weekend, allowing only one unearned run on seven hits in posting a 3-1 record. James tossed three shutouts and struck out 32. For her effort, James was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.

 

Tobias (4-4), went 2-0 at the tournament. Like James, Tobias did not allow an earned run in her 13 innings, holding opposing batters to a .149 average. Tobias tossed her second no-hitter of the season?and second in three starts?in the Huskers’ 8-0 win over Florida A&M on Saturday.

 

Record Weekend

It was a monumental weekend for three Huskers last weekend at the Florida State Invitational in Tallahassee, Fla. Seniors Peaches James and Nicole Trimboli and junior Anne Steffan each reached career milestones over the weekend.

 

Steffan moved into the top-10 in career batting average with a 12-for-22 (.545) performance over the weekend, which increased her career average from .306 (83-for-271) to .324 (95-for-203). For the season, Steffan is hitting a team-high .390 (32-for-82).

 

Trimboli reached three career milestones. Against Penn State on Saturday, Trimboli became only the sixth player in school history to record 200 career hits.  Trimboli also moved into fifth-place all-time with the 197th hit of her career earlier in the day. Also on Saturday, Trimboli scored the 100th run of her career in the Huskers’ 8-0 victory over Florida A&M. Trimboli’s run proved to be the game-winning run and made Trimboli only the 10th player in school history to reach the 100-run milestone.

 

Trimboli’s outstanding weekend was not finished. She recorded the 300th total base of her career with her two-run triple against North Carolina on Saturday. Trimboli became only the ninth player in school history to total 300 bases in a career. Finally, Trimboli moved into the top-10 in career slugging percentage by slugging .650 over the weekend. For her career, Trimboli has a slugging percentage of .457, good enough for sixth on the all-time chart. Trimboli was 11th on the all-time chart entering last weekend.

 

James also had an outstanding weekend. James moved into second place in career innings pitched in her complete-game shutout over North Carolina on Saturday. With 709.2 innings pitched, she became only the second player in school history to log 700 innings in a career, passing her pitching coach Lori Sippel (1985-88), who threw 695.1 innings in her four-year career.

 

James also recorded her 100th strikeout of the season as part of a 10-strikeout performance against Penn State on Friday, and the 675th of her career against Texas A&M on Sunday. In the Huskers’ 10-0 win over North Carolina on Saturday, James tossed the 30th shutout of her career, becoming only the third pitcher ever to reach the 30-shutouts milestone.

 

Lucky Thirteen?

Often thought to be unlucky, the number 13 has been very kind to sophomore Trisha Tannahill so far this season. In 2004, Nebraska has played five games on the 13th day of the month. In those games, Tannahill is hitting .563 (9-for-16) with nine RBIs, two doubles, one triple, one home run, one stolen base and four runs scored. Tannahill hit her only triple and only home run of the season on March 13.

 

Speaking of March 13, last Saturday was a red-letter day for the sophomore. Tannahill went 7-for-10 at the plate (.700), scoring four runs and driving in six more. Tannahill’s performance helped land her on the all-tournament team.

 

Heading Home

This week’s trip to California marks a homecoming for four Huskers. Senior Brittney Yolo (Sebastopol), junior Jocelyn Evans (Newhall), sophomore Summer Tobias (Temecula) and freshmen Devin Porter (Lakewood) and Jamie Waldecker (Garden Grove) are all California natives.

 

The five California natives on the Huskers’ roster are tied with the five Nebraska natives for the most players hailing from a single state.

 

Revelle Wins 450th Game

Husker Head Coach Rhonda Revelle reached another milestone over the weekend. Nebraska’s 8-0 victory over Florida A&M on Saturday was the 450th victory of Revelle’s career. In 13 years as a head coach, Revelle is 452-248 (.646), including a 445-232 (.667) record at Nebraska. Sunday’s loss to Texas A&M also marked the 700th game that Revelle has coached.