University of Massachusets Athletics
Big-Time Challenge Awaits
May 14, 2007 | Softball
May 14, 2007
AMHERST - To advance to an NCAA Super Regional for the second straight season, the University of Massachusetts softball team will have to knock off one of college softball's perennial heavyweights.
After winning the Atlantic 10 Tournament Saturday, the Minutewomen received a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will host a four-team regional for the second straight season at the UMass Softball Complex.
But the top seed in the regional is Oklahoma, the tournament's No. 3 overall seed and an annual contender for the national championship.
UMass (37-12-1) will open NCAA play at 4:30 p.m. Friday against the region's third seed Long Island (33-20), the Northeast Conference champion. The Sooners (52-6) begin regional play at 2 p.m. Friday against fourth-seeded Colgate (25-22), which won the Patriot League.
Play in the double-elimination tournament continues Saturday and Sunday beginning at noon.
The winner of the Amherst Regional will face the winner of the Carbondale (Ill.) Regional where DePaul (14th overall seed) is the top team.
This is the Minutewomen's 13th straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and 17th overall. They are happy to stay in Amherst for the first round.
"It's great to be at home. We can have tons of fans. It'll be great for the whole town of Amherst," sophomore Whitney Mollica said. "It will give us an energy boost just being at home in front of all our fans."
UMass coach Elaine Sortino said she is looking forward to getting started.
"It's going to be an exciting week," Sortino said. "We get to bring three great teams to our place and show this area teams to our place and show this area some great softball. It's just where we want to be. We're very happy about it."
Oklahoma is coming off this weekend's Big 12 Tournament championship led by junior Lauren Eckermann, the conference' co-pitcher of the year with a 34-3 record.
"For where we want to go, we're going to have to beat some top-seeded teams anyway," senior Candice Molinari said. "We're just glad we're home. Whoever we play we're going to have to beat them to get where we want to go anyway. So we might as well do it now."
UMass won its four-team regional last year in Amherst before falling to eventual national finalist Northwestern 2-1 in the best-of-three super regional. The players believe that experience made them more prepared for this season's task.
"It's huge. A lot of our starting lineup is back from last year and we know the kind of teams we're going to have to beat to get where we want to go," Molinari said. "We have an advantage compared to where we were last year having that experience."
UMass and Oklahoma have tournament history. The Minutewomen were placed in the Norman, Okla., regional in 2001, but did not face the Sooners. The last time UMass advanced to the Women's College World Series in 1998, it got there by upsetting Oklahoma in Amherst led by pitcher Danielle Henderson.
UMass beat Long Island twice in the NCAA Tournament in 1999.
NCAA TICKETS - Tickets for the regional go on sale at 9 a.m. today at the UMass ticket office. All-session tickets are $12. Single-day tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for UMass students and children under 18.
CULLINGTON RECORD - UMass does not keep single-season grand slam records, but junior second baseman Stacy Cullington has three of them, including one Saturday in the midst of her school record 15 home runs. She has as many slams as she does solo home runs this season.
Cullington said she is glad to have the record behind her.
"I'm very thrilled to be remembered that way," Cullington said. "It's a relief. I don't need to think about it or have anyone ask about it,
"What's more important is that we won," she added. "If I never hit another home run again, that's fine with me as long as we keep winning."
ALL-TOURNAMENT - In addition to sophomore pitcher Brandice Balschmiter, who was named the Atlantic 10 Tournament's most outstanding player, Molinari, Cullington and Lauren Proctor were all named to the all-tournament team.
Not on the team, but coming on lately is sophomore right fielder Samantha Salato, who was 2-for-2 with two RBIs and a run scored Saturday.
"Sam has really come on lately. She gives us great at-bats and plays right field real solid for us," Sortino said. "You can't ask for her to do more than she's doing."
STREAKS - While Balschmiter's scoreless inning streak ended at 37-1/3 innings, Molinari extended her hitting streak to 18 games with a single in the fourth Saturday.
UMass has now won 26 consecutive games, nine in a row in the A-10 Tournament and 32 straight at home.
KEEPING TIME - The earth has 24 time zones. Sortino needs just five more Atlantic 10 Tournament championships to have a watch to keep time in each of them. Saturday marked her 19th crown and the Minutewomen received the traditional championship timepieces.
(Former athletic director) "Bob Marcum said to me once 'You can never have too much championship jewelry,'" said Sortino, who once put on all of her watches at the same time to motivate her team.
"I always wear the one we just won for a while. But once the season starts I take it off. You're no longer a champion. You're going after something again."