KU Continues 18-Game Road Swing in Louisville

Feb. 21, 2007

LAWRENCE, Kan. –

First Pitch
Fresh off a Sunshine State Tournament title, Kansas continues its 18-game road swing Friday through Sunday at the Red and Black Tournament in Louisville, Ky. The Jayhawks (5-3-1) will face three teams that advanced to the NCAA Regionals last year — Louisville, Kent State and Iowa — at Ulmer Stadium. Live Gametracker will be available for all KU games.

The Jayhawks return 10 letterwinners from last year’s Big 12 postseason championship team, including senior All-Big 12 pitcher Kassie Humphreys. KU’s top five hitters this season are two freshmen and three sophomores. Redshirt sophomore Elle Pottorf and freshman Amanda Jobe lead the Jayhawk offense with a .421 batting average in 2007. Head coach Tracy Bunge is in her 11th season at KU with a 323-274-2 record.

The Red and Black Tournament
Four teams will compete Friday through Sunday in the Red and Black Tournament in Louisville, Ky. All four teams advanced to the postseason in 2006 and finished in the top five of their respective conferences. Headlining the three-day event is undefeated Kent State (4-0), which carries a 0.78 ERA and .287 batting average into the tournament after winning its first-ever Mid-American Conference title in 2006. Louisville (Big East) and Kansas (Big 12) also claimed conference championships last season. The Jayhawks lead the all-time series with the Hawkeyes (10-6) and Cardinals (2-0) and will be meeting the Golden Flashes for the first time.

Sunshine State Tournament Leftovers
Kansas softball went 3-1, defeating No. 22 Florida State (1-0), Jacksonville (10-2) and Memphis (5-2) en route to the 2007 Sunshine State Tournament title. Senior pitcher Kassie Humphreys (4-0) struck out 18 and allowed just six hits in 13 and one-third inning to lead the Jayhawks (5-3-1) in the circle, earning tournament MVP honors. Freshman first baseman Amanda Jobe (.500 batting average, home run) and sophomore shortstop Stevie Crisosto (.300, home run, triple) were also named to the all-tournament team for their efforts.

Up Next: Great Western Downtown Plaza Classic
Kansas wraps up its 18-game road swing March 2-4 at the Great Western Downtown Plaza Classic in Tulsa, Okla. The Jayhawks will look to repeat last year’s tournament title in Tulsa against Iowa State, Tulsa and North Texas.

Kansas Quick Hits
-Senior ace Kassie Humphreys (Glendale, Ariz.) is one of the Big 12’s top returning pitchers. She is 4-0 this season with a 1.52 ERA and holding opponents to a .162 batting average (third-best in the league) in six appearances.
-Freshman Amanda Jobe and sophomore Elle Pottorf are hitting .421 to lead the KU offense.
-The 2007 Kansas squad consists of five upperclassmen — two seniors and three juniors — and 13 underclassmen — seven sophomores and six freshmen.
-The Jayhawks’ eight newcomers in 2007 are the most since the 2003 season.
-Kansas won its first-ever Big 12 Postseason Championship and advanced to the NCAA Regionals for the second consecutive season in 2006.
-KU has made 10 trips to the NCAA Regionals in the last 26 years and gone four times under head coach Tracy Bunge in the past 10 seasons (most recently in 2006).

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2007 Softball season tickets are on sale now. Adult season tickets are $40, youth and senior citizen tickets are $20, and University of Kansas faculty and staff tickets are $32. To purchase your season tickets call the KU Ticket Office at 800-34-HAWKS or click here.