Jayhawk Softball Heads South For North Texas Invite
Feb. 26, 2009
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
North Texas Invite Game Notes 
Jayhawk Softball Heads South For North Texas Invite
For the fourth-straight week, the Kansas softball team (6-9) will take to the road this weekend, Feb. 28-March 1, for the North Texas Invite in Denton, Texas. Kansas is scheduled to play North Texas (8-6) and Harvard (0-0) on each day of the two-day tournament.
Jayhawks Online
Live stats are available for all 2009 Kansas softball contests online at www.KUAthletics.com, the official website for Kansas Athletics. Additionally, both of KU’s games scheduled against North Texas will have live video available for a fee at meangreensports.com.
About Kansas
The Kansas softball team is coming off a 2-4 record during the Cathedral City Classic last weekend and stands at 6-9 overall. KU picked up wins over BYU and then-No. 10 Cal in eight innings, its third win over a top 10 team this season. Senior Val George pitched all eight innings against the Golden Bears, striking out a career-best 12 batters. George leads the Jayhawks with a 2.05 ERA and has 57 strikeouts in 51.1 innings of work over nine appearances. She ranks in the top 10 of nearly every Big 12 pitching stat. The senior trio of Stevie Crisosto, Val Chapple and Dougie McCaulley lead the team from the batter’s box and has started all 15 contests this year along with junior Amanda Jobe. Crisosto is batting a team-best .293 and is second in the Big 12 with 12 walks. Sophomore Liz Kocon is tops for KU with five RBIs.
Season Tickets Now On Sale
2009 Kansas softball season tickets are on sale now! General Admission tickets are $40. KU Faculty and Staff tickets are $32. Order your tickets today by calling 800-34-HAWKS or by visiting www.KUAthletics.com.
Chapple and Crisosto on Career Doubles List
On Feb. 13, 2009, seniors Stevie Crisosto and Val Chapple cracked KU’s top 10 career doubles list. Crisosto hit her 29th career two-bagger against South Carolina, while Chapple recorded hers in the team’s next game against Western Carolina as the infielders tied for eighth on the all-time list. Since then, Crisosto has tallied her 30th career double to claim the number seven spot on the list.
George’s Career Strikeouts
Senior Val George struck out a career-best 12 batters in the team’s extra-inning victory over then-No. 10 Cal on Feb. 22. It was the most strikeouts by a Jayhawk since Kassie Humphreys fanned 12 batters on March 24, 2007. George is fourth in the Big 12 Conference with 57 strikeouts on the season and currently ranks eighth on KU’s career strikeout list with 379 K’s.
“Mother of KU Women’s Athletics” To Be Honored
Marlene Mawson, often called the “Mother of KU Women’s Athletics,” will be inducted into the University of Kansas Athletics Hall of Fame Saturday, part of a celebration of 40 years of women’s athletics at KU.
The University of Kansas appointed Mawson to a full-time physical education faculty position beginning in 1968, with the added responsibility of initiating an intercollegiate women’s sports program. The program was begun with six sports on an annual budget of $2000, which covered expenses for sports equipment, uniforms and travel. In addition to directing the program and teaching full time, Mawson coached basketball, volleyball, softball and field hockey. Mawson was elected Secretary and then President of the Kansas Association for Women’s Athletics, formed in 1968, as the first organization for collegiate sport competition in Kansas.
Up Next
After opening the season with 15-straight road games, the Kansas softball team will open its 2009 home season the weekend of March 6-8 when it hosts the KU Invitational. The Jayhawks will face North Dakota State, Eastern Illinois and Northern Iowa during the tournament.
