Kansas Travels To 13th Annual Capital Classic

March 16, 2005

SACRAMENTO, Calif. –

Kansas softball (14-8) travels to Sacramento, Calif., Friday through Sunday for six games in the 2005 Capital Classic. The Jayhawks will face three teams from the Big Ten (No. 25 Northwestern, Minnesota and Illinois), one from the Atlantic 10 (Rhode Island), a team from the Pacific Coast Softball Conference (Sacramento State) and independent foe (Utah Valley State).

All games can be followed via Gametracker by logging on to the KU Softball Schedule/Results page. (All times Central.)

Friday, March 18
2:30 p.m. KU vs. Minnesota (13-11)
5 p.m. KU vs. Rhode Island (1-7)

Saturday, March 19
Noon KU vs. Northwestern (13-6)
2:30 p.m. KU vs. Illinois (12-7)

Sunday, March 20
11 a.m. KU vs. Utah Valley State (7-11)
1 p.m. KU vs. Sacramento State (13-11)

About Kansas
The Jayhawks are 14-8 overall after a 4-0 showing at the Jayhawk Classic in Lawrence, Kan. The Jayhawks used 37 hits over the four games to defeat Louisville twice (12-2 and 4-2, respectively), and SMS twice (7-1 and 6-5) to take home the tournament title.

The KU defense remains solid behind junior infielders Destiny Frankenstein, Nettie Fierros and Jessica Moppin, and ranks fourth in the Big 12 with a .972 fielding percentage.

Frankenstein leads the KU offense with 23 hits and six home runs for a .383 batting average. Junior Ashley Goodrich has been a leader as of late and is hitting at a .360 clip after starting four games this season as the designated hitter. Moppin is batting .308 and is tied for the team lead with 14 RBI. Freshman catcher Elle Pottorf is right behind her with a .306 average.

KU uses three starters in its pitching rotation. Junior right-hander Serena Settlemier (7-3) has emerged as the Jayhawks’ No. 1 after an injury kept her from pitching most of last season. Freshman lefty Christina Ross (5-3) has been impressive, pitching 53.2 innings and posting a team-best 1.57 ERA and 46 strikeouts. Sophomore righty Kassie Humphreys (2-2) is back for the Jayhawks and has also started three games at first base.

About The Capital Classic
The tournament boasts a lineup of teams from all over the nation. In all, 13 teams which encompass nine states and seven conferences comprised of the Atlantic 10, Big Ten, Big 12, Mountain West, Northeast, Pac-10 and Pacific Coast Softball will participate in the three-day event.

The Capital Classic features a round-robin format with a total of 33 games. A tournament champion will be declared on the final day of competition based on record. Should two or more teams be tied for the top record in the tournament, a series of tiebreakers will be used to declare the champion. An all-tournament team will also be announced on Sunday, consisting of one player from each team.

Four of the 13 teams are currently ranked in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 (No. 2 Cal, No. 17 Oregon State, No. 23 Iowa, No. 25 Northwestern) and one (BYU) is receiving votes. With three Capital Classic championships, Iowa has the most in tournament history while Cal and Sacramento State each have two titles.

Jayhawks vs. Capital Classic Opponents All-Time
Minnesota KU leads 9-4
Rhode Island First meeting
Northwestern NU leads 6-2
Illinois First meeting
Utah Valley State KU leads 1-0
Sacramento State Sac St. leads 2-1

Last Time Out
Kansas went 4-0 at the Jayhawk Classic in Lawrence, Kan., last weekend. The Jayhawks defeated Louisville twice (12-2 and 4-2, respectively), and SMS twice (7-1 and 6-5) to take home the tournament title.

The Jayhawks outhit their opponents 37-20 while the pitching staff held foes to a .208 batting average. Freshman catcher Elle Pottorf helped lead the KU offense with a .556 batting average, five hits, one home run, four RBI and a .889 slugging percentage. Freshman lefty Christina Ross (5-3) pitched 13.1 innings with 11 strikeouts and a 1.58 ERA.

Home Run Happy
The KU offense is posting more than twice as many home runs as its opponents in 2005. The Jayhawks have already hit 20 homers compared to their foes’ seven. Junior Destiny Frankenstein leads the pack with six home runs on the season and 13 for her career.

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