No. 7 SEEDED BEAVERS MAKE FIRST EVER NCAA WOMEN’S COLLEGE WORLD SERIES APPEARANCE; OREGON STATE FACES No. 2 SEEDED ARIZONA IN THURSDAY’S OPENING GAME
Thursday, June 1
No. 2 seed Arizona vs. No. 7 seed Oregon State - 10 a.m. PDT
- Televised by ESPN2 -
ALL GAMES WILL BE PLAYED AT ASA HALL OF FAME STADIUM
-OKLAHOMA CITY, OK-
Radio broadcast will air on KTHH (990 AM) as well as on www.osubeavers.com
Tournament is double-elimination with action running from June 1-7
Participating teams: Oregon State, Arizona, Arizona State, Texas, UCLA, Tennessee, Alabama, Northwestern
THE ROAD TO OKC: Oregon State is making its first ever NCAA Women’s College World Series appearance (the Beavers competed in the AIAW World Series from 1977-81). This is currently the eighth consecutive year that Oregon State reached the postseason. The Beavers had advanced to the round of 16 remaining teams three of the past four seasons and earned their WCWS berth by defeating Pacific-10 Conference rival University of California by scores of 3-0 and 1-0 on Sunday (May 28). The Bears picked up a 2-1 series opening victory on May 26 before OSU rallied for back-to-back wins.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT: The Women’s College World Series format features two double-elimination brackets. The winners of each bracket will then meet for a best two out of three game series to determine the national champion. The other teams competing in Oregon State’s bracket are No. 6 seed Arizona State and No. 3 seed Texas.
FAST FACT: Oregon State is vying for its first ever national championship in a women’s sport and just the second NCAA national title in school history. Oregon State won the 1961 national championship in men’s cross country.
SCOUTING No. 3 RANKED ARIZONA: The No. 3 ranked and No. 2 seeded Arizona Wildcats enter the Women’s College World Series with a 49-10 overall record and have won 15 of their last 16 games. Arizona is making its 18th trip to the WCWS in the past 19 years, and the Wildcats have won a total of six national championships - the most recent coming in 2001. Five Arizona players are batting above .300 on the season, with Caitlin Lowe’s .430 batting average and 29 stolen bases leading the way. Autumn Champion (.411) and Kristie Fox (.401) are also hitting above .400. All-American pitcher Alicia Hollowell maintains a 1.00 ERA with 356 strikeouts to go along with her 27-4 overall record. The speedy and powerful Cats have 69 stolen bases on the season and 60 home runs.
BEAVERS AND WILDCATS SERIES NUMBERS: Arizona leads the all-time series with Oregon State, 71-10, and the Beavers are 6-37 against the Wildcats with at the helm. Oregon State broke a 16-game losing streak against Arizona and won two of three games against the Wildcats during the 2005 campaign, marking the first time in program history that the Beavers won the season series.
DID YOU KNOW: No. 7 ranked Oregon State’s 2-1 victory over No. 3 ranked University of Arizona in the Mar. 31 Pacific-10 Conference opener marked the first time in program history that the Beavers have beaten the Wildcats in consecutive games. OSU topped UA, 4-0, in the 2005 home finale.
ANOTHER SISTER MATCH-UP: Thursday’s Women’s College World Series first round game between Oregon State and Arizona will pit Beaver freshman second baseman against her older sister, Arizona All-American outfielder Caitlin Lowe. When the teams last met on May 13, Paige went 1-for-2 from the plate for OSU, and Caitlin was 0-for-2, but UA came away with the victory.
QUICK HIT ON THE BASEPATHS: In three previous meetings this season between Oregon State and Arizona, the Wildcats have attempted just one stolen base. Beaver senior catcher threw out Arizona speedster Caitlin Lowe at second base on May 12. Arizona has 69 steals on the season, with 29 coming from Lowe.
A COUPLE MORE SERIES NUMBERS DOWN THE LINE: Arizona State leads the all-time series with Oregon State, 58-25, but the Beavers are 20-24 against the Sun Devils under the direction of head coach . The series between Oregon State and Texas is tied at 1-1. The teams last met in 1999 with OSU earning a 2-1 victory at Cal State Fullerton’s Kia Klassic.
PAC-10 POSTSEASON: Seven Pacific-10 Conference teams reached the 2006 NCAA Regional Tournament - marking the eighth straight season that at least seven of the eight conference teams have reached the postseason - and all seven squads advanced to the Super Regional round, with four teams (Oregon State, Arizona, Arizona State, UCLA) advancing to the Women’s College World Series. Last year marked the 22nd time in 24 years that the Pac-10 sent at least one team to the WCWS championship game. The Pac-10 has won 17 NCAA softball championships since 1982 - more than any other conference.
MCGOWAN MOVES UP CAREER CHARTS: Oregon State junior pitcher needs just one victory to move into sole possession of second place in the OSU career record book for victories. She enters the Women’s College World Series tied with Monica Hoffman (2001-04) with 75 career wins. Tarrah Beyster (1997-00) holds the Oregon State record with 91 career victories. McGowan needs just 17 strikeouts to surpass Beyster’s total of 694 and move into third place for all-time K’s at Oregon State.
LEADING OFF SUCCESS: Sophomore utility player matched the Oregon State single season record for home runs after going deep for the 16th time of the year against No. 19 Baylor in the NCAA Regional Tournament championship game (May 21). Miranda matched Tarrah Beyster’s mark of 16 home runs set during the 2000 campaign. Miranda held a .500 batting average (5-for-10) with a pair of home runs and a 1.100 slugging percentage in three Regional Tournament games. The Camarillo, CA, native led-off both of Sunday’s (May 28) NCAA Super Regional games against #6 California with singles and eventually scored.
FROM THE BATTERS BOX: Oregon State enters the week with a .286 team batting average - the highest batting average in program history since joining the Pacific-10 Conference in 1987 (OSU finished the 2003 campaign with a .274 clip from the plate). Junior shortstop leads the team with a .335 (62-for-185) clip from the plate to go along with a team-leading 14 doubles. Sophomore utility player ranks second on the team with a .323 (61-for-189) batting average. Miranda has scored an OSU single season record 52 runs and leads the squad with 16 homers. Senior boasts a .310 (18-for-58) batting average as a slapper, while fellow senior outfielder is hitting a career-best .301 (52-for-173) with 29 runs scored and a team-best 36 RBI.
FROM THE CIRCLE: Beaver junior pitchers (29-7) and (14-7) combined to win 28 consecutive appearances before Oregon State dropped its 3-2 8-inning contest against No. 9 Arizona State on April 1. McGowan has amassed 249 strikeouts in 252.1 innings of work, while McElroy has 94 K’s in 120.0 innings of action. McGowan has totaled 678 career strikeouts - the fourth highest total of any pitcher in OSU history and she is the only hurler to tally back-to-back 200-plus strikeout seasons.
THIS, THAT, AND THE OTHER: Seven of Oregon State’s 14 losses on the season have been by just one run...Shortstop is the only player to start every game of the season in the same position...OSU is 20-2 on the year in games played at a neutral site...Junior pitcher needs just one victory to become the first pitcher in Oregon State history to earn 30-plus wins in back-to-back seasons...Oregon State is 31-3 when scoring first...The Beavers are 30-1 on the season when tallying more hits than their opponent.
BEAVERS IN THE TOP 25: Oregon State finished the regular season with a No. 7 ranking in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Poll. Seven Pacific-10 Conference squads ranked in the Top 25; 1. UCLA, 3. Arizona, 6. California, 7. Oregon State, 9. Arizona State, 10. Stanford, 17. Washington. The Beavers hold a No. 9 ranking in the final ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 Poll. OSU posted a program-best No. 5 ranking in both polls on May 3.
FACING THE BEST: The No. 7 ranked Beavers hold a 17-13 record this season against teams ranked in the USA Today/NFCA Top-25.
BEATING THE COMPETITION: Oregon State has an advantage over its opponents in several statistical categories:
- Batting average: .286-.226
- Runs scored: 261-126
- RBI: 240-113
- Home Runs: 56-29
- Total bases: 670-472
- Slugging percentage: .448-.325
- Earned run average: 1.97-4.02
THE WINNING STREAK: No. 7 ranked Oregon State reeled off a school record 28 consecutive victories from Feb. 11-Mar. 31. The winning streak was the longest in the nation this season and marked the longest in Division I softball since University of Arizona won 32 in a row in 2002. The 28-game streak ranks in a tie for 16th place all-time in the NCAA Division I record book. Oregon State became one of just 11 teams in NCAA history to win 28 straight games.
THE NUMBERS BREAKDOWN: Oregon State returns 13 players from last season’s squad that finished with a 43-16 overall record and earned a share of the Pacific-10 Conference championship (the first regular season Pac-10 championship for any women’s sport in Oregon State history). OSU earned the Pac-10’s automatic berth to the NCAA Regional Tournament as the Beavers made their seventh consecutive postseason appearance. The Beavers reached the Regional Tournament championship game for a fifth time in the last seven years, before falling to DePaul University. The Beavers return eight defensive starters from a year ago, as well as three pitchers - including Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year and first team All-American .
OSU SOFTBALL COMPLEX: Oregon State currently holds a 60-35 all-time record in games played at the OSU Softball Complex. The Beavers boast a 25-31 mark against opponents ranked in the Top 25. OSU finished the 2006 regular season campaign with a 12-5 mark in Corvallis and went 5-1 while hosting both the NCAA Regional and Super Regional tournaments.
PAC-10 COACHES POLL: In a preseason poll voted on by the Pac-10 coaches, Oregon State was tabbed to finish fifth in the conference - the exact spot where the Beavers finished the 2006 campaign. Last year’s defending national championship runner-up, UCLA, was picked to finish first.
2005 PACIFIC-10 CONFERENCE CO-CHAMPIONS: Oregon State earned a share of the 2005 Pacific-10 Conference championship - the first regular season Pac-10 title for any women’s sports team in Oregon State history. OSU, Arizona, California, and Stanford all finished with 13-8 records in conference play. The Beavers won the tie-breaker to earn the Pac-10’s automatic berth to the NCAA Regional Tournament. For the first time in program history, Oregon State won the season series against five conference opponents (Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Washington).
IN THE DUGOUT: , a former player for the 1999 NCAA Champion UCLA Bruins, enters her fourth season at Oregon State. Buck was promoted to the first assistant position in September of 2004. A four-year letterwinner, Buck graduated from UCLA in 2002. Former OSU standout shortstop joins Oregon State for her first season as an assistant. A three-time All-Pacific-10 Conference honoree, Feldt helped lead the Beavers to three straight NCAA Regional Tournament appearances before graduating in 2001. She dominates the OSU record book with her name dotting eight different career batting categories. Former Beaver player and assistant coach moves into the newly created position of Director of Softball Operations. Smith spent four seasons as an assistant. The first recruit to sign a letter of intent to play for , Smith, was a member of OSU’s squad from 1995-99 and helped the Beavers make their first NCAA Regional Tournament appearance.
THE WORD ON WALKER: Head coach is in his 12th season at the helm for the Beavers. Walker, a graduate of UCLA, has turned around Oregon State’s softball program to make it a contender on a national scale. Walker has led the Beavers to seven consecutive NCAA Regional Tournament appearances. The winningest coach in program history, Walker, has an overall coaching record of 420-322-3 and a 90-189 mark in the Pacific-10 Conference. Walker guided the 2005 Beavers to a share of the Pacific-10 Conference title and earned Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors for the second time in his career. Walker and his staff were honored as the Speedline Pacific Region Coaching Staff of the Year after their efforts in 2005. He earned his 400th career victory earlier this season when Oregon State rallied for a 2-1 8-inning win against BYU in the home opener on Mar. 25, 2006. Walker was selected as one of just 12 coaches named to the USA Softball National Team Coaches Pool, and serves as an assistant coach for the USA Elite Team. Prior to his arrival at Oregon State, Walker spent 11 seasons at national powerhouse UCLA as a manager and assistant coach. During his time in Westwood, the Bruins won six NCAA titles and made 10 appearances in the College World Series.
