Tulsa on the Road for Series at Memphis this Weekend
4/25/2018 10:03:00 AM | Softball
Weekly Notes
TULSA, Okla. — The University of Tulsa softball team will return to the road for its final series away from home in the regular-season, when it will face Memphis for a three-game set, April 27-29, at the Tigers Softball Complex.
The Golden Hurricane (27-20, 7-8) will be looking to move up the American Athletic Conference standings over the final two weeks of the regular season. Tulsa sits tied for sixth, but is just two games out of second place, while the Tigers (34-16, 8-7) are in a three-way tie for third.
TU is coming off a 7-2 win at Houston last Sunday, led by the top-third of the batting order which went 8-for-12 with a double, five runs scored and three RBIs. The offense also got a lift from freshmen Marisa Olmos (2-for-4, 2 RBIs) and Samantha Pochop (1-for-3, RBI), who made their first starts in the field.
Julia Hollingsworth hit .600 during the series at Houston and she ranks sixth in The American with a .385 batting average in conference play.
Meanwhile, Memphis is closing in on a school record for wins (36) after a 6-0 win over Central Arkansas on Tuesday night. Kyler Trosclair leads the team with a .408 batting average, eight triples and 34 RBI, while Baylee Smith has a .401 mark with 33 RBI. As a team, the Tigers are batting .315 for the season, but that number is down to .247 during conference play.
Tulsa leads the all-time series against the Tigers, 28-7, including a 13-2 record in Memphis.
Schedule
Friday, April 27
5 p.m. — Tulsa at Memphis — Stats/Video
Saturday, April 28
2 p.m. — Tulsa at Memphis — Stats/Video
Sunday, April 29
12 p.m. — Tulsa at Memphis — Stats/Video
Notes
Tulsa on the Road to Face Memphis this Weekend
• Tulsa returns to the road for a three-game series, April 27-29, at Memphis. It will be the final road series of the regular-season for the Hurricane, who will close the campaign at home against UConn next weekend.
• TU leads the all-time series against Memphis, 28-7, and took 2-of-3 games against the Tigers last season in Tulsa. The Hurricane own a 13-2 record at Memphis.
Trending
• Emily Watson leads The American and ranks eighth in the nation with 224 strikeouts this season. Watson has struck out at least 10 batters in a game 10 times, including a season-high 15 Ks against Saint Francis (Pa.).
• Watson is 4-1 with a 0.88 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 31.2 innings over six career starts against Memphis. Meanwhile, Morgan Neal is hitting .467 (7-of-15) with a double and four RBIs in seven games versus the Tigers.
• Julia Hollingsworth leads TU and ranks sixth in the conference with a .385 batting average during league play. The junior's 20 hits against conference opponents ranks second in the circuit. Last weekend, Hollingsworth hit .600 with three runs scored in the series at Houston.
Ahead Early
• Tulsa has gotten off to a quick start with runs in the first inning in 20 of its 47 games.
• The Hurricane has outscored its opponents 37-15 in the first inning and has only allowed its opponent to score in the first inning of 11 games during the campaign.
• TU has capitalized on the early lead this spring, going 15-5 when scoring in the first inning. The Hurricane also is 20-7 when the team scores first.
• The early run support has been a big part of the team's success as TU is 20-3 when leading after four innings, 18-1 when leading after five innings and 15-1 when leading after six innings.
TU Bats Heating Up in Conference Play
• The Tulsa offense will enter play this weekend hitting .280 during conference play, a mark that ranks third in the league.
• Julia Hollingsworth leads the way with a .385 average to rank sixth in the circuit during league action.
• TU also ranks near the top of several other offensive categories during conference play, including hits (t-2nd, 109), doubles (3rd, 18), total bases (3rd, 155) and slugging percentage (3rd, .398), while it's 54 strikeouts are the fewest in the circuit.
Hurricane Honors in The American
• TU has had several student-athletes honored by the American Athletic Conference and NFCA via its weekly awards this season.
• Emily Watson has been named The American Pitcher of the Week three times this season (12 times in her career), including on April 2 after she went 2-0 with a save and 23 strikeouts in 15 innings during last weekend's sweep of ECU. The senior also earned Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week honors for her efforts against the Pirates.
• Hurricane hitters also have had success as Tori Stafford was named Player of the Week on March 19. Meanwhile, Shelby Estocado, Morgan Neal and Julia Hollingsworth have been named to the conference's weekly honor roll this season, as well.
Career Numbers Update
• Emily Watson ranks in the program's all-time top 10 in several categories, including ERA (2nd, 1.74), opposing batting average (2nd, .207), strikeouts (2nd, 821), shutouts (2nd, 29), wins (2nd, 67), games started (3rd, 100), complete-games (t-3rd, 68), innings pitched (3rd, 636.0), appearances (5th, 118) and saves (6th, 5).
• Shelby Estocado ranks third in program history with 30 homers, including seven round-trippers this season. She alsois tied for fifth with 126 RBIs and ranks seventh with 316 total bases.
• Julia Hollingsworth currently owns the program-record with a .457 on-base percentage, while her career .367 batting average ranks second. She ranks sixth with 40 stolen bases and her seven triples are tied for fifth. Hollingsworth tied a single-game record with a pair of triples in Tulsa's win over Nicholls State (March 3).
Look Who's Back
• Tulsa returns 13 letterwinners, including six position starters, the designated player and three pitchers, from last year's team which went 41-17 and won its first American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a 15-3 league mark.
• The TU offense will bring back all of its home runs, 79.3-percent of its extra-base hits, 76-percent of its runs scored, 74.3-percent of its RBIs and 71.1-percent of its hits from last year's squad.
• The lineup will see the return of NFCA All-Region picks Julia Hollingsworth (OF) and Haley Meinen (DP), while the pitching staff will see the return of second-team NFCA All-American Emily Watson.
It's Elementary, Watson
• The Golden Hurricane pitching staff is anchored by NFCA All-American Emily Watson. The senior nearly set a program single-season record with 348 strikeouts, while her 14 shutouts set a new program standard and led the nation last season.
• Watson also set single-season records with 30 wins, 36 starts, 29 complete games and 246.2 innings pitched.
• The senior was announced as one of 50 players across the nation on the "Watch List" for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award and she was one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award.
• In addition, Watson became the second-ever TU player to be selected in the NPF Draft when the Beijing Shougang Eagles took her at No. 8 overall on April 23.
• So far in 2018, she has compiled a 17-10 record with a 1.74 ERA and 224 strikeouts in 177.2 innings pitched.
Tulsa Picked to Repeat as American Athletic Conference Champs
• Tulsa garnered six first-place votes and the squad was picked to repeat as American Athletic Conference champions by the league's coaches.
• TU earned 48 points in the poll, while Houston picked up a pair of first-place nods and 44 points to rank second.
• The duo was followed by USF, UCF, Wichita State, Memphis, UConn and ECU.
• Last season, TU won both the regular-season and tournament titles, sweeping those championships for the first time since 2014 when the Hurricane accomplished the feat in its final season as a member of Conference USA.
The Schedule
• Tulsa's 2018 schedule will see the team play 10 games against teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago.
• The schedule also will have the Hurricane matched-up with teams that started the season either ranked or receiving votes. Texas A&M is ninth in the NFCA Coaches Poll, while TU also will face defending national champion Oklahoma (April 17) and Oklahoma State (March 21, April 4).
• Meanwhile, McNeese State (Feb. 9-10), Texas State (Feb. 24) and St. Francis (Pa.) (March 17) also started the season receiving votes.
TU Success Under Coach Bargfeldt
• Now in his 13th season at Tulsa, head coach John Bargfeldt is the program's longest-tenured head coach and has the most wins and highest winning percentage in school history.
• Prior to Bargfeldt's arrival, the program had just four winning seasons in 13 years and did not win a conference title or appear in an NCAA Regional.
• Since his hiring prior to the 2006 season, the Golden Hurricane has had a winning record in all 12 campaigns with six regular-season and six conference tournament titles. In addition, TU has advanced to nine NCAA Regionals, including a spot in the postseason for six of the last seven years.
Up Next
• Tulsa will return home and host UConn, May 5-7, in a three-game series at Collins Family Softball Complex to close the regular-season. TU then will head to Tampa, Fla., for the American Athletic Conference Championship.
TULSA, Okla. — The University of Tulsa softball team will return to the road for its final series away from home in the regular-season, when it will face Memphis for a three-game set, April 27-29, at the Tigers Softball Complex.
The Golden Hurricane (27-20, 7-8) will be looking to move up the American Athletic Conference standings over the final two weeks of the regular season. Tulsa sits tied for sixth, but is just two games out of second place, while the Tigers (34-16, 8-7) are in a three-way tie for third.
TU is coming off a 7-2 win at Houston last Sunday, led by the top-third of the batting order which went 8-for-12 with a double, five runs scored and three RBIs. The offense also got a lift from freshmen Marisa Olmos (2-for-4, 2 RBIs) and Samantha Pochop (1-for-3, RBI), who made their first starts in the field.
Julia Hollingsworth hit .600 during the series at Houston and she ranks sixth in The American with a .385 batting average in conference play.
Meanwhile, Memphis is closing in on a school record for wins (36) after a 6-0 win over Central Arkansas on Tuesday night. Kyler Trosclair leads the team with a .408 batting average, eight triples and 34 RBI, while Baylee Smith has a .401 mark with 33 RBI. As a team, the Tigers are batting .315 for the season, but that number is down to .247 during conference play.
Tulsa leads the all-time series against the Tigers, 28-7, including a 13-2 record in Memphis.
Schedule
Friday, April 27
5 p.m. — Tulsa at Memphis — Stats/Video
Saturday, April 28
2 p.m. — Tulsa at Memphis — Stats/Video
Sunday, April 29
12 p.m. — Tulsa at Memphis — Stats/Video
Notes
Tulsa on the Road to Face Memphis this Weekend
• Tulsa returns to the road for a three-game series, April 27-29, at Memphis. It will be the final road series of the regular-season for the Hurricane, who will close the campaign at home against UConn next weekend.
• TU leads the all-time series against Memphis, 28-7, and took 2-of-3 games against the Tigers last season in Tulsa. The Hurricane own a 13-2 record at Memphis.
Trending
• Emily Watson leads The American and ranks eighth in the nation with 224 strikeouts this season. Watson has struck out at least 10 batters in a game 10 times, including a season-high 15 Ks against Saint Francis (Pa.).
• Watson is 4-1 with a 0.88 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 31.2 innings over six career starts against Memphis. Meanwhile, Morgan Neal is hitting .467 (7-of-15) with a double and four RBIs in seven games versus the Tigers.
• Julia Hollingsworth leads TU and ranks sixth in the conference with a .385 batting average during league play. The junior's 20 hits against conference opponents ranks second in the circuit. Last weekend, Hollingsworth hit .600 with three runs scored in the series at Houston.
Ahead Early
• Tulsa has gotten off to a quick start with runs in the first inning in 20 of its 47 games.
• The Hurricane has outscored its opponents 37-15 in the first inning and has only allowed its opponent to score in the first inning of 11 games during the campaign.
• TU has capitalized on the early lead this spring, going 15-5 when scoring in the first inning. The Hurricane also is 20-7 when the team scores first.
• The early run support has been a big part of the team's success as TU is 20-3 when leading after four innings, 18-1 when leading after five innings and 15-1 when leading after six innings.
TU Bats Heating Up in Conference Play
• The Tulsa offense will enter play this weekend hitting .280 during conference play, a mark that ranks third in the league.
• Julia Hollingsworth leads the way with a .385 average to rank sixth in the circuit during league action.
• TU also ranks near the top of several other offensive categories during conference play, including hits (t-2nd, 109), doubles (3rd, 18), total bases (3rd, 155) and slugging percentage (3rd, .398), while it's 54 strikeouts are the fewest in the circuit.
Hurricane Honors in The American
• TU has had several student-athletes honored by the American Athletic Conference and NFCA via its weekly awards this season.
• Emily Watson has been named The American Pitcher of the Week three times this season (12 times in her career), including on April 2 after she went 2-0 with a save and 23 strikeouts in 15 innings during last weekend's sweep of ECU. The senior also earned Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week honors for her efforts against the Pirates.
• Hurricane hitters also have had success as Tori Stafford was named Player of the Week on March 19. Meanwhile, Shelby Estocado, Morgan Neal and Julia Hollingsworth have been named to the conference's weekly honor roll this season, as well.
Career Numbers Update
• Emily Watson ranks in the program's all-time top 10 in several categories, including ERA (2nd, 1.74), opposing batting average (2nd, .207), strikeouts (2nd, 821), shutouts (2nd, 29), wins (2nd, 67), games started (3rd, 100), complete-games (t-3rd, 68), innings pitched (3rd, 636.0), appearances (5th, 118) and saves (6th, 5).
• Shelby Estocado ranks third in program history with 30 homers, including seven round-trippers this season. She alsois tied for fifth with 126 RBIs and ranks seventh with 316 total bases.
• Julia Hollingsworth currently owns the program-record with a .457 on-base percentage, while her career .367 batting average ranks second. She ranks sixth with 40 stolen bases and her seven triples are tied for fifth. Hollingsworth tied a single-game record with a pair of triples in Tulsa's win over Nicholls State (March 3).
Look Who's Back
• Tulsa returns 13 letterwinners, including six position starters, the designated player and three pitchers, from last year's team which went 41-17 and won its first American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a 15-3 league mark.
• The TU offense will bring back all of its home runs, 79.3-percent of its extra-base hits, 76-percent of its runs scored, 74.3-percent of its RBIs and 71.1-percent of its hits from last year's squad.
• The lineup will see the return of NFCA All-Region picks Julia Hollingsworth (OF) and Haley Meinen (DP), while the pitching staff will see the return of second-team NFCA All-American Emily Watson.
It's Elementary, Watson
• The Golden Hurricane pitching staff is anchored by NFCA All-American Emily Watson. The senior nearly set a program single-season record with 348 strikeouts, while her 14 shutouts set a new program standard and led the nation last season.
• Watson also set single-season records with 30 wins, 36 starts, 29 complete games and 246.2 innings pitched.
• The senior was announced as one of 50 players across the nation on the "Watch List" for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award and she was one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award.
• In addition, Watson became the second-ever TU player to be selected in the NPF Draft when the Beijing Shougang Eagles took her at No. 8 overall on April 23.
• So far in 2018, she has compiled a 17-10 record with a 1.74 ERA and 224 strikeouts in 177.2 innings pitched.
Tulsa Picked to Repeat as American Athletic Conference Champs
• Tulsa garnered six first-place votes and the squad was picked to repeat as American Athletic Conference champions by the league's coaches.
• TU earned 48 points in the poll, while Houston picked up a pair of first-place nods and 44 points to rank second.
• The duo was followed by USF, UCF, Wichita State, Memphis, UConn and ECU.
• Last season, TU won both the regular-season and tournament titles, sweeping those championships for the first time since 2014 when the Hurricane accomplished the feat in its final season as a member of Conference USA.
The Schedule
• Tulsa's 2018 schedule will see the team play 10 games against teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago.
• The schedule also will have the Hurricane matched-up with teams that started the season either ranked or receiving votes. Texas A&M is ninth in the NFCA Coaches Poll, while TU also will face defending national champion Oklahoma (April 17) and Oklahoma State (March 21, April 4).
• Meanwhile, McNeese State (Feb. 9-10), Texas State (Feb. 24) and St. Francis (Pa.) (March 17) also started the season receiving votes.
TU Success Under Coach Bargfeldt
• Now in his 13th season at Tulsa, head coach John Bargfeldt is the program's longest-tenured head coach and has the most wins and highest winning percentage in school history.
• Prior to Bargfeldt's arrival, the program had just four winning seasons in 13 years and did not win a conference title or appear in an NCAA Regional.
• Since his hiring prior to the 2006 season, the Golden Hurricane has had a winning record in all 12 campaigns with six regular-season and six conference tournament titles. In addition, TU has advanced to nine NCAA Regionals, including a spot in the postseason for six of the last seven years.
Up Next
• Tulsa will return home and host UConn, May 5-7, in a three-game series at Collins Family Softball Complex to close the regular-season. TU then will head to Tampa, Fla., for the American Athletic Conference Championship.
#ForOurCity
Players Mentioned
IF/OF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
UT/P
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballWednesday, June 17
Monday, February 02
Friday, February 28
Friday, February 28