CARLSBAD, CA - The UBC Thunderbirds garnered the no. 5 seed for the upcoming
2011 A.I.I. Softball Championship hosted by Cal State San Marcos in Carlsbad, CA from May 5-7.
The six-team, double-elimination tournament has a pair of spots up for grabs at the NAIA softball championship, scheduled for May 19-25 in Gulf Shores, AL with both finalists making the big dance. A third place finish should earn a team a look for one of the at-large berths into the national tournament.
Standing in the way of the T-Birds' dreams of a trip to Gulf Shores is a stacked field featuring three teams ranked in the NAIA Top 10.
San Marcos, who will have the added benefit of playing at home, are currently ranked third in the NAIA after posting a 39-7 record. Central Baptist College, this week's no. 2 seed, is no. 4 in the NAIA top 25 after posting an impressive 49-2 record in 2011 while no. 3 seed, the University of Houston-Victoria, is at no. 9 with a 34-16 mark.
Before the T-Birds can worry about facing any of those opponents, however, they'll take on arch-rivals Simon Fraser in the first game of the tournament at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 5.
The Clan were the 2010 NAIA champions but are a much different team this season as they begin their transition towards NCAA Division II. SFU posted a 6-10 NAIA record this season after losing a long list of seniors from their title winning squad. UBC and SFU have not played this season, with a quartet of games canceled due to scheduling conflicts and poor weather.
Although UBC's path to the final of the A.I.I. tournament will be a daunting one, the T-Birds have plenty of experience taking on some of the best teams in the NAIA this season. Although UBC was winless against NAIA top 10 teams this season, they did lose a trio of games to powerhouse squads by just a single run. Back in March at the San Marcos Invitational, UBC dropped a 4-3 decision to no. 1 Cal Baptist, a 2-1 game to no. 3 San Marcos, and then a week later in Tucson, AZ, they lost 7-6 to no. 7 Lubbock Christian.
The key to the T-Birds success this season has been their potent offence. UBC, in just their second season as a varsity team, ranks 33rd in the NAIA with 6.07 runs scored per game. They rank eighth in doubles per game (1.93) and 20th in home runs per contest (0.951).
Leading the charge at the plate are a trio of seniors in
Courtney O'Connor,
Tanya McLean, and Jess Barclay. O'Connor, who mans second base, sports a .434 batting average and a team-leading 42 RBI. She's smacked 12 doubles and 11 home runs which ranks among UBC leaders in both categories. McLean's .386 batting average has been supported by 13 home runs, 13 doubles, and 38 RBI and she has drawn a team-leading 19 walks as the team's no. 1 catcher. Barclay, who usually finds herself in the lead-off spot, is hitting .361 with 19 RBI. She's drawn 12 walks and struck out only five times in 108 at-bats.
Lindsay McElroy's 32 RBI and 16 doubles as well as Jess Hodge's .299 batting average, four home runs, and 26 RBI have also been key for UBC.
On the mound, freshman
Leigh Della Siega has put together a fabulous first season of university ball. She's thrown a team-high 106.1 innings and owns a 6-8 record with a 3.88 ERA despite getting the start against many of the T-Birds best opponents. Sophomore
Kelsey Andison has been very solid as well with a 10-6 record, in addition to a pair of saves, and a team-best 3.54 ERA over 93.1 innings.
Nicole Day has also seen significant time on the mound and is 7-4 this year.
Ticket Information
$10 - Single-Day Ticket
$25 - Tournament Pass (good for all three days)
$5 - Single-Day Ticket (youth 12 & under)
CSUSM Faculty/Staff/Students FREE ADMISSION with valid CAMPUS ID.
Participating Teams
#1 seed - California State University San Marcos (Record: 39-7, Ranked #3)
#2 seed - Central Baptist College (AR) (Record: 49-2, Ranked #4)
#3 seed - University of Houston-Victoria (Record: 34-16, Ranked #9)
#4 seed - Simon-Fraser University (BC) (Record: 6-10)
#5 seed - University of British Columbia (Record: 23-18)
#6 seed - Patten University (CA) (Record: 11-19)
Thursday, May 5th
G1 9am #4 Simon-Fraser v. #5 U. of British Columbia
G2 11am #3 U. of Houston-Victoria v. #6 Patten
G3 2pm #1 Cal State San Marcos v. [winner G1]
G4 4pm #2 Central Baptist v. [winner G2]
Friday, May 6th
G5 9am [loser G3 v. loser G2]
G6 11am [loser G4 v. loser G1]
G7 2pm [winner G3 v. winner G4]
G8 4pm [winner G5 v. winner G6]
Saturday May 7th
G9 10am [winner G8 v. loser G7]
G10 1pm [winner G7 v. winner G9] Championship game
G11 3pm [or 30 minutes after G10] (if necessary : loser G10's 1st loss) Championship game
