Feb. 16, 2012
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 22/24 Kentucky softball team will once again hit the road, this time for a three-day stretch that will see the Wildcats take on five different opponents including a rematch with No. 11 Michigan at the Florida Atlantic Tournament Friday-Sunday. UK and the Wolverines are set to tangle on Saturday, Feb. 17 in a rematch of the NCAA Regionals from a season ago.
Kentucky (1-3) captured two wins over the Wolverines in May to advance to its first ever NCAA Super Regional appearance. The Wolverines (4-0) opened their 2012 season in impressive fashion with a win that included a toppling of LSU on its home field.
The Wildcats in their opening weekend were led by senior Rachel Riley who batted .375 with a homer and a pair of RBI. Freshman Griffin Joiner knocked the game-winning homer in a victory over Pacific, while sophomores Ginny Carroll and Krystal Smith both also blasted their first career long balls. Riley picked up UK’s victory in a complete-game effort against the Tigers. Senior Brittany Cervantesalso drove in a run in with an RBI single in the opening game of the UCLA series.
UK will also face Wright State, LIU Brooklyn, Maryland and the host Owls of Florida Atlantic over the three-day stretch.
Wright State competed in the Tiger Invitational in Auburn, Ala., last weekend, escaping the weekend with a 2-2 record while capturing wins over Alabama State and Appalachian State. WSU fell defeat to Bowling Green as well as the host team and SEC member, Auburn.
FAU will serve as the host for this weekend’s tournament, entering the weekend with a 0-5 record. They faced stiff competition last weekend, falling to North Carolina and Ohio State. FAU also lost to Bethune Cookman, Florida A&M and Chattanooga in the NTC Elite Invitational.
Under the leadership of 18th-year coach Roy Kortmann, LIU Brooklyn enters the weekend 0-5, falling in all five games to USF Wilson-DeMarini Tournament. LIU fell to No. 2 Florida, South Florida, Maine, Florida Gulf Coast and Illinois State in the season-opening tournament.
This will be Maryland’s first weekend of competition. The Terps were picked to finish fifth in the ACC by the coaches. The Terrapins are coming off of a 40-19 season that culminated in their second straight NCAA Regionals appearance. In 2011, Maryland went 12-7 in ACC play for the most conference wins in a season in school history. The Terps finished third in the league after being picked to finish fifth. They advanced to the ACC Semifinals before falling to North Carolina.
Follow along with the UK softball program all season long at UKathletics.com.
Kentucky’s Schedule at the Florida Atlantic Tournament
Friday, Feb. 17
Wright State – 4 p.m. ET
Florida Atlantic – 6 p.m. ET
Saturday, Feb. 18
LIU Brooklyn – 9 a.m. ET
Michigan – 1 p.m. ET
Sunday, Feb. 19
Maryland – 11 a.m.
