Arizona State Results DATE OPPONENT (rank) RESULT Feb. 4 Texas-San Antonio W, 8-0 (6) Feb. 5 Texas-San Antonio W, 4-2 Feb. 6 Texas-San Antonio W, 5-4 (8) Feb. 11 Buffalo# rained out FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Feb. 11 Massachusetts# rained out Feb. 12 Sacramento State# rained out Wednesday, February 23, 2005 Feb. 12 Tennessee-Chattanooga# rained out Feb. 13 Sacramento State# W, 3-2 SUN DEVIL Feb. 13 Utah State# W, 11-2 Feb. 16 Hawai’i L, 6-8 TRAVELS Feb. 16 Hawai’i W, 2-0 Feb. 18 Illinois State% W, 3-0 TO THE PALM SPRINGS CLASSIC Feb. 18 Iowa% L, 0-2 Feb. 19 Iowa% rained out ON TAP: After rain cancelled three more games in Tempe, the Feb. 19 Long Island% rained out Feb. 20 Long Island% rained out Arizona State University softball team (7-2) will try another part Feb. 25 vs. Long Island^ 10:30 a.m. of the country as they head out on the road for the first time this Feb. 25 vs. Bethune-Cookman^ 1:00 p.m. season, travelling to Palm Springs, California to compete in the Feb. 26 vs. Northwestern^ 5:30 p.m. Palm Springs Classic (Feb. 25-27). Feb. 26 vs. Notre Dame^ 8:00 p.m. Feb. 27 vs. Kansas^ 11:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 25 March 2 Eastern Michigan 5:00 p.m. 10:30 a.m. Arizona State vs. Long Island (Finley Field) March 2 Eastern Michigan 7:00 p.m. 1:00 p.m. Arizona State vs. Bethune-Cookman (Finley Field) March 4 San Diego State! 5:00 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 March 4 Southern Utah! 7:00 p.m. 5:30 p.m. Arizona State vs. Northwestern (DesMoines Field) March 5 San Diego State! 3:00 p.m. March 5 Southern Utah! 5:00 p.m. 8:00 p.m. Arizona State vs. Notre Dame (Yankee Field) March 6 Southern Utah! 12:00 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27 March 11 vs. Rhode Island$ 2:00 p.m. 11:30 a.m. Arizona State vs. Kansas (DesMoines Field) March 11 vs. San Jose State$ 6:00 p.m. March 12 vs. TBD$ TBD PALM SPRINGS NOTES: This is the first time ASU will play in March 12 vs. TBD$ TBD March 13 vs. TBD$ TBD the classic ... Oregon State is the host ... 24 teams, including March 14 @ Loyola Marymount 12:00 p.m. five Pac-10 teams will compete in the round robin format ... the March 14 @ Loyola Marymount 2:00 p.m. classic will take place at the Big League Dreams Sports Park March 17 vs. Syracuse+ 4:30 p.m. in Cathedral City, Calif. ... the playing fields are built as scaled- March 18 vs. Oklahoma+ 1:30 p.m. down replicas of famous major league stadiums. March 19 vs. Louisiana-Lafayette+ 1:30 p.m. March 19 vs. TBD+ TBD TOUGH SCHEDULE/TOUGHER CONFERENCE: As in any March 20 vs. TBD+ TBD season, Arizona State will face many of the nation’s top teams April 1 California* 7:00 p.m. and traditionally holds a high RPI. Last year, ASU played 29 April 2 Stanford* 7:00 p.m. games (nearly half of all their games) against top-25 teams, April 3 Stanford* 1:00 p.m. while 16 games were against top-10 competition. This year is April 6 Arizona* 7:00 p.m. April 8 Oregon* 7:00 p.m. no different as ASU will play several non-conference/Pac-10 April 9 Oregon State* 7:00 p.m. regular-season games against nationally-ranked teams. Within April 10 Oregon State* 1:00 p.m. the toughest conference in the nation, the Pac-10, ASU will April 15 @ UCLA* 1:00 p.m. face a nationally-ranked team every time out. All seven Pac-10 April 16 @ Washington* 2:30 p.m. opponents are ranked in the top-22, including the No. 1, 2, 3 April 17 @ Washington* 1:00 p.m. and 4 ranked teams and five of the nation’s top-12. Addition- April 22 @ Arizona* 7:00 p.m. ally, The Pac-10 placed seven of its eight squads in the NCAA April 23 @ Arizona* 7:00 p.m. Tournament last season, with three teams advancing to the April 29 @ Oregon State* 3:00 p.m. WCWS. For the fourth consecutive year (11th time overall), April 30 @ Oregon* 3:00 p.m. May 1 @ Oregon* 1:00 p.m. two Pac-10 teams squared off in the National Championship May 6 Washington* 7:00 p.m. game, giving the conference its 17th title and fourth straight. May 7 UCLA* 7:00 p.m. PAC-10 CONFERENCE/OVERALL STANDINGS (FEB. 23) May 8 UCLA* 1:00 p.m. May 12 @ Stanford* 7:00 p.m. Pac-10 Overall May 13 @ California* 1:00 p.m. Team W-L GB W-L PCT Streak May 14 @ California* 1:00 p.m. Arizona 0-0 0.0 9-0 1.000 Won 9 May 18-22 NCAA Regionals TBD California 0-0 0.0 5-0 1.000 Won 5 May 25-29 NCAA Super Regionals TBD Stanford 0-0 0.0 11-1 .917 Won 8 June 6-12 College World Series TBD UCLA 0-0 0.0 8-2 .800 Won 1 Ranking are by USAToday/NFCA & ESPN/USA Softball. Arizona State 0-0 0.0 7-2 .778 Lost 1 Washington 0-0 0.0 7-3 .700 Won 3 * Pacific-10 Conference game. Oregon 0-0 0.0 6-4 .600 Lost 1 # Kajikawa Classic, Tempe, Ariz. Oregon State 0-0 0.0 6-5 .545 Lost 2 % Littlewood Classic, Tempe, Ariz. ^ Palm Springs Classic, Palm Springs, Calif. Will Phillips, Softball Contact ! Louisville Slugger Triangular, Tempe, Ariz. Carson Center/Media Relations Office, Room 131 Tempe, Arizona 85287-2505 $ National Invitational Tournament, San Jose, Calif. (480) 965-6592 • Fax: (480) 965-5408 + KIA Klassic Tournament, Fullerton, Calif. [email protected] • www.thesundevils.com 2005 Sun Devil Softball — 2•2•2 February 23

USA Today/NFCA Top-25 SOFTBALL HISTORY: One of the nation’s founding programs, the Sun Devils are in their 39th season on the diamond in Tempe. ASU holds a Team (first place) Record Pts. LR 1,025-558-1 (.648) all-time record since the 1967 team posted a 5-1 1. California (24) 5-0 696 1 record. ASU has recorded 23 season of at least 30 wins and six with 40 or 2. Arizona (4) 9-0 676 2 more victories, including an all-time high of 46 in 2002. The Sun Devils 3. UCLA 8-2 628 3 have earned 16 postseason bids, fourth all-time in the Pac-10 Confer- 4. Stanford 10-1 616 4 ence, and has made four trips to the College World Series. Prior to the 5. Tennessee 13-0 563 7 current NCAA format, ASU went to seven WCWS, claiming back-to-back 6. Louisiana-Lafayette 12-1 553 5 national tiles in 1972 and 1973. 7. Alabama 15-1 528 6 8. Michigan 8-1 504 8 9. Texas 5-0 479 10 HEAD COACH LINDA WELLS: Just nine wins shy of 900 career victo- 10. LSU 6-1 459 9 ries, Arizona State’s storied tradition of softball excellence continues to 11. Baylor 17-2 430 11 flourish under the tutelage of 16th-year head coach Linda Wells, one of 12. Washington 7-3 372 12 the most prominent and successful coaches in NCAA history. Wells, who 13. Oklahoma 10-4 328 14 is currently the 7th-most successful active coach in NCAA Division I his- 14. Florida 13-2 319 16 tory with 891 victories (9th all-time), has led the Sun Devils to 11 (seven 15. Georgia Tech 13-0 304 17 consecutive 1997-03) NCAA Regional appearances in 15 seasons, in- 16. Georgia 6-6 251 13 cluding two trips in the past six years to the College World Series (1999/ 17. Nebraska 7-1 235 19 2002). While at ASU, Wells has compiled a record of 540-391 and has 18. Oregon 6-4 178 15 had seven players earn a total of 12 All-American awards. Her 540 wins 19. Texas A&M 11-1 160 23 are the most victories all-time in ASU’s storied 39-year history, surpass- 20. Florida International 12-3 130 24 ing coaching legend Mary Littlewood’s 536. Wells earned the victory with 21. Florida State 7-5 123 18 a 3-2 win over Sacramento State (2/13/05). Wells' vast coaching experi- 22. Oregon State 6-5 117 20 ence and tireless work ethic has not gone unnoticed by the country or by 23. Long Beach State 7-3 101 22 the world as she was named the head coach of the Greek Olympic Na- 24. Missouri 8-1 76 NR tional Team that competed in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Wells 25. Fresno State 1-1 61 21 has coached 35 career .300 hitters at ASU in her 15 seasons, averaging a combined .335 — not an easy accomplishment in the pitching-rich Pac- Dropped Out: No. 24 Illinois. 10 where games are traditionally low scoring, and with the addition of three more All-Pac-10 selections in 2004, Wells has now coached 75 all- Receiving Votes: Pacific (42), Auburn (28), North- conference players during her tenure at Arizona State, averaging five All- western (27), BYU (23), Texas A&M-CC (22), Ari- Pac-10 selections every season. zona State (17), San Diego State (14), Iowa (10), Syracuse (10), Illinois (8), Louisville (5). SERRANO TIME: Junior pitcher Desiree Serrano is off to a 3-0 start in 2005 and is currently fourth all-time in career with 462. At last ESPN.com/USA Softball weekend’s Littlewood Classic, Serrano pitched one of her best games Team (first place) Record Pts. LR all-time as she recorded a , five- shutout over Illinois 1. Arizona (13) 9-0 492 1 State. She struckout a season-high 11 and walked only one batter. Last 2. California (7) 5-0 485 2 year she led the pitching staff with a 2.21 ERA in 200 innings, making 28 3. Texas 5-0 449 3 starts in 41 appearances. Serrano, who averaged over seven strikeouts 4. UCLA 8-2 428 4 per contest, recorded a team-high 16 wins with eight shutouts and struck 5. Stanford 10-1 412 6 out 208 batters, eighth all-time in a single-season. She also posted five T6. Louisiana-Lafayette 12-1 396 5 double digit games, including a season-high 13 against Illinois T6. Tennessee 13-0 396 7 State, pitched a two-hit, 10 strikeout game against Wisconsin and a one- 8. Alabama 15-1 356 8 hit, 11 strikeout game against Princeton. As a redshirt freshman, Serrano 9. Michigan 8-1 339 9 made a Pac-10 second-best 49 appearances on her way to an 18-15 10. LSU 6-1 294 10 overall record, including seven shutouts and nine saves (second all-time 11. Baylor 17-2 290 12 in the Pac-10 in a single season). Serrano, an honorable mention All- 12. Washington 7-3 283 11 Pac-10 selection, also posted 226 strikeouts (fourth in the Pac-10 and 13. Georgia Tech 13-0 250 16 fifth all-time in a single-season at ASU), while holding opponents to a 14. Oklahoma 9-4 241 13 .209 batting average. To end her initial season, Serrano was named to 15. Florida 13-2 229 14 the NCAA Region III All-Tournament team after posting a 0.38 ERA in 18 16. Texas A&M 11-1 167 21 innings. In her no-hitter against Iowa, Serrano faced one batter over the 17. Nebraska 7-1 118 23 minimum, and was just an infield error short of a as she 18. Oregon State 6-5 109 19 19. Fresno State 1-1 107 18 struckout five Hawkeye's to record ASU’s first no-hitter since Kirsten Voak 20. Pacific 6-1 98 22 accomplished the feat (2/29/01). 21. Oregon 6-4 95 17 22. Florida State 7-5 93 15 HELPING HAND: Freshman pitcher Katie Burkhart has already notched 23. Georgia 6-6 91 20 two wins and two saves on the season. Overall in five appearances (19 24. Missouri 8-1 86 NR innings), Burkhart carries a team-leading 0.37 ERA, allowing only seven 25. Long Beach State 7-3 46 24 hits with 27 strikeouts, and has only walked three batters. Burkhart also leads the team in opponents batting average (.115). Burkhart made her Dropped Out: Cal State Fullerton. first career start against Hawai’i and did not disappoint. She pitched a Receiving Votes: Cal State Fullerton (37), North- complete game, two-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts, and walked only one western (22), BYU (16), San Diego State (14), Iowa batter. To open the season, Burkhart picked up her first career win and (13), Florida International (12), North Carolina (8), against Texas-San Antonio. In two relief appearances, Burkhart Arizona State (7), Mississippi State (7), Syracuse (7), worked six innings with seven strikeouts. Prior to ASU, Burkhart was a Southern Illinois (5), Hawai’i (2). first-team all-CIF pitcher as a senior (San Luis Obispo) after recording a 0.21 ERA with 358 strikeouts in only 169 innings. *TEAMS IN Bold INDICATES 2005 OPPONENTS. 2005 Sun Devil Softball — 3•3•3 February 23

DEVILS’ NO. 8 ALL-TIME: The Na- SIZZLING SEVILLA: After a breakout junior year, senior outfielder Valerie tional Fastpitch Coaches Associa- Sevilla looks to continue that trend as the 2005 season has begun. tion announced the USA Today/ Through nine games this season, Sevilla is hitting at a .400 pace (10 for NFCA All-Time Top 50 poll. The poll 25) with a team-leading four doubles and two home runs. In the three- was compiled using weekly rankings game series against Texas-San Antonio to open the year, Sevilla hit two from the 1995 season to the final poll home runs and drove in three runs. She is currently fourth all-time in of 2003. To date, Arizona State Uni- home runs (17), sixth in doubles (32) and tied for eighth all-time in bat- versity, which accumulated 36,613 ting average (.333). As a junior, Sevilla earned NFCA second-team All- Region honors, second-team All-Pac-10 accolades and was named Pac- points for a No. 8 all-time ranking — 10 Player of the Week (3/19). Remarkably, Sevilla had never hit a home just 12 points behind seventh-place run before last year as she slugged three grand slams and tied the single- California — has been ranked in 100 season record for home runs (15). She also tied the single-season record of the 126 polls all-time. Additionally, for doubles (17), finished fifth all-time in a single-season with 46 RBIs ASU has been ranked in 96 of the and seventh with 70 hits. Sevilla hit at a .363 clip and led the team in hits last 105 polls. Arizona State climbed (70), home runs (15), doubles (17), runs scored (36), total bases (132) to a school-record No. 3 in the nine- and tallied a team-leading 21 RBIs with two outs. She led the team in year history of the poll during the multi-hit games (19), multi-RBI games (12) and batted a team-leading 2000 and 2002 seasons. .421 with runners on base (.380 with runners in scoring position). Sevilla also hit four home runs in a three game stretch against Texas A&M and ASU Career Leaders Washington and hit six home runs in Pac-10 play. Sevilla possess a strong arm as well as she tied for the most assists in the outfield with six. Batting Average 1. Phelan Wright (2001-04) .381 MIGHTY MOUSE: Despite only standing 5’-4”, freshman infielder/pitcher 2. Lisa Dacquisto (1994-97) .378 Mindy Cowles proves size doesn’t always matter as she swings a big 3. Leanne Easley (1972-75) .377 bat and possess a strong arm. Through ASU’s first nine games, Cowles 4. Rachel Brown (1991-92) .362 is batting at a .423 clip (11 for 26) with a team-high six home runs, 12 5. Jodi Rathbun (1985-87) .361 6. Kara Brun (2000-03) .350 runs scored, 15 RBIs and a 1.231 slugging percentage. In the field, she 7. Peggy McAbee (1978-79) .349 has committed only one error and holds a team-leading 12 assists with 8. Valerie Sevilla (2003-present) .333 11 putouts. In two games against Hawai’i, Cowles went 4 for 6 with two Nichole Thompson (1999-2002) .333 home runs, four RBIs and three runs scored. Her back to back home 10. Raja Woods (1997-98) .332 runs carried ASU to a 2-0 win. To begin the season, Cowles lifted Arizona State to a 2-0 weekend and claim a share of the Kajikawa Classic title. Home Runs Both of her hits were key at the time since ASU was trailing in each con- 1. Phelan Wright (2001-04) 40 test. Overall, Cowles went 2 for 6 (.333), including her team-leading fourth 2. Kara Brun (2000-03) 34 home run and third double. She also knocked in four RBIs, scored three 3. Erica Beach (1999-2002) 27 runs and walked once. The third baseman also fielded her position flaw- 4. Valerie Sevilla (2003-present) 17 lessly, making one putout with four assists. In ASU’s first game against 5. Suzie Gaw (1979-82) 16 Sacramento State, ASU was trailing 2-0 until Cowles drove in the tying runs with her double to propel the Sun Devils to a 3-2 win. Against Utah Runs Batted In State, ASU was trailing 2-1 in the fifth inning before Cowles launched a 1. Kara Brun (2000-03) 165 2. Phelan Wright (2001-04) 162 two-run home run that went off the scoreboard in left field for the 3-2 3. Erica Beach (1999-2002) 153 lead. That hit started an ASU rally as they went on to eventually win 11-2. 4. Chris Gill (1997-99) 115 Against Texas-San Antonio, Cowles proved her might as she batted .500 5. Alyssa Johnson (1993-96) 108 (4 for 8) with all four hits going as extra bases, including two home runs 6. Kathy Escarcega (1984-87) 95 and two doubles. Cowles drove in a team-leading five RBIs and also started the final game in the circle, pitching four and two-thirds innings. Hits As a senior at Riverside Poly, Cowles was named the Division I CIF Player 1. Lisa Dacquisto (1994-97) 296 of the Year and was a first-team all-CIF pitcher. 2. Kara Brun (2000-03) 266 3. Phelan Wright (2001-04) 260 OLYMPIC CONNECTION: Three members of the ASU staff either coached 4. Nichole Thompson (1999-2002) 253 or played for Greece in 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Linda Wells 5. Ann Rowen (1988-91) 245 was the head coach of the host Greek National Team, while assistant 6. Kristin Farber (2001-04) 238 coach Stacey Farnworth was team’s catcher and administrative assis- 7. Missy Hixon (1999-2002) 228 tant Jessica Bashor was the starting outfielder. Doubles 1. Kara Brun (2000-03) 50 DEVILS ON THE WEB: All of ASU’s 29 home games at Farrington Sta- 2. Phelan Wright (2001-04) 44 dium will be available via LiveStats on ASU’s home website at 3. Kathy Escarcega (1984-87) 39 www.thesundevils.com. 4. Missy Hixon (1999-2002) 37 Alyssa Johnson (1993-96) 37 ATTENDANCE FIGURES: Once again Arizona State University was among 6. Valerie Sevilla (2003-present) 32 the top schools to carry a high home attendance figure in 2004. ASU 7. Nichole Thompson (1999-2002) 29 finished No. 4 in the country and No. 2 in the Pac-10 Conference in total home attendance with 18,045. ASU finished fourth on the west coast and Stolen Bases 11th nationally in average home attendance with 582. The Sun Devils 1. Lisa Dacquisto (1994-97) 102 also set the No. 1 and No. 2 all-time attendance records at Farrington 2. Kristin Farber (2001-04) 80 Stadium against rival Arizona. The two-game series (April 9-10) combined 3. Erin Hull (1994-98) 52 to bring in over 3,300 fans as the record of 1,663 (1,535 capacity) was 4. Raja Woods (1997-98) 47 set on the first night and 1,641 on the second night. 2005 Sun Devil Softball — 4•4•4 February 23

STADIUM & FIELD AWARDS: For the third time in the past four years, Arizona State Records Arizona State was honored with another award. Alberta B. Farrington Stadium was named the 2003 Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) Pacific-10...... 0-0 Softball Field of the Year in the College/University division. The commit- Non-Conference...... 7-2 ment to excellence in overall field quality, safety, playability and appear- Against Ranked Teams ...... 0-0 ance earned Farrington Stadium the top honor. The Field of the Year is Against Unranked Teams ...... 7-2 the highest honor STMA bestows upon a facility. In 2002, Farrington Stadium was named the college/university winner of the NFCA/Turface Home Games ...... 7-2 Grounds Crew Field Maintenance award. Dedicated in April, 2000, Road Games...... 0-0 Alberta B. Farrington Stadium is a 1,535 seat facility that includes 500 Neutral Sites ...... 0-0 back seats. Among the stadium’s many features are sunken dugouts, Day Games ...... 4-1 home/visitor/umpire locker rooms, offices, trainers room, concession Night Games ...... 3-1 stands, a team shop and a team room. ASU also won the 2000 NFCA/ Vs. Right Handed Starters...... 7-2 Turface Grounds Crew Field Maintenance award. The field maintenance Vs. Left Handed Starters ...... 0-0 staff is headed by Pete Wozniak. Award winners were chosen by a Extra Innings...... 1-0 panel of independent judges made up of grounds maintenance profes- sionals selected by the NFCA and Turface. Additionally, Farrington Sta- One Run Game ...... 2-0 dium was awarded “The Crescordia” (To Grow In Harmony) honor in Two Run Game ...... 2-2 2000. The honor is for Environmental Excellent in building and struc- Five Run (+) Game ...... 2-0 tures awarded by the Valley Forward Association and Honeywell. Shutouts...... 3-1 ASU Scores First ...... 5-0 LOOK BACK AT 2004: ASU Finished the year with a 33-31 overall record Opponent Scores First...... 2-2 and an eighth-place finish in the Pac-10 Conference with a 3-17 Out-Hit Opponents...... 5-0 mark…recorded winning overall record for the 13th time in the past 15 Out-Hit by Opponents ...... 1-1 years...won 30 or more games in nine consecutive seasons…played Hits are Tied ...... 1-1 28 games (nearly half of the total) against top-25 opponents…hit 42 home runs, just four shy of the all-time mark of 45 set in 2002…a school- February...... 7-2 record 10 different players hit home runs while six different players March ...... 0-0 slugged multi-home runs…stole 67 bases, more than tripling their sea- April ...... 0-0 son total from all of last year (21)…home attendance rose to an aver- May ...... 0-0 age of 646, as well as setting the No. 1 and No. 2 all-time attendance Last 5 Games ...... 3-2 records at Farrington Stadium against rival Arizona…Farrington Sta- Last 10 Games ...... 0-0 dium/Field was named the 2003 Sports Turf Managers Association Soft- Current Winning Streak ...... 0 ball Field of the Year…won its own Louisville Slugger Tournament for Longest Winning Streak...... 5 the third straight season…head coach Linda Wells announced her re- Longest Losing Streak ...... 1 tirement at the end of the 2005 season…senior third baseman Phelan Wright claimed her third straight All-American honor, earning second- team acclaim…she was one of 25 finalists for National Player of the Year honors…Wright became Arizona State’s first three-time All-Ameri- can selection in the modern era (2002-04)…Wright ended her standout career as Arizona State’s all-time batting average leader (.381), all-time home run leader (40) and finished second in doubles (44) and RBIs (162)…senior outfielder Kristin Farber set ASU’s single-season record for stolen bases with 33 and finished her career second all-time with 80… junior outfielder Val Sevilla had a career year as she led the team with 70 hits, 17 doubles and 15 home runs, while finishing second on the team with a .363 average and 46 RBIs…Sevilla’s 15 home runs and 17 doubles tied the single-season mark at ASU and her 46 RBIs ranks fourth all-time…Sevilla, who had never hit a home run before this year, also tallied a team-leading 21 RBIs with two outs, slugged three grand slams and tied for the most assists in the outfield with six…sophomore pitcher Desiree Serrano posted five double digit strikeout games…she is now fourth all-time at ASU with 434 career strikeouts.

MEDIA INFORMATION: All publicity for the ASU softball team are coor- dinated by Assistant Media Relations Director Will Phillips at (480) 965-1237. Any interviews with ASU softball players or coaches should be arranged through Phillips with at least 48 hours notice.