April 29, 2003

This Week's Schedule
Tuesday, April 29th
UC Santa Barbara vs. UC Riverside
2:00 p.m. at Campus Diamond

Saturday, May 3rd * Sunday May 4th
UC Santa Barbara vs. Long Beach State
12:00 p.m. at Campus Diamond (Doubleheader Saturday)

The Gaucho Record
Overall 33-17 Big West 8-6

The Biggie
With all of the talk about the records that the UC Santa Barbara softball team has broken or tied in the past weeks, the most important record of the them all hangs in the air this week for the Gauchos. Currently 33-17 on the season, the 2003 squad is just two wins away from going in the record books as the winningest team in school history. In 1982 the Gauchos finished 34-22, setting the bar for the last twenty years. This year's 33 victories ties as the second most wins in UCSB history along with the team from 1987 that ended the season 33-30 overall and 17-19 in the Big West. In addition the Gaucho collecting 19 hits against USD on 2/8 to set its first school record on the season, this past weekend they set new school records with 29 total bases in game two at Utah State, which only went five innings, and ran their season stolen base total 89, surpassing the previous record of 86 set by the 1982 squad. But what might be even more remarkable is that in the nine seasons that game-high statistics have been recorded only once had a team hit two triples in one game prior to this season, and in the matter of 14 days the 2003 team accomplished the feat twice against UCR on 4/12 and vs. Utah State on 4/26.

The Big Blue Bus Is Coming To Town...Again!
UCSB and UC Riverside will be concluded their rain-delayed three-game series on Tuesday making up game three. The Gauchos swept the first two games 8-0 and 6-3, running their all-time record against the Highlanders to 13-0. UCR is currently seventh in the Big West with a 11-39 overall and 2-11 conference record. Melissa Sanchez leads the team with a .279 batting average among active players, she also leads the team with 36 hits, 20 runs, and three homeruns. Nicole Bethurum holds downs a team-low 4.48 ERA and a 4-10 record.

The Biggest Series Of The Season
The Gauchos' three-game series with Long Beach State this weekend at Campus Diamond is key if UCSB wants to keep any hopes of postseason play alive. Although Santa Barbara shutout the 49ers 5-0 in its Early Bird Tournament in the opening weekend of play, The Beach has been playing well as off late, propelling them into second place in the Big West with a 9-3 conference and 21-17 overall record. Arleigh Thorp has been LBSU's biggest weapon this season, recently having set a new school record with her 31 career RBI. Fourth on the team with a .264 average, she has 14 doubles, 2 triples and four homeruns, all team-highs. Sophomore Meredith Cervenka continues to lead the teamwith a 1.41 ERA, the third lowest in the conference. The 49ers .975 fielding % ranks amonst the best in the nation.

Everybody's Player of the Week
When you go 7-for-8 with 11 runs batted in, two grand slams, and three homeruns in a two-day three-game series, it is official, you went nuts. And that is just what Jami Trinidad did this past weekend in UCSB's Big West series at Utah State to earn Big West Conference Player of the Week honors and Santa Barbara News Press Athlete of the Week accolades. In fact, the senior catcher's 11 RBI would have led the team in 1984 and 1988...for the entire season...and Trinidad did it in just three games to run her season total to 41 and set a new Gaucho record, breaking Kendra Wood's mark of 38 set in 2000. But Trinidad's record weekend didn't end there, two of her three homeruns came in game one, and in game two she rang up nine total bases, both feats tied UCSB single-game records. She now has 122 career RBI, putting her eighth all-time in Big West history.

Not Wasting Any Time
The closest any UCSB pitcher has come to Sandy Ortgies' school record 18 wins since she set the mark in 1987 is 15, and that has only happened twice, most recently by current Gaucho Loren Thornburg when she was a freshman in 2000. So if I was to tell you that one on the pitchers on this year's staff is just two wins shy of tying the 15 year-old record, you would probably think it was Thornburg, who's 1.21 ERA before this past weekend was the 46th best in nation, not so is the case. Rather it is freshman phenom Carly Harmon who boasts the 16-7 record, the most wins by a Big West pitcher this season, and the most by a UCSB pitcher since 1986. Harmon's conference-fifth best 1.56 ERA has combined with the rest of the staff to produce a Big West-best 1.48 ERA, the same staff that was ranked 20th in Division I last week with a team mark of 1.40.

Big West Leaders (as of 4/28/03)
Jami Trinidad: .383 avg. - 3rd, .610 slg. % - 3rd, .486 OB % - 3rd, 54 H - 2nd, 41 RBI - 1st, 12 2B - 4th, 6 HR - 2nd(t), 86 TB - 1st, 30 BB - 2nd, 3 SF - 2nd(t)
Chantal Pershing: .338 avg. - 6th, .404 OB % - 8th, 36 R - 1st, 52 H - 3rd(t), 58 TB - 11th, 5 HBP - 3rd(t), 12 SH - 2nd, 30 SB - 2nd
E.J. Lauchland: .324 avg. - 7th, 48 H - 8th, 26 RBI - 6th(t)
Leslie Simien: 30 R - 4th, 31 SB - 1st
Ashley Groefsema: 7 SB - 6th(t)
Diane Gerry: 5 SB - 10th(t)
Loren Thornburg: 1.20 ERA - 1st, .175 oppo. avg. - 3rd, 169.0 inn. - 1st, 160 K's - 2nd, 39 KL - 4th, 14 wins - 5th, 26 appear. - 10th(t), 23 starts - 4th(t), 10 SHO - 1st, 9 WP - 5th(t), 13 HB - 2nd
Carly Harmon: 1.56 ERA - 5th, .229 oppo. avg. - 9th, 161.1 inn. - 2nd, 100 K's - 7th, 16 wins - 1st(t), 27 appear. - 7th(t), 25 starts - 1st(t), 4 SHO - 8th(t)
Overall Team: .277 avg. - 1st(t), 187 R - 2nd, 381 H - 1st, 89 SB - 1st, 1.48 ERA - 1st(t), 274 K's - 2nd

By The Numbers
2 Number of senior Chantal Pershing who is second on the team with a .338 batting average that is sixth-best in the Big West, has 30 stolen bases to put herself second on team and in the Big West. She is also second on the team with 52 hits, tying her for third most in the conference. Her 12 sacrifice bunts are the second most in the conference. And Pershing is also second on the team, eighth in the Big West with a .404 on-base percentage. The thing is, she plays third base.

12 Games played by freshman Kristen Mann since joining the team after obligations to the women's basketball team ended. In that time she has already amassed 13 hits, six runs, two doubles, one triple, one homerun, and six RBI. Currently third on the team with a .325 batting average has proven to be a very valuable asset on the softball field is well. Mann is also second on the team with a .500 overall slugging percentage and a .688 percentage in Big West play.

8 RBI needed by Jami Trinidad to tie would looked to be UCSB's untouchable career record of 130 set by Kendra Wood from 1997-2000. She now holds the single-season record with 41 after her 11 ribbies last weekend.

59 The UCSB record for hits in a season held by Tonya Dias and set in 1998. With at least seven games remaing, Jami Trinidad has 54 hits on the season and Chantal Pershing has 52.