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Show 4 Friday, February 12, 2010 SOFTBALL BASEBALL Team hoping to keep perfect record Corbin Godfrey STAFF WRITER The Utah softball team went a perfect 5-o last weekend in the Red Desert Classic and will be in Las Vegas this weekend for the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic where the players begin a fivegame in three-day schedule today starting off by playing California and Hawaii. "We got off to a good start last weekend," said head coach Amy Hogue. "We are looking to build on that and maintain the level we played at and TYLER COBB/The Daily Utah Chronicle Sophomore Hannah Clements gets a pep talk from head coach Amy Hogue before batting last season. The Utes went 5-0 in their tournament last weekend and will be in Vegas this weekend for another five-game tournament. that will be important because we face some tough teams this weekend." Last weekend, the Utes won over San Jose State (8-o in five innings), Northern Colorado (6-5), Idaho State (5-3), Seattle University (9-1 in six innings) and Tulsa (6-5). It is no surprise that with such a successful weekend, many players are off to a hot start. Catcher Brooke Olson played a large role in the team's success by scoring seven runs as leadoff hitter in Utah's first five games, a mark that ties for the conference lead. Olson is also tied for fifth in the Mountain West Conference with seven hits. Senior center fielder Kara Foster is among the top three players in the MWC in six offensive categories. Foster leads the way in batting average (.615), on-base percentage (.722) and is tied with fellow Ute Tia Palauni for the lead in slugging percentage (1.231) and hits (8). She is also tied for second with 16 total bases and stands third in the league with two home runs. Palauni, a sophomore second baseman, was announced as the MWC Player of the Week for the first time in her career Tuesday. The Taylorsville, Utah, native batted 7 for 13 from the plate last week, with three home runs, II RBIs and six runs scored in the Utes' perfect 5-0 weekend. In an 8-o win over San Jose State on Friday, Palauni went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, one RBI, one run scored and one stolen base. In the Utes' 6-5 win over Northern Colorado the same day, she went one for two with one RBI and one run scored. Saturday, against Idaho State, Palauni went two for two with three RBIs, one run scored and one stolen base in Utah's 5-3 win over the Bengals. In Utah's 9-I victory over Seattle, Palauni went two for four with two homers, six RBIs and two runs scored. Defensively, she tallied 12 putouts and six assists with only one error from the second base position during the weekend. Hogue said Palauni's performance didn't surprise her as Palauni has shown much more confidence in herself since the start of practice. "She is capable of that kind of performance on any given weekend," said Hogue. "She has shown us since January that she has the confidence in herself and it's amazing what that confidence can do for her, and as long as she continues to have that confidence, she will continue to play at that high level." Also performing well, Ashley Smuda was a machine on the mound. She came away with the win in all five contests. Smuda leads the MWC with five wins and 3o innings of work during the first five games of the season, including three complete games. Smuda is also tied for the league high with five appearances. She is second in the conference with 3o strikeouts. Today's game against Cal begins at 11:15 a.m. PT, followed by Hawaii at 1:3o p.m. Saturday the Utes will get an early start against Cal State Fullerton at 9 a.m. PT, then they will take on Indiana at 3:45 p.m. PT. Sunday they will take on Northwestern in their final game of the weekend at 9 a.m. PT. c.godfrey@chronicle.utah.edu loi What is your favorite thing about spring? Kyle Kepler-track and field "My favorite thing would have to be the outdoor track season and the end of the inversion. I'm also really excited Jim Boylen-men's basketball-"What's my favorite thing about spring? Easy-taking the top off my Jeep:' MWC Baseball Preseason Poll - Amy Hogue-softball-"Just being able to get outside. I love to be outside and do activities with my kids." I just love all the lim .1. • epler Jim Boylen Mat landolo Amy Hogue Megan Marsden MWC Preseason Softball Coaches Poll 1. TCU Mat landolo-women's tennis "It might sound a little hokey but the first warm day and hearing the birds chirp." Megan Marsden-gymnastics-"There are a lot of things. growth and everything turning green after the winter." 4k4 Ara - about our new track, which will be done in June." s% in 2. New Mexico 1. BYU 3. San Diego State 2. San Diego State 4. Utah 3. UNLV 5. BYU 4. Utah 6. UNLV 5. Colorado State 7. Air Force 6. New Mexico (selected by MWC head coaches and media) Men looking to build on last season's success Bubba Brown STAFF WRITER A year after the Ute baseball team had a remarkable run through the Mountain West Conference Tournament-which earned the team a trip to an NCAA Regional for the first time since 1960-the Utes believe they have what it takes to make it two in a row. "I think we can go up from where we were last year," said senior pitcher Jordan Whatcott. "We expect to do good things. We expect to win a lot of ball games and we expect to be right back where we were last year, in another regional. The experience that we gained, knowing that we can play to a high standard, knowing that we can play with teams like TCU and that we are a quality team, it's invaluable." The Utes return the majority of last year's team that won two games in the NCAA Regional, losing only second baseman Corey Shimada, first baseman Austin Jones and starting pitcher Brian Budrow. Although the Utes will be losing only Shimada and Jones as position players, the two departed seniors accounted for 15 home runs, 86 RBIs and 27 extra-base hits in 2009. But with so much talent returning, head coach Bill Kinneberg expects his team to compete for a conference title. "We build on (last year's success) by continuing that streak and playing a little bit better before the tournament," Kinneberg said. "Always our goal is to get the highest seed we can in the Mountain West Tournament, win as many games as we possibly can and put ourselves in position to try to make another regional." Whatcott will lead a rotation that will likely determine much of the team's success. Whatcott enjoyed a stellar season as a junior last year, and returns to Utah after being a 31st round draft pick by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Rounding out the rotation will be Andrew Wilding, Bryn Card and Rick Anton. "It all starts with pitching," Kinneberg said. "You've got to be solid there. You've got to be able to keep your team in the ball game, and we feel really good there. Our depth on the pitching staff is better than it's been, but we've got to stay healthy. Hopefully we'll figure out our roles before we get New Mexico as far as the pitching staff. Who's going to close, who's going to throw middle relief? We've got some great candidates." Whatcott insists he doesn't feel the pressure that comes with being the ace of the staff. "Fortunately, we have a lot of good players," he said. "We've got a great bullpen. There's not a lot of pressure other than to STARTING LINEUPS CENTER FIELD LEFT FIELD #5 Hannah Clements #12 #40 Gavin Green Kara Foster #23 Cooper Blanc SHORT STOP #24 Kelsi Hoopiiaina #8 Michael Beltran SECOND BASE THIRD BASE #3 Whitney Holm #18 Tia Palauni #16 Tyler Yagi #9 Nick Kuroczko PITCHER #11 Preseason all-conference infielder Nick Kuroczko and the Utes are expecting to compete for a second consecutive conference championship season after returning all but three players from last year's team. CATCHER #7 go out there and throw strikes and give the b.brown@chronicle.utah.edu Ashley Smuda #20 Jordan Whatcott TYLER COBB/The Daily Utah Chronicle team a chance to win." The offense promises to be solid, returning Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year catcher C.J. Cron and preseason allconference third baseman Nick Kuroczko. Tyler Yagi, who started 38 games in the outfield last season, is expected to replace Shimada at second base and at the leadoff spot in the lineup. After redshirting last year, Nik Gumeson will replace Yagi in the outfield and will start the season in left field. Transfer Mark-Jan Moorman will replace Jones at first base, though Kinneberg expects Cron to also see some time at the position. Everything considered, Kinneberg says he expects the Utes to take the next step this season. "Our team has carried themselves a little different this year," he said. "I think the confidence is there for us. We need to survive this first 16,18 games on the road. We play a lot of games at home in April. So if we can survive that first month and get our feet underneath us from being indoors most of the time this winter, I really feel good about this club. We have a chance to be very well balanced and we have a chance to challenge, I think." The Utes will kick off the season tonight on the road against UC Davis and will not play their first home game until March 26 when Utah hosts Utah Valley University at Spring Mobile Stadium. RIGHT FIELD #13 Jasey Jensen Brooke Olson FIRST BASE #4 Brittany Parker #32 Mark-Jan Moorman #24 C.J. Cron MEN continued from Page 3 "That's been our problem this year," Brown said. "We'll feel good about one big win and then come out the next game and not play as good or play lackadaisical and complacent." Although the score of last month's game-the Aztecs won 70 to 68-could be interpreted as that of a hard-fought close game, San Diego State dominated for almost the entire match. It was only thanks to a furious Ute rally in the game's final minutes, combined with horrendous free-throw shooting by the Aztecs, that Utah got as close as it did. In their last meeting, the Aztecs were led by big man Malcolm Thomas, who became one of the few players to dominate Utah center David Foster on offense with 23 points on the night. The point total was a new career high for Thomas, #6 Rick Cornu who also added 13 rebounds. The Utes will no doubt try to contain Thomas better than they did last time, but they will also have to contain Aztec freshman forward Kawhi Leonard, who is leading the team in scoring with a 12.7 point per game average. Leonard is a two-time Mountain West Conference Player of the Week, and throughout the season has impressed plenty of coaches in the league, including Boylen. "Leonard might be the best rebounder at his position in the country. His physical presence is unbelievable and he plays with a ton of confidence," Boylen said. Ultimately, Saturday's game will depend on the Utes' ability to increase their offensive output just enough to complement their strong, consistent defense. "Our defense is as good as anybody in my opinion, but the question is, can we make shots? Can we be good enough offen- sively?" Boylen said. "We've got a good chance at winning defensively, and we're pretty good if we can keep teams in the 6os and we can just score 65, 66, 67 points, we've got a good chance of winning the game." Saturday's game is scheduled for 7 p.m. MT and will be televised on The Mtn. and broadcast on KALL 7ooAM. j.simmons@ chronicle.utah.edu EN'S BASKETBAL Season Utah Stats SDSU Points / game 67.6 71.8 FG% .436 .477 3-point FG% .313 .314 .746 FT% .605 34.2 Rebounds / game 38.3 12.1 Assists / game 13.5 13.4 Turnovers / game 13.8 Steals / game 5.7 7.8 Blocks / game 6.5 4.4 |
