Washington No. 1 for 11th consecutive time

OKLAHOMA CITY — For the 11th consecutive time, Washington (33-3, 5-1 Pac-10) claimed the No. 1 spot in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 poll announced today by the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America. The Huskies have held the top spot since June 9, 2009, just days after winning the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.

Click here for the complete poll.

After playing then No. 5 UCLA in the opening weekend of Pac-10 play, and taking two of three games, the Huskies (33-3, 5-1 Pac-10) were supposed to face their toughest test of the season last week against then No. 2 Arizona (32-7, 2-4 Pac-10). But the Dawgs made easy work of the Wildcats, dropping them to No. 3 in the poll with a three-game sweep, 2-1, 7-0 and 9-3, in Seattle. … Continue Reading

LSU’s Kirsten Shortridge Named USA Softball Collegiate Player Of The Week

This honor is great for our program. I wouldn’t have won this award without the help of my teammates and coaches,” said Shortridge. “Our lineup, defense and pitching are strong. It was important for us to start the SEC season strong, but we still have work to do to reach our goals for the season.”

Shortridge was 8-for-11 at the plate fueled by a trio of multi-hit performances to raise her season average by 43 points to a scorching .420 mark. She also scored seven runs, stole a base in each game and picked up three RBI from the leadoff spot to spark the Tigers to a weekend sweep at South Carolina. … Continue Reading

Georgia Tech’s Yee Named Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I National Player of the Week

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Senior second baseman Jen Yee has been named the Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I National Player of the Week for games played between February 22-28.

Yee powered her way to a .545 batting average last week by going 12-for-22 with six home runs, eight runs and 14 RBIs. She also walked twice and had one stolen base. … Continue Reading

Messiah Tops Preseason NFCA Division III Top 25

Defending national champion Messiah received all eight first-place votes, taking the No. 1 spot in the preseason NFCA Division III Top 25 Poll, the association announced Wednesday.

Messiah will again be led by sophomore Jessica Rhoads, who dominated the national championship tournament both from the rubber and at the plate, culminating in the school’s first national championship and a 43-4 overall record. East Texas Baptist and Ohio Northern begin 2010 sharing the No. 2 spot. ETBU went 39-9 a year ago, while Ohio Northern returns all but one starter to a team that made its first appearance at the national championship. Fellow championship participant Cortland State starts at No. 4, and national championship runner-up Coe, which finished 41-13 a season ago, rounds out the top five. … Continue Reading

Texas Tech Reported Recruiting Violations

LUBBOCK — Texas Tech filed a report with the NCAA over the summer admitting violations of a ban on text-messaging recruits in three sports — football, men’s golf and softball.

The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reports that Tech athletic director Gerald Myers referred most questions to Brian Shannon, Tech’s faculty representative who has communicated with NCAA and Big 12 Conference officials on the case.

Shannon told the newspaper that violations were uncovered last February by Tech’s athletic compliance staff in a routine review of phone records. He said that after an internal investigation, Tech sent a report to the NCAA and the Big 12 in July that included self-imposed penalties. … Continue Reading

NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll – 2010 Preseason

The NFCA Division II Top 25 is voted on by 16 NCAA Division II head coaches, two representing each of the eight NCAA regions. Final 2009 records are shown. First-place votes are in parentheses. … Continue Reading

USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll – 2010 Preseason

The USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 30 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each of the 30 conferences. Records shown are the teams final 2009 records. Last ranking reflects the final 2009 poll. First-place votes are in parentheses. … Continue Reading

Mizuno Re-Signs Washington Huskies to Equipment Contract

Norcross, GA (November 10, 2009) – Mizuno USA, Inc., announced today that the company has reached a multi-year equipment contract extension with the University of Washington Huskies to remain an “Official Corporate Sponsor of the Women’s Softball Program.” Washington’s softball team will continue to be equipped in Mizuno, utilizing the company’s bats, ball gloves, bat bags, accessories, and protective gear.

Washington won the 2009 NCAA Softball National Championship, the program’s first national title, with a 51-12 overall record and a 14-7 record in the Pacific-10 Conference. The Huskies went to their ninth Women’s College World Series in school history, where they had previously finished as the National Runner Up in 1996 and in 1999. Head Coach Heather Tarr enters her sixth season as the Head Coach of the Huskies.
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Hays Named Head Softball Coach at Texas Tech

Texas Tech Athletic Director Gerald Myers announced Shanon Hays, who has guided the program at Lubbock Christian for the past three years, as new head coach for the Red Raider softball program. Hays will become the seventh head softball coach in the history of the program, and the fifth since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996.

“We have studied the pool of applicants, sought out expert advice and conducted a thorough investigation of where the collegiate softball game is headed and all roads led us back to Coach Hays being the best fit for Texas Tech,” said Gerald Myers. … Continue Reading

NCAA puts a moratorium on composite baseball bats, are softball bats next?

I was just sent a copy of a memorandum that was sent out to all the major bat manufacturers. This particular memorandum is about composite baseball bats, but it opens the question What about softball bats. Instead of describing the memorandum I am just going to post it, and you an read it for yourself. … Continue Reading