May 9, 2006

Game Notes in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Listen to the game online at Tournament Central.

PROVIDENCE TO FACE NOTRE DAME IN BIG EAST TOURNAMENT... With an 11-11 mark in conference play, the Friars earned a sixth seed in the BIG EAST Tournament and will battle tournament host, Notre Dame on Thursday, March 11. It marks the first time since 1996 that the Friars have made it to the conference tournament. In all, the Friars have reached the BIG EAST Tournament seven times (1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2006).

FRIARS VERSUS NOTRE DAME... PC's game against Notre Dame on March 11, will mark the second meeting between the two teams in the BIG EAST Tournament. The two teams met in 1996 and the Fighting Irish posted a 3-2 victory. In two regular season meetings this season, the Fighting Irish defeated the Friars, 4-1 and 8-0, on April 2 in South Bend, Ind. In all, PC is 0-23 against Notre Dame, including a 0-12 mark in South Bend.

FRIAR HISTORY IN THE BIG EAST TOURNAMENT... PC has posted a 9-11 record all-time in the BIG EAST Tournament record. In 1994, the Friars went 4-1 en route to capturing their first BIG EAST Tournament crown. Most recently in 1996, PC recorded a 0-2 mark in tournament action.

SCOUTING NOTRE DAME... The Fighting Irish come into the tournament having won three of their last four games, including a doubleheader sweep at St. John's on Sunday, May 7. Junior Stephanie Brown leads the team with a .402 batting average on 72 hits, while Meagan Ruthrauff is tops on the squad with 10 home runs and 38 RBIs. On the pitcher's circle, Heather Booth boasts a 22-10 record, with 214 strikeouts in 221 innings of action.

FRIARS VS. THE TOURNAMENT FIELD... Providence posted a 4-10 record this season against BIG EAST Tournament opponents with three of those wins coming on the road. PC's victories came against DePaul, St. John's, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.

WHAT'S NEXT... The winner of the PC/Notre Dame game will play the winner of the USF/Pittsburgh game on Friday, May 12 at 6:30 p.m.

FRIARS OVERCOME PRESEASON PREDICTION... Providence, which was picked to finish 11th out of 12 teams in the BIG EAST Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, finished in sixth place, their highest finish since the 2004 squad placed fifth.

FRIARS WIN 11 BIG EAST GAMES... PC's 11 wins in BIG EAST Conference play marks the most by a Friar squad since the 1995 team posted a 12-8 league mark. The 11 wins also are more than double the amount of conference wins from all of last season (5). The record for most BIG EAST wins in one year is 13, which was set in 1993. In addition, the record for most overall wins is 38, which was established in 1994 and 1995.

FRIARS ONE WIN SHY OF 30... With their 29-18-1 overall record, the Friars are one win shy of reaching the 30-win mark for the third consecutive season. The only other time that PC had three consecutive seasons with 30 or more wins was from 1993-95.

FRIARS IN CLOSE GAMES... The Friars posted a 9-4 regular season record this season in one run games, including a 3-2 mark in BIG EAST Conference contests. In addition, the Friars were 1-4-1 in extra inning games.

HEAD COACH Kerri Jacklets... In just her first season as head coach, Kerri Jacklets, a 2001 Providence College graduate, has guided her team to a 29-18-1 record and a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time since 1996. Jacklets served as an assistant coach last season at Providence. Prior to that, she was an assistant at Brown for three seasons. She enjoyed a stellar career as a catcher at Providence from 1998-01. She ranks second all-time at the College in batting average (.315), fifth all-time in home runs (18), fifth all-time in hits (179). In 2001, she was named to the All-Northeast Region First Team and was a four-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star.

BARTHOLOMEW LEADING THE WAY FOR PC... Junior catcher Rachel Bartholomew (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) has led the Friars in numerous offensive categories this season, including batting average (.361), hits (56), home runs (12), RBIs (42) and slugging percentage (.631). Bartholomew also led the Friars in conference games as she recorded a .358 batting average with six home runs and 17 RBIs. Her six home runs was the second highest total in league play. On April 24, she was named BIG EAST Player of the Week.

SISTER ACT... PC junior Rachel Bartholomew (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.), younger sister of former Friar pitcher Nicole Bartholomew `05, has followed in her sister's footsteps. Nicole set multiple pitching records at Providence, while Rachel recently became the College's all-time leading home run hitter. Rachel has 28 career home runs, three ahead of current Friar senior Michelle Willette (Moorpark, Calif.). In addition, Rachel has 111 RBIs, eight shy of setting a PC record. FRIAR ALUMNI AMONG THE COACHING RANKS... Four former PC softball players serve has head coaches at NCAA Division I schools. Kerri Jacklets `01, who played at Providence, currently is the head coach at her alma mater. Amy Kvilhaug `96, one of PC's all-time greatest pitchers, serves as the head coach at Radford University. Jen Finley `92 is the head coach at Boston College, while Cori Van Dusen `04 is the assistant coach. In addition, twin sisters Kate Drohan `95 and Caryl Drohan `95 serve as the head coach and the associate head coach, respectively, at nationally ranked Northwestern.

SUROSKY CLIMBING THE CHARTS... With 158 strikeouts this season, junior pitcher Sara Surosky (Elmira, N.Y.) now has totalled 283 career strikeouts, which ranks fourth all-time at Providence. In addition, the 158 strikeouts is the second highest season total, behind Nicole Bartholomew `05, who had 192 in 2005. Surosky's 17 wins is third highest single season total in team history and her 29 starts ties a single season mark.

STREAKING FRIARS... Providence has had four players with hit streaks of 10 games or more this season. Senior Elena Romero (Chula Vista, Calif.) had a 15-game hit streak from 4/15 - 4/30. Junior Rachel Bartholomew (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) and sophomore Sam Pittman (San Diego, Calif.) each had a 14-game hit streak. Bartholomew's hit streak went from 4/13 - 4/30, while Pittman's hit streak lasted from 3/11 - 4/1. Freshman Gina Rossi (Bakersfield, Calif.) had a 10-game hit streak from 3/8 - 3/19.