Jan. 29, 2003
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STORYLINE: The UNLV Softball team (0-0) begins its 22nd season of play and its 2003 campaign this week with a non-conference doubleheader against Cal Poly (0-0) on Friday, Jan. 31, at 1:00 p.m. at Eller Media Stadium. Following Friday's opener, the Rebs return to their home field on Tuesday, Feb. 4, for a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader with Saint Mary's ... UNLV won its first four games at Eller Media Stadium last season, including a sweep of the Gaels in the first games played at the new facility ... The Rebels also defeated the Mustangs in their only meeting a year ago, surprising Cal Poly 7-3 at the UNLV Softball Classic.
ABOUT UNLV: The Rebels return five starters in the field and two in the circle from last season's 30-34 team that finished third in the Mountain West Conference ... All-Mountain West Conference third baseman Pauline Glenn (.251/11/34) is the Rebels' returning leader in home runs and RBI, and outfielder Lisa Moses (.304/0/13) is the team's top returning hitter for the second straight year ... In the circle, Jackie Kerrigan (9-15, 2.16) had a team-best ERA and 125 strikeouts last year, and Kacey Ellis (7-3, 2.60) was tops in winning percentage ... The Rebels were chosen to finish fourth in a vote by the league's six head coaches ... Head coach Shan McDonald begins her 17th season at the helm of the Rebel program and carries an overall coaching mark of 490-450-2 (.521).
ALUMNI RECAP: In its only exhibition of the spring season, the Rebels lost a 1-0 heartbreaker to their former teammates at the annual Almuni game. Back-to-back doubles by Melissa Inouye and Christine Parris-Washington in the top of the first accounted for the game's only run. It was the second straight year that Washington drove in the only run of the game. The alumni's pitching staff of two-time Olympian Lori Harrigan and 2002 All-American Geney Orris combined to hold the Rebels to just two hits.
ABOUT CAL POLY: Cal Poly (0-0) also opens it season with Friday's game. The Mustangs return five starters and 15 letterwinners from last season's 25-29 team that finished sixth in the Big West Conference. Head coach Lisa Boyer owns a career mark of 392-311 as she begins her 16th season at Cal Poly. With a win, the Rebels can even the series at 3-3 and make it two straight.
ABOUT SAINT MARY'S: Saint Mary's (0-0) will see some action before arriving in Las Vegas at the Canyon Park Thunderbird Classic in St. George, Utah. The Gaels are slated to face Oregon State, BYU, Southern Utah and Cal Poly before tangling with the Rebels on Tuesday. Head coach Trisha Dean led SMC to a 17-37 record in 2003, her first season at the helm of the program. Two of those losses came in the first two games ever played at Eller Media Stadium, giving theRebels a perfect 6-0 record in the series.
ON DECK: Following the four-game homestand to open the year, the Rebels head for the road to compete in one of the top tournaments in the nation, the Fiesta Bowl Tourney hosted by Arizona State in Phoenix and Tempe, Ariz, Feb. 7-9. UNLV will square off against Stanford, Texas, Oregon State, Texas Tech and Southwest Texas State over the course of the three-day event.
