• Friday, Feb. 21 | UNLV vs Miami (OH) | 9 a.m. PT | Live Stats 
• Friday, Feb. 21 | UNLV vs St. Francis | 11 a.m. PT | Live Stats
• Saturday, Feb. 22 | UNLV vs St. Louis | 9 a.m. PT | Live Stats
• Saturday, Feb. 22 | UNLV vs UT Chattanooga | 1 p.m. PT | Live Stats
• Sunday, Feb. 16 | UNLV vs SIUE | 6 a.m. PT | Live Stats 

LAS VEGAS. (UNLVRebels.com) - After opening the 2020 season with two consecutive home tournaments, UNLV softball (7-4) will head out on the road for the first time, traveling east for UT Chattanooga's Frost Classic, February 21-23. The three-day tournament features six teams and will be played on UT Chattanooga's home field, Frost Stadium, and at an off-campus field.

The Rebels open the event taking on Miami (Ohio) on Friday at 9 a.m. PT in a rematch from a close contest last season in Las Vegas, which the Red Hawks won 1-0. Their second game of the day is against St. Francis at 11 a.m. PT. Saturday's games will be against St. Louis at 9 a.m. PT and against host UT Chattanooga at 1 p.m. PT. UNLV will wrap up the tournament Sunday at 6 a.m. PT taking on SIUE.

After starting the season 1-3, UNLV rebounded nicely, winning its next six before dropping the final game of the Marucci Desert Classic. The Rebels will head into the weekend in Tennessee at 7-4 overall and facing only one other team that is over .500 through the first two weeks of the season.

The pitching staff has been the star of the show so far in 2020 as the trio of sophomore Jenny Bressler and seniors Breana Burke and Charlie Masterson have been brilliant through 11 games, recording a Mountain West-leading ERA of 1.15. That mark also currently ranks 14th in the country. Their start should come as no surprise after the three combined to register UNLV's best ERA since 2005 a season ago. They have allowed just 17 runs total - only 12 of those earned - on 53 hits, with both marks best in the conference so far.

The Rebel offense proved it can be explosive at the Marucci Desert Classic as they outscored opponents 33-4 in the five wins. That included six innings where the Rebels scored four or more runs, highlighted by a seven-run first inning against Utah Valley Saturday that saw back-to-back-to-back home runs from senior Justine Federe, freshman Caitlin Covington and junior Samantha Diaz. While the offense can be explosive at times, the overall numbers rank near the middle of the Mountain West, so the Rebels will look for more consistency at the plate moving forward.

UNLV returns home next weekend to host its third and final non-conference home tournament, the Boyd Gaming Classic, February 28-March 1 at Eller Media Stadium.

QUICK HITTERS
• After going 1-3 to start the season, UNLV won six straight before losing the weekend finale at the Marucci Desert Classic
• Registered three straight shutouts to open the tournament
• UNLV's 1.15 ERA ranks first in the Mountain West and is currently 14th in the country
• Rebels also rank first in the MW through two weeks in runs allowed (17), earned runs allowed (12) and opposing bating average (.198)
• The Rebels' .271 batting average ranks sixth in the Mountain West, while they are fifth in hits (72), and tied for fourth in home runs (10)
• Outscored opponents 33-4 in five wins at the Marucci Desert Classic, was shut out for just the second time this season in Sunday's 2-0 loss to Utah Valley
• Situationally, the Rebels are hitting best with two outs at a clip of .330. With runners in scoring position, which was their strong suit a year ago, they are hitting .284
• After committing four errors on opening day, including three in the first game, UNLV has committed just four errors in nine games since
• Rebels' .974 fielding percentage  ranks second in the Mountain West
• Freshman Maddie Schmidt has had a stellar start at the plate in her first collegiate season, leading the team in batting average (.429), which ranks third in the MW, to go along with a team-best 12 hits and team second-best nine runs scored
• The Rebels again aren't afraid to run in 2020 as Schmidt and senior Lauren Tycksen have 13 of UNLV's 15 stolen bases, with Tycksen's seven ranking second in the league and Schmidt's six ranking third
• Junior Mia Trejo leads the team with 11 RBI, which is tied for fifth in the MW
• Senior second baseman Justine Federe has been her consistent self at the plate with 11 hits, three doubles, two home runs, 10 RBI and five run scored
• The Rebels have 10 home runs with the usual suspects - Mia Trejo, Samantha Diaz and Justine Federe - combining for nine of them
• Like Schmidt, another freshman Caitlin Covington has been impressive at the plate in her first collegiate season with eight hits, a home run, five RBI and five runs scored
• Schmidt leads the team in multi-hit games with four, while Federe is top with four multi-RBI games
• Both Federe and Trejo enter the weekend on five-game hitting streaks, while Trejo has an 11-game on-base streak
• The Rebel pitching staff has been lights out so far in 2020 thanks to all three pitchers from last year's stingy staff returning. Senior Breana Burke and Charlie Masterson and sophomore Jenny Bressler all rank in the top-10 in the MW in ERA, with Burke in second at 0.65, Masterson in fourth at 0.79 and Bressler tied for sixth at 1.31
• Burke also leads the conference in opposing batting average (.135)
• All three NFCA All-Region selections from last spring return this year - senior Justine Federe, junior Mia Trejo and sophomore Jenny Bressler
• Burke as become Ms. Versatility as both a starter and in a closer role - at the Marucci Desert Classic she threw a complete-game shutout against Montana, then closed out two other games. For the season she's finished four games, which ranks tied for third in the MW.
• UNLV was picked third in the 2019 Mountain West Preseason Coaches poll, its highest predicted finish since 2015
• Andy Jarvis was promoted to Associate Head Coach prior to the 2020 campaign after being an integral part of the success at the plate and the stellar defense in the outfield
• Pitching coach Emily Vincent, who was a standout pitcher at McNeese State, enters her second season after leading the pitching staff to the top ERA in the conference in 2019

LIVE STATS/UPDATES
Live stats for all five games are available at www.UNLVRebels.com. Live updates can also be found by following @UNLVSoftball on twitter.