Softball preps for Big 12 Championship

Team on a five-game losing streak hopes to turn it around in Oklahoma

By Evan Kafarakis

Thursday, May 10, 2007

As proud as coach Tracy Bunge was with last season’s Big 12 championship, it’s a thing of the past.

“Last year was last year, done and over with,” Bunge said.

The Kansas softball team returns to Oklahoma City, Okla., to participate in the Big 12 Championship.

A year ago, the sixth-seeded Jayhawks moved through the tournament to win their first ever Big 12 postseason championship.

The squad returns 10 letter winners from last season’s team and finds themselves ranked seventh in the field of 10.

“Last year we had six seniors that did a great deal at the end of the year,” Bunge said. “This team looks a lot different offensively and defensively and we have two seniors leading us.”

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Last year we had six seniors that did a great deal at the end of the year. This team looks a lot different offensively and defensively and we have two seniors leading us.

- Tracy Bunge, coach

Bunge also said that this year’s winner can be from one of eight teams and whoever is on the hot streak will come out as champions.

Kansas has to get going on their own hot streak.

The squad is on a five-game losing streak with their two most recent losses to the team they will face in game one of the championship, Iowa State.

The last time the Jayhawks had a five-game losing streak, they followed with a five-game winning streak.

“We stumbled last week,” Bunge said. “Mentally we didn’t seem like we were ready to play, and we let Iowa State dictate the game.”

The two teams have faced off against each other three times this season with the Cyclones having the overall lead 2-1 outscoring the Jayhawks 15-7.

If the Jayhawks can get through the Cyclones in single elimination, they will face the Sooners.

Oklahoma is ranked third in the field and split with Kansas in the regular season. Taking a look inside the numbers of the regular season shows how the Jayhawks have faired on the season.

Offensively, Kansas is 26-3 when scoring the first run of the game and 23-0 when they lead after five innings of play.

Defensively the Jayhawks are 18-5 when they don’t commit any errors.

On the other side, Kansas is 0-13 if they give up five or more runs and 2-19 when trailing after four innings.

The team is 4-11-1 when they commit two or more errors in a game.

Senior pitcher Kassie Humphreys(18-12) is one of the Big 12’s top pitchers.

Humphreys is holding opponents to a .194 batting average in 41 appearances. Humphreys’ five saves are tied with Sarah Clopton’s five in 2000 for the most in a season by a Jayhawk pitcher.

“Tournament time is to let everything that has been prepped the entire season to come out and shine.”

Kansan sportswriter Evan Kafarakis can be contacted at ekafarakis@kansan.com.

— Edited by Mark Vierthaler

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