Tigers Head West For DeMarini Desert Classic

Friday, February 17

Las Vegas, Nev.

2:15 PM

University of Memphis

Boise State

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Feb 16, 2017 | Softball

Memphis will compete against five teams in Las Vegas this weekend

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis softball team hits the road this weekend for a three-day trip to Las Vegas, Nev. for the DeMarini Desert Classic hosted by UNLV. Memphis will play against Boise State, Utah State, Hawai'I, UNLV, and Nevada over the course of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Tournament Schedule
February 17 – Memphis vs. Boise State at 2:15 p.m. CT (Live Stats)
February 17 – Memphis vs. Utah State at 4:30 p.m. CT
February 18 – Memphis vs. Hawai'I at 2:15 p.m. CT
February 18 – Memphis vs. UNLV at 6:45 p.m. CT (Live Stats)
February 19 – Memphis vs. Nevada at 11:00 a.m. CT (Live Stats)

Quick Hitters

This is the second of six non-conference tournaments for Memphis this season. The Tigers went 3-2 to start the season in Florida last weekend.
The 3-0 start before dropping the final two games to FIU was the best start in school history.
Junior Molly Smith was awarded her first-ever American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week honor this past week after going 1-1 with a 1.11 ERA at the Felsberg Invitational.
Lindsay Crowdus was named to The American's Weekly Honor Roll after going 11-for-14 including nine-straight official at bats with a hit last weekend. She leads the Tigers so far this season in stolen bases with three.
The Tigers have picked up right where they left off last season with nine stolen bases. Memphis recorded a school record 89 in 2016.
Memphis returns all but one of its starters from the 2016 season. Lindsay Crowdus, Lindsey Stickrod, and Kyler Trosclair return as the top three hitters from last year.
Memphis was picked to finish fifth in the American Athletic Conference standings as voted on by the conference's head coaches.
Head coach Natalie Poole is in her sixth season at the helm of the Tiger program.

A Look At The Competition

Of the five teams at the DeMarini Desert Classic, only two of them Memphis has competed against. This is the first meeting against Boise State, Utah State and Nevada.
Boise State has opened up the season with a 1-2 overall record and only played three games last weekend due to weather issues. Seven pitchers saw action for the Broncos and 12 different players earned starts. Tatiana Sorokina and Rebeka Cervantes each recorded a team-high four hits last weekend.
Utah State has gotten off to a 4-1 start with Paxton Provost leading the way offensively with a .467 batting average and a team-high seven hits.
The Rainbow Warriors of Hawai'I are 2-1 this season after hosting last weekend. In 14.0 innings pitched, Brittany Hitchcock allowed just two earned runs with a team-high 19 strikeouts. Hawai'I has a 4-1 all-time advantage over Memphis.
UNLV, the host school this weekend, is 3-2 to start the year with Morgan Ettinger earning two of those victories. Brianna Gatlin leads the team with two doubles, two triples, and a .500 batting average. UNLV has won the only match-up against Memphis.
Nevada, who Memphis has never competed against, is also 3-2 to date. The Wolf Pack are led by Alyssa Mendez and Jennifer Purcell at the plate with a combined 14 hits. McKenna Iserberg, in 15.2 innings of work, has struck out 27 batters.

Final Details
First pitch against Boise State on Friday afternoon is set for 2:15 p.m. CT in Las Vegas, Nev. Available live stats this weekend are accessible at www.gotigersgo.com. Not every game this weekend will have live stats, therefore follow Memphis softball on Facebook and Twitter at @MemphisSoftball for updates.