Tampa Enters NCAA Tournament as Nation’s No. 5 Team
STARKVILLE, Miss. - With the regular season complete, the University of Tampa softball team will enter NCAA tournament play as the No. 5 team in the nation, according to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division II Top 25 poll.
The 36-6 Spartans are one of five South Region teams in the top-25, joined by Valdosta State (1), Barry (13), Rollins (14) and Alabama-Huntsville (22). Tampa wrapped up the regular season at No. 2 in the NCAA South Region, earning the right to host a four-team regional beginning Friday.
Pitching has been dominant for the Spartans, who won their first 11 Sunshine State Conference games for the program's best start in league play. UT's pitching duo of Deanna Henriott and Kayla Cox has a combined ERA of 0.71 as opposing hitters are batting just .131 against the pair. Tampa now has 25 shutouts in 2012.
As a team, the Spartans are number-one in the nation in ERA and third in fielding percentage as the Spartans own a .979 team fielding clip. UT is also fifth with a .857 winning percentage and 21st in triples per game at 0.33.
Among national leaders, Cox is first in ERA (0.24), first in strikeouts per seven innings (11.9), first in hits allowed per seven innings (2.37), 25th in strikeouts (196) and seventh in shutouts (12).
Cox also currently carries a streak of 74.1 scoreless innings pitched without an earned run, which represents a school record for the sophomore from Riverview, Fla.
Henriott, who notched her 1,000th career strikeout earlier in the season, is currently 18th in NCAA Division II history with 1,079. She is also 10th in the nation this season in ERA (1.01), second in strikeouts per seven innings (11.1), 36th in wins (21), second in hits allowed per seven innings (3.53), seventh in strikeouts (287) and sixth in shutouts (13).
Additionally, third baseman Susan Jallo is ranked 40th in the nation in triples with four.
Tampa has now been ranked in every poll throughout the 2012 season and holds a current streak of 23 consecutive weeks in the national rankings, marking a program record.
The Spartans will meet West Alabama on Friday at 7 p.m., to open NCAA play. UT will host the games at Vince Naimoli Family Field. Also NCAA South Regional games will include live stats and a video webcast through TampaSpartans.tv.
The NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll is voted on by 16 NCAA Division II head coaches, two representing each of the eight NCAA regions.