UT Climbs to No. 7 in Newest NFCA Softball Poll
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Tampa softball team moved up two spots to No. 7 in the NFCA Division II Poll that was released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association on Wednesday.
Tampa (31-6, 19-5 SSC) is led by a dynamic pitching duo of Julia Morrow and Kayla Cox. Morrow has been nearly unhittable as the junior is now 15-3 with 177 strikeouts while sporting a 0.49 ERA in 114.1 innings. Cox sports an equally impressive 16-3 record with 193 strikeouts in 144.1 innings and an ERA of 0.78.
Offensively, Lindsay Dring and Meagan Burke are leading the way, hitting .379 and .361 respectively. Dring has 36 hits on the season with 14 RBI, while Burke posts team-highs with five homeruns and 17 RBI. Kayleen Boatwright has also contributed while batting .325 with 38 hits and nine RBI.
Among NCAA leaders, Tampa is first in the nation with a 0.65 team ERA. The Spartans are also ranked 20th with a .970 fielding percentage.
Morrow is the national leader in ERA and hits per seven innings (2.76) while Cox is ranked fourth in the nation in ERA and third in hits per seven innings (3.39).
Kandi Kuder ranks third in the nation in sacrifice hits per game (.49) and is also 13th in toughest to strikeout as the junior catcher strikes out one time in every 55.5 at bats.
Fellow NCAA South Region foes Alabama-Huntsville (39-7) and Valdosta State (36-12) now sit at No. 2 and No. 20 respectively. North Alabama is listed as receiving votes along with fellow Sunshine State Conference rival Rollins.
Tampa has now been ranked for a school-record 51 consecutive weeks after reaching its highest ranking ever at No. 2 earlier this season.
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.
UT clinched a share of the SSC title and earned the automatic qualifier bid to the NCAA Tournament by sweeping the season series from Rollins. NCAA regional play is set to begin May 9 with the selection show set to air on NCAA.com at 10 a.m. on Monday. Please visit www.tampaspartans.com for complete information on the 2014 NCAA Tournament.