USF and East Carolina each won tournaments over the weekend as the Bulls captured the B Bracket championship at the Speedline Invitational in Clearwater, Fla., and the Pirates won the Winthrop Invitational with a perfect 6-0 record. The Bulls open their C-USA schedule by hosting C-USA preseason favorite Louisville, while the Pirates travel to UAB for their second C-USA series of the season.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Hitter of the Week
Tiffany Stewart, USF
Jr, OF, Odessa, Fla.
Stewart batted .579 (11-for-19) during a 6-1 week for the Bulls, who claimed the Bracket B Championship at the Speedline Invitational. The junior hit safely in the six wins for USF and scored six runs on the week. She added a pair of doubles and triples and slugged .895, while stealing three bases.

Pitcher of the Week
Stephanie Hayes, East Carolina
Jr., LHP, Century, Fla.
Hayes picked up the save in the Pirates’ first conference win of the season over Saint Louis. She also added four innings of scoreless relief in game two vs. the Billikens. The junior was named the Most Outstanding Pitcher at the Winthrop Invitational after helping lead ECU to the team title. Hayes threw a complete-game shutout against East Tennessee State and picked up her second save of the week against Charleston Southern.

AROUND THE HORN

CHARLOTTE (10-15-1, 1-2 C-USA): The 49ers dropped a 2-1 decision to North Dakota State in the championship game of the Holiday Inn 49er Classic. KRISTEN BOWEN scattered 11 hits in the contest as she completed her 14th game of the season. KRISTI KILLOUGH, who leads Charlotte with a .306 average, was once again the 49ers’ top hitter for the week. The sophomore batted .318 (7-for-22) with a .682 slugging percentage (two triples, one double). Killough had all three of her extra-base hits in an 8-0 victory over Lafayette. Bowen has been a workhorse on the mound logging a league-high 108 innings with 14 complete games. The 49ers entertain Houston in their second C-USA series of the season this weekend in Charlotte.

DE PAUL (6-8, 0-0 C-USA): DePaul returns to action after a two-week break at the KIA Classic in Fullerton, Calif., on the weekend of March 17-20. In their last action, the Blue Demons split a pair of games at the NFCA Leadoff Classic picking up wins over Florida Atlantic and San Diego State. In the FAU contest, sophomore MEGAN HIUTINK tossed her first-career no-hitter in limiting the Owls to just a pair of walks. All-American SASKIA ROBERSON belted her third home run of the season to tie the game with the Aztecs at 3-3 in the seventh inning. She also had back-to-back doubles in a 2-0 loss to North Carolina. Roberson hit a .308 over the four-game classic that was shortened due to rain.

EAST CAROLINA (30-5, 2-1 C-USA): The Pirates posted a 6-0 record at the Winthrop Invitational en route to the overall tournament title. KRISTA JESSUP was named the tournament Most Valuable Player, while STEPHANIE HAYES was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Pitcher. East Carolina opened its league schedule by taking two of three from Saint Louis in mid-week action. The Pirates won games one and three, rallying from a 5-2 deficit to take the series with a 7-5 win in the finale.

HOUSTON (13-12, 0-0 C-USA): 3B KRISTEN GLOWACZ earned Houston’s first-ever national honor after USA Softball named her its Co-National Collegiate Player of the Week on March 8. Glowacz hit .667 (12-for-18) with five home runs and 11 RBI on the week including hitting back-to-back-to-back home runs against No. 16 Nebraska. The Cougars had a light schedule last week after hosting four-consecutive weekend tournaments. Houston dropped a doubleheader to No. 11 Texas A&M at home before taking the entire weekend off. 1B MICHELLE KEITH went 3-for-7 against the Aggies with a home run and three RBI. The Cougars travel to Charlotte to open C-USA action against the 49ers this weekend.

LOUISVILLE (12-9, 0-0 C-USA): The Cardinals returned to action by splitting four games at the Kansas Tournament dropping a pair of games to the host Jayhawks, while taking two from Southwest Missouri State. With two doubles on the weekend, senior LISA ESTES claimed sole possession of third place on the school’s career list for doubles with 33. SS COURTNEY MOORE continued her torrid pace to open the season by going 5-for-11 on the weekend with a double, a home run and two runs scored. Moore is second in the league and leads the team with a .444 batting average. Senior OF SARA BAUSHER leads the club with six home runs, while Moore is tops in RBI with 16 and triples with five. The Cardinals open C-USA action this weekend at USF.

SAINT LOUIS (6-9, 0-0 C-USA): The Billikens wrapped up their weekend at the Holiday Inn 49er Classic by stringing together back-to-back wins for the first time this season. Saint Louis defeated host Charlotte in a non-conference tilt before picking up its first mercy rule decision in an 8-0 victory over Lafayette. CF ADRIENNE MAY led the offense this week with a 9-for-20 effort (.450) in seven games. Saint Louis opened its C-USA schedule at East Carolina before making the two-hour drive to Charlotte. In Greensville, the Billikens dropped two of three to the Pirates. The Billikens will host Missouri-Kansas City in a doubleheader on Wednesday, which marks their home opener. It is the beginning of a seven-game homestand for Saint Louis that will see Southern Miss in town this weekend for a three-game C-USA series.

SOUTHERN MISS (15-12, 0-0 C-USA): Southern Miss finished the four-day Speedline Tournament with a 2-4 record picking up a 12-5 win over Pittsburgh and 2-0 shutout of Long Island. 3B ASHLEY BRENAN belted a three-run homer in the seven-run victory over the Pirates. For the week, Brennan batted .368 with four runs and four stolen bases. P DANIELL WYMER recorded a two-hit shutout in the win over Long Island. The Golden Eagles return to action this Thursday, Mar. 17, in a 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., doubleheader against Ole Miss. Southern Miss returns to Conference USA action this weekend, at Saint Louis.

UAB (11-17, 0-0 C-USA): The Blazers will begin conference play on Tuesday when they welcome East Carolina to Birmingham for a three-game series at George Ward Park. UAB dropped a non-conference doubleheader at Troy last week on the road. The Blazers, who finished seventh in C-USA last season, will face the Pirates at 3 p.m. on Tuesday for a doubleheader and then complete the series with a 1 p.m. game on Wednesday. Senior SARA CHRISTOPHEL leads the UAB offense with a pair of home runs and 10 RBI. She was named MVP of the 2005 Union State Bank Magic City Classic earlier this month, as she hit .364 in the four games of the tournament with one home run, five RBI and two runs scored.

USF (21-13, 0-0 C-USA): The Bulls posted a 6-1 record for the week including a 5-1 stretch that led them to the championship of the B Bracket at the Speedline Invitational in Clearwater, Fla. RF TIFFANY STEWART earned the Bulls’ second C-USA Hitter of the Week honors following her 11-for-19 effort at the plate. Stewart drove in four runs to go with two doubles, two triples and four stolen bases. Sophomore DANIELLE URBANIK picked up a pair of wins in three appearances in the circle, while also adding six hits and six RBI at the plate. USF hosts C-USA preseason favorite Louisville this weekend in its conference opening series in Tampa.

NATIONAL POLLS

ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll (Week 5 – Feb. 28-Mar. 7)
1. Arizona (17)
2. California (3)
3. Stanford
4. Texas
5. Michigan
6. UCLA
7. Tennessee
8. Louisiana-Lafayette
9. Baylor
10. Alabama
11. Texas A&M
12. Oklahoma
13. LSU
14. Washington
15. Georgia
16. Florida
17. Fresno State
18. Oregon State
19. Nebraska
20. Georgia Tech
21. Missouri
22. Florida State
23. Northwestern
24. Iowa
25. Long Beach State
Parenthesis Denotes first place votes.

USA TODAY/NFCA Poll (Week 4, Mar. 9)
1. Arizona (23)
2. California (1)
3. Stanford
4. Tennessee
4. UCLA
6. Michigan
7. Louisiana-Lafayette
8. Alabama
9. Oklahoma
10. Baylor
11. Texas
12. LSU
13. Georgia
14. Texas A&M
15. Washington
16. Oregon State
17. Florida
18. Nebraska
19. Georgia Tech
20. Missouri
21. Florida State
22. Fresno State
23. Northwestern
24. Arizona State
25. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Parenthesis Denotes first place votes.

DIAMOND STARS (Feb. 28-Mar. 6)

CHARLOTTE: KRISTI KILLOUGH batted .318 on the week for the 49ers. Against Lafayette, went 3-for-4 with a double, two triples and three RBI.

EAST CAROLINA: KRISTA JESSUP went 3-for-10 in the C-USA series win over Saint Louis and earned MVP honors at the Winthrop Invitational.

HOUSTON: 1B MICHELLE KEITH went 3-for-7 in a doubleheader loss to No. 11 Texas A&M. Keith also homered and drove in three runs vs. the Aggies.

LOUISVILLE: SS COURTNEY MOORE batted .455 (5-for-11) on the weekend with a double, a home run, two runs scored and three RBI in the KU Tournament.

SAINT LOUIS: CF ADRIENNE MAY hit safely in all seven contests for the Billikens finishing with a .450 clip (9-for-20) for the week. She also drew six walks.

SOUTHERN MISS: DANIELLE WYMER picked up two wins at the Speedline Invitational including a two-hit shutout against Long Island.

UAB: 1B KRIS LARA went 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBI in a doubleheader loss to Troy.

USF: UP DANIELLE URBANIK notched to wins for the Bulls in the Speedline Invitational. She logged 13 innings and struck out seven in three appearances.

GLOWACZ GRABS NATIONAL HONORS
USA Softball recognized Houston 3B KRISTEN GLOWACZ as its Co-National Collegiate Player of the Week on March 8 after the senior batted .667 with five home runs and 11 RBI for the week (Feb. 28-March 6). Glowacz hit back-to-back-to-back homers in the Cougars’ second victory of the weekend over No. 16 Nebraska. She shared the honor with UCLA freshman Anjelica Selden, who tossed a pair of no-hitters against St. John’s and No. 18 Fresno State.

GLOWACZ GOES BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK
Houston 3B KRISTEN GLOWACZ had a Sunday to remember in a pair of Cougar wins over No. 16 Nebraska and Texas Southern. The senior hit back-to-back-to-back home runs in a 6-2 win over the Cornhuskers, then added a long ball in a 15-1 win over the Bobcats. For the day, Glowacz went 6-for-6 at the plate with four home runs, six RBI and six runs scored. In the process, she set or tied five school records. Glowacz now ranks first on the UH charts in runs scored, home runs in a game and is tied a top the list for career homers and RBI.

OUT OF OUR LEAGUE
For the fifth season in a row, Conference USA teams posted a winning record in non-conference action during the 2004 campaign. League teams won nearly 60 percent of their non-league games. Here’s a look at how the league has fared in non-conference action in the six years the league has sponsored softball:

2005: 117-95-1 (.552)
2004: 192-134-2 (.588)
2003: 156-92-1 (.628)
2002: 180-125-1 (.589)
2001: 94-81-1 (.537)
2000: 78-71(.523)

C-USA ON THE WEB
For all of the latest information on Conference USA baseball and the league’s other 18 sports, please visit www.ConferenceUSA.com.

McNUTT NETS 300th WIN
Southern Miss head coach GAY McNUTT recorded the 300th victory of her coaching career on Feb. 13 at the Rebel/Easton Tournament in Oxford. USM rallied for the historic victory defeating Ball State 5-4 to improve to a 4-2 on the young season.

BACK-TO-BACK NO-NO’s
Houston sophomore CARLA KENNIMER became the first Cougar pitcher to throw back-to-back no-hitters as she blanked both Northern Illinois and Buffalo in consecutive starts at the Houston Marriott/Hobby Invite on Feb. 27-28. The no-hitters were the fourth and fifth in the history of Houston softball as the Porter, Texas native fanned 10 and retired the side in order during 11 of 14 innings she pitched.

WIN STREAKS
USF posted the longest winning streak of the season at 17, a mark tied for the fourth longest in conference history in 2004. With six wins to open its season, East Carolina remained the only undefeated team in league play after posting a 4-0 record and winning the team title at the Georgia State Fast Pitch Classic this past weekend. Here’s a look at the league’s longest winning streaks:

25 Southern Miss (April 8-May 19, 2000)
21 DePaul (March 26-April 24, 2003)
19 DePaul (March 24-April 14, 2001)
17 USF (Feb. 9-Mar. 7, 2003)
17 USF (March 14 – April 9, 2004)
17 Southern Miss (Feb. 29-March 18, 2000)
14 East Carolina (March 14-27, 2004)
13 Louisville (March 27, 2004 – April 21)
12 DePaul (April 9-May 2, 2002 )
11 Houston (Feb. 1-Feb. 16, 2002)
11 USF (Mar. 9- 23, 2002)
10 DePaul (April 29-May 16, 2003)
10 USF (April 4-25, 2003)
10 USF (March 4-12, 2004)
10 Southern Miss (Feb. 13-Feb. 27, 2000)
10 UAB (Mar. 8-Mar. 26, 2002)

2005 C-USA TOURNAMENT
The 2005 Conference USA Softball Tournament will be held May 12-14 in Tampa, Fla. The University of South Florida will serve as the host for the event, which will be played at The USF Softball Complex. This will be the second time the Bulls have hosted the tournament. DePaul won its first of three-straight conference tournaments at the USF Softball Complex in 2002.