DePaul will be making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in the past nine years, when it faces fifth-seeded Penn State on Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament; Gear up for another exciting postseason by reading this week's C-USA Softball Notebook


DEPAUL CLAIMS TITLE
DePaul captured its first Conference USA Tournament title, after defeating No. 3 UAB, 2-1 in the championship game last weekend. With the score tied at 1-1, DePaul's SASKIA ROBERSON notched a sacrifice fly to score pinch runner JENNY DOEZIE and claim a 2-1 win over the Blazers. DePaul's LINDSEY CHOUINARD was named the Tournament MVP, after posting a 3-0 record during the tournament. Other All-Tournament honorees were DePaul's Gina Ramacci, Liz Bouck, Sarah Martz and Sarah Douglas, UAB's Candice Hithe, Sara Christophel and Megan Stephenson, Southern Miss' Amanda Brown, East Carolina's Angela Manzo and Louisville's Kenzie Meisenburg.

THE BIG DANCE
DePaul will be making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in the past nine years, when it faces fifth-seeded Penn State on Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. The Blue Demons are the No. 2 seed in Region 2 of the NCAA Tournament, hosted by the University of Minnesota. DePaul posted a C-USA record 20-1 league ledger and have an overall mark of 46-9, to rank No. 16 in the lastest NFCA/USA Today poll. As the No. 2 seed, the Blue Demons will face Penn State, which notched a 32-24 overall on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.

DID YOU KNOW?
For the third-straight year, C-USA has had three or more schools with 30-plus wins. This year, DePaul (46-9), UAB (39-22), East Carolina (38-26) and Houston (35-25) have all reached the 35-win plateau this season. The Blue Demons needs four wins to become third team in C-USA history to win 50 games in a season.


AROUND THE HORN

CHARLOTTE (24-27, 6-15): Charlotte finished the season, splitting a pair of games with Southern Miss on May 5. The 1-0 win in game one was the 49ers' first ever against the Golden Eagles. The Niners finish the year 24-27, 6-15. Their 24 wins are the most for the program since the 1997 season. Their six C-USA victories are the most since joining the league three years ago. In game two of the doubleheader, LEAH HESTON blasted a home run to left center in her final collegiate at bat. It was her seventh of the season, tying her with fellow senior STEPHANIE DUNLAP for first on the school's single-season records list. As a team, the Niners are ranked second in Conference USA with an on base percentage of .355 and third with 74 doubles.

DE PAUL (46-9, 20-1): After winning their third consecutive regular season title, the 16th-ranked Blue Demons claimed their first C-USA Tournament title last weekend. DePaul's SASKIA ROBERSON notched the sacrifice fly, sending JENNY DOEZIE home to give the Blue Demons a 2-1 win for the championship. LINDSAY CHOUINARD went 3-0 for the week, however her C-USA record streak of not giving up an earned run ended at 81 1/3 innings against the Blazers. DePaul leads the league in batting average (.321), on base percentage (.363) and ERA (1.11).

EAST CAROLINA (38-26, 10-13): The Pirates fell to UAB, 2-1 and Louisville, 3-2, in their first C-USA Softball Tournament. ANGELA MANZO earned All-Tournament honors, leading the ECU contingent with a .500 batting average for the week (3-for-6). Manzo broke the league record with 21 doubles this season, surpassing the former record of 20 held by Louisville's MELISSA JACOBO. She currently leads the conference in hits (82) and at bats (213). NICOLE BACON claimed All-Conference First Team honors, finishing the season ranked third in the conference with a 22-17 record.

HOUSTON (35-25, 9-14): The Cougars finished the regular season with a 35-25 overall record and 9-14 league mark. RAY FERRERIS posted her conference-leading 12th home run of the season against Louisville on May 4. As a team, Houston compiled 47 home runs on the season, narrowly missing the conference record of 49 set by Southern Miss set in 2000. HOUSTON led the league in hits (480), runs scored (279) and runs batted in (244).

LOUISVILLE (27-28, 11-10): The Cardinals went 2-2 at the C-USA Tournament, defeating South Florida (7-2), East Carolina (3-0), but falling to DePaul (5-0) and Southern Miss (5-3). KENZIE MEISENBURG batted .500 (6-for-12) with one double, one RBI and four runs scored for the week to earn All-Tournament honors. JESSICA RAK picked up her school-record 23nd win of the season against South Florida. She led the league in games started (34) and ranked fourth with a 1.66 ERA.

SAINT LOUIS (24-27, 5-17): Saint Louis ended the 2002 season with a doubleheader against Tennessee-Martin on April 29. Head coach Jim Molloy became the winningest softball coach at SLU with his 68th career victory, surpassing the previous mark of 67 by Vicki Schneider from 1978-1982. NICOLE BOHNENSTIEHL has broken the single-season total bases record this year with 73, topping the previous record of 67 set last season by ERIN JEFFERY. Bohnenstiehl (29), ADRIE BOGAARS (25) and JANET VENORSKY (25) all have surpassed the previous RBI record of 22 this season.

SOUTH FLORIDA (23-32-1, 8-10): The Bulls went 0-2 at the C-USA Tournament to finish the season with a 23-32-1 record. RENEE OURSLER led South Florida for the weekend, batting .800 (4-for-5) with one triple, two RBI and one run scored. Sophomore SHELLY RIKER ranked first in the conference with 33 steals for the season. As a team, the Bulls nabbed 95 bases this season, compared to 48 for their opponents.

SOUTHERN MISS (28-35,14-7): The Golden Eagles fell just short of making it to their third-consecutive C-USA Tournament Championship, but fell to UAB, 2-1 in game nine of the tourney. Southern Miss ends the season with a 28-35 overall record and ranked second in the conference with a 14-7 mark. JESSICA HOLOWAY posted a 2-1 mark at the tournament, giving up eight runs and striking out nine. She finished the season ranked fifth in the conference with 15 wins on the season.

UAB (39-22, 14-7): The Blazers fell to No. 1 DePaul in their first C-USA Tournament Championship game last week. UAB had its best season to date in 2002, posting an overall record of 39-22 and a Conference USA record of 14-10. Despite the final game loss, KERRI FOSTER posted a positive performance, giving up two runs in 8.2 innings pitched. SARA CHRISTOPHEL notched the game-winning home run against Southern Miss. As a team, the Blazers reached the 200-plateau in RBI last weekend, ranking third in the conference. UAB ranked third in the conference in ERA (1.82), hits (421), runs batted in (244) and home runs (47).