April 21, 2006

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Notre Dame vs. Villanova, Saturday, April 22, 11 a.m. (DH)
Notre Dame vs. Rutgers, Sunday, April 23, 11 a.m. (DH) – Senior Day

Irish set for final BIG EAST home weekend with Villanova and Rutgers –

The University of Notre Dame softball team (27-13) will hope to strengthen its position in the BIG EAST Conference standings this weekend when Villanova (Saturday, 11 a.m.) and Rutgers (Sunday, 11 a.m.) visit Ivy Field for a pair of doubleheaders.

It will be an exciting weekend on campus, with the 77th annual Blue-Gold football scrimmage set to be played Saturday as well. Irish fans are reminded that there is no admission charge to Notre Dame softball games and the Villanova doubleheader will start in plenty of time for a visit before the football scrimmage.

This weekend also marks the last home BIG EAST doubleheader of the year on Sunday against Rutgers and the Irish softball program will honor its four-member senior class – Heather Booth, Mallorie Lenn, Meagan Ruthrauff and Sara Schoonaert.

Ivy Field audio coverage –

Notre Dame home softball game live audio coverage will return to www.und.com this weekend (Fighting Irish All-Access subscription required). All four games this weekend will be called by assistant sports information director Alan Wasielewski can be heard live on www.und.com.

Irish ALERT continues this weekend –

A joint effort between Centennial Wireless, Notre Dame Sports Properties and the Notre Dame Sports Information Office has made up-to-the-minute text messaging a reality this season. Notre Dame announced the Irish ALERT system, which will cover baseball, softball, men’s lacrosse and women’s lacrosse this spring for a free trial.

Simply sign up for the service at www.und.com and your mobile device will receive score updates from each of the four sports throughout the 2006 season. The service also will provide periodical updates providing team schedules and special alerts when content is uploaded on www.und.com.

For softball, updates are sent when the weekly release is posted on www.und.com, when a schedule change pops up (delayed games, added games) and in the first, third, fifth and seventh innings of each Irish game.

Irish rule the month of April –

Since Deanna Gumpf took over the Irish softball program in 2002 – the team has been close to unbeatable in the month of April. Entering this weekend’s doubleheaders, the Irish are 97-14 (.874) in April over the last five years.

Here is a breakdown of Notre Dame’s record during April since 2002.

2002: 24-1

2003: 21-2

2004: 19-5

2005: 20-3

2006: 13-3

Notre Dame has won 16 of last 19 games –

After battling through a six-game stretch of one-run games with a 3-3 record from March 15-19 (at the Judi Garman Classic), Notre Dame has won 16 of its last 19 games.

During the run, the team is 11-1 at home and 5-2 on the road. The three losses were to Akron (4-2), at Syracuse (2-1) and at #17/17 Northwestern (3-2).

Toledo recap –

Notre Dame eased past the Toledo Rockets on Wednesday, April 19 with a 5-0 victory … seniors Sara Schoonaert and Meagan Ruthrauff paced the Irish offense, both going two for three at the plate … Ruthrauff scored two runs while Schoonaert drove in one … freshman Brittney Bargar picked up the victory for the Irish, going 6.0 inning with four hits and seven strikeouts … Notre Dame pulled ahead with two runs in the fourth inning, added one in the fifth and two more in the sixth inning on a two-RBI single by junior Gessica Hufnagle … junior Kenya Fuemmeler finished off the game, allowing one hit in the seventh inning.

Heather Booth named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week –

Senior RHP Heather Booth was named the BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week for the fifth time in her career on Monday, April 17 … she completed last week 2-0 with a perfect 0.00 ERA … she began the week with four innings of no-hit softbal against Ball State, striking out five … Booth followed with a complete-game performance against DePaul, scattering five hits and striking out six … she currently boasts a 0.39 ERA in BIG EAST play … teammate and junior Stephanie Brown was named to the BIG EAST honor roll this week after hitting .667 last week and finishing six for seven in the doubleheader against DePaul.

ND series history vs. Villanova –

Notre Dame and Villanova will be meeting for the 32nd time and the Irish lead the all-time series 29-3 … Notre Dame has won its last nine meetings with the Wildcats and have not allowed Villanova to score a single run in the last six meetings (all shutout victories for the Irish) … Villanova’s last win in the series was a 7-6 victory in game one of a doubleheader at Ivy Field on May 2, 2003 … Notre Dame is 11-2 at Ivy Field against Villanova.

Villanova preview –

The Wildcats got off to a slow start in 2006 and are currently 13-28 overall and 2-12 in BIG EAST Conference play … freshman infielder Meghan Morese leads the team offensively with a .367 batting average, 10 home runs and 35 RBI … junior C Cassie Koenig is hitting .333 this year with seven home runs and 17 RBI … the pitching staff is anchored by sophomore Kat Walsh, who is 9-12 in `06 with a 3.16 ERA and 132 Ks in 146.1 IP … the Irish will most likely also see freshman Laura Determan (4-10, 4.03 ERA, 85 Ks in 92.0 IP) … Villanova is 4-4 on their opponent’s home field this season.

Rutgers series history –

Notre Dame and Rutgers will be meeting for the 25th and 26th time on Sunday … the Irish lead the all-time series 19-6 … before DePaul joined the BIG EAST Conference this season, Rutgers boasted the third-most wins against Notre Dame as a conference opponent (six) … Notre Dame is 9-3 against Rutgers at Ivy Field … Notre Dame will carry a five-game win streak against the Scarlet Knights into Sunday’s doubleheader … Rutgers’ last victory over Notre Dame was in the first game of a doubleheader on May 4, 2003 at Ivy Field.

Rutgers preview –

The Scarlet Knights are 12-30 in 2006 and 4-10 in BIG EAST play … they are led on offense by Brittany Loisel, who is hitting .321 this seson with eight RBI and six stolen bases … Kaitlyn Valiante provides the power in the lineup, hitting .304 with four home runs and a team-high 21 RBI … the pitching staff is led by Christina Yard (5-10, 3.75 ERA, 77 Ks, in 106.1 IP) … both Christina Gillman (4-9, 3.79 ERA, 75.2 IP) and Nicole Freeman (2-7, 4.58 ERA, 65.2 IP) also have seen significant pitching time … Rutgers is 3-7 on its opponent’s home field this season.

Notre Dame in BIG EAST regular-season play –

Notre Dame boasts an 9-1 record in BIG EAST Conference play this season, continuing its tradition of excellence during the league’s regular-season play. The Irish have lost four games in conference play only once since it joined the league in 1996 and boast an overall record of 173-20 (.896) entering this weekend’s competition. Notre Dame’s BIG EAST regular-season records: 1996 – 19-1, 1997 – 16-4, 1998 – 13-3, 1999 – 16-0, 2000 – 14-2, 2001 – 20-0, 2002 – 18-2, 2003 – 14-3, 2004 – 18-2, 2005 – 16-2, 2006 – 9-1.

The Irish have won 10 consecutive BIG EAST regular-season crowns since 1996.

Irish captains –

Notre Dame will feature four captains this season for just the second time in the program’s history. The senior class of Heather Booth, Mallorie Lenn, Meagan Ruthrauff and Sara Schoonaert will provide leadership both on and off the field for the team in 2006. The only other team to feature four captains was Notre Dame’s most successful team ever – the 2001 squad. Current Irish assistant coach Lizzy Lemire shared the captaincy that season with Melanie Alkire, Danielle Klayman and Jennifer Sharron. The Irish finished 54-7 in `01 and earned a number-one seed in the NCAA Championship.

Notre Dame softball on the small screen –

The University of Notre Dame softball team will be featured one more time on cable television this season, with a possible additional appearance in the BIG EAST Championship. Notre Dame’s first appearance was a single game against Ball State on Tuesday, April 11 shown by Comcast Local. The Irish defeated the Cardinals 5-0.

The first game of a doubleheader vs. DePaul on April 13 was shown live by ESPNU- a game which the Irish won 5-0. The Irish also faced #17/17 Northwestern live on CSTV for a single game on April 18.

ESPNU also will cover Notre Dame’s first visit to USF as a conference opponent, picking up the first game of that doubleheader on Saturday, April 29 (11:00 a.m.).

Notre Dame’s road game at Louisville will also be televised in the Louisville, Ky., area with ABC affiliate WHAS picking up the broadcast.

Finally, CSTV will broadcast the BIG EAST Championship final game from the Belleville Softball Complex in South Bend, Ind., on May 13 at 6 p.m. The winner of that contest will receive the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championship.

One-run warriors –

Notre Dame has played 17 one-run games this year. The team has posted an even 8-9 record in those 17 games, meaning that nine of the team’s 13 losses this season have come by a single run.

Going back to March 3 (an extra-inning three-run loss to Nebraska), the Irish have lost just one game by more than one run (as 4-2 setback to Akron on April 5). During the team’s trip to Southern California for spring break, the Irish played six consecutive one-run games, going 3-3 during the stretch with a win over #10 Arizona State and losses to #4 Texas (6-5), #6 Alabama (4-3) and at CS Fullerton (3-2 in eight innings).

•Notre Dame’s one-run victories –

1-0 vs. Buffalo, 1-0 at Cal Poly SLO (G2), 3-2 vs. #10 Arizona State, 1-0 vs. Florida State, 2-1 at Western Michigan, 1-0 vs. Bowling Green, 1-0 vs. Eastern Michigan, 2-1 vs. Connecticut.

•Notre Dame’s one-run losses –

5-4 vs. Colorado State, 5-4 at Florida International, 2-1 at Tulsa, 2-1 vs. Stephen F. Austin (8), 3-2 at CS Fullerton (8), 6-5 vs. #4 Texas, 4-3 vs. #6 Alabama, 2-1 at Syracuse, 3-2 at #17/17 Northwestern.

•Notre Dame’s one-run victories –

1-0 vs. Buffalo, 1-0 at Cal Poly SLO (G2), 3-2 vs. #10 Arizona State, 1-0 vs. Florida State, 2-1 at Western Michigan, 1-0 vs. Bowling Green, 1-0 vs. Eastern Michigan, 2-1 vs. Connecticut.

•Notre Dame’s one-run losses –

5-4 vs. Colorado State, 5-4 at Florida International, 2-1 at Tulsa, 2-1 vs. Stephen F. Austin (8), 3-2 at CS Fullerton (8), 6-5 vs. #4 Texas, 4-3 vs. #6 Alabama, 2-1 at Syracuse.

Notre Dame takes some of the nation’s top teams to the brink –

Just a quick glance at the nation’s top 25 teams (as of April 12) will provide the true nature of Notre Dame’s 2006 schedule. The Irish have faced five teams ranked in the nation’s top 17 (according to the NFCA top 25) and will have one ranked game remaining – at #21/23 Louisville on Sunday, April 30.

While the Irish have just one win against its six ranked teams faced in 2006 – they have competed head-to-head with the nation’s top teams and represented themselves well. Current NFCA ranking listed –

•#10 Arizona State – (W, 3-2) Notre Dame earned its biggest victory of the year and ended a 10-game winning streak for the Sun Devils … the Irish took a 1-0 lead on a solo home run by Meagan Ruthrauff in the bottom of the second inning … ASU answered with a home run of its own, a two-run shot by Mindy Cowles in the third inning … ASU kept its one run lead until the bottom of the seventh when freshman Stephanie Mola reached on an error and scored on a walk-off two-run home run by Stephanie Brown.

•#2 Texas – (L, 6-5) Notre Dame led the Longhorns 5-1 entering the bottom of the fifth inning … the Irish built their lead on two-run home runs from Mallorie Lenn (in the top of the first) and Katie Laing (in the top of the fifth) … after allowing just one run over the first four innings, freshman Brittney Bargar allowed four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning … the Longhorns won the game on a solo home run by pinch hitter Rachel Cook in the bottom of the sixth inning.

•#3 Alabama – (L, 4-3) In the next game on the Irish schedule after the near miss vs. Texas, Notre Dame led Alabama 2-0 in the top of the fourth inning … Mallorie Lenn provided the big hit again with a two-run homer … Alabama answered with three unearned runs in the bottom of the fourth inning off Heather Booth … Bama’s Jordan Praytor then provided the big hit with a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth … that run proved to be the game-winner, as the Irish posted two runs in the top of the seventh on a home run from freshman Linda Kohan.

•#16 Nebraska – (L, 5-2 in eight) Taking on the Cornhuskers in Tulsa, Notre Dame rallied from a 1-0 deficit to take a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning on and RBI double by Stephanie Brown and RBI single from Mallorie Lenn … Nebraska answered with a sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh inning to extend the game … the Cornhuskers eventually won the game in the bottom of the seventh, utilizing the international tiebreaker rule to score three unearned runs with two outs (note continues on page six)

• #17 Northwestern – (L, 3-2) Notre Dame took a 2-0 lead in the third inning against the Wildcats on an RBI single from Sara Schoonaert, followed by an RBI double by Mallorie Lenn … NU answered back with a solo home run in the fifth inning … the Irish held a 2-1 lead into the seventh inning, but a leadoff walk doomed Notre Dame and Northwestern was able to sneak out a 3-2 victory.

New BIG EAST Conference unveiled in 2006 –

The BIG EAST Conference expansion, which officially took place this fall, has garnered most of its attention in men’s basketball. The conference has quickly transformed into the top men’s basketball league in the country, but the effect that expansion will have on softball cannot be overlooked. The BIG EAST welcomes three traditional softball powers into the conference this season with the addition of DePaul, Louisville and South Florida. All three of the new teams will compete to end Notre Dame’s regular-season conference title streak which stands at 10 years entering the `06 campaign.

Combined with an already solid conference lineup, the BIG EAST is now arguably the top softball league east of the Mississippi River. With a new league alignment, the BIG EAST Championship – scheduled to be played in South Bend, Ind., beginning May 11 – will feature a new schedule. The top eight teams from the league standings will take part in a single-elimination, three-day tournament to determine the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA Championship. The final game of that tournament will be shown live on CSTV.

Season schedule has been/will be a challenge –

The 2006 season will prove a challenge for the Irish, as the team will face several teams ranked in the top 25, or just out of the national rankings.

According to the latest rankings, the Irish will face (NFCA rankings first, followed by USA Softball) #21/23 Louisville on April 30. Notre Dame has already faced #10/10 Arizona State (3-2 victory), #4/4 Texas (6-5 loss), #6/7 Alabama (4-3 loss), #14/12 Oregon State (5-0 loss) and #17/17 Nebraska (5-3, eight-inning loss), #17/17 Northwestern (3-2 loss). The Irish also have faced DePaul (5-0 and 3-1 victories) and BYU (8-3 victory), who have both been in and out of the national polls this season and .

Notre Dame knocked off four ranked teams durng the 2005 season. The Irish defeated #21 South Florida and #19 Florida on their first weekend of action (Feb. 12-13), then knocked off #5/6 Tennessee in its last game at the Palm Springs Classic. Notre Dame also defeated #15 Northwestern with a four-run rally in the bottom of the seventh on Tuesday, April 26, 2005.

Under head coach Deanna Gumpf, the Irish have knocked off at least three ranked teams in three of four seasons (#25 South Florida, #4 Nebraska, #15 Oregon State in `02; #8 Nebraska, #14 Nebraska, #18 Nebraska in `04). The Irish have defeated a total of 14 ranked teams during Gumpf’s tenure. The most ranked wins for the Irish came in 2001, when the team defeated eight teams ranked in the national top 25.

Deanna Gumpf nabs 200th win in record-setting style –

Notre Dame head coach Deanna Gumpf won her 200th game with the Irish in game two at Pittsburgh on Sunday, April 9 – and the Irish made sure the win would be remembered with a record-setting performance. As a team, Notre Dame pounded out 21 hits – matching the school record set back in 1992 against Rhode Island.

Two Irish players posted personal-best hit totals in the contest, with junior Stephanie Brown and senior Meagan Ruthrauff going four for five at the plate. Ruthrauff’s big game drew much of the attention, however, as she set two school records in the contest by hitting three home runs and driving in seven runs.

Gumpf is now 204-82 in her career with the Irish and has led the team to five consecutive NCAA appearances and five consecutive BIG EAST regular-season titles during her tenure.

New coaching staff, new Gumpf Family addition –

Notre Dame unveiled its new coaching staff in a unique way this season. Lizzy Lemire, a 2001 Notre Dame graduate, has joined the staff and Kris Ganeff (Notre Dame `99) moves up into the first assistant role. The change came about with the decision of former Irish assistant coach Charmelle Green to take a job in Notre Dame’s Student-Athlete Development Program.

The unusual twist to the story is that Irish head coach Deanna Gumpf missed Lemire’s official debut with the team. Gumpf and her husband John welcomed their second child, Tatum Elizabeth, on Wednesday, Feb. 22. Deanna has rejoined the team full time on the road for its Spring Break trip to Southern California.

To aid in the pitching staff’s development during Gumpf’s pregnancy, former Irish assistant coach and 1993 Penn State graduate Dawn Austin returned to the team as a volunteer assistant coach this season.

Irish pile up a record 46 hits in three games –

The Notre Dame offense hit a lull over a four-game stretch from April 2-8. The Irish finished 2-2 during the four-game run and combined for 19 hits as a team. Starting with game two at Syracuse, the Irish offense seems to be finding its stride again.

Over a three-game stretch last weekend, all victories, Notre Dame amassed 46 hits (12 vs. Syracuse, 13 vs. Pittsburgh, 21 vs. Pittsburgh) – a school record for hits over three consecutive games.

Notre Dame had previously notched 40 hits in three consecutive games three times:

• 1996 vs. Rutgers (19), Rutgers (12) and Rutgers (9) – from 3-30 to 3-31

•1998 vs. Loyola Chicago (13), vs. Loyola Chicago (14) and Rutgers (13) – from 3-26 to 3-28

• 2003 at Syracuse (11), Valparaiso (12) and Valparaiso (17) – from 4-19 to 4-23

The 2003 season also saw the Irish post the school record for consecutive games with 10 team hits – as Notre Dame won 10 games in a row from April 13 – April 23 and posted at least 10 hits in each game.

Irish compile a record-matching 21 hits in game two vs. Pittsburgh –

Notre Dame’s offense exploded for 21 hits in game two at Pittsburgh on Sunday, April 9, in a 14-4 victory over the Panthers. The performance matched the school record for hits in a single game. Notre Dame posted 21 hits against Rhode Island on March 14, 1992.

The Irish and Panthers also combined for a Notre Dame record 32 hits in game two – breaking the previous combined hits record of 29 (in the same game against Rhode Island, 1992 and vs. St. Joseph’s on April 17, 1990).

Ruthrauff breaks two long-standing Irish records in remarkable performance – Senior 3B Megan Ruthrauff will see her name atop two single-game record categories after game two at Pittsburgh on Sunday, April 9.

Ruthrauff posted a personal-best four hits in game two – three of which left the park for home runs. She hit a solo shot to leftfield in the top of the first, had an RBI single in the fourth, added a solo shot in the sixth and put an exclamation mark on her day with a grand slam in the seventh inning.

Ruthrauff used all three fields for her home runs (one to left, one to center and one to right) and set the Notre Dame record for home runs in a single game (three) and RBI (seven).

The RBI record was first set in 2000 by `01 graduate Melanie Alkire. Alkire drove in six agianst San Diego State on March 12, 2000. The record was tied twice, once by `02 graduate Jarrah Myers at CS Northridge on March 11, 2001 and again by `05 graduate Liz Hartmann against Oakland on April 30, 2002.

The single-game home run record was held by nine different players – who accomplished the feat a combined 14 times. The most recent was by Hartmann, who hit two home runs against Nebraska on Feb. 14, 2004.

Ruthrauff earned her fifth career BIG EAST Player of the Week award for her performance over the weekend. Over a four-game conference stretch against Syracuse and Pittsburgh, Ruthrauff was nine for 13 with six runs scored, five home runs and 10 RBI.

Ruthrauff reaches career walks record –

Senior 1B Meagan Ruthrauff, Notre Dame’s cleanup hitter the last three seasons, is not only a potent RBI producer (142 in three-plus years, fourth on the all-time Notre Dame list), but she also has outstanding plate discipline.

Ruthrauff has drawn 103 walks during her career, surpassing matching Andrea Loman’s (2000-03) previous Notre Dame career record of 87.

Ruthrauff has already drawn 23 free passes this season and ranks one-two on the single-season walk list at Notre Dame. In 2004, she drew a record 36 base on balls and followed up with 31 walks in 2005.

Booth set to become first Irish pitcher to log 800 innings pitched –

Senior Heather Booth enters this week’s action with 791.0 innings pitched and will most likely surpass the 800 innings pitched mark this weekend, becoming the first Notre Dame pitcher to surpass that mark. She already holds the school record for innings pitched (see following note) and also is tied for the all-time lead in complete games with 76.

A front line pitcher for the Irish since she stepped on campus in 2003, Booth could become the first Irish pitcher to pitch 800 innings and strikeout 800 batters. She needs 56 strikeouts this season to reach 800 in her career.

Booth now Notre Dame’s most prolific pitcher –

While leading her team to a 7-0 victory over Pittsburgh in game one on Sunday, April 9, senior Heather Booth became Notre Dame’s all-time leader in innings pitched with 773.1 – surpassing Jen Sharron’s previous school mark of 772.1. Booth has been a front-line starter for the Irish since she arrived on campus four years ago and ranks in the top five for all of Notre Dame’s significant pitching records.

Currently, Booth is first all-time in innings pitched (791.0), second in appearances (143), second in games started (118), second in wins (83), tied for first in complete games (76), fourth in shutouts (27) and third in strikeouts (744). See page nine of this notes package for a complete listing of Booth on the all-time statistical charts.

South Bend plays host to the 2006 BIG EAST Championship –

For the fourth time in the last five years, the BIG EAST Softball Championship will be held in a neutral/off-campus site in 2006.

After Salem, Va., served as the tournament’s site in 2002 and 2003, the City of South Bend, Ind., will welcome the 2006 BIG EAST Softball Championship to the Belleville Complex on the far west side of town.

The Belleville Complex is one of the best softball-only facilities in Indiana and served as host to over 3,000 fans when the U.S. Olympic Team played an exhibition doubleheader in July of 2005.

Directions to the BIG EAST Championship –

The Belleville Complex is located on the far west side of South Bend, Ind., on Mayflower Road.

From the east/west: Take I80/90 Toll Road to the South Bend West/Plymouth 31 South Exit. Go south on US 31 to the Mayflower Road (north) exit. The complex is on the right after the exit.

From the south: Take US 31 north from Indianapolis, follow the US 31 By Pass west once you reach the South Bend city limits. Take the Mayflower Road exit (north) off the US 31 bypass. The complex is on the right after the exit.

From downtown South Bend: Take State Road 933 (Main Street) through downtown South Bend to Sample Street. Take a right on Sample Street and travel 3.5 miles on Sample to Mayflower Road. Take a left on Mayflower Road, the complex will be on your left.

From the University of Notre Dame: Take Eddy (Juniper) Street south – it will take a turn to the west and become Sample Street. Follow Sample Street across Main Street and continue on Sample for 3.5 miles to Mayflower Road. Take a left on Mayflower Road, the complex will be on your left.