The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Weber State
No. 16/18 Softball preview: NCAA Seattle Regional
05.18.2022 | Softball
Texas makes the long trip to the Pacific Northwest to begin its NCAA Tournament run on Friday against Weber State.
No. 16/18 Texas (38-17-1, 12-6 Big 12) at the NCAA Seattle Regional | May 20-22 | Seattle, Wash.
Schedule:
Friday, May 20
4:30 p.m. Weber State vs. #16/18 TEXAS – Longhorn Network (Game 1)
7 p.m. Lehigh at #11 Washington – ESPN+ (Game 2)
Saturday, May 21
4 p.m. Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (Game 3)
6:30 p.m. Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (Game 4)
9 p.m. Game 3 Loser vs. Game 4 Winner (Game 5)
Sunday, May 22
5 p.m. Game 3 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (Game 6)
7:30 p.m. Rematch of Game 6 (if necessary Game 7)
**All Times Central
Location: Seattle, Wash. (Husky Softball Stadium)
Television: The Weber State game is scheduled for broadcast on Longhorn Network with Mark Neely (play-by-play) and Amanda Scarborough (analyst) on the call.
Live Stats: LINK
Radio: Texas' games are scheduled for radio broadcast via web stream with Andrew Haynes on the call via this LINK. The Texas broadcast can also be heard locally on 105.3 FM as part of the Austin Radio Network supported by the flagship radio station of the Longhorns, 104.9 FM The Horn. Friday's match-up against Weber State can also be heard on Sirius XM Radio Channel 375.
Base Knocks:
- Texas enters the NCAA Seattle Regional with a 45-29 all-time regional record heading into its 22nd overall and 17th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament. UT has won seven of its last nine regional contests dating back to 2019 and both the 2019 & 2021 NCAA Austin Regional titles.
- For one Texas player, this weekend's trip should bring back memories as senior second baseman Janae Jefferson is the only remaining Texas player from the 2018 squad that played in the NCAA Seattle Regional. UT went 1-2 in the event, during Jefferson's freshman season, managing a 2-1 win over No. 25 Minnesota, a 2-1 loss to No. 5 Washington and a 3-0 elimination defeat to the Golden Gophers.
- With 13 career NCAA Regional hits, Jefferson needs just four more to break the Texas school mark of 16 currently shared by former Longhorns Kaitlyn Washington (2017-21) and Lexy Bennett (2009-12).
- Jefferson is currently riding a career-long, 22-game reached base streak. Over that stretch, she is batting .493 (35-for-71) with 31 runs, 12 extra-base hits & a 1.299 OPS.
- The Longhorns are currently No. 2 in NCAA Division I in doubles with a school single-season record 96, trailing only Louisiana (100). Janae Jefferson currently leads Texas and rates eighth in the nation with 19 doubles.
- Janae Jefferson is closing in on TWO MORE SCHOOL RECORDS.With 209 career runs scored, she needs 13 more to break Taylor Hoagland's (2010-13) career record of 221 runs. With 19 doubles, Jefferson needs two more to pass Paige von Sprecken (2018) & Lindsey Stephens (2016) for the UT single-season doubles record (20).
- The Longhorns have proven prolific in 2022 as far as stolen bases go. Texas' 89 steals are the most in a season since the 2013 Texas squad swiped 116 bags over its first 56 games.
- Senior C/1B Mary Iakopo is Texas' biggest threat with runners in scoring position. The Carson, Calif., native is currently hitting at a .450 clip (27-for-60) with RISP in 2022.
- Texas registered 29 total wins over Top 100 RPI teams in 2022, including nine over top 50 RPI squads.
- The Longhorns finished No. 14 in the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), that was used as one of the tools to seed postseason play, and were No. 20 in strength of schedule.
