Another Road Trip for Cougars

The BYU softball team will travel to Tempe, Ariz., to compete in the Louisville Slugger Classic, Friday and Saturday. The Cougars will play Friday against No. 13 Iowa at 9 a.m., Michigan State at 1:30 p.m. and No. 6 Arizona State at 3:30 p.m. On Saturday, the team will face Illinois State at 9 a.m. and Iowa State at 1:30 p.m.

Last Weekend

In its second week of action, the Cougars won two games, beating Louisiana Tech 11-3 and 8-0, while losing to Texas-Arlington 1-0, Texas-San Antonio 4-3, No. 2 Oklahoma 6-3 and Northwestern St. 4-2.

BYU Probable Starters

•C -Angie Christiansen - R/R, Sr.

•1B - Mindy Hanson - R/R, Sr.

•2B - Kari Pringle - R/R, Jr.

•SS - Becca Erickson - R/R, Sr.

•3B - Liz Boydston - R/R, Jr.

•RF - Oli Keohohou - R/R, Fr.

•LF - Liz Smith - L/R, Jr.

•CF - Lindsey Hodgen-Kelly - R/R, Sr.

•DH - Brooke Cadiente - R/L, So.

•P - Maryon DeWitt-Wallentine - R/R, Sr.

Last Week Highlights

Freshman Oli Keohohou had a solid weekend with two homeruns, including a grand slam. Sophomore Brooke Cadiente had four RBI over the weekend including two solo homeruns against Northwestern State. Junior Liz Boydston had eight over the weekend, including three RBI and two doubles for the Cougars.

Scouting Iowa

No. 13 Iowa will play its first game of the year this weekend against BYU. The Hawkeyes finished last season with a 46-15 record, including going 14-4 in conference play, en route to the Big-10 conference title. They then went 2-2 in the NCAA Tournament. Iowa lost three player but have five key returners, including four freshmen.

Scouting Michigan State

Michigan State will also open up its season this weekend at the Louisville Slugger Classic. The Spartans went 30-23 last season, including a seventh-place conference finish, going 5-10 in Big-10 action. MSU returns 13 letterwinners, including six starters from last year's squad.

Scouting Arizona State

No. 6 Arizona State is 5-1 this season, ASU won its first five games in last weekend's Fiesta Bowl Tournament in Phoenix, but dropped the final game to Louisiana State in eight innings. Junior All-American pitcher Kirsten Voak pitched ASU's second perfect game in school history against Utah St. last weekend and was named the PAC-10 pitcher of the week.

Scouting Illinois State

Illinois State comes into the tournament with a 3-2 record, defeating Tennessee Tech and Samford while losing to No. 5 Alabama in last weekend's Alabama Bash Tournament. The Redbirds are the defending Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Champions and were picked to finish third in the conference's preseason poll.

Scouting Iowa State

Iowa State had an 18-29 record last season and has yet to play any games so far this year. The Cyclones finished Big-12 play with 4-14 conference record, good for a 10-place finish. They return 12 letterwinners, including five starters.

Preseason Mountain West Conference Coaches' Poll

BYU was picked by the coaches in the Mountain West Conference to

finish fifth in the conference in the preseason poll released Jan. 25. In-state rival University of Utah, where BYU head coach Mary Kay Amicone played and was an assistant coach for seven years, was picked to finish first.

Mountain West Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll

1. Utah (5) 25

2. New Mexico (1) 20

3. San Diego State 15

4. Colorado State 11

5. BYU 10

6. UNLV 9

Player/Coach Interviews

Practices are held daily at 4:30 p.m. in the Smith Fieldhouse Annex. Player or Coach Amicone interviews may be arranged in advance through Shane Bevell, BYU Athletic Media Relations, at (801) 378-8999. Additional information may be obtained through e-mailing Shane at amr-3@byu.edu or by fax at (801) 378-3520.