2016 WAC SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT
Thursday, May 12 - Saturday, May 14  
Seattle, Wash.   |   Logan Field
Tournament Central Page  |  Bracket  |  UVU Game Notes

#5 Utah Valley at #4 Seattle U
Thursday, May 12   |   10:30 a.m. PT/11:30 a.m. MT
WAC Digital Network  |  Live Stats
 

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OREM, Utah – Just 10 days removed from concluding conference play at Seattle University, the Utah Valley University softball team will return to the Emerald City this weekend for the 2016 Western Athletic Conference Tournament. The conference tournament will run Thursday through Saturday, May 12-14, at Seattle U's Logan Field.
 
The fifth-seeded Wolverines will open play on Thursday morning at 11:30 a.m. MT/10:30 a.m. PT against the host and fourth-seeded Seattle U Redhawks. The winner of that game will then face the top seed and 2016 conference champion New Mexico State Aggies later that afternoon at 4:30 p.m. MT/3:30 p.m. PT, while the loser will face either No. 2 Missouri-Kansas City or No. 3 CSU Bakersfield in an elimination game that night at 7 p.m. MT/6 p.m. PT.
 
"We are so thrilled to return to Seattle for the conference tournament to continue our tradition of excellence in the postseason," head UVU coach Nikki Palmer said. "We are excited to face Seattle U in the opening game after recently completing our series with them. They are a tough opponent, but we know that we are ready for the challenge."
 
UVU will enter Thursday's opener as the No. 5 seed in the tournament after going 8-41 on the season and 3-12 in league play. The 3-12 WAC record was good enough to tie for fifth place in the conference standings and earn the fifth seed for this weekend's tournament.
 
After taking one of three contests at Seattle in their final league series of the season, the Wolverines stepped out of conference play last week for a pair of doubleheaders at No. 3 Oregon and Portland State. After dropping both ends of the twin bill to the nationally ranked Ducks on May 3, UVU responded the next day at PSU by splitting a pair of games against the Vikings.
 
The Wolverine offense erupted in a doubleheader against Portland State to the tune of 25 combined runs in the two games. Behind a five-run sixth and an 11-run seventh, UVU defeated PSU, 21-6, in game one, before dropping a tightly contested nightcap by a score of 6-4. The Wolverines combined to bang out 25 hits en route to scoring the 25 runs in the two games.
 
The 21-run output in last week's win against Portland State marked the second most runs ever scored by UVU in school history and the most runs scored against a Division I opponent.
 
Senior outfielder Dynasty Lauvai led the Wolverines a week ago by hitting an even .500 in the four games with a home run, three walks, six runs scored and three RBIs. In the 21-6 victory over PSU, Lauvai went a perfect 3-for-3 with a homer, two singles, two walks, five runs scored and three RBIs. Lauvai was named the WAC Hitter of the Week on Monday after her big week at the plate last week.
 
Junior infielder Brittney Vansway leads UVU on the season with a .333 batting average, seven home runs and 37 RBIs. She is also tops on the team in doubles with 15 and slugging percentage with a .569 clip. Fellow junior Brianna Gatlin is next with a .325 average, 28 RBIs and a WAC best 33 walks, while senior speedster Morgan Smith is tops on the club in steals with 24 (24-25) and sophomore Makayla Shadle paces the pitching staff with a 2-7 record and a 4.61 ERA.
 
UVU will enter the tournament with a 6-2 all-time record in WAC Tournament play. The Wolverines went a perfect 4-0 en route to winning the 2014 conference tournament crown at Seattle U's Logan Field, before going 2-2 last season in Las Cruces and making a deep run at the 2015 league tournament as well.
 
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
Seattle U will enter the tournament as the No. 4 seed after going 17-31 overall and 3-12 in WAC play. The Redhawks took two of three from the Wolverines in their final league series of the season, April 29-30, to break the tiebreaker with UVU and earn the four seed for the tournament. Utah Valley and SU are no strangers to one another in WAC Tournament play, as UVU took both meetings between the two clubs at the 2015 conference tournament in Las Cruces a year ago.
 
Paige Bouska leads the Redhawks on the season with a .360 batting average, while Isabella Geronimo is the top run producer for SU with 28 RBIs on the year. Andie Larkins fronts the Seattle pitching staff with a 3.67 ERA and a 10-14 record.
 
Thursday's contest will mark the 26th all-time meeting between the Wolverines and Redhawks. SU will enter play holding a 15-10 series advantage after taking two of three from UVU two weeks ago.