Game #5
ART U Urban Knights (0-4) vs. Simon Fraser Clan (0-0)
Friday, February 10, 2012 at 11:30 AM
Las Vegas, NV – Majestic Park – Field 7

Game #6
ART U Urban Knights (0-4) vs. Lewis Flyers (0-0)
Friday, February 10, 2012 at 4:30 PM
Las Vegas, NV – Majestic Park – Field 7

Game #7
ART U Urban Knights (0-4) vs. Sonoma State Seawolves (2-0)
Saturday, February 11, 2012 at 11:30 AM
Las Vegas, NV – Majestic Park – Field 7

Game #8
ART U Urban Knights (0-4) vs. Western Washington Vikings (0-5)
Saturday, February 11, 2012 at 4:30 PM
Las Vegas, NV – Majestic Park – Field 7

Game #9
ART U Urban Knights (0-4) vs. Western Oregon Wolves (0-0)
Sunday, February 12, 2012 at 2:00 PM
Las Vegas, NV – Majestic Park – Field 2

ACADEMY OF ART TO PLAY FIVE GAMES IN THREE DAYS
Last year, the Urban Knights began their season-best seven-game win streak with three victories at the Montana State Billings Desert Stinger Tournament and, in 2012, they will look for more. In Las Vegas, NV along with 27 other NCAA Division II softball teams, Academy of Art University is set to play five different opponents during an intense three-day span.

FIRST PITCH
The fifth and sixth games of ART U's 2012 campaign has them taking on Simon Fraser and Lewis on Friday, Feb. 10 at 11:30 AM and 4:30 PM respectively. Neutral site matchups continue the following day, Feb. 11, as the Knights have a rematch against Sonoma State (11:30 AM) and then play Western Washington (4:30 PM). In the Feb. 13 tournament finale, Academy of Art will face Western Oregon at 2:00 PM. The first four contests will take place at Majestic Park – Field 7 while the final game is scheduled to be played at Majestic Park – Field 2 all in Las Vegas, NV. Due to the volume of neutral site games this weekend, no Live Stats will be available, but Twitter score/game updates will appear following the contests. Remember to check @UrbanKnightNews on Twitter for score updates and recaps. Also become a fan of the Knights on Facebook by 'Like'-ing the Urban Knights page.

KNIGHT WATCH
Senior outfielder Ashley Lokey made her triumphant return for Academy of Art during the team's first two series of the year. Lokey reached base in all four contests, posting a .375 batting average (6-for-16), with a home run, a double, three runs batted in, six runs scored, and four stolen bases. In the season opener, the Eugene, OR native went 3-for-5 with a home run, four runs scored (a new program record), three stolen bases (ties the program record), and a run batted in. She had a hit in game two against Cal State East Bay (Feb. 1) and then drove two in and scored once against defending CCAA Champions Sonoma State (Feb. 4). Alongside Lokey in the field and at the top of the ART U batting order, sophomore outfielder Elyse Cordova went 7-for-14 (.500) in the first four contests, driving in two, scoring twice, and swiping three bases.

CLASHING WITH THE CLAN
For the last 21 seasons, Simon Fraser has competed as a member of the NAIA over the last 21 seasons and SFU has finished at the NAIA National Championships in each last 14 campaigns. In that time, SFU finished in the Top 10 at each championship with four national titles and three national runner-up finishes to its name. The Clan continue their transition to the NCAA and are led by head coach Mike Renney who approaches the 500-win mark at Simon Fraser. SFU was picked to finish fourth in the 2012 GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll after going 18-25 overall, 12-19 in conference last season when the Clan finished fifth. Simon Fraser returns 11 players this season highlighted by infielder Kelsey Haberl, who led the team with a .365 batting average and 36 RBIs last year, as well as pitcher Cara Lukawesky who went 16-9 with a 3.26 ERA in 2011. Friday's game will be the Clan's season opener.

GROUNDING THE FLYERS
Lewis University, having been picked to win the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) in the annual preseason poll, will begin its 2012 softball campaign with the Desert Stinger Tournament. The two-time defending GLVC champions went 2-2 in the NCAA Midwest Regional Tournament last year, sustaining a pair of losses to Grand Valley State. LU has seven starters returning, including the designated player and two-time All-GLVC pitcher Karissa Habel (13-4, 2.51 ERA last year). In 2011, Lewis batted over .300 as a team and had a team earned run average of 2.66 on their way to a record of 36-14. Offensively, the Flyers are led by juniors Jayme Hefler and Michelle Vucsko. In two seasons, Hefler has compiled a career batting average of .409, which is currently the best in school-history, along with 81 stolen bases. A two-time All-GLVC selection and All-Region First Team honoree as a freshman, Vucsko batted .310 with four home runs and 41 RBIs in 2011. The Flyers take on PacWest member Cal Baptist before meeting the Urban Knights on Friday.

SEEING THE SEAWOLVES ONCE AGAIN
At Sonoma State earlier this season, Academy of Art University went ahead early on two occasions, but late SSU rallies enabled the two-time CCAA Champions to earn 5-3 and 8-3 wins. Those were the only two games thus far for the Seawolves who went 38-22 in 2011 and captured their second consecutive CCAA Championship after knocking off eventual national champion UC San Diego. All-American pitcher Samantha Lipperd, who had a dominant 2011 season and even shut out eventual national champion UCSD, was hit hard by ART U in her 2012 debut. She got the win, but allowed 11 hits and three runs in her start. Skylynn Myers, touted as SSU's top returning hitter, was overshadowed by Ancia Purdy who went 5-for-7 with three runs scored, two RBIs, and two stolen bases in the series. The Seawolves will play Central Washington and Augustana in the Desert Stinger prior to facing ART U.

VERSUS THE VIKINGS
A total of 13 players return for a Western Washington team who has gone 0-5 to start the year in the Best of the West Invitational this past Feb. 4-5. WWU, picked to finish third in the preseason poll, was shutout twice in that span, but remained close throughout a 4-1 season-opener against San Francisco State. The Vikings finished second in the GNAC last year behind Central Washington and used a 24-11 conference record to take them into the NCAA II West Regional for the first time in four seasons. There, they fell to Chico State and Central Washington to wrap up the year with a school-record 36 victories in head coach Amy Suiter's first season. Highlighting the returners is catcher Jackie Rothenberger who hit .344 with four home runs and 35 RBIs. Jenna DeRosier, who was the most-used WWU pitcher of their three returning, went 5-2 with a 3.63 ERA in 15 appearances in 2011 and completed five of her seven starts. Western Washington has contests against Cal State San Bernardino, Dixie State, and Grand Canyon before its matchup with the Urban Knights.

WOLVES WATCH
Western Oregon returns a conference-low four players after finishing sixth in the GNAC last season and sporting a 13-33 overall record. In 2011, the Wolves won three of five games at the Desert Stinger, but later had to endure a 10-game losing streak with a tough stretch in the Tournament of Champions. Infielders Andrea Bailey and Ashley Worthey are among the top offensive players donning the uniform again with Bailey coming off a year of hitting .333 with three home runs and 11 RBIs. Worthey hit .285 with two home runs and 21 RBIs. On the mound, Brittany Reeves returns after having led WOU in 2010 with a 2.60 ERA and was one of four pitchers to post seven victories. The team also welcomes five junior college transfers at a variety of positions including infielder Lexi Orteza (Olympic College) and pitcher Hannah Pomeroy (Lower Colombia College). The matchup between Western Oregon and Academy of Art comes at the end of the Desert Stinger Tournament after WOU will have played Cal Baptist, Cal State San Bernardino, Dixie State and Cal State Monterey Bay.

ART U OPENS SEASON AGAINST PIONEERS, SEAWOLVES
Hosting Cal State East Bay on Opening Day, Feb. 1, the Urban Knights battled through two lengthy night games, both of which the Pioneers managed to win with late-inning rallies. The opener was settled in extra innings after senior infielder Genna Allen hit a game-tying sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh, but CSUEB won it 6-4 on a homer in the eighth. In game two, ART U was ahead 5-1 midway through before the Pioneers used a six-run sixth to come back and win 7-5.

Then, at two-time defending CCAA Champion Sonoma State's Seawolf Field, Academy of Art University was up early on both sides of a doubleheader, but SSU rallied late to take the victory on each occasion. ART U went ahead 3-0 in the first inning of game one with a double by Allen among the highlights and it was a close 3-2 contest through the third and fourth innings before the Seawolves took a lead with three runs in the fifth. The second inning of game two had the Knights up 1-0, but five Sonoma State runs over the next two innings put the home team in front. Academy of Art came within two after a two-run double by Lokey in the fifth though SSU held on for an 8-3 win.

LOOKING AHEAD
With the Desert Stinger Tournament behind them, ART U will have three more non-conference series to play before the first PacWest opponent, Grand Canyon, comes to Mission Blue Field. The Knights are first at Chico State (Feb. 17), then return home to take on Humboldt State (Feb. 19), and finally travel to Cal State Stanislaus on Feb. 29.