Games #15 & 16
ART U Urban Knights (4-9-1, 0-0 PWC) vs. Holy Names Hawks (2-8-1, 0-0 PWC)
Saturday, February 27, 2016 at 10 a.m. & Noon
San Leandro, Calif. – College of Marin Softball Field
Live Stats

ART U'S 2016 PACWEST DEBUT COMES ON ROAD AT HOLY NAMES
Now 14 games into the season, Academy of Art University softball gets its first taste of Pacific West Conference play this weekend. The Urban Knights come in having split five of their seven series thus far with this Saturday's doubleheader at Holy Names one of two twinbills on tap before an extensive Hawaii roadtrip in mid-March.

FIRST PITCH
ART U is set to meet Holy Names for a pair on Saturday, Feb. 27 beginning at 10 a.m. at College of Marin Softball Field. Live coverage will be available via the links above. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights on Twitter & Instagram and "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps.

KNIGHT WATCH
With team-highs in both runs batted in (12) and batting average (.318), freshman infielder Brenna Youngquist comes off a game against Texas A&M-Commerce in which she connected for her second home run of the year. A five-game hitting streak as well as a 10-game reached base streak has upped freshman infielder Juliana Lopez's batting average to .310 and her .412 on-base percentage leads the team. Atop the batting order, junior outfielder Jessica West is hitting .298 with a team-high nine runs scored while freshman infielder Katie Tablada comes off a four-game week that saw her hit .583 (7-for-12).

Backing up her two home runs and six RBIs as a hitter, sophomore Brenna Mitchell (4-4) has two complete games, a 2.80 ERA, and 25 strikeouts through 50.0 innings of work. She ranks sixth in the PacWest in strikeouts and is among the top 10 in pitcher wins.

HOLY LAND
The only other team in the PacWest with a tie on their record, Holy Names is 2-8-1 coming into this weekend. HNU comes off a low-scoring split with Cal State East Bay on Feb. 24 and is scheduled to face Hope International on Feb. 25 prior to hosting ART U. The Hawks tied College of Idaho in their season-opening series and have since defeated Vanguard 4-2 and the aforementioned Pioneers 1-0.  Entering the week, the team's leader on both offense and defense has been Kristina Carbajal who is hitting .417 in six games while also throwing 22.2 innings and sporting a 3.40 ERA. In 19 previous meetings over the past eight seasons, ART U owns a 12-5 record against the Hawks with eight consecutive victories.

TAMUC LIONS TAKE TWO FROM URBAN KNIGHTS
On Feb. 20 out at Mission Blue Field, Academy of Art University softball stepped in against a Texas A&M-Commerce team in just its third year of existence. The Lions, however, were not tentative at all and may have been one of the most aggressive base-running teams the Urban Knights have ever faced as TAMUC swept the doubleheader 8-1 and 17-9.

LOOKING AHEAD
After a 10-break from competition, PacWest play will continue for ART U on Mar. 9 when the Urban Knights host Azusa Pacific for a noon doubleheader.