Games #40 & 41
ART U Urban Knights (27-12, 10-6 PWC) vs. NDNU Argonauts (7-9, 11-26 PWC)
Thursday, April 5, 2018 at 10 a.m. & Noon
Belmont, Calif. – Notre Dame High School
Live Stats

REMATCH WITH ARGONAUTS COMES EARLIER THAN ORIGINALLY PLANNED
Due to rain in the forecast for Friday and Saturday of this week, Academy of Art University Softball has seen its Pacific West Conference doubleheader at Notre Dame de Namur moved up to this Thursday instead. After setting the program record with 10 consecutive wins (including a historic 5-0 sweep of the Tournament of Champions), the Urban Knights find themselves currently sixth in the PacWest standings as one of just five teams with double digit conference victories.

FIRST PITCH
In its lone game of the week, Academy of Art is set to face NDNU this Thursday, Apr. 5 in a 10 a.m. doubleheader out at Notre Dame High School in Belmont. 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
Academy of Art enters Thursday's matchup ranked second in the PacWest in earned run average (1.78) and shutouts (12) as well as third in the conference in doubles (54), stolen bases (50), and pitcher strikeouts (230). Pitcher Brooke Larsen, now a five-time PacWest Freshman of the Week and once the PacWest Player of the Week, leads the team in both batting average (.365), virtually every pitching category (see below), and doubles (11, third in PacWest). Joining Larsen among the conference's top 10 in doubles, senior utility Brenna Mitchell is hitting .325 and has gone for two bases 10 times. Freshman infielder Jayda Alaan, entrenched as the NCAA Division II leader in hit by pitch (22), is hitting .350 with the highest on-base percentage (.496) on the team. Should she be hit five more times, Alaan will, in a single season, break the program's career record of 27 currently held by Jasmine Dickenson.

A Tournament of Champions All-Tournament Team recipient, sophomore infielder Gracie Sotomayor has hit .365 with 14 RBIs and six doubles since Mar. 14. With a team-best 24 driven in, she ranks 15th in the PacWest in RBIs. Sophomore outfielder Gabi Hirsch, who leads the team with 22 runs scored, has not budged from her spot as one of the top base stealers in the conference. She ranks third with 19 thefts which ties her for fourth in the program's single-season history.

The first pitcher in program history to be named Louisville Slugger/NFCA D2 National Pitcher of the Week, Larsen (15-3) remains the PacWest leader in wins (15, 10th in NCAA DII), shutouts (7, third in NCAA DII), complete games (14), and innings pitched (124.0). She also ranks second in ERA (1.07) and strikeouts (151, sixth in NCAA DII). Her two saves, which came over the past two weeks, are one shy of tying the program's single-season record. Larsen had tossed 38.1 consecutive scoreless innings (a stretch in which she won six games while posting three shutouts) prior to her most recent start against Chaminade. Not to be overlooked, freshman Cecilia Lopez (7-4) picked up the most recent win for ART U with her third shutout of the year to support a 1.94 ERA (10th in PacWest).

THE ARGOS' ARGUMENT
In a very up-and-down year thus far, Notre Dame de Namur split a six-game homestand after splitting with Academy of Art on Mar. 10 then went 1-4 in the Tournament of Champions. Since that time, the Argonauts are an even 3-3 after having split with Hawaii Pacific and Dominican. Despite having the second-most errors in the PacWest and the ninth-lowest ERA, the NDNU offense has been the difference as Aurora Adams (.404, 13 doubles, 7 home runs, 34 RBIs) and Alessasndra Giannavola (.383, 9 doubles, four home runs, 34 RBIs) have packed a one-two punch. Delaney Pamplin (3-12) owns the lowest ERA on the team at 4.05. The split earlier this season only furthered what has been a very even historical matchup that has Notre Dame de Namur ahead of ART U 19-18.

URBAN KNIGHTS BOUNCE BACK WITH 1-0 SHUTOUT IN SPLIT WITH SWORDS
Though the Urban Knights' program-record 10-game win streak came to an end in the first contest against Chaminade on Mar. 28, Academy of Art University Softball responded by capturing a game two victory thanks to more stellar defense as part of a shutout from freshman pitcher Cecilia Lopez (7-4). The opening contest turned the Silverswords' way after a three-run double in the fifth inning propelled them to a 5-3 triumph despite a late-game ART U comeback attempt. The series finale was a pitcher's duel that ended up being decided 1-0 on sophomore infielder Gracie Sotomayor's run-scoring groundout in the fifth.

LOOKING AHEAD
Another lone PacWest doubleheader comes for the Knights next week as they travel across the bay to San Rafael for an Apr. 14 rematch with Dominican.