Games #20 & 21
ART U Urban Knights (4-15, 3-5 PWC) vs. Hawaii Pacific Sharks (13-11, 8-6 PWC)
Tuesday, March 10, 2020 at Noon & 2 p.m.
Brisbane, Calif. – Mission Blue Field
Live Stats & Live Video

Games #22 & 23
ART U Urban Knights (4-15, 3-5 PWC) vs. Hawaii Pacific Sharks (13-11, 8-6 PWC)
Wednesday, March 11, 2020 at Noon & 2 p.m.
Brisbane, Calif. – Mission Blue Field
Live Stats & Live Video

Games #24 & 25
ART U Urban Knights (4-15, 3-5 PWC) vs. UH Hilo Vulcans (11-10, 6-3 PWC)
Saturday, March 14, 2020 at Noon & 2 p.m.
Brisbane, Calif. – Mission Blue Field
Live Stats & Live Video

Games #26 & 27
ART U Urban Knights (4-15, 3-5 PWC) vs. UH Hilo Vulcans (11-10, 6-3 PWC)
Sunday, March 10, 2020 at Noon & 2 p.m.
Brisbane, Calif. – Mission Blue Field
Live Stats & Live Video

ACADEMY OF ART TO FACE OFF AGAINST SHARKS, VULCANS
After starting the 2020 season with three victories in four home games to date, ART U Softball gets set for a pair of series hosting Hawaii Pacific and UH Hilo in what will be the Urban Knights' busiest week of Pacific West Conference play thus far.

FIRST PITCH
Consecutive four-game series against Hawaii opponents from the PacWest begins with back-to-back noon doubleheaders versus Hawaii Pacific on Tuesday, Mar. 10 and Wednesday, Mar. 11 out at Mission Blue Field. The Urban Knights then return to that site on Saturday, Mar. 14 and Sunday, Mar. 15 for another pair of noon doubleheaders hosting UH Hilo. Live coverage will be available via the links above. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps

KNIGHT WATCH
After four steals in its recent doubleheader versus Holy Names, Academy of Art remains third in the conference in total stolen bases (26). Tied for third in the PacWest, freshman infielder Haley Randall has seven swipes in seven tries while the team's batting average leader (.291), senior infielder Gracie Sotomayor, has six in six attempts. Junior catcher Lauryn Henderson comes into the week second on the team with a .277 batting average to go with the most runs batted in on the squad with eight.

In the pitcher's circle, senior Hannah Rose Balke (2-9) owns the lowest earned run average on the team (4.52) after she tossed her seventh complete game of the year and picked up her first career save against Holy Names. She remains five wins and three shutouts from breaking ART U career records.

SHARK ATTACK
The 2020 season has oscillated back and forth for Hawaii Pacific as the Sharks started with three wins, lost their next five, won four, lost three, won five, then lost three more. Now with a 13-11 overall record and 8-6 PacWest record, HPU sits right in the middle of the conference standings. Speed has been key for a Hawaii Pacific that leads the PacWest with 13 triples and ranks second with 33 stolen bases. Cieanna Curran and Sierra Dias, hitting .312 and .333 respectively, have combined for 10 of those triples and 14 of the team's steals thus far while Malia Torres (7-5) comes in with the lowest ERA on the squad (2.94) and the second-most complete games in the PacWest (7) alongside teammate Ashlee Laver (4-5). A seven-game ART U win streak versus the Sharks came to an end last year and currently it is HPU on top 20-12 in the historical matchup.

THE VULCAN VOYAGE
Despite starting out 1-5 this season, UH Hilo has since righted the ship with a 6-2 stretch that included two victories over Azusa Pacific before an impressive three wins hosting No. 8 Concordia (Calif.) most recently. Off the island for the third time this year, but the first since the beginning of PacWest play, the Vulcans will be facing Academy of Art and Holy Names over the next two weeks. UH Hilo's nine home runs pace the conference and the team's seven RBIs are third overall. A trio of Vulcan hitters each have multiple homers this season led by three from Vevesi Liilii and two apiece from Brinell Kalekini and Skylar Thomas while Markie Okamoto's 15 RBIs rank third in the PacWest. Defensively, Leah Gonzales (4-3) carries a 2.48 ERA with 41 strikeouts in just over 59 innings pitched. Nearly even in the season series, UH Hilo leads ART U 15-13 historically.

SOFTBALL SPLITS TWO ONE-RUN CONTESTS HOSTING HOLY NAMES
Bouncing back from a 2-1 loss to Holy Names in the first game of a Mar. 5 doubleheader, Academy of Art softball broke out for five runs in the second inning of the finale, outlasting the Hawks 7-6 in the end. Balke game two and senior utility Dominique Seva'aetasi's second career home run ended up being the difference in the Pacific West Conference victory out at Mission Blue Field.

LOOKING AHEAD
With its 12-game homestand finishing this weekend, ART U will head to Southern California for its next eight contests, facing Azusa Pacific (Mar. 20-21) and Concordia (Calif.) on Mar. 23-24.