University of Washington
Montana
Sixth-Seeded Washington Begins Quest To WCWS At Seattle Regional
May 18, 2017 | Softball
2017 SEATTLE REGIONAL
Friday, May 19
Game 1: Michigan vs. Fresno St. // 6:00 PM (PT) // ESPN2
Game 2: Washington vs. Montana // 8:30 PM (PT) // ESPN3
Saturday, May 20
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner // 2:00 PM (PT)
Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser // 4:30 PM (PT)
Game 5: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 winner // 7:00 PM (PT)
Sunday, May 21
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner // 4:00 PM (PT)
Game 7 (if necessary): Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser // 6:30 PM (PT)
THIS WEEK
The road to Oklahoma City begins at home for the University of Washington softball program (43-11, 16-8 Pac-12). For the 11th time in program history, the Huskies will be a host for an NCAA Regional, hosting Michigan, Fresno State and Montana. Washington is making its 24th straight NCAA Tournament appearance, and 13th straight under head coach Heather Tarr. Six or (if necessary) seven games will determine the Seattle Regional Champion and will determine who moves on to face the winner of the Utah Regional in Supers. Washington is in search of its 17th regional title, which would earn it the right to host a Seattle Super Regional for the first time since 2010.
"We are very happy to have the opportunity to play at home," said Tarr. "We are excited play at home and to give our fans another opportunity to see what Husky Softball looks like this season; but more importantly I'm excited to be able to continue to grow as a group and see where this adventure takes us."
WASHINGTON IN THE RANKINGS
RPI: 4
Strength of Schedule: 4
ESPN/USA Softball: 7
USA Today/NFCA: 7
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Michigan: The Wolverines are 41-11 overall, 20-3 in the Big Ten. The team has a .349 batting average with 466 runs scored and a team ERA of 2.04. Washington leads the all-time series with Michigan, 11-8 overall but trails in the post-season all-time record, 3-2. The Huskies last meeting with the Wolverines was in 2016 when Washington won 6-5 in nine innings at the Mary Nutter Classic.
Fresno State: Washington faced the Bulldogs the season at the Judi Garman Classic in March. Washington defeated Fresno State, 5-1, to improve to 6-1 in the all-time series. The Bulldogs have a .289 average with 291 runs scored and a team ERA of 2.98. Fresno State is 34-21 overall and 14-9 in the Mountain West conference.
Montana: Although Washington faced Montana in the fall season of 2016, the most recent regular season game was last spring when Washington shut down the Grizzlies, 12-5, in five innings. Last year marked the teams' first meeting. The 35-22, 15-6 Big Sky Grizzlies have a team average of .285 with 264 runs scored and a team ERA of 3.04.
IT AIN'T OVER…
In the final game of the regular season, the 2017 Huskies overcame an 11-run deficit to beat the University of Utah in eight innings. The comeback marked the program's largest in its history.
TOP OF THE TOP
The Huskies posted more wins (9) over top-15 ranked opponents than any other team in the field. Victories include: Oregon (2), Auburn, UCLA, Oklahoma, Minnesota (2) and Alabama (2). In the top-25, the Huskies are 18-8; adding series sweeps over Arizona State, California and Utah.
ROAD WARRIORS
The Dawgs posted a 25-7 record on the road; knocking off both Oregon and Alabama on their turf in back-to-back weekends to start the month of April.
