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Ducks prepared to meet the Nittany Lions in their NCAA Regionals opener
Oregon's momentum is more important than its 3-0 record against Penn State all time
by Luke Andrews | Sports Editor
While there will be a new time zone, humid weather, a different playing surface and largely unfamiliar opponents, Oregon softball coach Kathy Arendsen hopes her team's trip to the NCAA Regionals in Columbia, S.C. this weekend is business as usual.
"We hope to approach it pretty much like we would any Pac-10 weekend, trying to stay in the routine that we do," Arendsen said. "There will be some slight differences, but I think the excitement of being a part of this will kind of fill it in."
The Ducks (42-17, 7-14 Pac-10) take on Penn State (26-23, 5-9 Big Ten) today at 1 p.m. PST in the opening game of the Columbia Regional, which also includes host South Carolina and top-seeded North Carolina State, the 15th overall seed in the tournament.
Oregon is 3-0 all-time against Penn State, beating the Nittany Lions 10-8 in the opening game of the postseason in 2003. The Ducks defeated Penn State twice by a score of 2-0 in 2004.
But those results mean little to this year's team.
"We've played about a million teams in the past four years," senior and four-year starter Suzie Barnes said. "I don't actually recall the game scenarios or anything."
Barnes believes the fresh approach is a positive for Oregon.
"That's kind of how we want to look at it coming into regionals, just a brand new team," Barnes said. "We don't want to underestimate them."
The Ducks, who boarded a chartered flight on Wednesday afternoon, spent Thursday finalizing a scouting report and watching film of Penn State.
The Nittany Lions, who received their third-straight NCAA Tournament bid and seventh in the last eight years, are led offensively by sophomore centerfielder Danielle Kinley, an All Big-Ten performer. Kinley hit .384 this season with 18 doubles, a single-season school record, and a team-high 31 RBIs.
Penn State faced two Pacific-10 Conference teams early in the season, Oregon State and Washington, and lost to both. Both Oregon and Penn State also faced UNLV, which Oregon split a pair of games with and Penn State lost its only game to by a score of 9-8.
"We hope to approach it pretty much like we would any Pac-10 weekend, trying to stay in the routine that we do," Arendsen said. "There will be some slight differences, but I think the excitement of being a part of this will kind of fill it in."
The Ducks (42-17, 7-14 Pac-10) take on Penn State (26-23, 5-9 Big Ten) today at 1 p.m. PST in the opening game of the Columbia Regional, which also includes host South Carolina and top-seeded North Carolina State, the 15th overall seed in the tournament.
Oregon is 3-0 all-time against Penn State, beating the Nittany Lions 10-8 in the opening game of the postseason in 2003. The Ducks defeated Penn State twice by a score of 2-0 in 2004.
But those results mean little to this year's team.
"We've played about a million teams in the past four years," senior and four-year starter Suzie Barnes said. "I don't actually recall the game scenarios or anything."
Barnes believes the fresh approach is a positive for Oregon.
"That's kind of how we want to look at it coming into regionals, just a brand new team," Barnes said. "We don't want to underestimate them."
The Ducks, who boarded a chartered flight on Wednesday afternoon, spent Thursday finalizing a scouting report and watching film of Penn State.
The Nittany Lions, who received their third-straight NCAA Tournament bid and seventh in the last eight years, are led offensively by sophomore centerfielder Danielle Kinley, an All Big-Ten performer. Kinley hit .384 this season with 18 doubles, a single-season school record, and a team-high 31 RBIs.
Penn State faced two Pacific-10 Conference teams early in the season, Oregon State and Washington, and lost to both. Both Oregon and Penn State also faced UNLV, which Oregon split a pair of games with and Penn State lost its only game to by a score of 9-8.
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