Softball hosts Lady'Back Fall Festival

FAYETTEVILLE – The University of Arkansas softball team hosts its second fall tournament Sunday, Sept. 23 at Lady’Back Yard. The Lady Razorbacks welcome Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, Texarkana and Tulsa. The Lady’Back Fall Festival begins at 9 a.m. and runs all day. Arkansas takes the field at 11 a.m. facing Texarkana. The Lady’Backs meet NEO at 5 p.m. and Tulsa at 7 p.m. Admission is free to the public. “We get an opportunity that doesn’t happen very often this weekend – to have a Division I program come in,” said head coach Jamie Pinkerton. “It is a good field and it’s going to be a good test for us.” Arkansas comes into the tournament 3-0, defeating Connors, Evangel and Carl Albert last weekend. The Lady’Backs hit .424 as a team and had eleven players hit .500 or better. Five Lady’Backs threw from the circle, combining for 26 strikeouts in 17 innings. Senior Katy Henry, sophomores Miranda Dixon and Teighynne Hulsey and freshmen Kim Jones and Layne McGuirt held their opponents to a .169 batting average and allowed only three runs and three walks. “It’s a big piece of mind to have five pitchers,” Pinkerton said. “This year we have some depth and it’s going to help us down the road when innings start piling up on Katy and Miranda.” NEO finished the 2007 season with a fourth-place finish at the NJCAA Championships and a 52-7 record. Texarkana, another NJCAA Division I team, had a 47-16 record last season. Tulsa compiled a 30-28 record last year with Jackie Lawrence earning all-region honors. Drop boxes for the “Together we CAN” canned food and financial donation drive will be located at Lady’Back Yard on Sunday. Bring a canned good and help support the Seven Hills Homeless Shelter, Peace at Home Shelter for battered women and children and Compassion House. For more information about Arkansas softball, please log on to LADYBACKS.COM.