May 6, 2005

AKRON, Ohio - The University of Akron's softball season comes down to two games as the Zips (25-27, 8-12 MAC) travel to Toledo (26-27, 5-14 MAC) for a doubleheader Saturday afternoon. The games mark the regular-season finale for Akron.

Akron's 8-12 league record puts it one game behind West Division member Eastern Michigan (9-11) in the overall MAC standings. The Eagles play Western Michigan, currently second in the West Division, in a three-game series at home this weekend.

The Zips must take at least one of two games from the Rockets, and hope for help from the other teams, in order to earn a spot in the Mid-American Conference tournament field for the first time since 2002. If the Zips split, they would need a Western Michigan sweep of EMU to earn the eighth and final tournament slot. If Akron is victorious in both games, they would need WMU victories in two of the three games, or a three-game Marshall sweep of Kent State.

The 2005 MAC Softball Tournament will take place on May 11-14 at Firestone Stadium in Akron.

Saturday marks the first meeting between the Zips and Rockets since the 2003 season when Akron opened MAC play with a split, dropping game one by an 8-5 score before coming back in game two for an 11-2 victory. UA has won five of the last six meetings.

In their most recent outing, the Zips split a doubleheader at Youngstown State Thursday night, dropping the first game by a 3-1 score before rebounding for a 6-2 win in the nightcap. Akron was led offensively by Rebecca Stern (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) in game two as she was 2-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and two runs scored. Lindsay Vittorio (Westerville, Ohio/St. Francis DeSales) was 1-for-3 with a two-run single in the sixth that gave the Zips a 3-2 lead.

Pitcher Tina McCauley (18-17) picked up her 18th win of the season on Thursday against the Penguins, the second-straight year she has recorded 18 victories in a season. She becomes the first Akron pitcher to record 18 or more victories in two seasons. She has also moved into a tie for third on the Zips' career victories list with 58.