March 1, 2012

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Terps will head to Tuscaloosa, Ala. this weekend to face No. 1 Alabama, Massachusetts, and UAB in the Crimson Tide's Easton Alabama Invite.

So far this season, the Terrapins (10-2) are 2-0 vs. ranked teams, after beating No. 11 Michigan and No. 22 Kentucky in Boca Raton, Fla. two weeks ago.

Maryland's lone win over Alabama came in 1999. Massachusetts is receiving votes in both polls. The Terps are 1-2 vs. the Minutewomen. Finally, the Terrapins will play UAB in their first meeting.

GameTracker live stats will be available for all games and the Terrapins' games vs. the Tide will be shown live online for a fee.

Easton Alabama Invite Info

Scouting The Terps
• Maryland enters the Easton Alabama Invite in Tuscaloosa, Ala. with a a record of 10-2. The Terrapins are receiving votes in both of the national polls this week.

• Freshman Shannon Bustillos was named ACC Player of the Week Tuesday. She led the Terrapins to a 6-1 week with five hits, six RBI, a double and her first career home run. Bustillos, a native of Anaheim, Calif., came up with big plays on both offense and defense for the Terrapins in three separate wins this week. She started all seven games behind the plate and threw out eight stolen base runners.

• Most recently, the Terps went 4-1 in ESPN's Citrus Classic in Kissimmee, Fla. last weekend. They beat Marshall twice, Wisconsin, Southern Illinois and fell to St. John's.

• The Terrapins have five seniors in this year's roster in Vangie Galindo, Kendra Knight, Bree Hanafin, Kathy McLaughlin and Sloane Van Meter.

• Head Coach Laura Watten returns seven starters and 12 letterwinners from last year's NCAA Regionals squad.

• Senior Vangie Galindo returns after one of the greatest seasons at the plate in Terrapin softball history. Her season average of .422 and 78 hits last year were both school records. Her current career batting average of .333 is the best in school history.

Scouting Alabama
• Alabama is 13-0 on the season. The Tide is ranked No. 1 in the latest USA Today/NFCA Coaches poll and No. 2 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
• Maryland is 1-7 all-time vs. Alabama. Their lone win came in 1999 and their last meeting was in 2010.
• The Terps' two assistants, Charlotte Morgan and Kelly Kretschman, were All-Americans at Alabama.

Scouting Massachusetts
• Massachuetts is 5-5 on the season and is also receiving votes in the two polls.
• Maryland is 1-2 all-time vs. UMass. The Terps beat the Minutewomen in 2008 and lost to them in 2009.

Scouting UAB
• UAB is 7-6 so far this season. Mandy Lowman is batting .400 with eight RBI.
• Maryland and UAB have never met.

Play the Best
The Terrapins will play a strong schedule against a number of the nation's top teams.
• The Terps will play seven games against teams in this week's USA Today/NFCA Division I Coaches Top 25, including two at No. 2 Alabama in March.
• The Terps will battle six teams that competed in last year's NCAA championships. They will play 11 games against those teams.

Head Coach Laura Watten
Laura Watten returns for her seventh season at the helm of the up-and-coming Terrapin softballa program. Her current career record is 536-354 (.606) and her record at Maryland is 214-147 (.593). Below is a breakdown of just a few of her career highlights:

• Collegiate Record (15 years): 536-354 (.606)
• Record at Maryland (7 years): 214-147 (.593)
• Led the Terrapins to back-to-back NCAA Regionals appearances for the first time in school history
• Earned first postseason appearance since 1999
• 11 NFCA All-Region honorees
• Coach of 2007 Easton and NFCA All-American
• 11 All-ACC selections, including five first team
• Three All-ACC Tournament Team selections
• Coached 2011 ACC Pitcher of the Year Kerry Hickey
• Three ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District team members
• 17 All-ACC Academic Team members
• Four-time MEAC Coach of the Year (2001, 2002, 2003, 2005)
• 2005 NCAA South Regional Champion (led at-large team Bethune-Cookman to Super Regionals)
• 2005 Super Regional Appearance
• 2005 NFCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year

New Leaders
Watten hired three new assistants prior to the 2012 season - Amber Jackson, Charlotte Morgan, and Kelly Kretschman.
• Jackson was one of the greatest hitters in Maryland softball history. Jackson transferred to Maryland for her senior year (2007) after playing her first three years at Bethune-Cookman College under Watten. In her one year as a Terrapin, she broke school records with 24 home runs, 56 RBI, and 55 walks. Her home run record led the NCAA that year. She was Maryland's second NFCA All-American and was named to the All-ACC First Team. After her career at Maryland, she played three years in the National Pro Fastpitch league for the Washington Glory and USSSA Pride. She 2007 MVP of the NPF and I received All-NPF honors in 2009.
• Morgan, an All-American pitcher at Alabama, plays for the USSSA Pride of the National Pro Fastpitch league. She played for the Crimson Tide from 2007-2010, winning SEC Player of the Year twice (2009, 2010). Morgan was named a first-team ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-American and NFCA second-team All-American. She won the Lowes Senior Class award and was a top 10 finalist for USA Softball's Player of the Year honor. She helped lead the Tide to the Women's College World Series in 2008 and 2009. She was the NPF's No. 1 draft pick in 2010.
• She won a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens and a silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. She served as an alternate for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Kretschman was a four-time NFCA All-American at Alabama from 1998-2001. As a freshman, she led the NCAA in home runs (25) and slugging percentage. She was named First Team All-SEC three times (1999, 2000, 2001). Kretschman helped lead the Tide to the 2000 Women's College World Series and was named to the All-WCWS Team. She is currently in her seventh season with the NPF.

Terps Picked to Finish No. 5 in ACC
Maryland was picked to finish fifth in the ACC, as voted by the league's head coaches.
• The Terrapins were one vote behind Virginia for fourth-place.
• In 2011, Maryland went 12-7 in ACC play for the most conference wins in a season in school history. The Terps finished third in the league after being picked to finish fifth. They advanced to the ACC Semifinals before falling to North Carolina.

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