Sept. 17, 2012

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland softball head coach Laura Watten and assistant coach Amber Jackson will both be inducted into the Bethune-Cookman University Athletic Hall of Fame this weekend in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Prior to coming to Maryland, Watten was head of the Wildcat program for eight years. Watten established Bethune-Cookman as a softball power, registering 322 wins and five consecutive Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championships while beating the likes of Tennessee, Kentucky and Florida.

In a spectacular 2005 season, Watten and Bethune-Cookman received an at-large bid to the NCAA regional and beat Florida and USF to win the Gainesville Regional championship. She went on to lead the Wildcats to the first-ever NCAA Super Regional Tournament appearance for any HBCU and was named the 2005 NFCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year winner. She was hired to lead to take over the Terrapin program later that summer.

Jackson played her freshman, sophomore and junior seasons for Watten at Bethune-Cookman. She helped guided the Lady Wildcats to three straight NCAA Regional appearances, including the 2005 Regional Championship squad that faced Texas in the Super-Regionals. She was named MEAC Player of the Year in all three of her seasons at Bethune-Cookman and also earned All-American honors. She left B-CU as the career leader in virtually every offensive category. Upon her graduation, she transferred to Maryland for graduate school with one year of eligibility left and played for Watten in 2007. Jackson returned to College Park as an assistant coach for Watten in the summer of 2011.

There will be an induction dinner Friday night. The class of 12 will also be honored at the Hall of Fame football game Saturday.

The Hall of Fame includes former student-athletes, coaches, university administrators as well as special contributors, who have enriched the legacy of the institution through intercollegiate athletics. The honorees were selected by an 11-person committee made up from a cross-section of campus constituencies, alumni and boosters. For more on the induction, log on to BCUathletics.com.

Watten and Jackson led the Terrapins to a record of 34-22 overall in the 2012 season and the program's third straight NCAA Regionals appearance.

On Sept. 27, a team made up of all-stars from all four NPF teams will come to College Park to take on the Terrapins in an exhibition match. Maryland is one of just as one of 21 stops across 16 states for the Back to School Tour.

The Terps and the NPF all stars will take the field at 6:30 p.m., with gates opening at 4 p.m. Parking will be free beginning at 4 p.m. All cars parked prior to 4 p.m. are subject to ticketing.

Tickets are $15 for reserved seats,$10 for adult general admission tickets and $5 for general admission tickets for children 12 and under. Tickets are on sale at Umterps.com.