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University of Houston Athletics
Softball Heads to No. 9 Texas A&M
2/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Houston at No. 9 Texas A&M
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Feb. 21, 2006
HOUSTON - The University of Houston softball team will take the nation's fifth longest winning streak into a doubleheader at No. 9 Texas A&M Wednesday.
The Cougars are only one of only four other teams in the nation to record a double-digit winning streak.
This is the only the third time in program history that the Cougars have strung together a 10-game winning streak. The other times were in 2002 when UH started the season 11-0 and during the 2004 season from Apr. 27 to May 15.
Wednesday's doubleheader will be the first time this season that Houston will play on the road after starting the 2006 campaign with 11 consecutive home contests.
The Cougars are coming off a 5-0 weekend at the Marriott Houston Hobby Invitational claiming victories over No. 15 Baylor and Sam Houston State. The Bearkats were receiving votes in the NFCA Top 25 last week.
"This is how we want to be playing heading into a tough week ahead," head coach Kyla Holas said. "We'll tie up some things on defense and be ready to go against a Top 10 opponent."
Houston found out Tuesday afternoon that it is one of 12 schools receiving votes in the latest USA Softball Top 25.
Angel Shamblin and Candi Kloecker headline the Cougar pitching staff with identical 4-0 records. Both have won C-USA Pitcher of the Week awards in consecutive weeks to start the season.
On offense, Jessica Valis has been a spark at the top of the Cougar lineup. The freshman shortstop paces the squad with a .475 batting average. She has tallied seven multi-hit games this season and has scored a run in six consecutive contests. The Shiner, Texas native has also reeked havoc on the base paths going 5-for-6 in the stolen base department.
"I'm just trying to get us started by getting on base," Valis said. "It's my teammates who I rely on to get me around the bases."
Houston comes into the doubleheader 2-4 all-time against Texas A&M, however the Cougars are 2-1 in games played in College Station.
The Cougars swept a doubleheader against No. 16 Texas A&M during the 2004 season with former President George Bush in the crowd. The wins gave head coach Kyla Holas her 99th and 100th career victories.
In game one, Houston rallied from 4-1 and 5-2 deficits and took the lead in the seventh inning on a two-run homer by Kim Nesloney in the seventh inning. Jenny Johnson worked a perfect frame in the bottom of the inning for her third save of the season.
Johnson turned around and fired a eight-hit shutout for a 3-0 victory as the Cougars swept a nationally-ranked opponent for the first time in program history. Texas A&M picked up 10-2 and 10-6 victories last season at the Cougar Softball Stadium.
First pitch against the Aggies is set for 5pm with game two to follow 20 minutes after the completion of game one. Both games will have livestats via Gametracker on UHCougars.com
