BYU softball travels to Las Vegas for five games

PROVO, Utah – The BYU softball team travels to Las Vegas for the 2019 Boyd Gaming Rebel Classic for five games beginning Thursday afternoon. 

BYU Games Notes

Previously called the Marucci Desert Classic, the Cougars (1-3, 0-0) will play five teams all from different conferences. 

The games start Thursday, Feb. 14 with a doubleheader, the first game against Fordham at 1 p.m. and game two vs. Hawai’i at 5 p.m. The tournament continues on Friday, Feb. 15 with a game against UC Davis at 1:30 p.m. and then against Georgetown at 3:30 p.m. PT. The tournament concludes with a game against UTEP on Saturday, Feb. 16 at 11:00 a.m. All times are Pacific. 

The first two games will be played at UNLV’s Eller Media Stadium with the final three games to be played at Stephanie Lynn Craig Park in Henderson, Nevada. Live stats will be available on the BYU schedule page.

BYU Storylines

Five Games. The Boyd Gaming Rebel Classic is the first of four straight tournaments where BYU will play five games in a weekend. The other tournaments include the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, San Diego Classic and the UCLA/Long Beach State Invitational.  

Power at the Plate. BYU captain Libby Sugg returns for her final season at BYU. The two-time captain has been named to the USA Softball College Softball Player of the Year watch list and was named NFCA All-American Third Team after the 2018 season. She finished the season ranked nationally as No. 7 in RBI (67), No. 10 in RBI per game (1.16), No. 32 in batting average (0.414),  No. 33 in on base percentage (0.707) and No. 58 in slugging percentage.

Return to Vegas. This is the 14th consecutive year that BYU will travel to Las Vegas for a tournament before conference play beings. The Cougars first went in 2005 when the tournament was called the Louisville Slugger Desert Class. Last season, BYU came away with a 3-2 record beating Hawai’i, Florida International and New Mexico. 

Senior Leadership. The Cougars return four seniors: Libby Sugg, Allie Hancock, Olivia Sanchez and Lexi Tarrow. Sugg and Hancock have been named captains of the team while all four players could be starters for the Cougars. Sugg and Tarrow were named All-WCC First Team following the 2018 season. 

Opponents Outlook 

Fordham | Thursday, Feb. 14 | 1:00 p.m. PT | 

• The Rams finished the 2018 season with a 33-23 overall record and took their sixth straight Atlantic 10 championship.

• Fordham advanced to the Baton Rouge Regional following the regular season in 2018, but were eliminated in the first round.

•This is the third meeting between the two teams with BYU having the advantage 2-0 

•Head Coach Melisssa Inouye enters into her 6th season compiling a 112-173 record 

Hawai’i | Thursday, Feb. 14 | 5:00 p.m. PT | 

• In 2018, the Rainbow Warriors had a 23-27overall record, going 7-14 in the Big West.

• The Cougars hold the series with a 14-2 record. The two teams played against each other last year in the same tournament as BYU took the win 2-1. 

• Bob Coolen is in his 32nd season as the head coach for Hawai’i, recording a 1045-691 overall record. 

UC Davis | Friday, Feb. 15 | 1:30 p.m. PT | 

• The Aggies posted a 27-24 overall record during the 2018 season, including going 9-12 in the Big West

• The game in Vegas will be the third time the two teams will meet with BYU holding the advantage at 2-1. 

• Erin Thorpe starts the 5th season with the Aggies recording a 306-413 overall record. 

Georgetown | Friday, Feb. 15 | 3:30 p.m. PT | 

• In 2018, the Hoyas went 16-36 and a 7-13 mark in the Big East

• This will be the first meeting between the two teams

• Pat Conlan enters her 14th season leading the Hoyas compiling an overall record of 256-518

UTEP | Saturday, Feb. 16 | 11:00 a.m. PT | 

• The Miners went 21-33 overall during the 2018 season, going 15-8 in C-USA 

• BYU currently holds the advantage against UTEP with a 3-0 record. 

• Tobin Echo-Hawk enters her 11th season with an overall record of 233-301