July 21, 2008

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - In her second season as field manager, Marshall softball head coach Shonda Stanton and her Akron Racers will be put to the test when it hosts the USA National Team coached by Mike Candrea, Tuesday, July 22 at 7:00 p.m. at the Firestone Stadium.

The Racers possess a 14-14 record and currently reside in fourth place in the National Pro Fastpitch League.

The National Team is wrapping up its KFC Bound 4 Bejing Tour and have played Team NPF, which is a collection of all-stars from the National Pro Fastpitch League (NPF), and the Washington Glory, a member of the NPF.

Akron is led by its ace Angela Tincher, who owns a 9-4 record with a 1.68 ERA. Tincher faced the National Team earlier this year as a member of the Virginia Tech Hokies and pitched a perfect game against the national squad in a 1-0 victory.

Kristen Butler (C) and Norelle Dickson (3B) leads Akron in offensive statistics with Butler hitting .333 and Dixon following with a .281 average. Butler has six home runs, 20 RBIs and 13 walks, while Dickson leads the team with eight stolen bases.

Stanton and the Racers will also see some familiar faces. There are currently four former Racers on the talented USA squad including Crystl Bustos, (1B) Jenny Topping (C), Kelly Kretchman (OF) and Alicia Hollowell (P).

Tickets are sold out for the exhibition contest, but live stats will be available via the USA National Team website at www.usasoftball.com.

The Racers can be seen on Fox Sports Net as part of the NPF Game of the Week. The Rockford Thunder and Racers are set for a July 31 contest, which will be aired August 7. The following week will feature Chicago Bandits (Saturday, Aug. 2), led by former Marshall All-American Rachel Folden. That game will air August 14. The final television appearance for the Racers will be aired August 21 when it competes against the Philadelphia Force (Saturday, Aug. 16). Check local listings for times.