Games #11 & 12
ART U Urban Knights (1-9) vs. Menlo Oaks (2-6)
Tuesday, February 14, 2023 at Noon & 2 p.m.
Hayward, Calif. – Mission Blue Field
Live Stats & Live Video

SECOND ART U HOME SERIES FEATURES BAY AREA BATTLE WITH MENLO
In what will be Academy of Art softball's final tune-up before Pacific West Conference play, ART U welcomes NAIA member Menlo to Brisbane for the teams' first meeting since 2010.

FIRST PITCH
The Urban Knights' third noon doubleheader of the season is slated to take place at Mission Blue Field with ART U hosting Menlo on Friday, Feb. 17. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram, as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps. 

KNIGHT WATCH
The tandem of junior outfielder Maddie Sticka and junior infielder Katie Humphreys are each hitting over .300 with Sticka's .375 batting average currently fifth in the PacWest while Humphreys' .320 clip sits 11th. They have accounted for nine runs batted in between them and are both inside the conference's top 12 in that category. Beyond that duo, senior catcher/utility Cassandra Mittman is swinging for a .286 average, senior outfielder Bethany Mitchell has three doubles to date (fifth in PacWest), and junior infielder Haley Randall (.280 batting average) checks in at seventh in the conference with six runs scored.

Freshman pitcher Kamielle Powell (1-5) has spent her first 33.1 innings compiling a 3.78 earned run average (eighth in the conference among pitchers with 20.0 or more innings pitched) and registering 15 strikeouts (ninth in PacWest).

OBSERVING THE OAKS
Menlo has played just three opponents thus far in 2023 and sports a 2-6 record after taking one of four from University of Antelope Valley, splitting with Corban, then being swept by College of Idaho. The Oaks' leader offensively has been Grace Christian who is hitting .500 with two triples, one home run, five RBIs, and six runs scored while Ayanna Rubio comes in with over 14 innings pitched and an ERA north of 5.86. Picking up from where they left off after four games over the first two years of ART U's program, Academy of Art is up 3-1 historically versus Menlo.

EAST BAY CAPTURES BOTH SIDES OF TWIN BILL HOSTING ART U
Multiple Urban Knights drove in runs for Academy of Art softball on Feb. 14 out at Pioneer Softball Field, but Cal State East Bay walked away with victories of 9-1 and 11-3 when all was said and done in the non-conference doubleheader.

ON THE HORIZON
The final week of February will see ART U travel to Southern California for a four-part series with Azusa Pacific spanning Feb. 24-25 and opening PacWest play.