CONNECTICUT BRAKETTES BEGIN QUEST FOR PROFESSIONAL TITLE AS THEY PLAY AKRON RACERS SATURDAY AT 7:30 P.M. AT DELUCA FIELD

August 23, 2006 - It will be championship weekend at Frank DeLuca Hall of Fame Field. After watching the amateur Stratford Brakettes capture the National ASA Women’s Major fastpitch title August 12, the professional Connecticut Brakettes are seeking to make it a clean softball sweep.

The Chicago Bandits (30-12), defending champion Akron Racers (29-17) and New England Riptide (24-17) will join the Connecticut Brakettes (25-14) in the four-team sweepstakes for the National Pro Fastpitch league Championship Series Saturday and Sunday at DeLuca Field.

There are three separate admissions starting with Saturday’s semifinals. Chicago and New England meet in the first game at 1 p.m. with the Brakettes and Akron vying at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The two winners collide Sunday at 6 p.m. for the NPF crown.

The Brakettes have a three-game makeup series in Allentown, PA, Monday and Tuesday against the Philadelphia Force. The teams play a single game Monday at 7 p.m. at Bicentennial Park and a 4 p.m. doubleheader Tuesday.

While several league individual statistical races have already been decided, the batting title is still undecided with the Brakettes’ Kelly Kretschman and Chicago second baseman Anne Steffan tied at .400. Both hitters are 38-for-95. Kretschman, who has eight doubles and three home runs, leads the league in on-base percentage (.551) and in walks (31).

Brakettes shortstop Jessica Merchant has annexed the home run championship with 11. Akron Racers first baseman Oli Keohohou is next with eight, while Chicago shortstop Jaime Clark and Akron’s Kristen Butler are tied for fourth with five each. Clark, a 2004 Olympian, leads with 32 RBI, followed by Keohohou with 28 and Merchant (26). New England’s Tarrah Beyster and Lyndsey Angus are next with 23 each.

Akron’s Radara McHugh (15-7) and New England's Jocelyn Forest (15-5) lead the league in victories, while Connecticut Brakettes ace Sarah Pauly (13-5) is next. Pauly will likely get only one start in the Philadelphia series. Chicago’s top hurlers are Amy Harre (10-2) and Gina Oaks (9-4).

Texas Thunder star Christa Williams won the strikeout award with 161 in 142.2 innings. Second in that category is Pauly with 118, while Forest was third with 107 and McHugh fourth with 101.

Pauly has a chance to capture the ERA title as she enters the Philadelphia series tied for the lead with McHugh. Both pitchers own 1.26 ERAs. Forest (1.32) and Harre (1.45) are third and fourth, respectively.

Connecticut didn’t have league games last week. They played two exhibition contests with the Canada National Team, winning 4-1 Wednesday and losing 3-0 Thursday. In other NPF action, the Racers swept a three-game series with the Bandits in Akron, while New England, which had been third in the standings, lost three of four games in Lowell to visiting Texas.

Tournament passes are available at a considerable savings. All stadium box seats have been sold for the event, but there are plenty of reserved seats with back rests and bleacher seats left. Three-game passes for reserved seats with back rests, which are located directly behind the stadium box seats, are $12 for the three games. They sell individually for $8 each. A three-game bleacher pass is $9 with those seats selling for $6 per game.

The special tournament pass offer expires Friday, August 25. Fans may purchase seats by contacting the Connecticut Brakettes office (203) 378-7262.

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