As Sac State softball heads into the heart of its 2001 season, the team will embark upon its biggest event this weekend. The annual Capital Classic Softball Tournament will be held Thursday through Sunday at the Sacramento Softball Complex.

The tournament will feature 15 teams, two of which are ranked among the nation?s top 25 and one of the nation?s top pitchers.

The Hornets are led by junior Cathy Coupar, who is batting .372 and sophomore pitcher and first baseman Jillian Bivert. Bivert is 2-2 on the mound with a 1.70 ERA and is batting .298. Freshman pitcher Nicole Deatherage is 5-3 with a 2.30 ERA.

“This is a great event every year,” head coach Kathy Strahan said. “This will give us great experience against some good teams heading into league play, plus it is in Sacramento and this is always a plus for us.”

The most decorated team is the nation?s fourth ranked team, the Golden Bears from Cal, who have run over every team in their path on their way to posting a 28-0 record. Pitcher Jocelyn Forest has coasted through the season so far with a 15-0 record and a 0.19 earned run average. She has also struck out 167 in 108 innings. Right behind Forest is Nicole DiSalvio with a 12-0 record with a 0.52 ERA. On the offensive side, first baseman Veronica Nelson paces the team with a .361 batting average, to go along with seven home runs and 29 runs batted in. The Golden Bears, who won the Capital Classic last year, also won the National Invitational Softball Tournament this past weekend.

The number 12 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes will carry an 8-2 record into the tournament. The team is led by sophomore Katie Boney, who boasts a .421 batting average. Pitcher Kristi Hanks is undefeated in six appearances and has a 0.73 ERA and 31 strikeouts.

Brigham Young brings in a 7-12 record, but features a ton of offensive power with outfielder Oli Keohohou. The freshman already has 10 home runs and is batting .388 for the Cougars.

Two teams that the Hornets have already played and defeated at some point this season are San Jose State University and Purdue University. The Spartans are 13-14 this season, led by the pitching duo of Christine and Candice Akin, who combined, account for eight of the team?s 13 victories. The Boilermakers are 14-6-1 and will conclude a 10-day California swing after dropping four of six in the NIST. Seniors Lynne Tortorelli and Keely Povitz lead the way for Purdue.

The first two days of the tournament will be pool play. Following pool play, teams are seeded into a single elimination bracket to determine the tournament champion. First round losers in bracket play will move into a single elimination consolation bracket.

Pool A will feature Cal, Eastern Illinois, Miami of Ohio, Purdue, and Western Kentucky.Pool B consists of BYU, Iowa, Ole Miss, San Jose State, and Texas Tech.

Pool C features Louisville, Morehead State, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, New Mexico, and host Sac State. The Hornets begin play March 15 on field four at 7:00 p.m. against Texas A&M Corpus Christi.