Wednesday, April 23, 1997

FORT COLLINS-- The Colorado State University softball team is ranked 15th in this week's USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association Top 25 Poll. The Rams moved up one spot from 16th.

Arizona at 42-4 reclaims the No. 1 spot which they lost two weeks ago, followed by Fresno State (42-7) and South Carolina (51-3).

Colorado State (39-10, 16-4 Western Athletic Conference) faces No. 2 Fresno State (17-5 WAC) in a 1p.m. doubleheader Friday at Ram Field. The twin bill will be broadcast locally by AM 600 KIIX, marking the first time in the history of the program that Ram softball has been carried locally. The Rams are percentage points ahead of the Bulldogs in first place in the WAC standings.

"Candi Letts and the players on the softball team have enjoyed tremendous success this season,"said Colorado State director of athletics Tom Jurich. "We are excited that their games upcoming this week against Fresno State will be broadcast by KIIX radio. It is another example of the great partnership that we enjoy with KIIX. It is also an excellent opportunity to provide fans in northern Colorado with live coverage of the games."

Colorado State Sports Network veteran Wyatt Thompson will handle play-by-play duties for the broadcast while veteran minor-league baseball announcer Chris Degnan will provide color commentary. 600 KIIX is the flagship station of the Colorado State Sports Network which broadcasts all Ram football and men's basketball games and selected women's basketball games and volleyball matches.

Fresno State is ranked No. 1 in this week's West regional rankings, followed by Colorado State, WAC member Utah and Big West member Long Beach State. The Western region is made up of the WAC and Big West Conference, with the season champion from each conference automatically qualifying for the NCAA regional championships. Two more at-large teams will be selected, making a top-four seed in the West region regular-season rankings crucial to Colorado State's postseason hopes.