Kansas City Series Preview: USSSA Pride vs Dallas Charge

Kansas-City-Series-Promo-v2-233x300Kissimmee, FL–June 11, 2015-The USSSA Florida Pride will play their first home series of the 2015 National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) season against the Dallas Charge on June 11th and 12th in Kansas City, KS. This marks the first time a NPF series will be played during the Top Gun Invitational youth tournament, one of the only premiere youth fastpitch tournaments in the country that features over 110 youth teams.

The two-game series will be played at the Community America Ballpark, home of the Kansas City T-Bones, an affiliate of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. First pitch is scheduled for 8:35pm EST on June 11th and 8:05pm EST on June 12th.

The Pride’s 2015 NPF season kicked off June 6th in McKinney, TX where the Pride visited the Dallas Charge. After a four game series with the Charge that ended June 9th, the Pride walked away with a winning record of 4-0.

For tickets to the series, visit www.dev.usssapride.com or purchase tickets at the gate at Community America Ballpark. Additionally, you can watch both games by tuning into the live stream at www.usssalive.com/USSSAPride

 

Pride players to watch:

Chelsea Thomas, former University of Missouri Tiger, was the First player in Mizzou history to be named a three-time, First Team All-American. . The third year pro finished her career in 2013 as Missouri’s all-time wins (111-31) and strikeout leader. The former Big 12 and SEC Pitcher of the Year helped the Tigers earn two trips to the Women’s College World Series (WCWS).

Shelby Pendley was the number two overall pick in the 2015 NPF draft. The former Oklahoma Sooner is a two-time Big 12 Player of the Year and three time NFCA All-American. She ended her college career with the third highest homerun total in NCAA Division I softball history at 84. Pendley is one of the most dangerous hitters in NCAA history.

Emilee Koerner  is the 2015 ACC Player of the Year. The former Notre Dame centerfielder is the program’s all-time leader in doubles (61) and slugging percentage (.695) and was the only player in Notre Dame history to hit 20+ doubles in a single year, something she accomplished in back-to-back seasons. Both her speed and power at the plate will certainly be something to watch out for this season.

 

Charge players to watch:

– Jolene Henderson isaU.S. Women’s National Team Member (2014). She helped USA advance to play for the gold in the (ISF) Women’s World Championship last August.She was also the University of Cal-Berkley’s winningest pitcher with a record of 130-35 and ranks third all-time with 1124 career strikeouts.

– Danielle Henderson is a two-time All Pac-12 First Team member as well as a two-time NFCA All Pacific Region First Team member from the University of California-Berkley. She made Cal program history in the top five for career homeruns (53), RBI (165), total bases (384), slugging percentage (.640) and walks (159). Both Danielle’s defensive and offensive stability will impact the Charge in a big way.

 

Fun Facts:

–        Danielle Henderson was the first player ever to be drafted by the Charge. This season, she joins her sister, Jolene Henderson (also a Cal-Berkley graduate), who will go down in the books as the first player to ever sign a contract with the Charge.
–        This set of games marks the first time a NPF series will be played during the Top Gun Invitational youth tournament and in the Kansas City metro area.

For all information about the USSSA Pride and the 2015 National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) season, visit the team website www.dev.usssapride.com and follow the Pride all season longon Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

About USSSA Florida Pride:

The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.

About NPF:

National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.

About USSSA:

USSSA is headquartered in Osceola County, Florida. USSSA is the World’s largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA News!