April 10, 2002

A trio of Cleveland State softball players find themselves ranked among national leaders in the first statistical standings released by the NCAA for the 2002 season on Tuesday.

Sophomore Michelle Beightol (Akron, Ohio/Springfield) ranks third in triples with 0.23 per game, trailing just Brown's Lizzie Buza (0.27) and LSU's Trena Peel (0.25). In addition, the shortstop stands 16th in batting average at .435. UCLA's Stacey Nuveman leads the nation at .543.

Junior catcher Stephanie Taylor (Wintersville, Ohio/Indian Creek), who leads the Horizon League in doubles, checks in seventh nationally at 0.41 per game. Tricia Hildebrand at St. Bonaventure tops the standings at 0.64/game.

In addition, CSU career stolen base leader Tiffany Stocker (Sherrodsville, Ohio/Conotton Valley) once again appears among the nation's best in thefts. Stocker, who finished her junior season in 2001 ranked 10th nationally in stolen bases with 0.79 per game, currently ranks 11th with 0.68. The speedy outfielder has converted 15 of 16 stolen base attempts this year. North Carolina's Tiffany Tolleson averages 1.04 stolen bases per game, converting 48 of 53 attempts, as the national leader.

Complete NCAA Division I softball statistics are located at www.ncaa.org.