Washington Glory Clinch 2007 NPF Regular Season Championship

Ashburn, VA – August 9, 2007 - With a single crack of the bat, Oli Keohohou made history Sunday night. The first baseman’s seventh-inning, two-out, full-count home run to right field off Rockford pitcher Cat Osterman clinched the Washington Glory’s first National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) regular season championship. The four-bagger, Keohohou’s 11th of the season, also set a new NPF record for home runs by a team in a single season. And they’re not done yet!

“We started this season with a single goal – to bring home the 2007 NPF Cowles Cup Championship to our fans in the DC area at the end of our first year in the league,” says Glory owner & general manager Paul Wilson. “Our players and coaching staff have played their hearts out all season long, and I have all the faith in the world that they’ll be coming back from Kimberly as national champions.”

Wilson also believes that the team has the opportunity to sweep the season honors for best coaching staff, best pitcher, best offensive player, best defensive player, rookie of the year and most valuable player.

Sunday’s 6-5 win completed a four-game sweep of the Rockford Thunder, who came into last weekend’s series a close second in the NPF standings. Glory pitcher Monica Abbott made an impressive professional debut on Thursday night, striking out 18 batters during 10 innings of play. She returned later in the series to close Saturday’s game for Sarah Pauly gaining the save, and started Sunday’s game before giving way to veteran pitcher Desiree Serrano who notched her 17th win of the season, tying the record set by Christy Williams and Lauren Bay in 2005.

The Glory’s offense used defensive errors, smart base-running, and the long ball to their advantage for the victory. Homeruns off the bats of Amber Jackson, Nicole Barber, LaDonia Hughes, Jessica Moore, Kelly Kretschman, and Keohohou accounted for 8 of the team’s 14 runs scored. In the process, the Glory set the NPF record for most home runs in a single season at 58 with four games remaining in the regular season.

The Glory (31-9) travels to Chicago this week to face the Chicago Bandits, then returns home to prepare for the championship play-offs scheduled for August 24 – 26 in Kimberly, Wisconsin. The Glory will face the fourth-seeded team in the league on the first night of the double elimination tournament with the two & three teams playing each other before moving on to determine the 2007 NPF champion.

About the Washington Glory
The Washington Glory is the DC area’s professional women’s fastpitch softball team. In its inaugural year with the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) league, the team is coached by Carie Dever-Boaz and Assistant Coach Erin Goettlicher. The team plays its home games at the softball complex at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, which will be undergoing extensive renovations in preparation for next season’s home opener in late May. For more information about the Washington Glory, visit www.washingtonglory.com.

About National Pro Fastpitch
National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. 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 Women’s Pro Fastpitch and Women’s Pro Softball League. Major League Baseball (MLB) is the official development partner of the National Pro Fastpitch League. The partnership, which began in 2002, is part of The Commissioner's Initiative on Women and Baseball, a league-wide effort to help the MLB and its 30 major league clubs build stronger relationships with female audiences. More information can be found online at profastpitch.com.

# # #