By ERIN BASS

Associate Sports Editor

Lady Techster softball seniors Leah Beasley, Lindsey Meadows, Amber Miles, Ashley Palma and Brittany Stanley were honored last Saturday at the Lady Techster Softball Complex after the conclusion of their last home game of the season.

Beasley played center field for the Ruston Bearcats where she was named an all-district player three years in a row and helped lead the Bearcats to a first place finish in District 2-5A in 2001.

She was also named to the Western Athletic Conference All-Academic team in 2003 and 2004.

Beasley said she will be starting classes toward a master's degree in marketing this summer.

"I am also leaning toward going to law school, but it is mostly planning until the time comes," Beasley said. "I am going to miss my teammates and how close we have gotten over the years the most."

Meadows recorded four saves last year, which set a single season save record for Tech, and her six career saves are No. 1 in program history. She also ranks fourth in strikeouts and will be traveling overseas this summer to play ball.

"I'm going to the Netherlands to play softball," Meadows said. "But when I get back I either want to go back to school and get my master's or get a second degree that will allow me to teach and coach softball."

Team captain Miles broke the single season hit record last year with 68 hits and at the beginning of this year she ranked No. 5 in Techster history with 64 career stolen bases. She has been named WAC Player of the Week and has a slot on six other Lady Techster record lists. Her hit against Fresno State last Saturday was her 200th career hit and placed her second on Tech's all-time hits list. She said she wants to continue her education but that softball has also taught her quite a bit.

"I want to start grad school in the fall and get my master's degree in English or journalism and work for a newspaper one day," Miles said.

"While playing for Tech, I have learned so much more than softball. I have learned to be more of a people person, leadership skills and that sometimes it's ok to not be the strong one all the time because my teammates are always there to help me."

Palma first attended the University of Louisiana-Monroe, where she played for two years. In her first year at Tech, Palma played in 31 games, 22 which she started. She has made only three errors out of 121 chances for a fielding percentage of .976.

She said she will be attending Tech for one more year and will eventually go back to her hometown.

"I want to go back to Houston and get an associate degree in medical radiography," Palma said. "I have learned a lot from softball and have enjoyed it, but after four years I am ready to go back home."

Left fielder Stanley is a two-time All-WAC player who ranked second on the team and sixth in the WAC last year with a .327 batting average. She ranks fourth in Tech history with 65 career steals and was named Preseason First Team All-WAC this year.

Stanley said she is going overseas to play also, while getting a hands-on opportunity relating to her interior design degree.

"I am leaving for Germany three days after graduation," Stanley said. "And I have an internship. So when I get back in October, I will hopefully have no trouble finding a job."

Prior to the senior ceremony, the Lady Techsters (18-43, 2-10 WAC) played a three-game conference series against two-time All-American pitcher Jamie Southern and the No. 18 ranked Fresno State Bulldogs (35-10, 11-1).

Friday afternoon in game one of the series Fresno State led off by scoring four runs in the top of the first.

The Bulldogs scored once in the second inning and once in the seventh to get ahead 6-0, and Southern kept the Lady Techsters scoreless by allowing only three hits.

Saturday brought the first game of a double-header and another 6-0 loss for the Lady Techsters.

But the last game turned out to be more of a contest when Tech led 3-2, before Fresno State scored one run in the fifth and Southern hit a two-run bomb in the seventh.

The Lady Techsters were unable to bounce back in the last inning and lost 5-3.