From the AZ. Daily Star,
The Arizona Wildcats' hopes for postseason success turned murky Friday night, as a sold-out Hillenbrand Stadium crowd watched ace Kenzie Fowler walk off the field in tears.
Before the Wildcats defeated UCLA 5-3, Fowler's right hand had swollen to the point she could not grip the ball effectively, the result of pressure caused by inflammation in her right shoulder.
She will not throw a ball for another four days and will begin a regimen of antibiotics in addition to anti-inflammatory medication she is taking.
Whether she'll be able to play in the Wildcats' NCAA tournament regionals - which will be announced Sunday and could begin as early as Thursday - is unknown.
"It's not reacting right," Fowler said. "It was so hard for me to grip the ball out there tonight. I don't have a lot of strength in my arm."
Fowler felt her hand swell last Friday at Oregon. She took an ultrasound in Eugene, Ore., fearing the problem could be related to life-threatening thoracic outlet syndrome. On May 31, 2007, her right arm swelled, and she was hospitalized for 13 days. Surgeons removed a rib to open blood flow into her shoulder.
Her swelling this time is unrelated, she said.
"It's a gradual thing," she said. "I have more pain in warm-ups. The swelling doesn't come until I've really used it too much."
Candrea said he and Fowler wanted to see how her arm would react Friday. She allowed two solo homers over four innings. She warmed up before the fifth but saw her hand swell and hoped it was caused by athletic tape wrapped around her forearm.
She removed the tape, but swelling continued. Fowler paused after the third pitch of the fifth inning, her 71st overall, against UCLA's Kaila Shull.
The UA's infielders surrounded her, and she turned away from the crowd before being removed by Candrea. Tears formed in her eyes.
Fowler said she hadn't "felt right in a week," calling her arm "heavy" and "dead," but hoped she could recover in time.
"I want to be 100 percent for our team," she said. "I can get there."
Asked if he thought she would be available next week, Candrea said yes, but added that he's "a very positive thinker."
The coach said keeping her shoulder swelling down "should free things up" for her hand.
The Wildcats (43-10, 13-7), however, will fret over her health, and with good reason.
Success at the NCAA tournament - and even making the Women's College World Series round of eight in Oklahoma City - rides on Fowler's right arm.
Entering Friday's game, Fowler was 31-6 with a 1.18 ERA this season. Earlier this week she was nominated for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award.
Her replacement Friday, senior Sarah Akamine, pitched admirably. She allowed one run in three innings, despite walking four.
"That was huge for Sarah," Candrea said. "I've said all along, we're going to need her down the road."
The UA trailed 3-0 entering the bottom half of the fifth but tied the game on a three-run double by Brigette Del Ponte.
The Wildcats won in dramatic fashion when, with two outs in the seventh inning, Kristen Arriola crushed a homer over the left field wall.
"I screamed once it went off the bat," Arriola said.
The Wildcats' excitement couldn't drown out the concern over Fowler entering the regular-season finale against UCLA (39-11, 13-7) today at 12:30 p.m.
"I wanted it to end," Candrea said. "I really felt like we needed to end it at that moment and that time."
TODAY
The Arizona Wildcats' hopes for postseason success turned murky Friday night, as a sold-out Hillenbrand Stadium crowd watched ace Kenzie Fowler walk off the field in tears.
Before the Wildcats defeated UCLA 5-3, Fowler's right hand had swollen to the point she could not grip the ball effectively, the result of pressure caused by inflammation in her right shoulder.
She will not throw a ball for another four days and will begin a regimen of antibiotics in addition to anti-inflammatory medication she is taking.
Whether she'll be able to play in the Wildcats' NCAA tournament regionals - which will be announced Sunday and could begin as early as Thursday - is unknown.
"It's not reacting right," Fowler said. "It was so hard for me to grip the ball out there tonight. I don't have a lot of strength in my arm."
Fowler felt her hand swell last Friday at Oregon. She took an ultrasound in Eugene, Ore., fearing the problem could be related to life-threatening thoracic outlet syndrome. On May 31, 2007, her right arm swelled, and she was hospitalized for 13 days. Surgeons removed a rib to open blood flow into her shoulder.
Her swelling this time is unrelated, she said.
"It's a gradual thing," she said. "I have more pain in warm-ups. The swelling doesn't come until I've really used it too much."
Candrea said he and Fowler wanted to see how her arm would react Friday. She allowed two solo homers over four innings. She warmed up before the fifth but saw her hand swell and hoped it was caused by athletic tape wrapped around her forearm.
She removed the tape, but swelling continued. Fowler paused after the third pitch of the fifth inning, her 71st overall, against UCLA's Kaila Shull.
The UA's infielders surrounded her, and she turned away from the crowd before being removed by Candrea. Tears formed in her eyes.
Fowler said she hadn't "felt right in a week," calling her arm "heavy" and "dead," but hoped she could recover in time.
"I want to be 100 percent for our team," she said. "I can get there."
Asked if he thought she would be available next week, Candrea said yes, but added that he's "a very positive thinker."
The coach said keeping her shoulder swelling down "should free things up" for her hand.
The Wildcats (43-10, 13-7), however, will fret over her health, and with good reason.
Success at the NCAA tournament - and even making the Women's College World Series round of eight in Oklahoma City - rides on Fowler's right arm.
Entering Friday's game, Fowler was 31-6 with a 1.18 ERA this season. Earlier this week she was nominated for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award.
Her replacement Friday, senior Sarah Akamine, pitched admirably. She allowed one run in three innings, despite walking four.
"That was huge for Sarah," Candrea said. "I've said all along, we're going to need her down the road."
The UA trailed 3-0 entering the bottom half of the fifth but tied the game on a three-run double by Brigette Del Ponte.
The Wildcats won in dramatic fashion when, with two outs in the seventh inning, Kristen Arriola crushed a homer over the left field wall.
"I screamed once it went off the bat," Arriola said.
The Wildcats' excitement couldn't drown out the concern over Fowler entering the regular-season finale against UCLA (39-11, 13-7) today at 12:30 p.m.
"I wanted it to end," Candrea said. "I really felt like we needed to end it at that moment and that time."
TODAY
