Women’s Softball Win Louisville Slugger Tournament – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/1/1998 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 1, 1998
TAMPA, Fla. – The stage was set for an upset. The Buckeyes (6-4-0) were at bat in the top of the seventh inning, with two outs and the winning run on third base. Adding to the pressure of the moment was the fact that it was the championship game of the Louisville Slugger tournament and the opponent for the Buckeyes was the host school South Florida, the fifth ranked team in the country.
The Buckeyes needed someone to step up, and shortstop Renae Weigel (So., Coldwater, Fla.) decided that it was her turn to shine in the spotlight.
The final inning began with Jaime Chenevey (Jr., Wooster, Ohio) reaching base on an error by the USF second baseman Amanda Whitesell. She would advance to second on a sacrifice bunt by Meaghan Robinson (Jr., Naples, Fla.).
Toni Hileman (So., Alliance, Ohio) immediately followed and would advance Chenevey to third on a ground out to Whitesell. This would then set the stage for Weigel’s heroics. With a full count, the sophomore hit a liner to the USF shortstop Lea Mishlan, who made a diving stop but was unable to throw out the hustling Weigel. Chenevey would score on the play, giving the Buckeyes their 1-0 victory.
“I am very proud of our team,” Head Coach Linda Kalafatis said. “We constantly work on getting clutch hits in practice and the team came through this entire weekend. This is definitely a mark of a good team.”
On the mound, Robinson (2-2) was awesome. The Florida native gave up only two hits in her eight inning of work. Robinson was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Pitcher and was also named to the all-tournament team. She finished the weekend 2-0 in the tournament, pitching 15 innings and did not give up a single run.
Along with Robinson, three other Buckeyes were named to the all-tourny squad. Left fielder Julie Bauman (Sr., Canfield, Ohio), third baseman Amy Paumier (Fr., Alliance, Ohio) and outfielder Cheryl Palaroan (Jr., Reno, Nev.) were named to the ten member team. Before the USF game, the Buckeyes defeated Georgia Southern 6-2 in the semifinal. The Buckeyes will hit the road again next weekend when they travel to Atlanta, Ga., for the Georgia State/Lady Panther Invitational. OSU begins play Saturday at 8:30 a.m. against Troy State.
