Softball Finishes the Home Portion of its Schedule with Nine Games this Week – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/20/1998 12:00:00 AM | Softball
%^$April 20, 1998
%^$Final Home Week of the Season
%^$The Week Will Feature Youngstown State, Ohio University, Wright State and a Weekend Date With Wisconsin
%^$About This Week
%^$The Ohio State softball team will finish up the home portion of its schedule with nine games this week. Tomorrow, the Buckeyes will host Youngstown State (15-23-0). On Wednesday, Ohio University (21-21-0) will travel to Columbus and the following day will see Wright State (14-22-0) at Buckeye Field. All three series are doubleheaders scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. The weekend will bring in Wisconsin (15-23-1 overall, 6-8 in Big Ten) for a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m. and the series finale, Sunday at 1 p.m.
%^$Last Week
%^$The Buckeyes went through their longest winning streak under the tenure of second year head coach Linda Kalafatis of five games. OSU finished the week 5-2.
%^$Scouting the Penquins
%^$Youngstown State is currently 15-23-0 overall and a 2-10-0 in the Mid-Continent Conference. Although the Penquins split a doubleheader with Central Connecticut State on Saturday (lost game one, 2-1 and won game two, 4-0) they come to Columbus relatively hot winning nine out of their last ten games. Offensively, YSU is led by Chris Notareschi. She leads the team in all major statistical categories with a .337 average, five home runs and 23 RBI. Rachel Zehnder is also contributing with a .320 average and 21 RBI. Mistine Hamilton leads the team with 11 base thefts. In the circle, Michelle Gongwer is carrying a team low 3.05 ERA and is 8-10 on the year. The Penquins mentor is Julie Croft.
%^$Ohio State leads the all-time series over Youngstown State, 6-0. The last time the two schools squared off was in 1994. Ohio State took both games 5-1 and 11-0.
%^$Scouting the Bobcats
%^$Ohio Unversity is currently 21-21-0 overall. Offensively, the Bobcats are led by Jen Morris. She has a .426 average with three home runs and 29 RBI. Jen Sewell is batting .389 with 28 RBI. In the circle, Christy Connelly has a team low 2.44 ERA with a 9-12 record. Kasey Dowd leads the team with an 11-7 record and has a 2.62 ERA. The Bobcat mentor is Roanna Brazier.
%^$OSU leads the all-time series over OU, 30-20. Last year, the two schools split a doubleheader on May 6. OSU took a 12-9 loss in game one and won game two, 10-2.
%^$Scouting the Raiders
%^$Wright State is currently 14-22-0 overall and 7-11-0 in the Mid-Continent Conference. The Raiders are coming off back-to-back losses at the hands of Illinois-Chicago, 2-0 and 3-0. They have also lost six out of their last nine games. Offensively, the squad is led by Amanda Kendrick’s .391 average and 13 stolen bases. Angie Lala leads the team with 19 RBI and is also carrying a .309 average. In the circle, Kelly Herbst leads the team with a 6-7 record and has a team low 2.19 ERA. The Wright State mentor is Shelia Nahrgang. OSU leads the all-time series against WSU, 9-1. The two schools last faced off on April 12, 1994. OSU won both games 13-2 and 11-1.%^$
%^$Scouting the Badgers
%^$Wisconsin enters this week with a 15-23-1 overall record and are 6-8-0 in the Big Ten. Last weekend, the Badgers split a pair of games with Purdue, winning game one 7-0 and losing game two 3-2. Wisconsin is also 1-4 over their last five games. Offensively, Julie Borchard leads the team with a .418 average. Becca Gilgen has 21 RBI. In the circle, Ashley Fauser has a team low 3.06 ERA and is carrying a 9-11 record. Karen Gallagher is the Wisconsin head coach. Wisconsin leads the all-time series over Ohio State, 3-2. Last year, the two schools played a doubleheader on April 5 with the Badgers sweeping both games, 6-4 and 6-1.
%^$Athletic Communications%^$For any questions or requests regarding the Ohio State Softball team, please contact Pat Chun at the OSU Athletic Communications Office. %^$The Martin Express
%^$On April 7, pitcher Kristi Martin broke the Ohio State freshman season record for strikeouts with 62. Her season total is now up to 71. The old record of 61 was set by current OSU assistant coach Belinda Cernava in 1980.
%^$The New Home Run Queen
%^$In the fourth inning of the Baylor contest (3/20) senior centerfielder/pitcher Jodi Dolan blasted her way into Ohio State softball immortality with her 10th career home run. She followed that up with her 11th blast against Pacific the following day. The old record of nine was held by Krinon Clark (1991-94) and Marla Pickard (1991-94).
%^$Tournament Championships
%^$The Buckeyes began the Air Touch Cellular Capital Classic with a rocky 0-3 start but settled down to win four out of its last five games and took home the consolation bracket championship. The Buckeyes finished with a 4-4 tournament record. In late February, the South Florida/Louisville Slugger tournament in Tampa, Fla., turned into a special trip for the Buckeyes. OSU won the tourney championship with a 5-1 record and upset win over No. 5-ranked South Florida.
%^$Buckeyes Named to All-Tournament Teams
%^$On March 22, senior second baseman Candace Kollen was one of 12 selected to the Capital Classic all-tournament team. Kollen led the Buckeyes both offensively with a .305 batting average and defensively with zero errors on 43 chances. On April 1, Ohio State placed four members of its team on the USF/Louisville Slugger all-tournament team – more than any other school participating in the tournament. Leading the way was pitcher Meaghan Robinson, who was also named the Most Valuable Pitcher. The junior went 2-0 and did not give up a run in 15 innings of work. Freshman third baseman Amy Paumier batted .357 with three doubles and three RBI. Junior outfielder Cheryl Palaroan hit .429 with three stolen bases. Senior leftfielder Julie Bauman hit .316 with three runs and a double. She also hit safely in all six games.%^$
%^$Smart Kids
%^$In the classroom, the Buckeyes dominated, in their typical fashion, with a combined 3.00 grade point average during the winter quarter. This follows up a 3.09 showing during the fall quarter.
%^$Pro Potential
%^$In late December of last year, the Virginia Roadsters of the Women’s Professional Fastpitch league made Jodi Dolan the fifth overall pick in the first round of their college draft. Dolan will complete her final year of eligibility with Ohio State and then reevaluate her situation after the season.
%^$1997 Recap
%^$Ohio State finished last season with 20-31 overall record and 4-18 in the Big Ten (9th place). The record marked an improvement in wins with an improvement in winning percentage by almost 100 points.
%^$Head Coach Linda Kalafatis
%^$Head Coach Linda Kalafatis is in her second season at the helm of the Buckeye program. In her first Buckeye season, Ohio State’s 20-31 record eclipsed the win total from the previous year and improved its winning percentage by almost 100 points. The team also improved in batting average, doubles, triples, home runs (the total of 18 set a new school record), runs batted in, stolen bases, fielding percentage, and committed fewer errors. The team earned run average shrunk by nearly a full run, improved in strikeouts, and reduced their number of walks, in spite of playing in 11 less games than in 1996.
%^$In the classroom, the Buckeyes shined brighter than ever with nine members of the squad earning academic all-Big Ten accolades, 10 members of the team earning OSU Scholar-Athlete honors and three members of the team earning National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-American Scholar-Athlete honors. Kalafatis has proven more than capable of turning programs around. She has already taken over two troubled programs and built them into winners. Last season’s 20-31 overall record, marked only her first losing season in nine years as a head coach. Kalafatis came to Ohio State after a three-year coaching stint at the University of Akron.
%^$Getting Results
%^$Game results will be posted on the Ohio State website (www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com) and on the Fax-on-demand service (The Big Ten passcode – 282; Release – 2665, Last Game Results – 2667).
%^$On Deck
%^$The Buckeyes will finish out the season on the road. On Tuesday, the Buckeyes will travel to Purdue for a doubleheader at 1 p.m. and on Thursday, OSU will head to Akron Firestone Stadium for a single game against Kent. The weekend will see the Buckeyes head to Evanston, Ill., for a three-game series with Northwestern. On Saturday, May 2, the teams will square off in doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. On the following day they will play the series finale at 1 p.m.
%^$Big Ten Player of the Week
%^$Natalie Tomoguchi was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week. Over the weekend, Tomoguchi was near perfection in the three-game series against Michigan State with an astronomical batting average of .857. She went 6-for-7, with two walks and two RBI. During one stretch, she reached bases on eight consecutive plate appearances. For the week, Tomoguchi batted .500 (9-for-18) with two runs, a home run, three RBI, three walks and a stolen base. The home run was the first this season and the game winner against Bowling Green on April 15. She also reached base in 11 out of her last 13 plate appearances.
%^$Slap Hits
%^$* On April 15, in the second game against Bowling Green, senior Candace Kollen singled her way into Ohio State Softball immortality. The hit represented the 216th of her career, which broke the OSU all-time career mark of 215 set by Krinon Clark (1991-94).
%^$* Sophomore Renae Weigel is currently leading the team with a six-game hitting streak. The team season high belongs to junior Jaime Chenevey, who had an 11-game streak earlier in the year.
%^$* Last week, Weigel carried a .421 average with a home run (her second career grandslam) and seven RBI. Kollen had a .400 average while sophomore Toni Hileman batted .389.
%^$* The 16-game homestand is not the longest in the 90’s for Ohio State. In 1994, the Buckeyes had a 20-game homestand from April 5 -23 and finished with a 16-4 record. The Buckeyes are currently 5-2 on this homestand.
%^$* The Buckeyes have already eclipsed last year’s totals of 20 overall and four conference victories.
%^$Around the Horn
%^$1 Kristi Martin, Fr., P, R-R – Leads the team with 74 Ks and seven wins…Earned the win over Michigan STate both wins over Penn State to give her five conference victories…Notched third win of year with a gutty 12-inning complete game performance vs. Minnesota…Earned her second win of the season against Southwest Missouri State (3/20)…Rung up 12 strikeouts (just two shy of the OSU all-time single game record) against Coastal Carolina (2/28) in her first career win.
%^$2 Jodi Dolan, Sr., CF/P, R-R -OSU all-time career home run leader with 11 dingers…Broke the old mark of nine against Baylor (3/20)…Picked things up last week with a 7-for-21 performance in seven game…Earned OSUs first win of the year against Cal-State
%^$3 Cheryl Palaroan, Jr., CF, L-R – In the midst of a career year…Leads the team with 16 stolen bases and also has a .333 batting average…A solid outfielder with zero errors this season…Made USF/Louisville Slugger all-tournament team with a .429 tourney average.
%^$4 Natalie Kratzer, Jr., 3B, L-R – Had career high five-game hitting streak halted last week…Has already started a career high 14 games…Tallied her first hit of the season in the season opener against LBS, a single in the fifth inning. Unrelenting and tireless work ethic…Coaches consider her the heart and soul of the team…Dare you to find a better leader.
%^$6 Meaghan Robinson, Jr., P/1B, R-R – Earned her second save of the season with 1.2 innings of flawless relief work in the 6-1 win over Miami (O.)…Improved her record to 2-0 in tournament championship games with her win over Harvard (3/22) and win over South Florida (3/1)…Earned Most Valuable Pitcher and all-tournament team honers at the USF/Louisville Slugger…Recorded her first career save against Cal-State Fullerton.
%^$7 Kelli Tom, Jr., P, R-R – Has been awesome since her return giving up one run in 7.1 innings of relief work…Returned to action in the first contest against Cleveland State…Missed the first part of the season due to knee surgury last fall.
%^$10 Toni Hileman, So., P/1B, R-R – Batted .389 with a double last week…Posted her first shutout of the season over Oregon (3/22)…Notched her first career hit as a Buckeye – a single against Cal-State Fullerton’s Chrissy Hartman…Can pitch and play first base…Played last season at Ohio University.
%^$11 Jaime Chenevey, Jr., C, R-R – Batting .308 on the season with a team high 23 RBI…Had a team high 12-game hitting streak earlier in the year…Blasted first home run of the season against Georgia Southern (3/1)…Had a hit and RBI against Long Beach State.
%^$18 Renae Weigel, So., SS, R-R – One of the team’s top clutch hitters…Second on team with 21 RBI…Belted a game ending grandslam in the second game against Bowling Green…Second grandslam of her career…Consistent all season long at the plate with .353 average…Stepped up in the clutch for her team with the game winning RBI against No. 5-ranked South Florida…Worked hard on her game over the summer and results have been very apparent.
%^$20 Candace Kollen, Sr., 2B, L-R – One of greatest ever to wear the Scarlet and Gray…All-time hit leader, stolen base leader, run scored leader and at bat leader in school history…Dazzeled opponents at Capital Classic with slick fielding…Earned all-Capital Classic team honors with .305 average and zero errors in 43 chances…All-Big Ten honoree in 1996.
%^$21 Natalie Tomoguchi, Sr., RF, R-R -Had a career week earning Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors in the process…Has 13 RBI on the year…Missed 32 games last season with face and eye injuries…Brings stability to the outfield.
%^$22 Amy Paumier, Fr., IF, R-R – Earned USF/Louisville Slugger all-tournament team honors with a .357 tournament average, three doubles and three RBI…Started her first career game against Utah. . .Recorded her first career hit against Cal-State Fullerton’s Jana Oetgan, a single to centerfield in the first inning…Quick…Good power.
%^$23 Julie Bauman, Sr., LF, L-L – Will miss the remainder of the season with a broken right arm…Tied her own Ohio State record with four walks in one game in the first contest against Michigan…Batted a solid .333 in seven games last week…Earned USF/Louisville Slugger all-tournament honors with a .316 tournament average…Came out of the gate en fuego with four hits in her first eight at bats.
%^$28 Holly English, Fr., OF, R-R – Had game winning RBIs in both wins againt Dayton…Notched first career hit and RBI of her career against Baylor (3/20)…Started her first career game against Utah…Solid athlete…adds much needed depth to the outfield…Brings great speed to the outfield.
