Softball Opens the Season in Auburn, Ala. – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/6/2001 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 6, 2001
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State softball team opens its season this weekend at the Auburn Invitational in Auburn, Ala. The Buckeyes will open their 2001 campaign with a pair of doubleheaders. OSU faces Northern Illinois at noon Friday and Big Ten foe Purdue at 2 p.m. Saturday, the Buckeyes go up against Syracuse at noon and host-Auburn at 2 p.m.
SOLID FOUNDATION
Entering her fifth season at Ohio State, head coach Linda Kalafatis has her most solid foundation since taking over the OSU program. All but three starter from last season return and some top prospects have been added to the roster.
“For the first time since I’ve been here, it’s basically the same nucleus of players from the year before,” Kalafatis said. “We’re adding to a great nucleus of starters, rather than depending on so many people to come in and make a difference.
“I think that, in our fifth year, the stability we have created is really starting to have a settling effect on the program. These are all players that have come in under our tenure. The players share in our expectations of the program.”
ALL-BIG TEN TRIO RETURNS
OSU returns three All-Big Ten selections from last season. Junior catcher Stacy Roth, a first team All-Great Lakes Region and second-team All-Big Ten selection is back behind the plate. Center fielder Anna Smith, a junior, is coming off consecutive All-Big Ten seasons. She was a third-team selection as a freshman and a second-team selection last season. At second base, Jennifer Link earned second-team conference honors as a freshman. Roth’s 36 RBI were the second most for a season in OSU history. Her 14 RBI in conference play were second most in the Big Ten. She was voted team MVP and offensive player of the year. Smith led OSU with 37 stolen bases and ranked seventh in conference play with seven steals. She also cracked the Big TenTop 10 with a batting average of .339 (10th) and 19 hits (fifth) in conference play. Link had a batting average of .294 to go along with her fielding percentage of .959 and was named defensive player of the Year.
CHAIN IN TOP SHAPE
Despite being hampered with a finger injury on her pitching hand last season, pitcher Katie Chain (So., North Canton, Ohio/Hoover) set a freshman record with 125 strikeouts, crushing the previous record of 83 and ranking her third in the OSU record book for a single season. Chain led OSU with 12 wins. Chain had a strong fall, picking up where she left off last season and pitching in three of Ohio State’s five wins. In her first outing against Miami Valley, she allowed just one hit and threw eight strikeouts through the first four innings.
In her game against Robert Morris Oct. 1, 2000 she allowed just five hits and threw another eight K’s.
HOMERING HIMES
Kristine Himes belted an OSU-single-season record 10 home runs last season as a freshman. Himes needs just four long balls to pass former teammate Renae Weigel, who set the record last year, totaling 13 for her career. Himes also drove in 35 runs, an OSU-freshman record and was second on the team behind Roth’s 36.
ROTH MISSES END OF SEASON
After leading the team in nearly every category, catcher Stacy Roth missed the final 13 games of the season because of an illness. Despite missing nearly half the conference season, Roth was ranked second in the conference in Big Ten play with 14 RBI. She ended the season leading the team with 36 RBI and a .386 batting average. Her six home runs tied her with Sarah West for second on the squad. Roth will behind the plate when the Buckeyes open the 2001 season.
FAST START FOR DEVRIES
Kristi DeVries (Fr., Corona, Calif./Corona), expected to have an immediate impact in the circle for the Buckeyes, had a fine collegiate debut at the Buckeye Invitational last fall. She hurled 15 strikeouts in the game Sept. 30 against Robert Morris to lead her team to a 2-0 win. On Sunday, she threw another 11 K’s in a 3-0 win against Shawnee State.
ALLEN GOOD TO GO
Kalafatis and her staff received some good news last week. Highly touted freshman pitcher and outfielder Wendy Allen has been cleared to play and will see some action in Auburn.Allen spent last year recovering from and ACL injury, missing her high school and summer sesons as well as the OSU fall season.
POZZI GETS THE NOD
Newcomer Breana Pozzi (Fr., Petaluma, Calif./Casa Grande) had a strong fall season, giving her the inside track to take over the shortstop position – the lone open spot in the infield. Pozzi hit the team’s first home run of the fall season Sept. 30. In the bottom of the fourth inning, she hit a solo shot over the center field wall to give the Buckeyes a 3-0 lead over Miami Valley. Ohio State went on to win the game, 8-0. Pozzi will join Sarah West, Christine Himes and Jennifer Link in the infield.
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’
Along with the many familiar faces on the Buckeye squad, there are six newcomers in scarlet and gray. Three players come to OSU from California. Wendy Allen (Fr., Moreno Valley, Calif./Moreno Valley) was a four-year letterwinner and starter for the Moreno Valley softball and soccer teams. Kristi DeVries (Fr., Corona, Calif./Corona) was a four-year letterwinner and starter in softball. She also led her volleyball team to the Moutain View league championships. Another softball four-year letter winner and starter, Breana Pozzi (Fr., Petaluma, Calif./Casa Grande) also participated in volleyball and basketball.
ELLIS RETURNS A BUCKEYE
Amy Ellis (So., Sagamore Hills, Ohio/Ball State Univ.), a transfer student that started in 24 games and subbed in another 16 as a shortstop for Ball State, returned to the Buckeye state after a year in Muncie, Ind. She went 3-4 against Michigan State and 2-4 against Ohio last season. She also hit a game-winning double against Illinois for the Cardinals.
Kari Crandell (Fr., Hendersonville, Tenn./Hendersonville) adds depth behind the plate. She was a four-year letterwinner and starter for her softball team, which competed in the state championships for two-consecutive years. She also participated in golf and volleyball for two years.
McABIER ON THE CORNERS
Beth McAbier (Fr., Carrollton, Ohio/Carrollton) could see time at both third and first base this season. She will most likely see time at the hot corner behind Himes. McAbier was a four-year letterwinner is softball, basketball and volleyball. She started all four years in softball and volleyball and was a three-year starter in basketball. She also earned All-Ohio honors in basketball and softball.
GOING, GOING, GONE
Ohio State aimed for the fences last season, blasting 28 home runs, a single-season record. Freshman Kristine Himes led the Buckeyes with 10 dingers. Stacy Roth and Sarah West followed with six each.
CERNEVA’S CORPS
Last season was a record-breaking one for pitching coach Belinda Cernava and her corps. The pitching staff combined for 275 strikeouts, fifty more than the previous record set in 1994. The output was nearly double that of the previous year, 149.
OUTFIELD IN TACT
Outfield coach Drema Neal returns four veterans to her unit. Starters Holly English, Rogeanna Hottinger and Anna Smith return, as does part-time starter Chrissy Fowler. Catcher Stacy Roth and newcomer Wendy Allen also could see time in the outfield. Neal said offensive production will determine the lineup, meaning there could be be several variations on the lineup.
ON DECK
OSU will next compete at the Campbell-Cartier Classic in San Diego, Calif., Feb. 16-18.
