Softball Returns For Six Games At Fullerton Tourney – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/27/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 27, 2002%^$
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%^$COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State softball team, off to the best start in the history of the program at 9-1, will put its stellar record on the line with its second trip of the year to the Greater Los Angeles region when the Buckeyes participate in the Fullerton-Worth Invitational at Fullerton, Calif. OSU will have two opponents each of its three days on the West Coast including three nationally ranked foes. The Buckeyes face Portland State in the opener (1 p.m. EST Friday) with games slated against No. 14 CSU-Fullerton (7 p.m. EST Friday), San Jose State (1 p.m. EST Saturday), No. 7 California (3 p.m. EST Saturday), San Diego State (2 p.m. EST Sunday) and No. 12 Pacific (4 p.m. EST Sunday).%^$
%^$RETURNING HOME
%^$Seven of the 20 players on the 2002 Ohio State roster call the Golden State home and return to the Southern California area for the second time in a four week span to play ball. Kristi DeVries (Corona), Breana Pozzi (Petaluma), Annie Dedic (Yorba Linda), Anna Smith (Walnut), Wendy Allen (Moreno Valley), JJ Johnson (LaMirada) and Jennifer Link (Yorba Linda) make up the West Coast connection for the Buckeyes.%^$
%^$THIEVES
%^$Ohio State continued to run wild on the base paths the last time out and ran its total to 22 steals on the year in 24 attempts. Jennifer Link maintained the team lead in thefts with a 5-for-5 performance at Houston to bring her season total to a perfect 9-for-9. Anna Smith (5-for-5), Meghan Rowlands (3-for-3) and Stacy Roth (2-for-2) also sport an unblemished record in the category.%^$
%^$PUTTING IT IN PLAY
%^$The Buckeyes’ 9-1 start, the best in the history of the program, has been a total team effort. Four players, Jennifer Link (.467), Annie Dedic (.429), Stacy Roth (.407) and Wendy Allen (.406), are hitting at a better than .400 clip to help the team average to .337. Opponents are only connecting at a .161 average.%^$
Ohio State’s pitching staff has helped shut down the opposition, posting a 1.04 earned run average. The Buckeyes have hung a 4.44 ERA on opposing pitchers on their way to outscoring the other team 55-14 and belting out 56 more hits (93-37).%^$
%^$RING ‘EM UP
%^$The pitching staff has recorded 90 strike outs this year, averaging 9 per game. Katie Chain leads the squad with 44 while Wendy Allen and Kristi DeVries follow with 26 and 20, respectively. Opponents also have only collected three more hits on the year, holding a .161 batting average.%^$
%^$STREAK
%^$Since suffering a 7-6 defeat at the hands of then-No. 18 Oregon State at the Tournament of Champions during the opening weekend of the season at Northridge, Calif., Ohio State has won seven games in a row, one of the better win streaks for the program. The record is held by the 1994 squad that posted 17-consecutive wins midway through the season. Second on the ledger is 12 set last year. The 2002 team is tied for sixth with the 1993 and 1998 squads. Third is nine in a row for the 1988 and 1995 teams and fifth is held by the 1990 team with eight.%^$
%^$FAST START
%^$Ohio State’s 9-1 start in 2002 is the top mark in the history of the program. Since 1986 (when accurate year-by-year results were available), the best 10 game start for an Ohio State softball team was 6-4. OSU has posted that mark three times including the 2001, 1998 and 1997 campaigns.%^$
%^$SEEING DOUBLE
%^$Stacy Roth has collected two doubles this year moving her a step closer to surpassing some of the leaders on the all-time list. With 31, Roth is seventh on the ledger needing one to tie Jaime Chenevey (1996-99) for sixth. Krinon Clark’s (1991-94) mark of 58 may not be reached, but Jodi Dolan’s (1995-98) second-best mark of 38 could be surpassed.%^$
%^$DOUBLE PLAY
%^$Ohio State turned four double plays last year and hit into nine a year ago. This year, the Buckeyes already have turned four and only hit into the situation twice.%^$
%^$WELCOME ABOARD!
%^$When the Buckeyes return to Columbus following the Worth Invitational, they will have logged 11,322 miles of travel on their three trips. Ohio State will have visited Los Angeles twice and Houston once. Columbus to Los Angeles is 2,246 miles one way and a one-way journey to Houston totals 1,169 miles.%^$
%^$ALL-BIG TEN RETURNEES
%^$ The Buckeyes had six All-Big Ten selections last season, the most in program history. Katie Chain, after setting several single-season and career records, earned first team honors. Wendy Allen was tabbed as Big Ten Freshman of the Year and was a Second Team All-Big Ten selection along with Anna Smith and Stacy Roth. Jennifer Link and Kristi DeVries also earned Big Ten honors as members of the third team.%^$
%^$MANY HAPPY RETURNS
%^$Seventeen of the 18 members of the roster last year return to give Ohio State one of its more veteran lineups. OSU has five seniors, seven juniors, five sophomores and three freshmen this year.%^$
%^$KALAFATIS ENTERS HER SIXTH YEAR
%^$Linda Kalafatis is in her sixth season with the Scarlet and Gray and has complied a 147-130 (.531) record in five seasons leading the Buckeyes. In her 13 years in the collegiate coaching ranks, Kalafatis has posted a 420-245-2 (.630) mark including stints with her alma mater California (Pa.) and Akron. At California, Kalafatis led her teams to five Pennsylvania State Athletics Conference titles and a 175-53-1 (.764) record. With the Zips, her teams went 98-62-1 (.608) in three years. Kalafatis earned her degree in business administration and marketing from CU in 1988 and added a master’s degree in geography and regional planning in 1991.%^$
%^$KALAFATIS VS. OPPONENTS THIS WEEK
%^$In her career as a head coach, Linda Kalafatis has compiled a 3-5 record against Ohio State’s opponents this weekend at Fullerton. Her squads hold a 2-0 mark over Pacific, 0-1 against San Diego State and 1-4 against CSU-Fullerton. The meetings with California, San Jose State and Portland State will be the first in Kalafatis’ 14 years as a collegiate coach.%^$
%^$2002 FULLERTON-WORTH INVITATIONAL
%^$Ten teams make up the 2002 field including two representatives from the Big Ten Conference in Ohio State and Minnesota. Along with tournament host Cal State Fullerton, the participants are California, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Pacific, Portland State, San Diego State and San Jose State.%^$
%^$SCOUTING REPORT: PORTLAND STATE
%^$The Vikings and 26th-year head coach Teri Mariani are 1-4 this year after their first weekend of competition last weekend at the UNLV Softball Classic. True freshman Kara Ray is hitting .357 with a team-high five hits and seven total bases. Junior right hand pitcher Morgan Seibert is 1-2 with 25 strike outs in 20 innings thrown.%^$
%^$SCOUTING REPORT: #14 CSU-FULLERTON
%^$Senior Monica Lucatero leads the Titan’s offense with a .359 average and is one of eight players to hit a home run for Michelle Gromacki’s squad. CSUF is 8-8 on the year and has been led by junior pitcher Gina Oaks’ 0.99 ERA and 4-2 record. Of the eight losses sustained by the Titans, three have come at the hands of No. 2 Stanford.%^$
%^$SCOUTING REPORT: SAN JOSE STATE
%^$The Spartans and coach Dee Dee Enabenter-Omidiji are 6-10 in 2002 with losses at the hands of some of the top teams in the nation including No. 1 UCLA, No. 3 Arizona and No. 9 Washington. Junior Becca Baldrige leads the team with a .486 average, .189 better than the rest of the team. She leads the team with 18 hits and 20 total bases.%^$
%^$SCOUTING REPORT: #7 CALIFORNIA
%^$Diane Ninemire (15th year at Cal) and the Golden Bears are 15-4 this year and carry the No. 7 ranking in the latest national polls. Senior Jocelyn Forest, though second in ERA with a 1.68 mark, leads the team with 72 strike outs in eight appearances (5-2 record). Fellow senior Candace Harper is hitting .397 with 25 hits, two home runs and 13 RBI.%^$
%^$SCOUTING REPORT: SAN DIEGO STATE
%^$Kathy Van Wyk returns to the helm of the SDSU program for her sixth season with the Aztecs sporting a 9-9-1 record. Senior Sarah Hershman leads the SDSU battery with a .365 average and has collected 19 hits and 24 total bases. From the circle, sophomore Jessi Green has a 3-2 record with a staff-best 2.00 ERA.%^$
%^$SCOUTING REPORT: #12 PACIFIC
%^$Pacific, under the direction of tenth-year coach Brian Kolze, are off to a 10-3 record in 2002 including wins over national powers California (4-0) and Michigan (7-1). Senior Cindy Ball leads the pitching rotation with a 1.18 ERA, a 6-2 record and was the pitcher of record in the wins over Cal and UM. From the plate, junior Barbara Moody is hitting at a .419 clip with 10 doubles and 18 hits.%^$
%^$LAST TIME OUT: HOUSTON INVITATIONAL
%^$The Buckeyes traveled to the Lone Star State for the University of Houston Invitational played at the Cougar Softball Complex. Ohio State returned home as co-champions with Baylor after reaching the finals and being unable to play the last game because of travel plans.%^$
For the weekend, the Buckeyes posted four shut outs in five games and outscored their opponents, 29-2. OSU ran its program-best start to 9-1 with wins over Baylor (2-0), Stephen F. Austin (8-0), Sam Houston State (7-2), McNeese State (7-0) and the host Cougars (5-0).%^$
%^$BUCKEYE FIELD
%^$Buckeye Field, the outdoor home of the Ohio State softball team, stands as one of the more picturesque yards in the Big Ten. The all-dirt infield gives way to a well-kept outfield and warning track with fences at 190 feet in left and right field and 220 to straight away center. Equipped with field tarps, a press box, two spacious dugouts and full sound capabilities, the field comfortably seats 500 fans.%^$
%^$ON DECK
%^$Ohio State travels west on Interstate-70 to Dayton, Ohio, for a single game with the Dayton Flyers. The instate battle between the Buckeyes and Flyers begins at 4 p.m. March 6.
