Ohio State Heads to Tucson for NCAA Arizona Regional – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 16, 2006
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SETTING THE SCENE
Making its seventh NCAA tournament appearance and third in the last six years, the Ohio State softball team heads to Tucson, Ariz., this week for the Arizona Regional. Third-ranked Arizona, which earned the No. 2 overall seed in the tournament, welcomes No. 24 Auburn and Marist in addition to the Buckeyes, who are making their fourth trip west this season.
Ohio State (38-21) takes on Auburn (34-20) at 7 p.m. (EDT) Thursday in the opening game. Arizona (44-9) then faces Marist (33-11) at 9:30 p.m., with the double-elimination format resuming Friday at 4:30 p.m. The regional’s championship game at 6 p.m. Saturday (and game-seven, if needed) will be televised by ESPN2, with Beth Mowins and Lisa Fernandez bringing the call.
With a .285 team batting average, the Buckeyes own the best offense in the Big Ten, which sent six teams to the NCAA tournament. Ohio State advanced to the semifinals of the conference tournament last weekend and received an at-large bid when the NCAA’s field of 64 was announced Sunday.
LIVE COVERAGE ON THE WEB
GameTracker will have live stats of all OSU games at www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com. In addition, Arizona’s athletics Web site, www.arizonaathletics.com, will provide a live audio broadcast of all games in the regional.
BUCKEYES IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Ohio State is making its seventh appearance in the NCAA tournament, the last three of which have come thanks to at-large bids (2002, 2004, 2006). The Buckeyes are 3-4 in regional round under head coach Linda Kalafatis, advancing to the regional final in 2002 in Ann Arbor, Mich., and going 1-2 in Tallahassee in 2004. Ohio State won the Big Ten in 1990 and hosted the NCAA Midwest Regional. 1990 (host for Midwest Regional): lost to Kent State 4-0, beat Oregon 2-0, lost to Kent State 5-3 (eliminated).
2002 (No. 3 seed in Ann Arbor, Region 6, Regional): beat Central Michigan 7-0, lost to Michigan 3-0, beat Washington 2-1, lost to Michigan 4-0 (eliminated).
2004 (No. 6 seed in Tallahassee, Region 4, Regional): lost to South Florida 2-0, beat Bethune-Cookman 2-0, lost to Cal State Northridge 4-2 (eliminated).
A LOOK AT THE ARIZONA REGIONAL
Arizona is hosting one of 16 regionals around the country and is one of two hosts to begin its regional Thursday. The 16 regional champions meet will be paired for best-of-three super regionals May 26-27, again at school sites, with the eight winners advancing to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series.
Arizona Regional Schedule (All times EDT)
GAME 1 Thurs. 7 p.m. Auburn vs. Ohio State
GAME 2 Thurs. 9:30 p.m. Arizona vs. Marist
GAME 3 Fri. 4:30 p.m. Winner 1 vs. Winner 2
GAME 4 Fri. 7 p.m. Loser 1 vs. Loser 2
GAME 5 Fri. 9:30 p.m. Winner 4 vs. Loser 3
GAME 6 Sat. 4 p.m. Winner 3 vs. Winner 4 (ESPN2)
GAME 7 (if needed) Sat. 6 p.m. Winner 6 vs. Loser 6 (ESPN2)
KALAFATIS ON THE NCAA SELECTION
“We are thrilled to represent the Big Ten in the NCAA tournament and to be recognized as one of the Top 64 teams in the nation,” Linda Kalafatis, Ohio State head coach, said. “We have a couple Arizona kids so they’re very excited and so are our California kids (5), so their families will be able to be there, too, so we’ll have a good fan base. From what I hear it’s one of the best places to play college softball in the country and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”
OHIO STATE AT A GLANCE
Ohio State has finished fourth in the Big Ten the last two years and led the league in hitting both years. A year ago, the Buckeyes ranked seventh in the nation in team batting average at .321, but it was not until April this season that the Buckeyes’ offense got fully on track. In April, OSU had a 12-game winning streak, went 19-5 overall and batted .333 to rise to the top of the Big Ten in that department (now .285).
Ohio State was 21-2 at home this season, while going 10-10 on the road and 7-9 in neutral site games. Big wins included in the latter two records include road wins at No. 4 Alabama March 3 and at NCAA tournament participants Stetson Feb. 19 and Long Beach State March 24. Big wins at neutral sites have included over Oregon Feb. 25 and NCAA participants Portland State Feb. 11, Utah Feb. 12 and Coastal Carolina March 3.
Ohio State’s offensive leaders include Brittany Vanderink (.351, first-team All-Big Ten), Megan Schwab (.339, 4 HR, 30 RBI, 11 2B) and Jamee Juarez (.292, 4 HR, 32 RBI, 11 2B). Nycole Koyano (.287, 42 R) leads the Big Ten in stolen bases (26). Billie Carder (.286, 3 HR, 3 3B) leads the team in RBI (35) and Chelsea Baker (.245, 25 RBI) leads the team in home runs (8).
The pitching staff includes Juarez (16-10, 2.61 ERA), Kim Reeder (16-10, 1.79 ERA) and Courtney Pruner (6-1, 3.00 ERA). Juarez threw her 18th career shutout May 3, while Reeder is closing in on most OSU freshman pitching records.
OSU returns 11 letterwinners and welcomes four newcomers in 2006 for 600-game winner head coach Linda Kalafatis, who is in her 10th season. The Buckeyes were 32-17 overall in 2005 and finished fourth in the Big Ten with a 9-7 league mark. OSU ranked among the NCAA’s Top 13 in six categories, including scoring (8th, 5.8 runs/game).
OSU HEADS WEST FOR FOURTH TIME IN 2006
Ohio State is making its fourth western trip this season. The Buckeyes began their season with a 4-1 record Feb. 10-12 at the Hilton Las Cruces Invitational, hosted by New Mexico State. OSU then went 1-4 at the Palm Springs Classic Feb. 24-26, where it dropped a 5-1 decision to then-No. 1 Arizona. The Buckeyes then returned to California for spring break March 22-25 with doubleheaders at Loyola Marymount (2-0), Long Beach State (2-0) and Cal State Fullerton (0-2).
In those 16 games, Megan Schwab’s .314 average was best and she hit three homers and drove in 10 runs. Chelsea Baker hit .304 with two homers and seven RBI and Courtney Pruner hit three homers and had 11 RBI. Jamee Juarez was 6-4 with a 3.28 ERA and Kim Reeder was 3-3 with a 2.46 ERA.
A HOMECOMING FOR TWO BUCKEYES
OSU is playing in Arizona for the first time since 2004 when it played at the Arizona State Fiesta Bowl Classic in Tempe. When the Buckeyes arrive in Arizona they will be in the home state of juniors Christina Douglas (Mesa) and Megan Schwab (Glendale). In that event over two years ago, Schwab batted .412 with a double, homer and three RBI.
In addition, five Buckeyes are from California, including senior Stacy Hibma (Buena Park), juniors Jamee Juarez (La Puente) and Nycole Koyano (Walnut), sophomore Liz Caputo (Riverside) and freshman Kim Reeder (Salinas).
ALL-TIME SERIES NOTES
Ohio State is 1-1 all-time against Auburn, with both meetings coming at Auburn in 2001, a 3-2 Tiger victory and a 4-0 OSU win. Ohio State and Marist have never met.
After beating Ohio State 5-1 Feb. 25 in Palm Springs (box score on page 13), Arizona holds a 10-2 lead in the series with the Buckeyes. Prior to that, the two teams had not faced off since 1996.
Year Winner Location Score 2006 Arizona Palm Springs, Calif. 5-1 1996 Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 11-2 1996 Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 6-4 1996 Ohio State Tempe, Ariz. 4-0 1994 Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 9-3 1993 Arizona Fullerton, Calif. 9-0 1993 Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 17-2 1992 Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 1-0 1991 Ohio State Tucson, Ariz. 1-0 1990 Arizona Tucson, Ariz. 3-0
A LOOK AT COMPETITION
Auburn (34-20, 15-15 Southeastern Conference) is making its third straight appearance in the NCAA tournament and fourth in the last five years. The Tigers have dropped three straight, falling twice to Ole Miss and once to LSU in the opening round of the SEC Tournament. Auburn is led offensively by Kristina McCain’s .369 batting average and 59 hits and Ashley Griffin’s eight home runs. Junior pitcher Holly Currie has a 1.86 ERA, leading the SEC’s fourth-best pitching staff.
Marist, the four seed in Tucson, finished the regular season 30-11 and 12-4 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). The Red Foxes won their first-ever MAAC tournament championship, earning their first bid in school history to the NCAA tournament with 1-0 victory over Fairfield. Marist ranks No. 22 nationally in ERA (1.67), No. 7 in home runs (1.12 hrpg) and No. 19 in slugging percentage (.472). MAAC Player of the Year Chrystine McHugh’s team leading 54 hits and 15 home runs ranks third in the conference (sixth nationally). Sophomore Megan Rigos (0.73 ERA, 19-5) leads the conference in pitching (sixth nationally).
Top-seeded Arizona, hosting a regional for the fourth-consecutive year and 13th time in the past 15 years, finished the regular season 44-9 including 15-6 in the Pac-10. Coming off a trip to the Women’s College World Series, Arizona finished second in the conference, earning an at-large bid. The Wildcats lead the conference in hitting (.304, No. 21 nationally) and pitching (1.07 ERA, No. 6 in nation) and are ranked No. 6 in the country in fielding (.979) and No. 6 in scoring (5.35 rpg). As of May 8, Caitlin Lowe (.441, No. 10 nationally, No. 7 in stolen bases, .6 sbpg) and Kristie Fox (.440) are sixth and seventh respectively in the Pac-10 in hitting. Alicia Hollowell (21-4, 0.90 ERA) is the third ranked pitcher in the conference (No. 14 nationally). She ranks fourth in the nation in strikeouts (12.2 sopg), while teammate Taryne Mowatt (1.16 ERA) ranks eighth (11.1 sopg).
SHORT HOPS…
The Buckeyes are 31-1 when leading after four innings and 24-0 when taking a lead into the seventh inning. When OSU scores at least three runs, it owns a 32-4 record. The last time the Buckeyes won a game 1-0 was April 23, 2004, at Illinois. Ohio State is hitting .375 (21-for-56) with the bases loaded with five grand slams.
Ohio State has hit 16 triples this season compared to nine for its opponents. The Buckeyes hit two triples in their 9-6 Big Ten quarterfinal win over Penn State last Friday, marking the first time OSU hit two triples in a postseason game since May 18, 2002 in a 2-1 NCAA regional win over Washington. It was first time the Buckeyes had hit two triples against a Big Ten opponent among available records (since 1998).
Five times this season the Buckeyes have given up five or more runs in an inning, but OSU went on to won four of those games. Colorado State scored five in the sixth (OSU won 8-7 in 8 inn., Feb. 11), Utah scored five in the sixth (OSU won 11-9 Feb. 12), UC-Santa Barbara scored six in the third (OSU lost 10-1 Feb. 24), Illinois scored five in the first (OSU won 8-7 April 7) and Wisconsin scored five in the second (OSU won 10-6 April 30).
Brittany Vanderink’s recent 13-game hitting streak was the fourth-best at Ohio State since 1998. In the semifinal game in which her hitting streak was snapped, she still reached base twice on Northwestern errors (May 13). During the last 14 games, Vanderink is hitting .520 (26-for-50). Megan Schwab owns a team-best 16 multiple-hit games, while Vanderink is next with 15. Jamee Juarez has a team-high 10 multiple-RBI games.
OSU HAD TWO FIRSTS BUT FELL TO ARIZONA 5-1
If the Buckeyes and Wildcats meet again this weekend, it will be their second meeting of the season. Arizona senior pitcher Alicia Hollowell allowed only two OSU hits in a 5-1 Arizona win Feb. 25 in Palm Springs. A lead-off single up the middle by Nycole Koyano and a third-inning solo home run by Courtney Pruner were the only two hits for the Buckeyes. Pruner’s homer was the first run allowed by Hollowell in her first 51 innings pitched of the season. The box score from that game is on page 13 of this release.
COMMON OPPONENTS
Ohio State shares at least one common opponent with each of the other three teams at the Arizona Regional this weekend. The common opponents between OSU, Auburn and Arizona are listed below, while the one common opponent between the Buckeyes and Marist is Stetson, which topped Marist 9-0 Feb. 24 after splitting with OSU, Feb. 18-19 (0-2, 5-2).
Team OSU result Arizona result Auburn result Minnesota won twice – won 7-0 Miami (Ohio) lost, 6-5 – won 15-1 Michigan lost twice – lost 1-0 Alabama won 3-1 won 2-0 won 2, lost 1 Northwestern won 2, lost 1 won 8-0 – CS-Fullerton lost twice won 2-0 – Long Beach St. won twice won twice – UNLV lost 4-0 won 7-0 – Oregon won 6-0 won 3 gms – UCLA lost 4-1 lost 3 gms –
OSU-OPPONENT CONNECTIONS
Auburn freshman Jorja Bell, from New Zealand, and Ohio State junior Lauren Daykin, from Australia, are both from south of the equator and are from neighboring countries. They are both the only international players on their teams. Auburn’s assistant coach, Ashley Moore, played against the Buckeyes in 2001 as an Auburn outfielder.
Ohio State’s Nycole Koyano (Walnut), Jamee Juarez (La Puente), Liz Caputo (Riverside) and Stacy Hibma (Buena Park) are all from eastern suburbs of Los Angeles, as are Arizona’s Autumn Champion (Tustin), Taryne Mowtt (Corona) and Kelly Nelson (Lakewood). From the Phoenix area are OSU’s Megan Schwab (Glendale) and Christina Douglas (Mesa) and Arizona’s Jill Malina and Leslie Wolf of Scottsdale.
Ohio State head coach Linda Kalafatis is a native of Bethel Park, Pa., near the hometown of Marist players Megan Rigos (So., Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon), which is about 10 miles from Bethel Park, and MaryBeth Pomes (Fr., Milford, Pa./Delaware Valley).
BUCKEYES IN THE BIG TEN
In Big Ten statistics as of May 8, Ohio State ranked first in the Big Ten in batting (.288 avg.), fourth in pitching (2.21 ERA) and 10th in fielding (.949 pct.). OSU ranked third in the conference in scoring (4.6 rpg), first in hits (7.6 hpg), first in triples (14), fourth in home runs (.7 hrpg), second in stolen bases (1.3 sbpg) and was the third-toughest team to strikeout (4.8 kpg).
Individually, Brittany Vanderink ranked seventh in batting (.350) and tied for seventh in stolen bases (16). Nycole Koyano ranked first in stolen bases (26), fourth in runs (39) and sixth in walks (27). Courtney Pruner ranked second in triples (4), while Billie Carder tied for third in triples (3), tied for ninth in RBI (34) and tied for ninth in fielding assists (102). Among Big Ten pitchers, Kim Reeder ranked eighth in both ERA (1.69) and strikeouts (151), while Jamee Juarez ranked seventh in strikeouts (185) and tied for fourth in games started (28).
KALAFATIS IN 10TH YEAR AT OSU
Ohio State head coach Linda Kalafatis is in her 10th season at the helm of the Buckeyes’ softball program in 2006. She is already OSU’s all-time wins leader with 333 victories in Columbus (333-230-0, .592), and her overall record stands at 606-345-2 (.637) in 18 years as a collegiate head coach. She is assisted by former Buckeyes Belinda Quisenberry and Kristi DeVries and former Nebraska All-American Ali Viola.
IN THE OSU RECORD BOOK
Junior Jamee Juarez has 16 wins this season to increase her career total to 54, which ranks third all-time. She ranks fifth on the career innings pitched list (545.2) and third on the strikeouts list (498). Offensively, Juarez is tied for third on the career RBI list (96).
Senior Chelsea Baker has 15 career home runs, which ranks fourth in OSU history. Junior Megan Schwab’s 14 homers are tied for fifth. Schwab also ranks seventh in doubles (35) and eighth in runs (91). Junior Nycole Koyano ranks second in OSU history with 86 walks, third in stolen bases with 58 and fourth in runs scored with 116. Her 26 stolen bases this season are fourth-most at OSU in a single season. She is tied for fourth in career triples with eight.
Among Ohio State freshmen, Courtney Pruner’s four triples are tied for first, her seven homers are second, her 32 RBI are third and her 28 runs are tied for fourth. Kim Reeder ranks third in innings pitched (176.1), tied for first in wins (16), second in strikeouts (155) and tied for third in shutouts (4).
Player Notes…
Chelsea Baker (.245, 8 HR, 25 RBI)
Co-captain … 8 HR leads team … hit .250 in Big Ten games with 2 HR … 15 career HR 4th all-time at OSU … has started all but one game (28 RF, 25 CF, 2 LF, 1 DP) … 35 runs scored 2nd on team … hit walk-off game-winning HR to beat #15 Northwestern 4/9 … hit grand slam, 6 RBI vs. Toledo 4/11 … batted .293 at Buckeye Field … homered in back-to-back games 2/12 (Utah, Texas-San Antonio) … went 3-for-4 in OSU’s 6-0 win over No. 22 Oregon 2/25 … named to all-tourn. team of Hilton Las Cruces Invitational 2/12.
Career highlights: A career .282 hitter … owned the team’s No. 6 batting average (.356) and No. 3 slugging percentage (.578) last year.
Cortney Cannon (.333, 0 HR, 2 RBI)
Has seen action in 8 games … started game-two vs. Toledo 4/11 at DP (1-for-4, 2 RBI) … had a pinch-hit single vs. Wright State 4/26.
Liz Caputo (.371, 0 HR, 3 RBI)
Had a pinch-hit single vs. Michigan 4/22 in her first at bat since breaking tibia at Stetson 2/19 … had pinch-hit appearance at Iowa 4/28 … started first 9 games in CF, then missed next 37 games … went 4-for-4 in the season-opener at New Mexico St. 2/10.
Career highlights: 2nd-team all-region and All-Big Ten selection as a freshman … batted .367 with 4 homers and 19 RBI … batted team-best .516 in league games … OSU’s 2005 Rookie of the Year … average was 2nd-best by a freshman in OSU history and 4 HR tied for No. 2 … .710 slugging percentage and .516 on-base percentage in Big Ten games were best on the team … 7 RBI vs. Long Island 2/27 set OSU freshman record.
Billie Carder (.286, 3 HR, 35 RBI)
3rd-team All-Big Ten … leads team in RBI and ranks 2nd in average with runners in scoring position (.365) … hit .455 with runners in scoring position in Big Ten games (2nd on team) … 14 RBI in Big Ten games led team, as did her .566 slugging pct. … .358 avg. in Big Ten games 2nd on team (10th in Big Ten, 2nd best among SS) … is the toughest Buckeye to strike out (once every 8.8 at bats) … 105 fielding assists tied for 9th in Big Ten … has 2 grand slams this season (4/1 at Indiana, 4/23 vs. Michigan St.) … 75 total bases 2nd on team … 3 triples tied for 3rd in Big Ten … started all 59 games … hit .384 in April (t-2nd on team) … 14 multiple-hit games tied for 3rd on team … hit game-winning HR in 9th to beat Long Beach State 3/24.
Career highlights: a career .285 hitter … is having her best year as a Buckeye as a senior, topping what had been her best season last year as a junior when she batted .302 with 3 homers, 27 RBI and 13 extra-base hits … ranked No. 4 on team in RBI and in Big Ten games drove in 14 runs, tied for tops on team … batted team-best .458 (22-for-48) with runners in scoring position last year, increased to team-best .556 (10-for-18) in Big Ten games.
Lauren Daykin (.259, 2 HR, 19 RBI)
Hit .275 in Big Ten games … ups avg. to .303 with runners in scoring position and led team in that dept. in Big Ten games (.556) … went 3-for-6 with HR in Michigan St. DH 4/23 … hitting .636 (7-for-11) with a runner on third and less than two outs … batted .326 at Buckeye Field … started all 18 Big Ten games at catcher … 2 of her 6 multiple-RBI games came in Big Ten play … was 2-for-3 with RBI in 6-3 win at Indiana 4/1 … 2-for-4 with game-winning two-RBI double in 8th inning to beat Kent State 3/17. Career highlights: played junior college softball in Florida the last two years and hit 30 home runs … a native of Australia and a member of the junior national team.
Christina Douglas (.252, 3 HR, 18 RBI)
Homered off two All-American pitchers this year, 4/22 vs. Michigan’s Jennie Ritter and 3/3 vs. Alabama’s Stephanie Van Brakle … hit .397 at Buckeye Field … leads team with 10 sacrifice bunts … was 2-for-2 with double vs. IUPUI 4/18 … went 3-for-4 in 11-2 win vs. Robert Morris 3/19 … was 2-for-3 in 6-0 win vs. No. 22 Oregon 2/25 … was named to the Buckeye Invitational all-tournament team.
Career highlights: Batted .293 overall and increased her average to .320 in Big Ten games last year … OSU’s 2005 Most Improved Player … led team in doubles (12), No. 2 in RBI and runs scored (31) … played RF as a freshman.
Stacy Hibma (.276, 2 HR, 14 RBI)
Hit .375 (3-for-8) in Big Ten games … has started 43 games (15 C, 23 3B, 5 DP) … Big Ten Player of the Week first week of season … 4-for-8 in last 4 games … 3-for-3 vs. Toledo 4/11 … owns 10 career HR … named to Hilton Las Cruces Invitational all-tourn. team 2/12 after going 8-for-19 (.421) in tourney … homered vs. Utah 2/12 … had career-best day vs. Central Florida 2/19, going 4-for-4 with RBI and double.
Career highlights: batted a career-best .320 last year with 5 HR and 12 RBI … .660 slugging percentage was No. 2 on team and her 5 home runs tied for 2nd-most … when in the game defensively at catcher, batting average went up to .382 and she hit all of her HR and had all but one of her RBI … hit 2 HR vs. Boston 3/5.
Stephanie Hill (.250, 0 HR, 1 RBI)
Has pinch-run 35 times and scored 10 runs … had 1st collegiate hit 5/3 vs. Oakland … had 1st collegiate RBI 4/26 vs. Wright St. … Career highlights: Entered as pinch runner 29 times last year, most on the team … scored 14 runs and stole 6 bases.
Jamee Juarez (.292, 4 HR, 32 RBI; 16-10, 2.61 ERA)
Overall: 2nd-team All-Big Ten … has played in all 59 games (started 58 = 29 P, 29 3B) … named to the Buckeye Invitational all-tournament team.
Pitching: threw her 18th career shutout 5/3 vs. Oakland … in the Big Ten, ranks 10th in innings pitched (174.2), 7th in strikeouts (187), 10th in wins (tied with Reeder) and t-4th in games started (29) … has won 7 of her last 9 decisions … is 3rd on OSU’s all-time strikeout list (498) and wins (54) and ranks 5th in innings pitched list (545.2) … has struck out 10+ batters 6 times this season, including 4/9 vs. #15 Northwestern … threw first career no-hitter 3/24 at Long Beach State … pitched 2-hit shutout 2/25 vs. #22 Oregon (and hit 3 HR).
Hitting: leads team in average with runners on base (.354), multiple-RBI games (10) and 2-out RBI (14) … tied team-lead 11 doubles … hit .292 in Big Ten games … hit .397 at Buckeye Field … hitting .350 with runners in scoring position (3rd on team) … tied OSU and Big Ten record with 3 HR vs. #22 Oregon 2/25 and had career-high 5 RBI.
Career highlights: career .306 hitter and 4th in OSU history with 96 RBI … OSU’s 2005 MVP … set OSU single-season wins record last year (25-12, 2.00 ERA) … 2005 2nd-team All-Big Ten and region … 193 strikeouts ranked No. 3 in a season, 213.0 innings pitched No. 2 and 10 shutouts tied-No. 2 … Big Ten Player of the Week twice in 2005 (2/22, 3/1), Pitcher of the Week once (5/9) … in Big Ten, No. 1 in games started, No. 8 in strikeouts, No. 3 in wins, No. 4 in innings … OSU’s starting pitcher in 34 of 49 games and in all but one Big Ten game … pitched in 40 of OSU’s 49 games … won 9 consecutive decisions from 2/27-3/24 … set OSU freshman RBI record (36 in 2004).
Nycole Koyano (.287, 6 HR, 26 RBI)
2nd-team All-Big Ten … co-captain … leads Big Ten in stolen bases (26-for-31) … hitting .379 (25-for-66) in last 20 games with 4 HR … hit safely in 9 of last 10 Big Ten games (15-for-38, .395) … hit .290 in league games … 29 walks and 209 plate app. leads team … is 3rd-toughest Buckeye to strike out (once every 7.1 at bats) … .397 on-base pct. 2nd on team … continues to move up the OSU charts for career walks (86, 2nd), stolen bases (58, 2nd) and runs scored (116, 4th) … 42 runs scored leads OSU and is 4th in Big Ten … 14 multiple-hit games tied-3rd on team (has 10 of them in last 20 games) … named to Crimson Classic all-tournament team March 3-5 after batting .333 in the 5 games … grand slam 2/10.
Career highlights: a career .321 hitter … 3rd-team All-Big Ten as soph. … batted .355 with a HR, 16 RBI … led nation in triples thru 4/24 (ended season 5th) … 7 triples last year 3rd-most in a season at OSU and tied single-game triples record with 2 vs. Rutgers in season-opener 2/18 … ranked No. 22 in nation in walks (.64/gm) … 41 runs (9th in Big Ten) and 30 walks (4th in Big Ten) both led team and ranked No. 5 on OSU single-season lists … led team in hits (49), stolen bases (16) and total plate appearances (170) … in 2005, set OSU frosh. record for walks with 27 and stolen bases with 16 and 33 runs were No. 2.
Nicole Lancaster (.111, 0 HR, 1 RBI)
Has started 25 games in CF and played in 48 games … went 1-for-2 with game-winning RBI vs. IUPUI 4/18.
Career highlights: batted .238 last year with an RBI … named Ohio State’s 2005 Most Improved Scholar-Athlete … hit 2nd 2B of the season 4/27 vs. Bowling Green … had career-best day 3/5 vs. South Dakota St. (2-for-2, 2 runs scored, RBI and a double).
Courtney Pruner (.248, 7 HR, 32 RBI; 6-1, 3.00 ERA)
Pitching: got 1st 2 collegiate wins on same day, 4/9 vs. #15 Northwestern, 1st in relief (1 IP, 3 K w/ bases loaded), then in 1st start (7 IP, 6 H, 7 K) … earned save in 11-9 win over Utah 2/12
Hitting: homered off Arizona All-American Alicia Hollowell 2/25 (her first run allowed in 51 innings) … 2nd in Big Ten in triples (4) … leads team in slugging pct. (.504) and 2nd in on-base pct. (.382) … 2nd on team in HR and walks (27) … 8 multiple-RBI games tied-2nd on team … hit 2 HR at Miami 4/19 … 7 HR are 2nd-most by a frosh at OSU … HR vs. Northwestern … tied OSU single-game record 4 walks vs. Central Michigan 3/18 … 1st collegiate hit was HR (2/11 vs. Portland St.) … is the all-time home run leader in Ohio high school softball history.
Kim Reeder (16-10, 1.79 ERA)
Has allowed one earned run in 15.2 innings pitched against Top 10 opponents this season … threw four 3-hit shutouts in April … leads staff in ERA (8th in Big Ten) and lowest opponent batting average (.230) … 5-3 in Big Ten games with 1.56 ERA … 16 total wins ties OSU record by a freshman … in the Big Ten ranks 10th in ERA and 8th in strikeouts (155) … named to Crimson Classic All-Tournament Team 3/5 after winning twice, including a 6-hit, 7-strikeout performance in 3-1 win at #6 Alabama 3/3 … 4.1 innings of no-hit relief vs. then-#3 UCLA 2/24.
Megan Schwab (.339, 4 HR, 30 RBI)
2nd-team All-Big Ten … leads team in on-base pct. (.421), hits (58), total bases (85), multiple-hit games (16), avg. with 2 outs (.377) and success rate advancing runners (.614) … tied for team-lead in 2B (11) and is 2nd in slugging pct. (.497) … batting .395 (17-for-43) in last 14 games … hit .333 in Big Ten games … Big Ten Player of the Week 4/10 … hit team-best .417 at Buckeye Field … has started all 59 games … hit her 14th career home run 4/9 vs. Northwestern (t-5th-most all-time at OSU) … named to Buckeye Invitational all-tournament team 3/19 … hit grand slam 2/12 vs. Texas-San Antonio in title game of Hilton Las Cruces Invitational.
Career highlights: career .329 hitter … batted .362 last year with 7 HR and 33 RBI … first-team all-region and OSU’s 2005 co-Offensive MVP … led OSU in HR (7), RBI (33) and total bases (81) last year … led team in multiple-hit games (14) and multiple-RBI games (11) … was toughest Buckeye to strike out (once every 10.0 at bats) … hit .453 with runners in scoring position (t-2nd-best on team) … twice hit 2 HR in a game (3/6 vs. Miss. St., 3/23 at Fullerton).
Brittany Vanderink (.351, 0 HR, 8 RBI)
1st-team All-Big Ten … leads team in avg. with runners in scoring position (.378) … hit .459 in Big Ten games, 2nd in league, best among OF … had career-best 13-game hitting streak snapped in last game (4th-best streak at OSU since 1998) … hitting .520 (26-for-50) in last 14 games … Big Ten Player of the Week 5/1 … overall avg. leads team and 7th in Big Ten … is 2nd-toughest Buckeye to strike out (once every 7.8 at bats) … had at least one hit in every Big Ten game but 2 … went 4-for-4 at Iowa 4/28 … went 5-for-7 in DH vs. No. 12 Michigan 4/22 … was 4-for-7 in the DH vs. Minnesota 4/16 … went 2-for-3 in 2-1 win vs. No. 15 Northwestern 4/9.
Career highlights: batted .311 as a freshman and upped that to .364 in Big Ten games … tied OSU single-season record for triples by a frosh (4) … came within 2 stolen bases of OSU frosh record of 16 … finished season 14-for-15 in stolen bases … batted .414 with runners in scoring position … was OSU’s best pinch hitter, batting .500 (7-for-14) as a pinch-hitter in all games and .800 (4-for-5) in Big Ten games.
### GO BUCKS! ###
