Final Big Ten Road Trip Awaits Ohio State at Illinois and Iowa – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 19, 2007
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The first half of the Big Ten softball season is in the books and the Ohio State softball team is in first place in the league standings. The second half begins this weekend on the road for the Buckeyes (24-14, 5-1 Big Ten), who face tough tests at conference contenders Illinois and Iowa.
Ohio State will first take on the national home run leading Illini (26-15, 5-3 Big Ten) at Eichelberger Field in Urbana, Ill., at 6 p.m. (CT) Friday and noon (CT) Saturday. The Buckeyes then travel to Iowa City for a doubleheader at noon (CT) Sunday with the Hawkeyes (31-17, 6-4 Big Ten) at Pearl Field.
GameTracker will have live statistics at www.OhioStateBuckeyes.com. Links are found on the schedule page.
Of the six weeks that make up the Big Ten regular season schedule, Ohio State will play its third and final, but also third-consecutive, pair of series on the road this weekend. The Buckeyes will be at home for their final six Big Ten games the following two weekends.
In addition to taking on two talented teams that both aim to figure into the Big Ten title race, the Buckeyes have to go up against history this weekend, too. Ohio State has played at Illinois only once, that coming in 2004 when the current OSU seniors were freshmen, and the Buckeyes are 8-25 at Iowa since 1988.
Ohio State is 3-1 since having eight consecutive games cancelled because of poor weather and is coming off a sweep of visiting IUPUI Wednesday in which freshman Megan Miller threw a three-hit shutout in her first home start and senior Jamee Juarez threw her first perfect game, and third career no-hitter, in the nightcap.
Following the road trip this weekend, Ohio State will host Miami next Wednesday at 5 p.m. in a non-conference doubleheader at Buckeye Field.
BUCKEYES ATOP THE BIG TEN
Last weekend, the Buckeyes knocked off No. 7 Northwestern in Evanston and, coupled with a Michigan split at Illinois, found themselves in sole possession of first place in the Big Ten for the first time since April 22, 2002, when Ohio State was in first place at 13-3.
Once again this season, Penn State and Ohio State are travel partners and will face the same opponents each weekend. The Nittany Lions (21-13, 3-1) play at Iowa Friday and Saturday, followed by a twin bill at Illinois Sunday.
Elsewhere around the league this weekend, Michigan (32-7, 4-2) and Michigan State (20-21, 0-6) are at Purdue (24-26-1, 4-5) and Indiana (19-23, 1-9), while Northwestern (33-9, 8-3) is at Wisconsin (23-13, 5-5) and Minnesota (15-16, 2-4).
NATIONAL LEADERS ON DISPLAY
In the first national statistical report released last week, Ohio State freshman Sam Marder was ranked second in walks (.97 per game), while senior Nycole Koyano was ranked sixth in triples (.15 per game). Illinois, meanwhile, has one of the best offenses in the nation this season. In that first national report, the Illini ranked first in home runs (1.73 HR/pg) and first in slugging percentage (.569), sixth in scoring (6.80 rpg) and 20th in batting average (.313).
OHIO STATE AT A GLANCE
The Buckeyes (24-14, 5-1 Big Ten) have won 10 of their last 12 games and 15 of their last 20. After an 11-day layoff that saw eight games cancelled because of weather, Ohio State returned to the field last Friday with an impressive win at No. 7 Northwestern.
Ohio State is hitting .282 as a team, compared to .230 by its opponents. The pitching staff owns a 2.58 ERA, which is more than a full run lower than the opposition (3.89).
Ohio State’s first three batters in its lineup lead the team in batting, including Nycole Koyano (.306), Brittany Vanderink (.323) and Sam Marder (.364), which helps explain why the Buckeyes have outscored their opponents 32-13 in the first inning this season and 37-14 in the third.
The Buckeyes own signature wins at then-No. 7 Northwestern and on neutral fields over then-No. 22 Fresno State, then-No. 17 Cal and then-No. 26 Virginia Tech.
Ohio State has 10 letterwinners and eight starters back from its 2006 squad that went 39-23 and 11-7 in the Big Ten and went to the Tucson Regional of the NCAA tournament. The Buckeyes have led the Big Ten in batting the last two years.
All three pitchers return in 2007, including senior Jamee Juarez and sophomores Kim Reeder and Courtney Pruner. Starters returning in the field include Juarez (P/3b, 2nd-team All-Big Ten), Lauren Daykin (c), captain Christina Douglas (1b), Nycole Koyano (2b, 2nd-team All-Big Ten/Region), Megan Schwab (lf, 2nd-team All-Big Ten/Region), Liz Caputo (cf) and Brittany Vanderink (rf/2b, 1st-team All-Big Ten/Region), while Pruner returns at designated player.
Head coach Linda Kalafatis is in her 11th year at Ohio State and is one of three coaches in the Big Ten with more than 600 wins. Since 2000, the Buckeyes are 284-160 for a .641 winning percentage, which ranks third in the Big Ten during that time.
JUAREZ REWRITING RECORD BOOKS
Setting an Ohio State career record just wasn’t enough for senior Jamee Juarez Wednesday night. Not only did she become the Buckeyes’ all-time innings pitched leader (677.2), but she threw her first career perfect game as Ohio State topped IUPUI, 13-0. It marked Juarez’s third career no-hitter and second of the season.
Last weekend, Juarez moved past Kristi DeVries (2001-04) into second place on the all-time strikeouts list. DeVries had 624 and Juarez now owns 638, which are 54 shy of the school record held by Katie Chain (692 from 2000-03). Juarez’s 65 wins are two shy of Chain’s school record 67 wins and her 23 shutouts are three shy of Chain’s school record 26. Juarez is tied for third in complete games with 60 with Belinda Cernava Quisenberry (1990-93).
In addition, Juarez ranks third all-time at Ohio State in runs batted in with 113.
A LOOK AT THE FIGHTING ILLINI
Illinois (26-15, 5-3 Big Ten) leads the nation in home runs (1.73 HR/pg) and ranks sixth in scoring (6.8 rpg) and split a doubleheader with No. 8 Michigan last weekend that included the largest crowd in UL’s Eichelberger Field history (804). The top of the Illini’s lineup features four of the best hitters in the Big Ten, including Angelena Mexicano (.350, 14 HR), Shanna Diller (.336, 14 HR), Makenzie Smith (.362, 10 HR) and Lana Armstrong (.419, 13 HR). In the circle, freshmen Vicky Brown (15-6, 3.41 ERA) and Ashley Wright (8-7, 3.36 ERA) lead the pitching staff. The Illini have 13 letterwinners returning from their 2006 season that went 24-31 and 8-11 in the Big Ten. Head coach Terri Sullivan is in her seventh season with the Fighting Illini.
OHIO STATE VS. ILLINOIS
The Buckeyes are 8-4 all-time against Illinois since the Fighting Illini established softball as a varsity sport in 2001. Ohio State has played at Eichelberger Field only once, that coming in 2004 when the teams split two games with 1-0 finals. Ohio State swept Illinois 8-7 and 5-3 at Buckeye Field in 2006.
LAST YEAR: OSU SWEEPS ILLINI
The Buckeyes notched their first Big Ten sweep of the season against Illinois at Buckeye Field last year, winning 8-7 and 5-3. The Fighting Illini came to Columbus ranked No. 1 in the Big Ten in scoring and home runs and took a 5-0 lead in the first inning of the opening game, but the Buckeyes came back for the win, sparked by a bases loaded double by Courtney Pruner. In game two, OSU’s Jamee Juarez controlled the game from start to finish, retiring 15 of the first 18 batters she faced and going 2-for-3 at the plate with a double and an RBI single.
SCOUTING THE HAWKEYES>
Iowa (31-17, 6-4 Big Ten) was on a 10 game winning streak before dropping four in a row to Wisconsin and Michigan the last two weeks. The Hawkeyes, who are 8-2 at home, lead the Big Ten in pitching in conference games only with a 1.46 earned run average. Junior Emily Nichols (.420, 10 HR) and sophomore Rachel West (.347, 2 HR, 25-28 SB) lead the Hawkeyes at the plate, while the pitching staff is led by sophomore Brittany Weil (13-4, 1.38 ERA). Iowa has 13 letterwinners returning from their 2006 team that went 39-22 and third in the Big Ten at 12-7. Head coach Gayle Blevins, a native of Dayton, Ohio, has been with the Hawkeyes for 18 seasons.
OHIO STATE VS. IOWA
The Buckeyes are 31-56 all-time against the Hawkeyes and 8-25 at Pearl Field since 1988. Iowa has won four straight over Ohio State since the Buckeyes notched a 5-3 win at Iowa in 2004.
LAST YEAR: IOWA TOPS OSU, 5-2
In their only meeting last year, the Buckeyes dropped a 5-2 decision to the Hawkeyes at Pearl Field. Ohio State trailed by a run after four innings, but the Hawkeyes scored two runs in the fifth and scored another in the sixth. Ohio State’s then-sophomore Brittany Vanderink had her first career four-hit game and the top of the Buckeyes’ lineup went a combined 8-for-12.
BUCKEYES-OPPONENTS CONNECTIONS
Ohio State freshmen Sam Marder (Calabasas, Calif.) and Megan Miller (Woodland Hills, Calif.) played club softball with Illinois fr. P/OF Vicky Brown (Thousand Oaks, Calif.). OSU so. P Kim Reeder (Salinas, Calif.) was a club teammate of Illinois jr. INF Angelena Mexicano (San Jose, Calif.). OSU sr. LF Megan Schwab (Glendale, Ariz.) played club softball with Iowa sr. C Sami Baugh and OSU jr. CF Liz Caputo played club softball with Iowa so. P Brittany Weil (Garden Grove, Calif.)
BUCKEYES IN THE BIG TEN
As of April 19: In overall offensive statistics, Ohio State ranks eighth in the Big Ten in batting (.282), fifth in pitching (2.58 ERA) and eighth in fielding (.955). Freshman Sam Marder leads the Big Ten in on base percentage (.537), is second in walks (33, 2nd in nation) and eighth in slugging percentage (.697). Senior Nycole Koyano ranks second in triples (5, 6th in nation) and tied for seventh in stolen bases (13) with teammate Brittany Vanderink.
In Big Ten games only, Ohio State leads the league in batting (.316) and fielding (.978 fielding pct.) and ranks fifth in pitching (2.86 ERA). Senior Christina Douglas ranks second in batting (.563) and third in on base percentage (.556), while senior Megan Schwab ranks fifth in batting (.444), sixth in slugging percentage (.833) and seventh in on base percentage (.524).
Among the league’s pitchers, in all games senior Jamee Juarez is tied for first in saves (3), sixth in ERA (1.89), seventh in strikeouts (131), tied for second in fewest walks allowed (21) and eighth in opposing batting average (.226). Sophomore Kim Reeder ranks sixth in opposing batting average (.211) and is 10th in wins (12). Reeder and Juarez’s rankings in Big Ten games only are nearly identical.
STREAKS ON THE LINE…
The Buckeyes are 18-4 when they score first and also 18-4 when they out-hit their opponent. Ohio State is 15-1 when it both out-hits its opponent and scores first, with the only loss coming in eight innings at Cal State Fullerton March 24.
Senior Christina Douglas (8 games) and freshman Sam Marder (7 games) own the best active hit streaks on the team, marking career-best streaks for both individuals. During their streaks, Douglas is batting .524 (11-21) and Marder is hitting .417 (10-24). Junior Brittany Vanderink saw her 12-game hitting streak snapped last Friday at Northwestern, but has hit safely in 21 of her last 23 games, during which time she is batting .349 (30-86).
RECORD BOOK WATCH
In addition to senior Jamee Juarez (see earlier note), several other Buckeyes are moving up the career record charts. Senior Nycole Koyano owns 105 walks, which rank second in OSU history and are 11 shy of the school record. She ranks second all-time in stolen bases (71) and third all-time in runs scored (144). If Koyano leads the Buckeyes in runs this season, she will be the first to do that all four years.
Senior Megan Schwab is third all-time with 44 doubles (1 shy of No. 2) and fourth with 18 home runs. Schwab’s 108 RBI are fourth and her 114 runs scored are sixth. She has started 101 consecutive games for the Buckeyes, the longest streak on the team.
Sam Marder’s 33 walks this season are already an OSU freshman record and her 35 runs batted in are one shy of the record 36 set by Jamee Juarez in 2004.
Five Buckeyes rank among the Top 15 in career batting average at Ohio State, including Brittany Vanderink (.335), Liz Caputo (.330), Nycole Koyano (.318), Megan Schwab (.314) and Jamee Juarez (.301).
OSU COMING OFF SWEEP OF IUPUI
In their first non-conference games since March 24 on spring break in Los Angeles, the Buckeyes swept IUPUI Wednesday in Columbus, 5-0 and 13-0. In the opener, freshman Megan Miller threw a three-hit shutout, while senior Jamee Juarez tossed her first collegiate perfect game and third career no-hitter. Ohio State combined for 28 hits in the two games, led by Courtney Pruner (5-for-6, 4 RBI), Juarez (4-for-5) and Sam Marder (4-for-6, 4 RBI).
HEAD COACH Linda Kalafatis
Head coach Linda Kalafatis is in her 11th season at Ohio State and in her 19th season as a collegiate head coach. She is OSU’s all-time wins leader (358-246, .591) and is one of three Big Ten coaches with more than 600 career wins (631-361-2, .634). Six times the Buckeyes have won at least 30 games under Kalafatis, who has guided OSU to the NCAA tournament three times (2002, 2004, 2006). She is assisted by former collegiate All-Americans Ali Viola (Nebraska) and Erica Beach (Arizona State).
BUCKEYE FIELD TO GET $5.1M FACELIFT
Buckeye Field, home of Ohio State softball since 1988, will get a $5.1 million renovation as soon as the 2007 season is over. The new 1,500 seat stadium will include indoor and outdoor batting cages, a three-plate bullpen, 650-square foot press box, player clubhouse, lounge and locker room, new dugouts, coaches and umpires locker room and a concession area.
### GO BUCKS! ###
