2007 Ohio State Postseason Notes – Ohio State Buckeyes
6/29/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
A LOOK BACK AT 2007
It was a historic season for the Ohio State softball program. A 17-year wait for a Big Ten championship came to an end as the Buckeyes swept Penn State May 5-6 to win the program’s second Big Ten title and cap their first ever perfect regular-season at home. Ohio State then hosted and won its first Big Ten tournament, beating sixth-ranked Northwestern 2-1 in the championship game to earn its first automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Remaining at home for Regionals, the Buckeyes won back-to-back NCAA tournament games for the first time and came within one win of a trip to Super Regionals.
When the dust settled, the Buckeyes had put together a 40-18 overall record, marking the program’s fourth 40-win season. Ohio State made its fourth NCAA tournament appearance in the last six years and its first ever back-to-back appearances.
A TOP PROGRAM ADDS MORE
Since 2000, the Buckeyes have won 301 games, which is the third-highest win total in the Big Ten during that time. Ohio State’s .647 winning percentage and average win total of 37.6 games rank fourth in the Big Ten this decade.
The 2007 Buckeyes are the fourth team in Ohio State softball history to win at least 40 games in a season, joining teams in 1994, 2001 and 2002. Combined with 39 wins last year, Ohio State’s win total of 79 during the last two years ranks third all-time in the program among back-to-back year win totals.
BUCKEYE FIELD GOES OUT IN STYLE
Last February a $5.1 million renovation project was announced for Buckeye Field, home of Ohio State softball since 1988, and the team made its final year in its current home its best ever. The Buckeyes got to celebrate two trophy presentations on their home field, the first coming May 6 with the Big Ten championship and the next coming May 12 with the Big Ten tournament title.
The Buckeyes played 15 of their final 16 games at home and ended the season 21-2 overall at Buckeye Field, which tied the 2006 team for the best home winning percentage. Before suffering two losses to Cal State Fullerton May 20, Ohio State had rattled off a program-record 27 consecutive home wins dating back to mid-April 2006.
The win over sixth-ranked Northwestern in the Big Ten tournament championship game May 12 marked the highest-ranked opponent ever beaten by Ohio State at Buckeye Field.
THANK YOU SENIORS
The 2007 seniors are the first class to win at least 30 games each of their four years at Ohio State. During the last four years, Ohio State collected 146 wins, making the 2007 senior class the fifth-winningest class in program history. The five-member senior class includes four-year members Christina Douglas, Nycole Koyano, Jamee Juarez and Megan Schwab and two-year member Lauren Daykin. Koyano, Juarez and Schwab were four-year starters, Douglas was a three-year starter and Daykin started both years she was at Ohio State.
AWARDS HANDED OUT AT BANQUET
The team’s annual postseason banquet was held June 3 in Ohio Stadium, with 11 team awards handed out and the Buckeyes’ five seniors honored. Senior Jamee Juarez was named the team’s Most Valuable Player for the third-consecutive season, marking the first time a Buckeye was named MVP three times. Juarez was also named the Pitcher of the Year for the second time in her career and the Most Improved Scholar-Athlete.
Freshman Sam Marder was named the Offensive Player of the Year, marking the first time a freshman took home the honor. Marder was also named the Rookie of the Year. Senior shortstop Nycole Koyano was named the Defensive Player of the Year, while senior Christina Douglas received the Coaches’ Award and the Buckeye Power Club Award. Sophomore Kim Reeder earned the Scholar-Athlete of the Year, sophomore Courtney Pruner was named the Most Improved Player and freshman Whitney Cooper took home the Buckeye Spirit Award.
KALAFATIS BIG TEN COACH OF THE YEAR, SEVEN BUCKEYES HONORED
Linda Kalafatis was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year and seven members of the Big Ten champion Buckeyes received all-conference honors as the All-Big Ten teams were announced May 10 prior to the start of the Big Ten tournament at Buckeye Field. For the third time in program history, Ohio State received three first-team selections, while the coach of the year honor for Kalafatis is her second (2002) and the third overall for Ohio State (Gail Davenport, 1990).
The three first-team selections included senior Jamee Juarez at the utility position, freshman catcher Sam Marder and sophomore outfielder Courtney Pruner. Juarez, who was named third-team All-Big Ten as a freshman and second-team the last two years, is the fourth Buckeye in program history to earn all-conference honors all four years, joining Krinon Clark (1991-94), Anna Smith (1999-2002) and Jennifer Link (2000-03).
Junior second baseman Brittany Vanderink was named second-team, while earning third-team honors were senior first baseman Christina Douglas, senior outfielder Megan Schwab and senior designated player Lauren Daykin.
FOLLOW THE BUCKEYES THERE, TOO
In addition to following the Ohio State softball team at www.OhioStateBuckeyes.com, fans can check out additional coverage of the 2007 season at www.OhioStateSports.com, www.TheOZone.net and www.ThePalestra.com
At OhioStateSports.com, the home of the OSU student radio station, click on the multimedia link for a radio highlight montage of the 2007 Big Ten Tournament and Jamee Juarez’s perfect game April 18 vs. IUPUI. At the OZone, click on Columns and Features for recaps and features from the Big Ten tournament and the NCAA Regionals and click on Photo Galleries for pictures from both events. And at The Palestra, select Ohio State in the lower left corner of the main page and find video coverage of the Big Ten Tournament and NCAA Regional in the archives.
THREE EARN ALL-REGION HONORS
The NFCA all-region teams were announced May 16 and three Buckeyes were named to the Great Lakes All-Region Team. Senior Jamee Juarez was a first-team selection at the utility position, while freshman Sam Marder was a first-team pick at catcher. Junior Brittany Vanderink was a second-team honoree at second base. Marder and Juarez are now candidates for All-America honors.
OHIO STATE AT A GLANCE
After seeing its record dip to 14-12 on March 21, Ohio State went 26-6 the rest of the way, winning the Big Ten regular season and tournament championships and upping its home winning streak to 27 in a row dating back to 2006. The Buckeyes were 6-5 against ranked teams during the season, with wins coming against (ranking at time of game) No. 13 Virginia Tech (5/19), No. 6 Northwestern (5/12), at No. 7 Northwestern (4/13) and on neutral fields over No. 26 Virginia Tech (3/10), No. 17 Cal (2/24) and No. 22 Fresno State (2/23).
In Big Ten games only, Ohio State led the Big Ten in batting (.319) and fielding (.973) and ranked third in pitching (2.50 ERA). Overall, the Buckeyes batted .292 as a team, compared to .221 by their opponents. The pitching staff owned a 2.37 ERA, which was almost two full runs lower than the opposition (4.11).
At the plate, the Buckeyes were led by freshman Sam Marder (.359, 10 HR, 49 RBI, 44 BB). Four other Buckeyes hit over .300, including sophomore Courtney Pruner (.336, 7 HR, 37 RBI), junior Brittany Vanderink (.333, 37 R, 16 SB), senior Christina Douglas (.303, 26 RBI) and senior Nycole Koyano (.302, 42 R, 18 SB).
In the circle, senior Jamee Juarez (21-9, 1.66 ERA, 240 strikeouts) and sophomore Kim Reeder (17-8, 2.62 ERA) combined to start 55 of Ohio State’s 58 games. Juarez set Ohio State single-season records for strikeouts and saves (5) and set five career records during the season (see later note).
Entering the 2007 season, Ohio State had 10 letterwinners and nine 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 led the Big Ten in overall batting in 2005 and 2006.
Big Ten coach of the year Linda Kalafatis wrapped up her 11th year at Ohio State and is one of three coaches in the Big Ten with more than 600 wins.
OHIO STATE AT BUCKEYE FIELD
Ohio State was dominating at home this season with a 21-2 record, which tied the best winning percentage in Buckeye Field history (.913) since the facility opened in 1988. At 16-0, Ohio State registered its first ever perfect regular season at home and the home winning streak reached a program-record 27 in a row overall dating back to mid-April 2006.
Ohio State batted .360 at home this season, compared to .184 by the opposition, and OSU pitchers compiled a 1.57 earned run average compared to 6.13 the opposing pitchers.
Three attendance records were set at Buckeye Field in May, including single-game crowd (695 vs. Penn State, May 6) and single day crowd (1,175 May 18, two games). In addition, the two games vs. Cal State Fullerton drew May 20 drew 822 fans, for a same-opponent, two-game crowd (non-doubleheader).
In 2006, Ohio State also went 21-2 at home, batted .350 as a team and owned a 1.58 staff earned run average.
Ohio State is 107-12 (.899) in non-conference games at Buckeye Field since 11th-year head coach Linda Kalafatis took over the program in 1997. The Buckeyes have won 30-consecutive regular-season non-conference home games in a streak that dates back to April 21, 2004 when Kentucky nipped Ohio State, 4-3.
Ohio State is 315-123 (.719) all-time at Buckeye Field since the facility opened in 1988. That mark includes a 124-97 (.561) record in Big Ten games and a 181-26 (.874) record in non-league games.
BUCKEYE FIELD TO GET $5.1M FACELIFT
It was announced Feb. 15 that 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.
IN THE CAREER RECORD BOOK…
Senior Nycole Koyano led Ohio State in both runs scored and stolen bases all four years, becoming the first Buckeye to lead the team in those two statistics every year of their career. Koyano is the second Buckeye to lead the team in any offensive statistic all four years, joining Kristine Himes, who led Ohio State in home runs from 2000-03. In the OSU career record book, Koyano ranks second in runs (158), triples (14), walks (117) and stolen bases (76). No other Buckeye in program history ranks as high in as many categories. Koyano also ranks sixth all-time in at bats (665) and hits (210).
Senior Megan Schwab ended her career with 47 doubles, which rank second in OSU history, and 18 home runs and 116 RBI, which both rank fourth. Her 668 at bats and 124 runs both rank fifth all-time, her 207 hits are seventh and her .328 batting average is 10th.
In addition to the pitching records set by senior Jamee Juarez (see later note), she ended her career ranked third all-time in RBI (127), tied for fourth in walks (70), fifth in doubles (39), sixth in games played (226), tied for sixth in home runs (14), tied for seventh in triples (8) and 10th in hits (186).
Next year, Brittany Vanderink will head into her senior season ranked fifth all-time in stolen bases (46), tied for sixth in batting average (.338) and tied for fifth in triples (9). Courtney Pruner will begin her junior season tied for sixth all-time in home runs (14).
In addition to Vanderink, four Buckeyes rank among the Top 15 in career batting average at Ohio State, including junior Liz Caputo (.317, 11th), Koyano (.316, 12th), Megan Schwab (.310, 13th) and Juarez (.301, 15th).
IN THE SINGLE-SEASON RECORD BOOK…
Freshman Sam Marder’s 44 walks set a new Ohio State record, her 49 RBI rank third, her 10 home runs tied for third and her .647 slugging percentage ranks eighth. Junior Brittany Vanderink’s 64 hits rank ninth, her 192 at bats tied for eighth
Senior Nycole Koyano’s six triples tied for fourth, her 42 runs tied for fifth and her 30 walks tied for sixth. Sophomore Courtney Pruner’s 37 RBI rank fifth and her 29 runs are ninth.
OSU WINS BIG TEN AND BT TOURNEY
After winning the Big Ten title in the final weekend of the regular season with two wins at Buckeye Field over Penn State, Ohio State added more hardware to the trophy case by also winning the Big Ten tournament at home to secure the program’s first automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Ohio State is the sixth program to win the Big Ten tournament, joining Michigan (eight titles), Iowa (two), Michigan State (one), Minnesota (one) and Northwestern (one). The Buckeyes are the third team to win the Big Ten regular-season and tournament championships, joining Michigan (six double titles) and Iowa (one).
HOW THE WEST WAS WON
Going into two-game series with Penn State to close out the regular season, Ohio State was 12-2 in the Big Ten had to win both games to keep its place atop the conference standings. Northwestern had concluded its Big Ten slate with a 15-3 league record, giving the Wildcats an .833 winning percentage. If the Buckeyes dropped either game against the Nittany Lions, the Big Ten title and tournament would head back to Evanston, Ill.
Ohio State was up to the challenge, defeating Penn State 4-2 March 5 and 4-0 March 6. Both games were dramatic, as the Nittany Lions scored twice in the top of the seventh inning Saturday in a comeback bid and the Buckeyes scored all four of their runs Sunday in the top of the seventh (see next note).
Ohio State’s 14-2 Big Ten record included a 4-2 mark on the road (split at Northwestern and Iowa, swept Illinois) and a 10-0 record at home (swept Minnesota, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Penn State).
SUNDAY WILL NEVER BE THE SAME
Sunday, May 6 at Buckeye Field will not be soon forgotten. With the Big Ten title on the line, Ohio State and Penn State were scoreless through six innings thanks to defensive gems on both sides and clutch pitching in tough situations from PSU’s Ashley Esparza and OSU’s Jamee Juarez and Kim Reeder.
The Buckeyes finally got to Esparza in the top of the seventh inning with four runs on five hits and a PSU error on a play that resulted in PSU head coach Robin Petrini being ejected. OSU junior Brittany Vanderink doubled to the wall in left-centerfield to lead off the inning and then scored on a single up the middle by freshman Sam Marder.
That would prove to be all the offense the Buckeyes would need, but they didn’t stop there, as sophomore Courtney Pruner and Juarez singled and senior Lauren Daykin was hit by a pitch to bring home OSU’s fourth and final run. In the bottom of the seventh, the Nittany Lions went in order for the first time in the game, giving Reeder the win.
After the game, the Big Ten trophy was presented to head coach Linda Kalafatis and her Buckeyes and Ohio State’s five seniors were honored in a Senior Day ceremony. It was a day that saw a Buckeye Field record crowd of 695, including the OSU spring band, show up for the team’s annual Scarlet and Gray game, which was attended by members of the OSU athletics department and student-athletes from the other 35 varsity sports.
HOST BUCKEYES WIN BT TOURNEY
A 2-1 walk-off win over sixth-ranked Northwestern May 12 at Buckeye Field gave Ohio State its first Big Ten tournament title and first automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. In the bottom of the seventh, senior Megan Schwab singled to center, stole second, went to third on an infield single by junior Liz Caputo and scored when senior Nycole Koyano grounded to third and Darcy Sengewald’s throw was wild, allowing Schwab to score.
The tournament championship game was televised live on CSTV, marking Ohio State’s first game on national television. With the win, Northwestern became the highest-ranked opponent ever to lose at Buckeye Field.
In a 10-2 quarterfinal win over Penn State and a 10-1 semifinal win over Purdue, the Buckeyes established and then tied a team record for runs scored in a Big Ten tournament game. The previous Big Ten tournament scoring high was nine runs in a quarterfinal win over Penn State in 2006 at Northwestern.
Six Buckeyes were named to the all-tournament team, including most outstanding player senior Jamee Juarez (utility), freshman Sam Marder (catcher), senior Christina Douglas (first base), junior Brittany Vanderink (second base), senior Nycole Koyano (shortstop) and sophomore Courtney Pruner (outfield).
WERE THESE BUCKEYES VAMPIRES?
Ohio State went 9-2 at night during the season, including 4-0 at home, 1-0 on the road (at UAB, Kim Reeder no-hitter) and 4-2 at neutral sites. Three of the night wins at home were in the postseason, including wins over Penn State and Purdue in the Big Ten tournament and Cal State Fullerton in the NCAA Regionals. The other home night win was April 18 when Jamee Juarez perfect game against IUPUI.
Sophomore Courtney Pruner batted a team-best .519 (14-for-27) in those 11 night games this season with three home runs and 12 RBI. Freshman Sam Marder batted .423 (11-26) with two homers and 13 RBI. In the circle, Juarez was 6-2 at night with a 1.35 ERA, while Kim Reeder was 3-0 with a 1.47 ERA.
BUCKEYES IN THE BIG TEN
During the Big Ten regular season (16 games), Ohio State led the conference in batting (.319 team average) and fielding (.973 team percentage) and ranked third in pitching (2.50 staff ERA). In league games, sophomore Courtney Pruner ranked second in on base percentage (.529), tied for third in doubles (5), fifth in batting (.415), tied for seventh in walks (9) and 10th in slugging percentage (.683). Freshman Sam Marder ranked sixth in RBI (15), junior Brittany Vanderink tied for third in sacrifice bunts (6) and senior Nycole Koyano tied for sixth in stolen bases (4).
Among the league’s pitchers in Big Ten games only, senior Jamee Juarez tied for second in wins (9), tied for second in strikeouts (85), was third in ERA (1.46), fifth in opposing batting average (.220), seventh in innings pitched (62.1), tied for first in saves (3) and tied for second in fewest walks allowed (8). Sophomore Kim Reeder ranked sixth in wins (5).
In all games including the postseason, Ohio State ranked third in the league in batting (.292 avg.), fifth in pitching (2.37 ERA) and ninth in fielding (.956 fielding pct.). Marder led the Big Ten in on base percentage (.520) and walks (44), ranked sixth in RBI (49), eighth in slugging percentage (.647) and tied for fifth in hit by pitch (7). Koyano was second in triples (6) and tied for fourth in stolen bases (18), while Vanderink was eighth in stolen bases (16) and was fifth in sacrifice bunts (14). Pruner ranked sixth in on base percentage (.453).
Overall in the circle, Juarez ranked third in ERA (1.66), third in strikeouts (240), first in saves (5), tied for first in strikeouts looking (76), first in strikeout to walk ratio (7.5-to-1), first in fewest walks per seven innings (1.2), fifth in wins (21), fifth in opposing batting average (.209) and fifth in innings pitched (185.2). Reeder ranked ninth in opposing batting average (.219) and eighth in wins (17).
SHORT HOPS…
After being no-hit and shut out by Virginia Tech All-American Angela Tincher March 11 in Clearwater, Ohio State scored at least one run in a program-record 36 consecutive games to end the season. The previous record of 28 consecutive games without being shut out was set in 2006.
When Ohio State dropped game one of a doubleheader at Loyola Marymount March 21, the Buckeyes saw their record dip to 14-12. From that point on, Ohio State went 26-6 to end the season.
The 2007 Buckeyes were the second team in program history to have five players score at least 30 runs.
How good was the top of Ohio State’s lineup? The Buckeyes outscored their opponents 48-24 in the first inning this season and 67-20 in the third inning. In Big Ten games, Ohio State batted .625 (20-32) with a runner on third and less than two outs.
OSU was 33-5 when scoring first and 19-5 when scoring in the first inning. Ohio State was 26-2 when leading after five innings. When the Buckeyes scored first and went on to out-hit their opponent, they were 23-1, with the only loss coming in eight innings at Cal State Fullerton March 24.
Ohio State won 13 games by one run and lost only seven by one run. Buckeye pitchers shut out the opposition 12 times, but OSU was shut out only twice. The 2007 Buckeyes tied the school record for walks in a season (176) and set the school record for walks per game in a season (3.03).
A 4-3 win over New Mexico Feb. 9 gave the Buckeyes a win in their season-opener for the third-consecutive year for the sixth time in their last eight season openers. That win over New Mexico included the first ever grand slam by an OSU freshman in her first collegiate game.
The Buckeyes went 3-2 in Palm Springs Feb. 23-25 with win over two ranked teams. In 2005 and 2006, Ohio State went a combined 2-8 in Palm Springs. The Buckeyes went 5-3 in Clearwater, Fla., March 8-11, marking their first ever eight-game weekend.
When Kim Reeder was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week and Sam Marder was named the Player of the Week both on March 13, it marked the first time that Ohio State swept the Big Ten weekly awards since March 26, 2002, when Wendy Allen was named player of the week and Katie Chain was pitcher of the week.
JUAREZ REWRITES RECORD BOOKS
Few pitchers at any level had a stretch of games quite like senior Jamee Juarez had in the final month of the season to cap off a career in which she set five Ohio State career pitching records and four single-season records. Her efforts were rewarded with first-team All-Big Ten and all-region honors and a most outstanding player honor from the Big Ten tournament.
Prior to a loss to Cal State Fullerton May 20, Juarez had gone 12-0 with 115 strikeouts, nine walks and a 0.68 ERA in 71.2 innings pitched. During those five weeks, Juarez threw eight complete games in 10 starts, pitched a perfect game and set OSU all-time pitching records for wins (76), shutouts (27), innings pitched (746.1) and strikeouts (747). In addition, her single-season total of 240 strikeouts and five saves as a senior were also school records.
Of Juarez’s nine losses during season, six came to teams including No. 1 Arizona, No. 5 Arizona State, No. 7 Northwestern, No. 9 Oklahoma, No. 26 Virginia Tech and Cal State Fullerton in the NCAA tournament.
In addition, Juarez ended her career ranked third all-time at Ohio State in runs batted in with 127, sixth in doubles with 39 and tied for sixth in home runs with 14.
JUAREZ NAMED 3RD STRAIGHT BTPOW
Senior Jamee Juarez was named the Big Ten pitcher of the week the last three weeks of the regular season, becoming the first Buckeye to ever receive three-consecutive weekly league honors. Juarez is one of only three players in Big Ten history to be honored three straight weeks, joining pitchers Eileen Canney of Northwestern in 2006 and Lorilyn Wilson of Michigan in 2007.
THESE BUCKEYES WERE ON A ROLL
Senior Nycole Koyano and junior Brittany Vanderink both ended the season with career-best stolen base streaks in tact. After getting caught her first two attempts this season, Koyano stole 18 bases in a row to end the season, while Vanderink stole 16 in a row. Koyano was 76-for-88 in her career, which ranks No. 2 all-time at Ohio State, while Vanderink is 46-for-49, which ranks fifth.
Vanderink owned the team’s best hitting streak this season at 12 games (March 18-April 1). In her last 36 games, she went hitless only six times and tied a season high with three hits in the 4-0 win over Penn State May 6 when she scored the game’s first run in the seventh inning of the Big Ten-clinching victory.
No Buckeye was hotter at the plate to end the season than sophomore Courtney Pruner. In her last 24 games, she batted .457 (29-61) with nine doubles, four homers and 19 RBI. Pruner had her average up to a career-best .352 on May 11.
ANOTHER 30, THEN 40-WIN SEASON
Ohio State’s 5-2 win over Indiana in the first game of a doubleheader April 29 was the 30th victory of the season for the Buckeyes. It marked the 11th time Ohio State has reached the 30-win plateau since the program was founded in 1972 and the first time that the Buckeyes won at least 30 games in four consecutive seasons. Seven of the 11 all-time 30-win seasons have come under 11th-year head coach Linda Kalafatis.
A 2-1 win over No. 13 Virginia Tech May 19 in the NCAA tournament gave Ohio State its 40th win of the season, which put the 2007 Buckeyes in a group of only four teams in OSU history to win 40 or more games.
HEAD COACH LINDA KALAFATIS
Head coach Linda Kalafatis wrapped up her 11th season at Ohio State in 2007 and her 19th season as a collegiate head coach. Kalafatis, who twice has been named the Big Ten Coach of the Year (2002, 2007), is OSU’s all-time wins leader (374-250, .599) and is one of three Big Ten coaches with more than 600 career wins (647-365-2, .639). Seven times the Buckeyes have won at least 30 games under Kalafatis, who has guided OSU to the NCAA tournament four times (2002, 2004, 2006, 2007). She was assisted by former collegiate All-Americans Ali Viola (Nebraska) and Erica Beach (Arizona State).
ACADEMIC HONORS FOR 9 BUCKEYES
Nine Buckeyes were named Ohio State Scholar-Athletes in May. Senior Christina Douglas picked up her fourth award, while senior Lauren Daykin and sophomore Kim Reeder earned their second awards in their second year at Ohio State. Six Buckeyes earned their first Scholar-Athlete award, including senior
