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HISTORY & TRAD.
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Softball To Open Ohio Valley Conference Schedule on Saturday Otahkians looks to start conference play with trio of victories over tough Eastern Kentucky Colonels team.
March 21, 2002
EKU Game Notes and Statistics in PDF Format
Southeast (3-10, 0-0) vs. Eastern Kentucky Colonels (12-7, 0-0) About Southeast: The weather is not the Otahkian softball team's best friend. Thursday's doubleheader with Saint Louis University went by the wayside thanks to cold weather. That marks the ninth total game this season that has been cancelled due to cold or rain. Southeast lost five games at their own tournament thanks to the cold, the second game of a doubleheader versus Indiana State due to rain, the championship round of the Winthrop Tournament due to rain and now the Saint Louis games due to cold. But with all those games behind them and 13 under their belt, the Otahkians will open up Ohio Valley Conference play again Eastern Kentucky on Saturday. EKU is picked second in the conference behind Tennessee Tech and one spot above Southeast. They return most of their top stars from a team that a season-ago knocked Southeast into the loser's bracket at the OVC Tournament. Southeast did, however, take two of three from the Colonels in the regular season in 2001. Offensively, Southeast has been paced by senior shortstop Dawn Piantino. She is leading the team in batting with a .333 average which ranks 7th in the Ohio Valley Conference. Piantino also ranks in the top ten in runs (8th), doubles (7th), total bases (10th), walks (1st) and on-base percentage (4th). Piantino has also been stellar in the field, committing only one error in 70 chances at shortstop for a .986 fielding percentage. This is Piantino's first season at shortstop, after playing the three previous seasons at thirdbase. Eastern Kentucky is led by junior outfielder Elise Burch who is batting a blistering .419 overall. She leads EKU in hits (26), doubles (5) and total bases (31). On the mound, the Colonels return their top two pitchers from a year ago, Jessica Soto and Jonelle Csora who make a potent 1-2 punch for EKU. Southeast has swept its conference opening doubleheader games for the past seven seasons in a row, including two wins versus Austin Peay last season. All About the Opposition: Eastern Kentucky (12-7, 0-0) Eastern Kentucky comes to Cape Girardeau after having the week off after competing in the Winthrop Classic along with Southeast and playing Applachian State on Wednesday afternoon on there way home. EKU has able to split their games, going 2-2 in their pool and gaining victories over Charleston Southern and East Carolina while dropping games against Illinois and Campbell. The Colonels have yet to play a home game this season, as all of their games have either been on the road or on neutral sites at tournaments. EKU also competed at the Mercer Classic, the Red Desert Classic in Utah and the University of Kentucky Tournament that SEMO played in last season. EKU's strength could be the return of its top two pitchers from a season ago, juniors Jonelle Csora and Jessica Soto. Csora was already named OVC Pitcher of the Week this season. She is 6-4 with a 1.30 E.R.A. in 14 apperances. But their bats are equally hot, as Elise Burch leads the OVC in hitting with a .419 average. Southeast leads the all-time series by a 21-6 margin. Last season, Southeast took two of three regular season games when the teams met in Richmond. EKU won when in counted, however, besting the Otahkians 2-0 in the second round of the OVC Tournament. Last time out, EKU bested Appalachian State 8-1 in Boone, N.C. Megan Mills and Bethany Herrington both hit HR's for the Colonels. EKU Statistical Leaders Batting: Elise Burch (.419) Hits: Burch (26) Runs: Diana Barreras (11) 2B: Burch (5) 3B: 3 players tied w/ 1 HR: Bethany Herrington (3) RBI: Barreras & Amber Berthoud (8) SB: Kelli Bromley & Barreras (3) E.R.A.: Jessica Soto (1.04) IP: Jonelle Csora (1.30) Wins: Csora (6) K's: Csora (80)
Coaching Comparisons
Eastern Ky. - Jane Worthington Southeast Notes: Bad Weather Go Away: When cold weather cancelled Southeast's doubleheader with Saint Louis University on 3/21, it marked the 9th time in the team's first 22 scheduled games that a game had been cancelled due to cold or rain. The Otahkians lost five games in their own tournament in March due to cold, the second game of a doubleheader versus Indiana State due to rain, the championship round of the Winthrop Tournament due to rain and the doubleheader with SLU. Strong OVC Starts: Last season, Southeast got out of the gates quickly in the OVC, winning their first three conference games and 12 of their first 15 overall. Southeast has swept its season opening conference doubleheader for the past seven seasons. Piantino's Blast: Senior SS Dawn Piantino took the first pitch of the Jacksonville State game (3/15) and parked it over the outfield wall for her first career homerun at Southeast in four seasons. The HR came in her 224th at-bat in a Southeast uniform. Another Blast: Against Gardner-Webb (3/16), sophomore 1B Amy Thompson got her first hit of the season when she smashed a sixth inning, two-run homerun. Last season, Thompson's first career hit at Southeast was a triple and her second hit was a homerun. She was the second Otahkian, Alicia Loucks the other, to hit a homerun for their first hit of the season. Bring on the Righties: Souheast will want to avoid left-handed pitching for the rest of the season. Southeast is only 1-13 (.077) versus lefties on the season. Hitting Streaks: Two Otahkians have a little bit of a hitting streak going on. Junior Katie Cerneka has a four game streak and senior Reagan Hamlin has a three-game streak. Unlucky Fifth Inning: Southeast has yet to score a run in the fifth inning this season. Opponents have outscored the Otahkians 16-0 in the fifth frame. Consistent Starters: Only two Otahkians, 1B Reagan Hamlin and SS Dawn Piantino have started all 13 games at the same position. Last season, Hamlin was the only team member to start in all 50 games. She did so at 1B, 3B or at pitcher. Piantino has been the leadoff hitter in every game this season for Southeast. Streak Snapped: Southeast had never lost seven games in a row heading into the Indiana State (3/11) game. The Otahks brought a six-game losing streak into that contest, but broke out with five runs in the third inning and secured a 6-2 victory. Southeast had not lost six consecutive games since the 1999 season when they dropped six from 3/16 to 3/19. A Big Inning: Southeast has yet to score more than three runs in any game heading into the Indiana State game. In that game they pounded out five runs in the 3rd inning and six for the game, setting season highs in both categories. Katie's in the Groove: Junior OF Katie Cerneka finished the Loyola doubleheader a combined 4-6 at the plate. Cerneka followed that up with a 2-4 performance and a RBI vs. Indiana State. She led the OVC with a .500 batting average heading into the Spring Break trip which she missed to attend the wedding of her brother. Run Emmy Run: Senior 2B Emmy Kisaka recorded her first career triple vs. Loyola (3/7). The triple came in Emmy's 416th at-bat as an Otahkian. She had 21 previous career doubles but had never made it to third until that game. The triple also came with the bases loaded and drove in three runs for Southeast. Going, Going, Gone: Junior Alicia Loucks made the most of her first at-bat as an Otahkian against Southern Illinois (3/5). Loucks took a 2-2 pitch over the leftfield fence for a homerun in her first at-bat in a Southeast uniform. K-I-N-G Spells Relief: Senior pitcher Kristen King made her first relief appearances for Southeast against Ole Miss. King entered both games of the doubleheader and shutdown the Rebels. King pitched a combined 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing only six hits while striking out two. King has started three games this season and made relief appearances in the six other Otahkian contests. Not the Best Start: Southeast started the 2002 season with a 0-6 record, which was the worst start in Coach Lana Richmond's 20 years of coaching. Southeast had previously started 0-5 in both 1985 and 2001 and 0-5-1 in 1997. Who Needs a Doctor?: Early in the season, the Southeast team is relatively injury free. Sophomore 1B Amy Thompson has an ankle injury that has kept her on the bench in the season's first four games. She was cleared to return to practice and played in the Winthrop Tournament where she hit a homerun. Junior 2B Brooke Nett made a sooner than expected return after having rotator cuff surgery this Fall. Nett has seen increased action in the field this year at 2B after starting the season as the designated player but will not see action as SS, the position she played most of last season. Who is That Catching?: When freshman hurler Kelly Birk was throwing in game two of the game against SIU (3/5), she had a very close relationship with the catcher. Her sister Jamie moved from third base to behind the plate for that game, marking a first for the Southeast program, a sister catching her sister who was on the mound. Taking One For the Team: Junior infielder Brooke Nett always takes one for the team. Last season she hit 12 times by a pitch and has been hit twice in 2002. That brings her three-year total to 23, which ranks as the all-time Southeast record. Her 12 HBP's last season is the Southeast single season record. Hitting the Books: Last season's Otahkian squad finished 3rd in the nation (trailing only Indiana State and Manhattan), with an overall team G.P.A. of 3.501. Individually, 10 Otahks (seven of which, Cerneka, Hamlin, King, Kisaka, Nett, Piantino and Rampi, return to the team this season) were named NFCA All-American Scholar Athletes, for each having a 3.5 G.P.A. or better. Senior Emmy Kisaka was named to the Verizon Academic All-District VII team. Kisaka possesses a 3.84 G.P.A. in Athletic Administration. The Otahkians are . . .
Leftover Notes: Early Signees: Seven players are committed to playing for Southeast next season. Kate Groden (San Pedro, Calif.), Katy Hacker (Belleville, Ill.), Leigh Anne Lunsford (Southaven, Miss.), Amy Murphy (Harrisburg, Ill.), Nichole Pike (Fairfield, Ill.) and Melissa VanVelkinburgh (St. Louis, Mo.) have all signed to play in 2003. Another player, Chrissy Bodine (St. Louis, Mo.) will walk-on next season. 600: In a 9-1 victory over Tennessee State on April 13, of last season, Head Coach Lana Richmond reached an elite level amongst Division I softball coaches. She became only the 27th coach all-time in Division I to reach that plateau. Sue Enquist, coach of the #1 ranked UCLA Bruins, was the 26th coach to reach this milestone, doing so earlier this season. Hoop Dreams: Junior Kristy Roherty may have not played softball since high school, but that does not mean she hasn't been busy in her three years at Southeast. Roherty is a backup guard for the Southeast women's basketball team. She ranks 6th all-time at Southeast in three-pointers made (61). This season will mark her first venture at collegiate softball since being at Southeast. Returning Honorees: Three All-OVC second team selections return from 2001, Brooke Nett, Courtney Eklund and Kemi Rampi. Emmy Kisaka also returns; she was an honorable mention selection last year and an OVC all-tournament selection. California Love: Experts say the best softball players come from the state of California. If that holds true, Southeast may be in for a good season this year. The Otahkian roster sports six California natives, the most from any of state. Familiar Face on the Bench: When searching for assistant coaches, Coach Lana Richmond didn't have to look far. She hired former player Renee Enos who completed her stellar career with the Otahkians in 2001. Enos ranks 7th all-time at Southeast in games played (191), 6th in at-bats (530), 4th in hit (169), 4th in doubles (33) and 6th in RBI's (95). In 2001, she hit .388 overall and .492 in OVC games, while earning first-team All-OVC honors and leading the team with .545 slugging percentage, 10 doubles and 73 total bases. Billy Underwood is the other new assistant on the Otahk staff. He attended Notre Dame high school in Cape Girardeau and Shawnee Junior College, playing baseball at each. It's a Sister Thing: This year's squad features the first pair of sisters in Otahkian softball history. Sophomore Jamie Birk and freshman Kelly Birk, natives of Huntington Beach, Calif., both join the Southeast squad this season. All in the Family: Although sophomore outfielder Erica Bonilla doesn't have a sister on the softball team, her brother Clemente does play for the Southeast Baseball squad. Last season, Clemente was named OVC Player of the Year. Otahkians Amongst in OVC Leaders Team Batting 4th .246 average Team Pitching 6th 3.41 E.R.A. Team Fielding 1st .968 % |
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