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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcon Softball Catches Fire After Slow Start
April 22, 2003 | Softball
April 17, 2003
By BARTT DAVIS, Sentinel Sports Writer - March didn't exactly go out like a lamb for Bowling Green's softball team.
The Falcons lost 10 of their final 11 games in the month, falling to 9-17-1 overall and beginning Mid-American Conference play at 0-5.
Since then, virtually everything has gone right for the Falcons.
BG carries a nine-game winning streak into a three-game set against Akron this weekend. The Falcons host Akron Friday at 3:30 p.m. for a single game. The teams return Saturday for a doubleheader at 1 p.m.
"We were really pushing in the first part of the season," said BG coach Leigh Ross-Shaw. "We were trying too hard. The seniors were putting too much pressure on themselves."
And the results weren't pretty.
During a two-week, 11-game stretch that began on March 16 as BG finished play in the Cavalier Classic at Virginia, the Falcons were outscored 49-18.
BG managed just 58 hits (a .205 average) in that span. Throw out a 13-for-31 effort in a 5-4 loss to Detroit during that stretch and the team average was .179.
Three consecutive shutout losses at Central Michigan, in which BG had seven total hits, ended the streak.
"We tried everything and finally it was like 'Forget it, just go play,'" Ross-Shaw said. "Looking back, we j ust all got to the point where there was nowhere to go but up."
So, up the Falcons went.
All nine wins have come in MAC games, matching the school record for most consecutive conference wins in a season and moving BG into solid contention for a spot in the league tournament.
The Falcons narrowly missed qualifying for the MAC tournament last season after making the tourney in each of Ross-Shaw's first three years as head coach.
The top two teams in each division and the teams with the next two best records, regardless of division, qualify for the tourney. BG is in fourth place in the West Division, but if the season ended today, the Falcons would make the tournament.
"Early on, we were really worried about making the MAC tournament instead of just going and playing hard now," Ross-Shaw said. "It's hard to set team goals because you want to look to the future, but you don't want to look too far to the future because it's all you think about. You get trapped in that."
The Falcons are playing well enough now to be considered a threat to win the tournament.
Since April 1, BG has outscored its opponents 41-14 in nine games, including seven games of two or fewer runs allowed.
Much of that is due to tremendous pitching the Falcons have received, especially from freshman sensation Liz Vrabel. Vrabel, who boasts a fastball that has been clocked at 65-68 mph, has been fabulous in becoming BG's No. 1 starter.
Vrabel is 11-6 with a 1.25 earned-run average and 98 strikeouts in 106 1/3 innings. She has allowed only 71 hits.
"We've always had strong pitchers and pitchers who could keep hitters off-balance for a while, but Liz is just overpowering," Ross-Shaw said. "She's definitely earned the right to be number one."
Jody Johnson, a junior, has also pitched well in registering a 4-4 record and a 2.68 ERA.
BG's team ERA is 2.28, more than one run better than last year's figure.
The defense, which made 16 errors in the team's skid, has also improved greatly. BG has three freshmen starting regularly in its infield, and junior Jenifer Kernahan, a Perrysburg High School graduate, is in her first year as the No. 1 catcher.
"Kernahan has a terrific arm. She's just a natural athlete," Ross-Shaw said. "She knows the game, she has good instinct. For the past couple of years, we've put her where we needed her ... in the outfield, at third base. We knew eventually she'd become a number one catcher."
Kernahan has also been one of the keys to the team on offense. She's third on the squad with a .295 average and has driven in a team-best 21 runs.
Freshman Gina Rango, the team's third baseman, is the leading hitter with a .398 average and four home runs.
"Gina is just dynamite," Ross-Shaw said. "She controls a game from third base. She's got it all; she's fast, she's powerful, she's humble, she's confident, she wants to get better. It's all those things wrapped up into one."
Libby Voshell, a senior shortstop, is hitting .330 with five homers.
During the winning streak, BG is hitting .303 as a team.
"There's still some room for improvement. We're definitely hitting better as a team," Ross-Shaw said.
Of BG's 10 remaining MAC games, seven are against teams with a losing record in the conference. BG also plays a three-game series at Northern Illinois, which is 1/2-game ahead of the Falcons.
"We know how to do it now, so we won't accept anything else," said Ross-Shaw. "If we continue to play the way we've been playing, I wouldn't be sad if we didn't make it to the tournament. I'd be very proud of these guys for the way they play ball. It'll take a lot to beat us."
