Bowling Green State University Athletics
Freshmen Help Falcons Qualify For Tourney
May 13, 2003 | Softball
May 7, 2003
By BARTT DAVIS, Sentinel Sports Writer - Teams that start three freshmen among the four infield spots aren't usually high on a list of championship contenders in a league tournament.
Of course, most teams' freshmen aren't as talented as Bowling Green's Gina Rango, Abby Habicht and Lindsay Heimrich.
That trio, combined with the veteran leadership and production of three seniors in the starting lineup, have the Falcons thinking they can win the Mid-American Conference softball tournament.
The tournament begins Thursday and runs through Saturday at Akron's Firestone Stadium. BG, 25-24-1 overall and the tourney's No. 5 seed, faces fourth-seeded Northern Illinois (23-19-1) Thursday at 1:30 p.m. The six-team tournament is double elimination.
"When they first got here, we realized if any team was going to do it, this was the team because of the freshmen," said BG senior center fielder Kandice Machain.
Rango, the starting third baseman, leads the team with a .374 average and is tied for second with 25 RBI. Habicht, who plays second base, hit's .218 but has come up with several clutch hits to help BG win games. Heimrich, an Anthony Wayne High School product, hits .277 and starts at first base.
Senior shortstop Libby Voshell is the only veteran player on the infield. She has started 191 games in her Falcon career, 64 more than the combined total of her three infield mates.
"It's fun. I've really enjoyed it," Voshell said of playing next to the freshmen. "Everybody stepped in right away and it was like we'd all played together before. There are no problems. It just flows."
Voshell has set a prime example for the younger players, hitting .350 with 22 RBI and a team-best five home runs. Her 16 errors this season are the fewest she's had in any season.
Machain and fellow senior Crystal Wilson start in the outfield, along with sophomore Stephanie Finkel, who sat out last season. Wilson has hit two grand slams and has 25 RBI.
Junior Jenifer Kernahan, a Perrysburg High School graduate, is the team's catcher, while another freshman, Liz Vrabel, is the No. 1 pitcher, giving BG five first-year players in its usual starting lineup.
Kernahan has a team-best 34 RBI and is hitting .303.
The combination has the Falcons back in the tournament after a one-year hiatus. BG qualified for the MAC tourney four straight times before missing out last season.
"This is a start to ending on a good note," Machain said. "It feels great, more than great, to be back in the tournament."
Last year, I would have been surprised if we made the tournament, but this year I know that we should because of the talent we have on the team and the leadership," BG coach Leigh Ross-Shaw said.
The Falcons won their final three MAC games to get into the tournament. BG has won four of its last five overall and seems to have broken out of a mini-slump offensively.
BG had just 24 hits in a six-game span from April 22-27, but collected 53 hits in its final five games.
Meanwhile, BG's pitching -- sparked by Vrabel, who has a 1.13 earned-run average -- has held its own. The Falcons have allowed two or fewer runs in seven of their last nine games. Junior Jody Johnson has also thrown well for the Falcons, posting a 2.63 ERA in 21 appearances.
"We're hitting the ball really well right now and our pitching is good," Machain said.
BG opens with a familiar foe in the Huskies. The teams played a three-game series April 26-27 in DeKalb, Ill., with Northern winning all three games.
The Huskies took the opener, 1-0 in 10 innings and the third game, 2-0. Sandwiched in between was a 13-2 NIU win.
"We have to beat them and we haven't yet," Voshell said. "This entire season has been about accomplishments and getting through periods. This is definitely the next one.
"They're fresh in our heads and they know just as well as we do that two of those games were extremely close and could have gone either way. We know what they're about."
Marshall (40-15) is the tournament's No. 1 seed, followed by Western Michigan (27-22) and Central Michigan (25-16). Miami (23-20) is the No. 6 seed.
The Falcons have never won the MAC tourney in seven previous trips, with their best finish coming in 2000 when BG took second place.
"All of our bats need to be on at once," Voshell said. "We have amazing hitters one through nine. Every single person has done well for us at one point in time. We just have to put it all together."
