Bowling Green State University Athletics
Salsburg, Falcons Prepared for 2007
February 12, 2007 | Softball
Feb. 12, 2007
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Shannon Salsburg will enter the dugout as the seventh head coach in Bowling Green softball history on February 23, 2007 at the Panera Challenge. Salsburg joins Bowling Green after helping conference foe Kent State finish just a half game ahead of the Falcons in the MAC Eastern Division last season. Eight letterwinners will return from last season's squad that tied the BGSU record for victories (37), while six rookies will look to make an immediate impact for the Orange and Brown.
Although Salsburg did not have a chance to lead the Falcons in the Fall season due to rain outs, she has witnessed her squad's work ethic in practice and has brought the team closer off the field through team bonding exercises. She joins the Falcons after contributing on various staffs as an assistant coach.
Salsburg will also serve as a role model to her squad as the quintessential student-athlete during her tenure at Penn State. As a first baseman with the Nittany Lions, Salsburg was a two-time second team All-Big Ten selection and the first All-Great Lakes Region selection at PSU. She was also honored as a three time Academic All-Big Ten player and a two-time Verizon Academic All-American for her work in the classroom. To this day she still holds top honors in program records in four of five single game batting categories as well as being the single game putout leader (19). She also has earned nods on numerous season and career batting lists. She shares the single game home run record with her two against East Carolina (3/8/96), while owning the record for most in a Nittany Lion career (34).
Prior to their first season as a unit, Salsburg took time to discuss the future of the squad both as a team and as individual players.
What are your immediate thoughts about this team?
"Honestly, we are really excited about this year. I think that we are a spunky group that is going to find a way to get things done. I am excited to see how this team progresses and where we end up at the end of the season. Overall, we have the opportunity to compete and be at the top of the MAC."
What players will serve as captains and what do they bring to the softball Falcons?
"Ashley Zirkle is a great team leader and motivator. People really hop on board when she speaks. She is great at getting the team excited to tackle the next task at hand and really has an enthusiasm for the game.
 Senior Ashley Zirkle  |
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"Jeanine Baca takes the role of our quiet leader. She is well respected by her teammates as she leads by example. She is going to out-hustle, out work, and do everything it takes to help the team win.
 Senior Jeanine Baca |
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"Hayley Wiemer, our third captain, is a combination of Zirkle and Baca. Like Baca, Hayley is one of the hardest workers on our team and is always willing to do whatever it takes to be successful. She also shares Zirkle's ability to motivate those around her. When she speaks, her teammates listen.
 Sophomore Hayley Wiemer |
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"As a group, I think that the three will be very good leaders for our team. Each of them has a very unique way that they interact with their teammates, which allows them to find ways to keep everyone focused and moving forward toward our goals.
What will be the role of the captains this year?
"I think captains are extremely important. Our captains have a lot of say in the inner workings of our team. They are expected to be liaisons between the players and the coaching staff. It is their job to represent the voice of the team.
"The captains were picked by their peers. They were asked to share with the team the qualities they possess and why they would be effective captains. In the end the team was given the opportunity to vote and elected Baca, Wiemer and Zirkle into the captain's role."
What can we expect to see from the Falcons in the circle?
"Our pitching staff is unique because all three pitchers are so different. As a sophomore Wiemer will be considered a veteran on the staff as she has seen a lot of innings in conference play. Hayley is a very unique athlete as she has the ability to enter the game and take complete control of the opposing hitters, which is one of the reasons she was named the MAC Freshman of the Year.
"Then there is Emily Gouge. Gouge has some of the best movement I have ever seen. She likes to mix speeds, keeping the opposing batters off balance.
"Our third pitcher is freshman Sharon Palma. Palma is a big strong kid who has a ton of potential. She continues to work on improving her technique and placement, and will see valuable innings as well.
Who will be behind the plate calling the pitches for Wiemer, Gouge and Palma?
"Zirkle will be our sergeant at home plate. She does a good job of making decisions - which is an important trait for catchers. She handles the pitching staff extremely well, as she is good at reading them and encouraging them when needed. Lauren Hoffman will be her back-up.
Which players will spark the Falcon defense in the infield?
"The two key returnees will be Dawnjene DeLong at shortstop and Allison Vallas at first base. They really solidify the infield. DeLong is hands down one of the best shortstops in the confernce. She has fantastic hands and range, and makes absolutely everything look easy.
Vallas also does a great job at first base. She has really focused on her picks around the bag, and has the ability to make her teammates look good on every throw. That is exactly what a first basemen should do. She is very committed to making every throw an out.
 Junior Allison Vallas |
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"Brittnay Hay will be at third base and the newcomer is a "Hoover." There is no other way to describe her. She is phenomenal. She has great reactions at the hot corner. I am really looking forward to Hay and DeLong on the left side because not much will get through the two of them.
 Junior Dawjene DeLong |
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"The biggest dogfight will be for second base. Emmy Ramsey and Carly Riepenhoff will both see time at second base. Riepenhoff is very athletic and with more experience will quickly adjust to the speed of the college game. Ramsey is also in the process of readjusting to the dirt as she has spent the previous three seasons in the outfield. I am positive either will be able to fulfill the position when called upon.
"Adding to the infield are Jessica Barisono and Kylie Baier. Jessica is a hard worker with such enthusiasm for the game. She is in the process of learning all of the details of the college game, and will continue to improve and push the others.
"Kylie is a player who was injured in the fall. I look forward to seeing how she comes back from her knee injury, as she is willing to do whatever it takes to help the team succeed. "
Who comprises the defensive unit in the outfield?
"Baca is a fantastic centerfielder. She has been a constant in centerfield during her career. She gets incredible jumps on the ball and will make catches that leave you wondering how she got there. She also does a great job of running the outfield, making sure that all of the the outfielders know where the ball needs to go.
 Senior Emmy Ramsey |
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"Finalizing the outfield trifecta with Baca will be a rotation of Susan Sontag, Jocelyn Gray, Hoffman and Ramsey. Going into the season, I would say that Sontag and Gray have a slight edge on the remaining spots, but there is still a lot of jockeying for positions. They [Sontag and Gray] are both extremely athletic and bring a tremendous work ethic to the outfield, while Hoffman and Ramsey have more game day experience. All five outfielders will see playing time until we can find the best combination."
 Senior Lauren Hoffman |
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What will your batting order look like?
"We return Wiemer, Zirkle, DeLong, Vallas and Baca. Those girls will be the core of our hitting lineup. DeLong and Baca will serve as the sparkplugs of the offense, finding ways to get on base, while Wiemer, Vallas and Zirkle will add power to the line-up.
"Some of the newcomers will also be looked upon to help spark the offense. Sontag is going to be a great addition to our line-up as she has a great eye and finds a way to always make contact. Riepenhoff will add additional power to the line-up while Gray has tremendous speed that will put pressure on opposing defenses.
"This year our goals offensively are to increase our power and overall production. The kids have worked extremely hard in the off-season to get bigger and stronger physically while continuing to focus on their hitting mechanics. We feel very good about the strides we have made in the fall. Preseason will be an exciting time for us as we will be able to see where we are and what we need to continue to focus on to achieve our goals."
How do you plan to compensate for your smaller roster?
"We are going to have a unique situation because we are going to ask some players to start in one position but be the back-up to a totally different position. The preseason will be the time that we work out our issues and find quality back-ups for each position. In our early practices and games we will mix and match the players in order to find a group that can mesh on the field.
"We can not go out tomorrow and just expect to replace the accomplishments of last season's five individual seniors. It is impossible to replace a Gina Rango or a Liz Vrabel immediately - it is just not going to happen. The best thing that we can do is go out as a collective unit, focused on the job at hand."
After talking about your team and how they piece together, what are you expectations for the Orange and Brown?
"The expectation is to come out of the gate and play fundamentally sound on both sides of the ball. We have discussed the fact that we are a young team so we are looking to grow each and every day that we play. I want opposing teams to face a style of play that is aggressive and will not only put them on their heels, but keep them there. As we get going, we do have expectations to be at the top of the MAC and to give ourselves an opportunity to compete in the championship game and ultimately advance to the NCAA Regionals. We feel very strongly about these expectations and we have the personnel to meet these goals. It will take every single player on the squad to accomplish our goals.
How do you plan to help your team reach the next level in terms of intra-squad relationships?
"We do a lot of team bonding. In fact our new mascot is Disney's Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Dumbo had to believe he could fly based solely on belief without evidence. That metaphor falls right into line with our team this year. We realize nobody outside of our circle believes we can fly - but if we believe in one another, anything is possible.
"This idea steams from a leadership book that I was reading that looked at the circus and its large elephants that are supported only by a rope held in the ground by a tiny stake. The elephant does not try to get away because it has been trained since it was young that it can only get so far before being pulled back, it is a learned behavior.
"We have also discussed the fact that we are not a softball team; we are a "softball family." A `family' has a deeper sense of caring and feeling for one another. Family members want others to succeed and asks, `What is good for the family?' Where as a team has interchangeable parts, the members can come and go and no one cares either way. On a team, players do their job and they leave. We are not just going to show up on the field, play the game and leave - we are bigger than that, we are a family.
How do you sum up the attitude of this team?
"This is one of the most unselfish groups I have had the opportunity to be around and coach. It is obvious that it starts with the leadership. They have set the tone that this is about representing our softball family and Bowling Green State University. I am psyched for this season, I love having a group of kids who love softball, love what they do everyday when they show up and put their cleats on and just want to go out and get better. That is what this group is. I am fired up for this season and I am ready to see what happens."
