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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Begin Post-Season Play on Wednesday
May 07, 2007 | Softball
Complete Release, Bracket, and Stats in PDF Format
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May 7, 2007
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The third seeded Bowling Green State University Falcons (31-10, 14-6) will begin their 12th journey through the Mid-American Conference Tournament bracket on Wednesday morning (11:00 a.m.) as they are set to square off against six seed Western Michigan (20-21, 12-10) at Currie Field in Midland, Mich. Dependant on the outcome of the game, BGSU could face either second seed Eastern Michigan or seventh seeded Ohio University.
Of their three possible immediate opponents, the Falcons took two from Ohio (Apr.6, DH), split a pair with Western Michigan (May 5 W // May 6 L) and lost twice to Eastern Michigan (Apr. 19). For full tournament bracket consult the PDF attachment of this release.
WEDNESDAY WILL EVEN WEEKEND SPLIT
Bowling Green will be given the chance to tip the scales away from WMU after splitting with the Broncos this weekend...the Falcons will meet WMU in game one of the MAC Tournament on Wednesday morning at 11:00 a.m. ... BGSU's convincing 7-2 win on Saturday was answered with a WMU win (1-0 (8)) on Sunday ... the squads have met five times in the conference tournament setting.
BGSU vs. WMU AT THE MAC TOURNAMENT THROUGH THE YEARS
First meeting in 1982 - WMU beat BGSU 7-1 in Kalamazoo, Mich. on 5/17
2004 WMU beat BGSU 3-0 in Akron, Ohio on 5/14
2004 BGSU beat WMU 8-6 in Akron, Ohio on 5/16
2005 BGSU beat WMU 4-0 in Akron, Ohio on 5/13
2006 WMU beat BGSU 2-1 in Midland, Mich. on 5/12
FALCONS FINISH SECOND IN EAST; EARN THREE SEED
Kent State (30-17), the crowning finisher in the Eastern Division, was named the top seed of the tournament after posting a 15-3 conference record whereas Eastern Michigan, who finished atop the West (23-20, 13-5), earned the runner-up seed ... Bowling Green (31-10, 14-6, East), Miami (26-33,14-8, East) and Central Michigan (24-19, 11-7 West) finalize the top five ... Western Michigan (20-21, 12-10, West) is seeded sixth while Ohio University (23-29, 10-12 East) and Northern Illinois (21-26, 10-12) were named the respective seventh and eighth seeds ... since dividing the conference into the East and West divisions in 1998, the Falcons have never finished lower than third in the Eastern Division (1998-2002, 2006-07) ... this season's second place finish in the East is the fourth consecutive top three divisional finish.
FINAL MAC STANDINGS
East Division
1. KSU (15-3, 30-17) - Overall Regular Season Champion
2. BGSU (14-6, 31-10)
3. Miami (14-8, 26-33-1)
4. OU (10-12, 23-29)
5. UA (7-11, 17-25)
6. UB (1-17, 3-45)
West Division
1. EMU (13-5, 23-20)
2. CMU (11-7, 24-19)
3. WMU (12-10, 20-21)
4. NIU (10-12, 21-26)
5. BSU (8-14, 22-34)
6. UT (5-15, 10-32)
BOWLING GREEN VS. THE FIELD
During the MAC season, the Falcons posted an 8-6 record against the field and out scored it 50-31 ... BGSU posted one shutout (NIU, 10-0, May 4) and was shutout three times by tournament contenders (EMU, 0-1, Apr. 20 // Central, 0-2, Apr. 21 // WMU, 0-1, May 6) ... seven of the contests were decided by one run while an additional four were decided by two ... Western Michigan and Central Michigan are the only MAC teams to spit a series with the Falcons in 2007 ... BGSU also beat Miami (6-4) on Feb. 24 at the Panera Challenge.
BGSU IN THE MAC TOURNAMENT
The Falcons are appearing in the MAC Tournament for the fifth consecutive season, the ninth time in the last decade, and the 12th time in school history ... this year marks the 17th MAC Tournament ... a league tourney was held each year from 1982-86 before a hiatus of nearly a decade (the tournament resumed in 1996, but that year's tourney was suspended in the third game due to inclement weather) ... Bowling Green has compiled an all-time tourney mark of 18-21, including a 5-1 record and the school's first MAC Tournament championship in 2004 ... in consecutive seasons (2005 and 2006) the Falcons have gone 2-2 in the eight-team format ... BGSU has gone 1-2 on six of the 10 occasions the Falcons have qualified ... BG was 1-2 in the first four trips, 0-2 in 1999 and 3-2 (with a runner-up finish) in 2000 ... the Falcons posted a 1-2 mark at the 2001 tourney, and again won one of three games in 2003 ... BG participated in the league tourney in 1982, 1985 and 1986, prior to the four-year run from 1998-2001 ... the Falcons just missed making the tourney in '02, but now have qualified in each of the last five seasons.
BGSU IN THE MAC TOURNAMENT YEAR-BY-YEAR HISTORY
1982 (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
Ball State W 1-0 // at Western Michigan L 1-7 // Central Michigan L 2-5
1985 (Toledo, Ohio)
Central Michigan L 3-7 // Northern Illinois W 3-2 // at Toledo L 0-2
1986 (Mt. Pleasant, Mich.)
Toledo W 2-0 // at Central Michigan L 2-12 // Ohio L 2-3
1998 (Akron, Ohio)
Northern Illinois W 3-0 // Central Michigan L 3-8 // Kent State L 1-11
1999 (DeKalb, Ill.)
Eastern Michigan L 0-1 // Kent State L 1-2
2000 (DeKalb, Ill.)
Central Michigan L 0-3 // Marshall W 4-3 // at Northern Illinois W 7-2 // Akron W 2-0 // Central Michigan L 4-9
2001 (Mt. Pleasant, Mich.)
Northern Illinois L 1-2 // Ohio (10 inn.) W 6-1 // Ball State L 2-3
2003 (Akron, Ohio)
Northern Illinois W 7-2 // Marshall L 1-2 // Central Michigan L 0-3
2004 (Akron, Ohio)
Western Michigan L 0-3 // Central Michigan W 3-0 // Kent State W 6-0 // Western Michigan W 8-6 // Miami W 1-0 // Miami W 4-3
2005 (Akron, Ohio)
Miami L 0-2 // Eastern Michigan W 2-1 // Western Michigan W 4-0 // Miami L 1-2
2006 (Midland, Mich.)
Akron W 4-0 // Kent State L 2-3 // Ohio W 3-0 // Western Michigan L 1-2
THREE FALCONS = SEVEN WEEKLEY AWARDS
Three Falcons have been awarded weekly conference honors throughout the 2007 regular season ... Emily Gouge, Allison Vallas and Hayley Wiemer combined for seven weekly MAC awards this season ... BGSU swept the Eastern honors on April 16 ... prior to April 16, the last time the Falcons were handed a sweep of the Eastern Division's top weekly distinction was April 17, 2006 as current senior Ashley Zirkle and then starting pitcher Liz Vrabel were named the top Eastern performers.
Emily Gouge
Pitcher of the Week (Mar. 22)
Allison Vallas
Player of the Week (Apr. 16)
Scholar-Athlete of the Week (Apr. 19)
Hayley Wiemer
Player of the Week (Mar. 9)
Pitcher of the Week (Apr. 16)
Scholar-Athlete of the Week (Mar. 9, Apr. 6)
BACA, GOUGE AND WIEMER RANKED NATIONALLY AS OF APRIL 29
Three Falcons are currently ranked statistically among their peers nationally ... senior centerfielder Jeanine Baca remains ranked among the top ten batters in the nation as the toughest to strike out (.033 - 7) ... in 120 at bats she has been struck out four times and is the only MAC player to be ranked nationally ... she is also ranked in the top 100 batters with her .29 doubles per game (.29 - 61) and slides in at 50th overall in runs/game (.92 - 50) ... junior pitcher Emily Gouge is also seeing success nationally as her 1.72 ERA is good enough for a top 100 ranking (1.72 - 81) ... she is also ranked nationally for her SO/7 In. (7.7 - 68) and saves (2.0 - 67) ... sophomore Hayley Wiemer leads the Falcons' charge on the national scene appearing in seven individual categories ... from the plate Wiemer is named among the top players in batting average (.425 - 27), home runs/game ( .24 - 76), RBIs/game (.89 - 62), walks (.764 - 29) and slugging percentage (.764 - 29) ... in the circle, she is listed in the top 100 for her ERA (1.43 - 36) and saves (2.0 - 92).
FALCONS RANKED NATIONALLY AS OF APRIL 29
According to the Softball National Ranking Summary the BGSU softball squad has the 13th best ERA (1.59 - 13) and the 17th best WL percentage (.757 - 17) ... BGSU has also earned a top 50 slot in the homeruns/game category (.92 - 41) ... the Falcons are also among the top 100 in fielding (.962 - 92), scoring (4.73 - 68), doubles/game (1.3 - 58) and slugging percentage (.437 - 69).
2007 TOURNAMENT FALCONS
In three preseason tournaments, the Falcons potent hitting crushed 18 homeruns en route three championship appearances and two tournament crowns (Panera Bread - Feb. 23-25 and Charleston Southern - Mar. 2-4) ... the two biggest power producers in the South were sophomore Hayley Wiemer and junior Allison Vallas ... the duo led the Falcons with four shots to another area code each ... Wiemer finished the tournament season with team highs in batting (.375) and slugging (.729) percentages and hits (18) ... in Charleston, she racked up a team tournament high .625 batting average and was slugging 1.313 ... her spectacular performance was complimented by a team high three homeruns, 21 total bases and 10 hits and a tournament MVP nod ... Vallas and freshman Susan Sontag slugged above .500 and batted over .315 ... Sontag led all freshmen in runs (3), hits (15) and at bats (46).
Tournament Offense
The hitting wealth spread through the Falcons to the extreme that seven of the nine designated starters hit at least one to the fence ... Bowling Green also out hit their opponents in every statistical scenario ... collectively, those pitchers who faced the BG sticks accounted for a 4.05 ERA ... the Orange and Brown accumulated 196 total bases and rode a .350 on base percentage ... along the infield baseline, the Falcons were even more threatening to the defense seeing as they had a 65% (15-23) of advancing their placement on a steal.
Tournament Defense
Against BGSU, 123 of the 404 total batters were sent back to the bench on the three count ... junior Emily Gouge was responsible for a staff high 70 (57%) of the K's while fellow veteran Hayley Wiemer contributed 40 (33%) ... the remaining 13 were thrown by southpaw freshman, Sharon Palma ... collectively, the three posted a 1.53 ERA and shutout five opponents ... in the 16 games, opposing swingers were held to a .183 batting average ... BG allowed just 12 doubles and six homeruns in tournament play in 2007 ... even more, opponents laid a big goose egg in the three base column ... the Falcons also held their opponents to a .257 slugging percentage and a low .183 batting average ... Bowling Green allowed just 104 bases to be touched in 16 games; nearly half of their own total amount (194).
FALCONS SET HR RECORD WITH 41 AND COUNTING...
After tying and breaking the 2006 homerun record (29), the Falcons have continued to increase their historic numbers and currently have 41 on the season ... sophomore Hayley Wiemer, who hit both the tying and record breaking boomers, leads the charge with 10 this season tying Gina Rango's mark set in 2006 ... junior Allison Vallas is also nipping at Rango's heels with eight of her own this season as is freshman Susan Sontag ... Sontag's long ball against Toledo (Apr. 28) boosted her celebrity status as she became the only BGSU freshman to hit more than five as a first-year Falcon ... she smacked a grand slam for the 10-0 fifth inning walk-off win over NIU (May 4) and added another HR against Western Michigan the next day (May 5) ... Jeanine Baca added a walk-off roundtrip winner of her own on Friday in game two against NIU ... Baca's four base slam gave the Falcons the win with two outs in the bottom of the seventh ... BGSU hit their first back-to-back set in 2007 when Ashley Zirkle and Dawnjene DeLong hit consecutive balls out of the park on Friday afternoon in game one against NIU ... the Falcons have four games this season with three homeruns scored - two were in MAC play ... current Falcons with at least one long ball include: Hayley Wiemer (10), Allison Vallas (8), Susan Sontag (8), Dawnjene DeLong (5), Jeanine Baca (5), Ashley Zirkle (3), and Carly Riepenhoff (2)
SALSBURG'S TRAVEL AGENCY GUARANTEES ROUNDTRIP RATES
Last season, the 2006 Falcons broke the single season HR record on May 7 against Northern Illinois with two against the Huskies and an additional three on May 12 at the MAC Tournament ... this season the Falcons broke the record an amazing 26 games prior to last year's mark with the '07 Falcons saying hello to the record in their 31st contest of the season where as the '06 Falcons did it in their 56th ... this is the first Falcon team to hit more than 40 in a season...Bowling Green had not gone more than three games without hitting a homerun (Apr. 6-13) until hitting a four game drought on the road against Eastern and Central Michigan (Apr. 20-22) ... during the Feb. 24-Mar. 4 timeframe, BGSU went nine straight games hitting at least one homerun ... BGSU hit seven homeruns in a four game span to close the regular season (May 4-6) including two walk-off wins on the same day (May 4 vs. NIU 10-0 (5), 3-2).
THE CLASS OF 2007 WILL BE DEFINED BY ...
With their stellar play this season, the Class of 2007 has led the Falcons in qualifying for the Mid-American Conference Tournament for the fourth time in their tenure ... in doing so, Jeanine Baca, Lauren Hoffman, Emmy Ramsey and Ashley Zirkle become one of three groups to make the league tourney in all four years and the second consecutive class to accomplish the feat ... as freshmen (2004), they not only helped the Falcons to the MAC Tournament, but to five consecutive victories and the first MAC Tournament title in school history and to an NCAA Regional birth ... the quartet has seen BGSU set consecutive program homerun records in 2006 and 2007 as well as tying the school record of 37 single season victories in 2006 ... their 31-10 record is the best 41 game start in program history ... the group has amassed a record 131 wins to date for the most victories in a four-year span in school history ... in conference play, the quartet is 55-33 including this weekend's wins over NIU on Friday and split with Western Michigan.
SALSBURG FIRST BGSU HEAD COACH IN OPENING SEASON TO ...
With less than a full season under her belt, first time head coach Shannon Salsburg is the first BGSU head coach to post a winning record at the conclusion of her first opening weekend at the helm of the program ... Salsburg's Falcons went 4-1 at the Panera Bread Challenge ... they also won two of three spring tournaments ... she is the only first-year head coach to win more than 25 games ... her team is also the only team to hit more than 40 HRs in a single season ... the Falcons 14-6 finish in the MAC give the 2007 Falcons the best win percentage (.700) under a first-year head coach in school history and is the third team to finish above .500 in the same season ... Leigh Ross' 1999 Falcons previously topped all-first year coaches with their mark of .577 (15-11) while Rachel Miller-Reif's 1994 Falcons posted a .533 (16-14) percentage ... both Ross (21-28) and Miller-Rief (21-28) won 21 games their first season where as Salsburg's Falcons has won an additional ten.
FILLIN' THE TROPHY CASE
In three spring tournaments, the Falcons appeared in three championship games and brought home two tournament crowns ... BGSU won both the Panera Bread Challenge and the Charleston Southern Tournaments while taking second in the USF Speedline tournament ... while on the road, Hayley Wiemer was named CSU tournament MVP ... Wiemer was also named both MAC East Player of the Week and Scholar-Athlete of the Week for the week of Mar. 9 following her performance in Charleston ... she garnished the honor again on April 5, 2007 and April 16, 2007... Emily Gouge and Susan Sontag were also named to the CSU All-Tournament team ... Gouge also picked up honors as the Most Valuable Pitcher at the USF tournament ... she was named the MAC East Pitcher of the Week four days later ... Allison Vallas earned Player of the Week status on Apr. 19 ... in the same week she was named Scholar-Athlete of the Week.
