Bowling Green State University Athletics
Six Falcons Land on Academic All-MAC Team
June 04, 2018 | Softball
Blevins, Brooke Parker, Searle, Simmons, Alex, Sorgi & Wheeler all earn the honor
Six members of the Bowling Green State University softball team have been named to the Academic All-Mid-American Conference Team, announced by the league office on Monday afternoon (June 4). Seniors Aspen Searle and Laine Simmons, juniors Brooke Parker and Alex Sorgi and sophomores Taylor Blevins and Kendyl Wheeler all were named to the team.
Searle has been named to the Academic All-MAC Team for the third time in her BGSU career, while Brooke Parker and Alex Sorgi each earn the honor for the second time in as many years of eligibility for the award. Blevins, Simmons and Wheeler all made the team in their first year of eligibility for the honor.
The 2018 Falcons had a total of 11 returning players (i.e., 11 student-athletes who were eligible for Academic All-MAC Team consideration). Ten of those 11 student-athletes have a cumulative GPA higher than 3.20, but four of those 10 did not appear in 50 percent of the Falcons' contests in 2018. The 11th student-athlete appeared in over 50 percent of the team's games, but has a cumulative GPA of 3.192.
Brief biographical sketches on each of the six honorees follow...Â
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Taylor Blevins, Bowling Green, So., OF, 3.777, Communication
Played in 42 of BGSU's 52 games, making eight starts ... all eight starts came in left field ... scored 14 runs on the year and was second on the team with seven stolen bases ... batted .095 in 21 at-bats ... was the team's top pinch-runner when she wasn't in the lineup … went 7-for-8 on the basepaths ... started all three games of the Kent State series ... in the opener (on her birthday), saw a total of 27 pitches in her three plate appearances, with at least seven pitches each time ... fouled off a total of 14 pitches in the game, and had a 12-pitch at-bat in which she fouled off seven pitches before drawing a walk ... was intentionally walked in the bottom of the seventh inning of BGSU's 3-2, walk-off win over MAC-leading Ohio ... 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete.
Brooke Parker, Bowling Green, Jr., P, 3.959, Adolescence Young Adult (AYA) Education
AYA Education major, specializing in integrated language arts … appeared in 28 games in the circle, making 18 starts ... was 10-8 with a 3.26 ERA and a team-leading three saves ... had nine complete games, and struck out 66 batters in 120 1/3 innings of work ... had a record of 6-1 and an ERA of just 1.63 in neutral-site games ... threw six innings of no-hit ball to pick up the win over Mississippi Valley State ... needed just 68 pitches to get through those six innings ... faced only one batter over the minimum, with a two-out walk in the fifth ... was named MAC Pitcher of the Week on March 20, after allowing a total of eight hits in two complete-game efforts during BG's trip to Nashville ... picked up a complete-game win vs. Ball State, allowing zero earned runs, on the first day of the conference season ... went 2-0 with an ERA of just 1.11 during the Falcons' seven-game winning streak from April 11-23 ... allowed opponents to bat just .146 against her during that time ... threw a complete-game four-hitter as BGSU downed Buffalo, 11-1, in five innings ... picked up the win in the opener and the save in the nightcap of BG's DH sweep at Akron ... fired a complete-game two-hitter in a 5-1 win in the opener ... then, entered the second game with runners on first and second and the potential winning run at the plate with one down in the seventh ... needed to face just one batter to get two outs as her third pitch induced the UA batter to hit a game-ending double-play grounder to short ... retired the last seven hitters at Notre Dame, allowing just one hit and one walk in that two-and-a-third-inning relief stint ... 2017 Academic All-MAC Team … 2017 MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete … 2016 and 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society.
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Aspen Searle, Bowling Green, Sr., SS, 3.722, Psychology
A psychology major at BGSU, with a minor in human development and family studies (HDFS) … was BGSU's female recipient of the Falcon Medal of Honor, the highest honor awarded to a BG student-athlete, at the athletic department's end-of-year awards ceremony, The Ziggys ... also was BG's female winner of the MAC Medal of Excellence ... additionally, was named the Falcons' Offensive Player of the Year … started all 52 of BGSU's games at shortstop, and led the team with a .374 batting average -- the fourth-highest single-season average in program history … also paced the team in hits (65), doubles (15), triples (three), total bases (104), slugging pct. (.598) and on-base pct. (.414) ... tied for the team lead with 33 runs scored ... her team-leading total of 16 multiple-hit games included three four-hit contests ... had six homers to tie for third on the Falcons, and deadlocked for second on the club with 24 RBI ... hit an amazing .443 in true road games, going 31-for-70 ... hit .647 on the season's opening weekend, going 11-for-17 as BG won five games at the CSU Dome Tournament … for her efforts that weekend, was named MAC Player of the Week and also was mentioned as one of the top performers of the week by Louisville Slugger/NFCA ... hit a team-leading .600 during the Falcons' seven-game winning streak from April 11-23 ... was 15-for-25 in that time, with a slugging pct. of .880 and eight runs scored ... had six consecutive two-hit games during that streak … ended her career on a six-game hitting streak, as she had a hit in all three games vs. Ohio ... in the opener, had a double and drove in a run in BG's 3-2, walk-off win over the MAC leaders … ended her BGSU career ranked second in school history in hits (241), at-bats (722), doubles (49) and total bases (379) … is ranked third in school history in games played and games started, and is fourth in runs and RBI; sixth in batting average, home runs and slugging pct.; and ninth in sacrifice flies … also is ranked in the top 15 in triples and walks ... Academic All-MAC Team, 2015 and 2017 (was injured in 1016) … MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete, 2015 and 2017 … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society … 2016 and 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete … MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week, Feb. 14.
Laine Simmons, Bowling Green, Sr., C, 3.725, Individualized Studies
Individualized studies major with concentrations in Education and Sciences … named to the All-MAC Second Team … also was named BGSU's Defensive Player of the Year ... played in 42 games, starting 41 ... made 39 starts at catcher and two at the designated-player spot ... hit .287 on the year and tied for third on the team with six homers ... had an on-base pct. of .342 and a slugging pct. of .491, ranking third on the Falcons in the latter category ... scored eight runs and had 17 RBI ... had a .983 fielding pct., with just four errors in 236 total chances ... skillfully guided the Falcon pitching staff, and threw out a double-digit total of would-be base-stealers for the second consecutive year ... gunned down 10 of 26 opponents attempting to steal against her ... was a perfect 2-for-2 when batting with the bases loaded ... in MAC play, tied for the team lead with a .315 batting average, and led the Falcons in homers ... also tied for the team lead with a .537 slugging pct. in MAC games ... led the Falcons with a .303 batting average in home games ... hit .429 in three games during BGSU's trip to Nashville ... on back-to-back days, led off an inning with the score tied, 3-3, and hit a solo homer that proved to be the game-winning RBI ... had a slugging pct. of 1.429 during the Nashville trip ... led off an inning in six of her nine plate appearances that weekend, hitting .600 with a 2.000 slugging pct. in those nine trips to the plate ... hit .389, going 7-for-18 with two homers and a .778 slugging pct., during the Falcons' seven-game winning streak from April 11-23 ... homered for the second-straight game, as her grand slam accounted for all of BG's runs in a 4-1 win at Akron ... the slam came after the Zips had 'unintentionally intentionally' walked the batter in front of her ... had 10 RBI in a nine-game span in late April-early May ... a 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete in her first season at BG … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society.
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Alex Sorgi, Bowling Green, Jr., CF, 3.696, Gerontology
Received the team's Meserve Award, which is presented to the BGSU softball student-athlete who best demonstrated the following qualities throughout the season: passion, leadership, competitive spirit, 'teamsmanship,' athletic and academic excellence, and resiliency ... started all 52 of BGSU's games in center field ... hit .322 on the year and tied for the team lead with 33 runs scored ... was second on the club with 56 hits, and became just the third different player in program history to steal 20 bases in a season ... had 15 multiple-hit games on the year, tying her for second on the club ... had a .382 on-base pct., good for third on the team ... in MAC play, led the Falcons in at-bats, runs, hits and steals ... batted .385 in neutral-site games, with team-high totals of 12 walks and 10 steals in those 16 contests ... had 20 hits to tie for the BG lead in neutral-site affairs ... tied the school single-game record with four stolen bases in a win over Mississippi Valley State ... had three multiple-hit games in five contests in Memphis, including three-hit contests vs. both MVSU and Butler ... was 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and a run scored in BG's win over Miami ... almost singlehandedly manufactured the Falcons' first run in that win ... with one year remaining in her career, is ranked third in school history with 43 career stolen bases … also is ranked on the BG career lists for batting average (12th) and runs scored (T-15th) ... 2017 Academic All-MAC Team … 2017 MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete … 2016 and 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society.
Kendyl Wheeler, Bowling Green, So., OF, 3.320, Criminal Justice
Played in 31 games, making 21 starts on the year ... all 21 starts came in left field ... batted .169 with eight runs scored and five RBI ... her 10 hits included a triple ... BGSU was 14-7 in games she started ... started all five games in left field as BGSU went undefeated at the season-opening CSU Dome Tournament ... had a hit and scored a run in the opener vs. Niagara ... defensively, crashed through the wall and took a home run away from an NU player on what Coach Sarah Willis called "by far the best catch I have ever seen" ... had two hits, two runs and three RBI in a win over Butler ... came to the plate with a runner in scoring position three times in that game, and drove in a run in all three of those at-bats ... tripled and scored the game's lone run in a home win over Fort Wayne ... made a pinch-running appearance in each end of the Kent State DH at Meserve Field … won the team's Meserve Award in 2017 ... the award is presented to the player who best demonstrated the following qualities throughout the season: passion, leadership, competitive spirit, 'teamsmanship,' athletic and academic excellence, and resiliency.
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The Academic All-MAC team honor is bestowed upon a student-athlete who has excelled in both athletics and academics. To qualify, said student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the team's contests for that particular sport. First-year students and junior-college transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.
From the list of Academic All-MAC Team members, the conference's faculty athletic representatives will select the 'best of the best' to be honored with the Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Award for the 2017-18 academic year. The number of Distinguished Scholar Athletes from each sport is equivalent to the number of first-team selections or 33% of nominees, whichever is greater. The list of Distinguished Scholar Athletes is expected to be announced sometime in the next few weeks.
The Falcons finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 26-26, and BGSU was fourth in the MAC's East Division with a league mark of 8-14. Head coach Sarah Willis and her assistant coaches, Katie Reiff and Lauren Gambone, had three seniors on the '18 team, as the Falcons' 22-player roster includes 19 student-athletes with at least one more year of eligibility remaining.
BGSUÂ hit .286 as a team in 2018, just three percentage points shy of the school record (.289). BG's total of 213 runs scored was the fourth-highest in program history.
BGSU players slated to return in the 2018-19 academic year combined to score 80.7% of the team's runs and pound out 75.3% of the Falcons' hits this past season. Additionally, the returning pitchers combined for 100% of the team's wins and strikeouts in the 2018 campaign.
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Searle has been named to the Academic All-MAC Team for the third time in her BGSU career, while Brooke Parker and Alex Sorgi each earn the honor for the second time in as many years of eligibility for the award. Blevins, Simmons and Wheeler all made the team in their first year of eligibility for the honor.
The 2018 Falcons had a total of 11 returning players (i.e., 11 student-athletes who were eligible for Academic All-MAC Team consideration). Ten of those 11 student-athletes have a cumulative GPA higher than 3.20, but four of those 10 did not appear in 50 percent of the Falcons' contests in 2018. The 11th student-athlete appeared in over 50 percent of the team's games, but has a cumulative GPA of 3.192.
Brief biographical sketches on each of the six honorees follow...Â
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Taylor Blevins, Bowling Green, So., OF, 3.777, Communication
Played in 42 of BGSU's 52 games, making eight starts ... all eight starts came in left field ... scored 14 runs on the year and was second on the team with seven stolen bases ... batted .095 in 21 at-bats ... was the team's top pinch-runner when she wasn't in the lineup … went 7-for-8 on the basepaths ... started all three games of the Kent State series ... in the opener (on her birthday), saw a total of 27 pitches in her three plate appearances, with at least seven pitches each time ... fouled off a total of 14 pitches in the game, and had a 12-pitch at-bat in which she fouled off seven pitches before drawing a walk ... was intentionally walked in the bottom of the seventh inning of BGSU's 3-2, walk-off win over MAC-leading Ohio ... 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete.
Brooke Parker, Bowling Green, Jr., P, 3.959, Adolescence Young Adult (AYA) Education
AYA Education major, specializing in integrated language arts … appeared in 28 games in the circle, making 18 starts ... was 10-8 with a 3.26 ERA and a team-leading three saves ... had nine complete games, and struck out 66 batters in 120 1/3 innings of work ... had a record of 6-1 and an ERA of just 1.63 in neutral-site games ... threw six innings of no-hit ball to pick up the win over Mississippi Valley State ... needed just 68 pitches to get through those six innings ... faced only one batter over the minimum, with a two-out walk in the fifth ... was named MAC Pitcher of the Week on March 20, after allowing a total of eight hits in two complete-game efforts during BG's trip to Nashville ... picked up a complete-game win vs. Ball State, allowing zero earned runs, on the first day of the conference season ... went 2-0 with an ERA of just 1.11 during the Falcons' seven-game winning streak from April 11-23 ... allowed opponents to bat just .146 against her during that time ... threw a complete-game four-hitter as BGSU downed Buffalo, 11-1, in five innings ... picked up the win in the opener and the save in the nightcap of BG's DH sweep at Akron ... fired a complete-game two-hitter in a 5-1 win in the opener ... then, entered the second game with runners on first and second and the potential winning run at the plate with one down in the seventh ... needed to face just one batter to get two outs as her third pitch induced the UA batter to hit a game-ending double-play grounder to short ... retired the last seven hitters at Notre Dame, allowing just one hit and one walk in that two-and-a-third-inning relief stint ... 2017 Academic All-MAC Team … 2017 MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete … 2016 and 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society.
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Aspen Searle, Bowling Green, Sr., SS, 3.722, Psychology
A psychology major at BGSU, with a minor in human development and family studies (HDFS) … was BGSU's female recipient of the Falcon Medal of Honor, the highest honor awarded to a BG student-athlete, at the athletic department's end-of-year awards ceremony, The Ziggys ... also was BG's female winner of the MAC Medal of Excellence ... additionally, was named the Falcons' Offensive Player of the Year … started all 52 of BGSU's games at shortstop, and led the team with a .374 batting average -- the fourth-highest single-season average in program history … also paced the team in hits (65), doubles (15), triples (three), total bases (104), slugging pct. (.598) and on-base pct. (.414) ... tied for the team lead with 33 runs scored ... her team-leading total of 16 multiple-hit games included three four-hit contests ... had six homers to tie for third on the Falcons, and deadlocked for second on the club with 24 RBI ... hit an amazing .443 in true road games, going 31-for-70 ... hit .647 on the season's opening weekend, going 11-for-17 as BG won five games at the CSU Dome Tournament … for her efforts that weekend, was named MAC Player of the Week and also was mentioned as one of the top performers of the week by Louisville Slugger/NFCA ... hit a team-leading .600 during the Falcons' seven-game winning streak from April 11-23 ... was 15-for-25 in that time, with a slugging pct. of .880 and eight runs scored ... had six consecutive two-hit games during that streak … ended her career on a six-game hitting streak, as she had a hit in all three games vs. Ohio ... in the opener, had a double and drove in a run in BG's 3-2, walk-off win over the MAC leaders … ended her BGSU career ranked second in school history in hits (241), at-bats (722), doubles (49) and total bases (379) … is ranked third in school history in games played and games started, and is fourth in runs and RBI; sixth in batting average, home runs and slugging pct.; and ninth in sacrifice flies … also is ranked in the top 15 in triples and walks ... Academic All-MAC Team, 2015 and 2017 (was injured in 1016) … MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete, 2015 and 2017 … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society … 2016 and 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete … MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week, Feb. 14.
Laine Simmons, Bowling Green, Sr., C, 3.725, Individualized Studies
Individualized studies major with concentrations in Education and Sciences … named to the All-MAC Second Team … also was named BGSU's Defensive Player of the Year ... played in 42 games, starting 41 ... made 39 starts at catcher and two at the designated-player spot ... hit .287 on the year and tied for third on the team with six homers ... had an on-base pct. of .342 and a slugging pct. of .491, ranking third on the Falcons in the latter category ... scored eight runs and had 17 RBI ... had a .983 fielding pct., with just four errors in 236 total chances ... skillfully guided the Falcon pitching staff, and threw out a double-digit total of would-be base-stealers for the second consecutive year ... gunned down 10 of 26 opponents attempting to steal against her ... was a perfect 2-for-2 when batting with the bases loaded ... in MAC play, tied for the team lead with a .315 batting average, and led the Falcons in homers ... also tied for the team lead with a .537 slugging pct. in MAC games ... led the Falcons with a .303 batting average in home games ... hit .429 in three games during BGSU's trip to Nashville ... on back-to-back days, led off an inning with the score tied, 3-3, and hit a solo homer that proved to be the game-winning RBI ... had a slugging pct. of 1.429 during the Nashville trip ... led off an inning in six of her nine plate appearances that weekend, hitting .600 with a 2.000 slugging pct. in those nine trips to the plate ... hit .389, going 7-for-18 with two homers and a .778 slugging pct., during the Falcons' seven-game winning streak from April 11-23 ... homered for the second-straight game, as her grand slam accounted for all of BG's runs in a 4-1 win at Akron ... the slam came after the Zips had 'unintentionally intentionally' walked the batter in front of her ... had 10 RBI in a nine-game span in late April-early May ... a 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete in her first season at BG … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society.
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Alex Sorgi, Bowling Green, Jr., CF, 3.696, Gerontology
Received the team's Meserve Award, which is presented to the BGSU softball student-athlete who best demonstrated the following qualities throughout the season: passion, leadership, competitive spirit, 'teamsmanship,' athletic and academic excellence, and resiliency ... started all 52 of BGSU's games in center field ... hit .322 on the year and tied for the team lead with 33 runs scored ... was second on the club with 56 hits, and became just the third different player in program history to steal 20 bases in a season ... had 15 multiple-hit games on the year, tying her for second on the club ... had a .382 on-base pct., good for third on the team ... in MAC play, led the Falcons in at-bats, runs, hits and steals ... batted .385 in neutral-site games, with team-high totals of 12 walks and 10 steals in those 16 contests ... had 20 hits to tie for the BG lead in neutral-site affairs ... tied the school single-game record with four stolen bases in a win over Mississippi Valley State ... had three multiple-hit games in five contests in Memphis, including three-hit contests vs. both MVSU and Butler ... was 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and a run scored in BG's win over Miami ... almost singlehandedly manufactured the Falcons' first run in that win ... with one year remaining in her career, is ranked third in school history with 43 career stolen bases … also is ranked on the BG career lists for batting average (12th) and runs scored (T-15th) ... 2017 Academic All-MAC Team … 2017 MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete … 2016 and 2017 Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete … inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society.
Kendyl Wheeler, Bowling Green, So., OF, 3.320, Criminal Justice
Played in 31 games, making 21 starts on the year ... all 21 starts came in left field ... batted .169 with eight runs scored and five RBI ... her 10 hits included a triple ... BGSU was 14-7 in games she started ... started all five games in left field as BGSU went undefeated at the season-opening CSU Dome Tournament ... had a hit and scored a run in the opener vs. Niagara ... defensively, crashed through the wall and took a home run away from an NU player on what Coach Sarah Willis called "by far the best catch I have ever seen" ... had two hits, two runs and three RBI in a win over Butler ... came to the plate with a runner in scoring position three times in that game, and drove in a run in all three of those at-bats ... tripled and scored the game's lone run in a home win over Fort Wayne ... made a pinch-running appearance in each end of the Kent State DH at Meserve Field … won the team's Meserve Award in 2017 ... the award is presented to the player who best demonstrated the following qualities throughout the season: passion, leadership, competitive spirit, 'teamsmanship,' athletic and academic excellence, and resiliency.
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The Academic All-MAC team honor is bestowed upon a student-athlete who has excelled in both athletics and academics. To qualify, said student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the team's contests for that particular sport. First-year students and junior-college transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.
From the list of Academic All-MAC Team members, the conference's faculty athletic representatives will select the 'best of the best' to be honored with the Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Award for the 2017-18 academic year. The number of Distinguished Scholar Athletes from each sport is equivalent to the number of first-team selections or 33% of nominees, whichever is greater. The list of Distinguished Scholar Athletes is expected to be announced sometime in the next few weeks.
The Falcons finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 26-26, and BGSU was fourth in the MAC's East Division with a league mark of 8-14. Head coach Sarah Willis and her assistant coaches, Katie Reiff and Lauren Gambone, had three seniors on the '18 team, as the Falcons' 22-player roster includes 19 student-athletes with at least one more year of eligibility remaining.
BGSUÂ hit .286 as a team in 2018, just three percentage points shy of the school record (.289). BG's total of 213 runs scored was the fourth-highest in program history.
BGSU players slated to return in the 2018-19 academic year combined to score 80.7% of the team's runs and pound out 75.3% of the Falcons' hits this past season. Additionally, the returning pitchers combined for 100% of the team's wins and strikeouts in the 2018 campaign.
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Players Mentioned
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