Bowling Green State University Athletics
Friday, February 11
Rosemont, Ill.
10:30 AM
Bowling Green State University
vs
Western Illinois
Photo by: Mallory Hiser, BGSU Athletics
Falcons Begin 2022 Season at DePaul Dome Tourney
February 09, 2022 | Softball
BGSU heads to Chicagoland for five weekend games
THIS WEEK IN FALCON SOFTBALL
• DePaul Dome Tournament • Feb. 11-13 • Rosemont, Ill. •
• The BGSU softball team begins the 2022 season this weekend, as head coach Sarah Willis and the Falcons head to the Chicagoland area to take part in the DePaul Dome Tournament. BG is slated to play two games against Butler, and one each vs. Eastern Illinois, Seattle and Western Illinois. All games will be held at The Dome at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex.
• Information about this weekend's tournament can be found by clicking the above link.
• Willis and assistant coaches Candace Fenton-Bockbrader and Michaela Bauer welcome back a total of 16 letterwinners, including six positional starters, from last year's team. Additionally, four of the five pitchers who saw action last season return, and that quartet combined to pitch 98% of the team's innings a year ago. The returnees also combined for 100% of the Falcons' wins.
• BGSU ended the 2021 season with an overall record of 27-27, and the Falcons went 19-20 in Mid-American Conference action. BG, picked to finish eighth in the MAC in the preseason coaches' poll, ended the season in fifth place in the 11-team league. BGSU was one of two conference teams to finish as many as three places higher than predicted.
• The Falcons finished with the program's highest winning percentage in MAC play since 2012, and BGSU's overall total of 27 wins was the highest since the 2013 campaign.
• Payton Gottshall returns after shattering the school record for strikeouts in a season, finishing with 282. She also obliterated the BGSU record for strikeouts per seven innings, averaging 9.79 (the old record was 8.46 by BGSU Hall-of-Famer Liz Vrabel). Gottshall went 20-12, becoming just the fourth pitcher in school history, and the first since 1995, to win 20 games in a season.
• The complete list of Gottshall's rankings on the BGSU single-season lists: strikeouts (282, first), strikeouts per 7 innings (9.79, first), wins (20, T-third), complete games (25, T-third), shutouts (8, T-fifth), innings pitched (201 2/3, ninth), games started (29, T-12th) and win-loss pct. (.625 [20-12], 15th). It should be noted that the Falcon phenom compiled these numbers despite missing nearly a month due to injury.
• Gottshall already has added her name to seven BGSU career lists, including strikeouts per 7 innings (9.94, first*), win-loss pct. (.646 [31-17], fourth), strikeouts (410, sixth), earned-run average (1.89, eighth), shutouts (10, 10th), complete games (34, 11th) and wins (31, T-12th).   * previous record was 7.12, by Vrabel
• Gottshall and SS Madi McCoy each were named to the All-MAC First Team last spring, with Gottshall being named the MAC's Freshman Pitcher of the Year and McCoy earning all-region honors. McCoy completed her eligibility in 2021 after hitting .380 and leading BG with 15 doubles, 11 homers and 43 RBI. She hit .423 in MAC games, the highest average by a BGSU player since 2006.
• The returning position players include CF Greta L'Esperance, who added her name to several BGSU single-season lists in 2021. She had 70 hits, the third-highest total in program history, and her .376 batting average ranks fourth on that list. L'Esperance also stole 25 bases (fifth in BG history) and scored 35 runs (T-10th).
• L'Esperance is one of seven returning positional players who started at least 20 games in 2021. Sarah Gonzalez started all 54 contests last spring, and has made 173 career starts in the Orange and Brown. Sammy Dees made 50 starts in '21, hitting .275 with 27 RBI, while Sophie Weber drew a team-high 23 walks in fewer than 100 plate appearances a year ago.
• BGSU has gone 1-0 all-time against Butler, 1-3 vs. Eastern Illinois and 1-6 against Western Illinois. The Falcons have never met Seattle on the diamond.
• Following this weekend's action, the Falcons will prepare for the NC State Invitational, which will take place in Raleigh, N.C. in two weeks (Feb. 25-27). BG's opponents in that tournament will include Central Connecticut State, Delaware and North Carolina State.
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• DePaul Dome Tournament • Feb. 11-13 • Rosemont, Ill. •
• The BGSU softball team begins the 2022 season this weekend, as head coach Sarah Willis and the Falcons head to the Chicagoland area to take part in the DePaul Dome Tournament. BG is slated to play two games against Butler, and one each vs. Eastern Illinois, Seattle and Western Illinois. All games will be held at The Dome at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex.
• Information about this weekend's tournament can be found by clicking the above link.
• Willis and assistant coaches Candace Fenton-Bockbrader and Michaela Bauer welcome back a total of 16 letterwinners, including six positional starters, from last year's team. Additionally, four of the five pitchers who saw action last season return, and that quartet combined to pitch 98% of the team's innings a year ago. The returnees also combined for 100% of the Falcons' wins.
• BGSU ended the 2021 season with an overall record of 27-27, and the Falcons went 19-20 in Mid-American Conference action. BG, picked to finish eighth in the MAC in the preseason coaches' poll, ended the season in fifth place in the 11-team league. BGSU was one of two conference teams to finish as many as three places higher than predicted.
• The Falcons finished with the program's highest winning percentage in MAC play since 2012, and BGSU's overall total of 27 wins was the highest since the 2013 campaign.
• Payton Gottshall returns after shattering the school record for strikeouts in a season, finishing with 282. She also obliterated the BGSU record for strikeouts per seven innings, averaging 9.79 (the old record was 8.46 by BGSU Hall-of-Famer Liz Vrabel). Gottshall went 20-12, becoming just the fourth pitcher in school history, and the first since 1995, to win 20 games in a season.
• The complete list of Gottshall's rankings on the BGSU single-season lists: strikeouts (282, first), strikeouts per 7 innings (9.79, first), wins (20, T-third), complete games (25, T-third), shutouts (8, T-fifth), innings pitched (201 2/3, ninth), games started (29, T-12th) and win-loss pct. (.625 [20-12], 15th). It should be noted that the Falcon phenom compiled these numbers despite missing nearly a month due to injury.
• Gottshall already has added her name to seven BGSU career lists, including strikeouts per 7 innings (9.94, first*), win-loss pct. (.646 [31-17], fourth), strikeouts (410, sixth), earned-run average (1.89, eighth), shutouts (10, 10th), complete games (34, 11th) and wins (31, T-12th).   * previous record was 7.12, by Vrabel
• Gottshall and SS Madi McCoy each were named to the All-MAC First Team last spring, with Gottshall being named the MAC's Freshman Pitcher of the Year and McCoy earning all-region honors. McCoy completed her eligibility in 2021 after hitting .380 and leading BG with 15 doubles, 11 homers and 43 RBI. She hit .423 in MAC games, the highest average by a BGSU player since 2006.
• The returning position players include CF Greta L'Esperance, who added her name to several BGSU single-season lists in 2021. She had 70 hits, the third-highest total in program history, and her .376 batting average ranks fourth on that list. L'Esperance also stole 25 bases (fifth in BG history) and scored 35 runs (T-10th).
• L'Esperance is one of seven returning positional players who started at least 20 games in 2021. Sarah Gonzalez started all 54 contests last spring, and has made 173 career starts in the Orange and Brown. Sammy Dees made 50 starts in '21, hitting .275 with 27 RBI, while Sophie Weber drew a team-high 23 walks in fewer than 100 plate appearances a year ago.
• BGSU has gone 1-0 all-time against Butler, 1-3 vs. Eastern Illinois and 1-6 against Western Illinois. The Falcons have never met Seattle on the diamond.
• Following this weekend's action, the Falcons will prepare for the NC State Invitational, which will take place in Raleigh, N.C. in two weeks (Feb. 25-27). BG's opponents in that tournament will include Central Connecticut State, Delaware and North Carolina State.
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Players Mentioned
SS/2B
/ Softball
3B
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
SS
/ Softball
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