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May 12, 2008
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2008 Softball Season Preview Mar 6, 2008
“We have a very strong group of players returning,” said Allegheny College Head Softball Coach Sandra Sanford. “Anytime you have players that have been a part a program – and that have had significant playing time – the expectations always get a little higher. We had a successful year last year, especially in the post season, and the expectations are that we will elevate our play so that we are strong from the start of the season and continue getting stronger throughout the year.” Last season the Gators played to a 15-16 regular season record after a tough non-conference slate and a 9-5 league mark, earning the third seed in the North Coast Athletic Conference post-season tournament. Allegheny topped second-seed Wittenberg in the opener by a 5-3 score, before topping Denison 2-0, the tournament host, giving the Gators a game advantage on the field. Falling 4-1 in their first game of the second day, the Blue and Gold responded with a 2-0 victory in the tournament championship game, earning the automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. Once in the postseason, the Gators fell to eventual regional champion DePauw by a slim 2-1 score before topping Maryville (Tenn.) by a 4-0 count. The season came to a finale on May 12, falling to regional host Muskingum 3-0, ending the year with a 19-19 overall record. “Last season’s NCAA Tournament was an important experience for us,” said Sanford who has an 82-74 record during her four years at Allegheny. “The players are starting to understand how close we are to turning that corner, being able to play as solidly as we did against the teams we played – Muskingum being ranked 7th in the country and losing 2-1 to DePauw, a team that went to the Softball World Series. We made a statement at the NCAA tournament last year, and the players are starting to believe we can do some really special things as a team.” The Gators return seven of their field position starters from last year, in addition to last season’s earned run average leader in the pitching circle.
Last season Bodenlos set school- and conference-records for both stolen bases in a season (31) and career (57), and had a streak of 30 consecutive stolen bases snapped in Florida, a run that is the 18th best in Division III history. She batted .411, second on the squad, with 34 runs scored and 16 runs driven in. Ryan led the conference in triples (6), home runs (5) and slugging percentage (.701), finishing third in batting average (.419). Her career batting average of .421 is on pace to top the league’s career mark, currently held by 2000 Allegheny graduate Jennifer Lorenzen. “Abby is a leader for us both on and off the field,” said Sanford. “She is a player who is a four-year starter for us and has a lot of experience, and shows it out on the field. Rachel has started since her freshman year, and the two of them have worked together for two full years and have built a relationship. That relationship will continue to evolve on the field this season, and they are very excited to have another year to work together. They have gotten to know each other, and their styles of play. I would feel confident saying that they are one of the top middle infield combinations in the country and they will continue to raise their level of play.” On the corners of the infield the team returns Stephanie Lasinski (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) and Rebecca Burns (Rogersville, Pa./West Greene), at first and third base, respectively. Burns batted .257 on the season with 19 runs batted in, while Lasinski drove in 10 while batting .237, with each hitting a home run on the year. “Both of the players are solid on the corners for us,” said the head coach. “Last year was Steph’s first year playing first base for us – she played third base for us her freshman year – and she also has had two years of playing experience. Rebecca has a year under her belt and will look to improve on the season she had last year. Last season there were times when she struggled a little with the adjustment, especially offensively, to collegiate ball, but she is a very hard working player and she will just continue to be better. Both of them are fiery players and will anchor us very well on both sides of the field.” Looking to add depth in the infield will be sophomore Maggie Bodenlos (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy) and first-year player Sara Doan (Auburn, N.Y./Auburn). In the outfield, the team returns all three of their starters from last season; second-team All-NCAC selection Katie Wills (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour) in center field, All-NCAC Honorable Mention selection Elizabeth Burr (Farmdale, Ohio/Badger), a junior, in right field, and senior Co-Captain Sarah Reilly (Dunkirk, N.Y./Dunkirk) returning in left field. “It is exciting from a coaching perspective to have players returning, and that you have them for an extended period of time,” noted Sanford. “The players are very excited because they understand how important it is to have the chemistry that is built over time between your teammates playing out in the field – its about getting to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and knowing what your teammates will do before they do it – that is special. That is why we have high expectations this year, because we have folks that have been with the program for a long time. We as coaches have expectations of them, but they also have high expectations of themselves to be successful. It’s meaningful because it is not just coming from the top, but rather across the board.”
The younger Bodenlos, who made solid contributions in the outfield last season, will look to work her way in to more playing time in the field, as the versatile player batted .296 in 23 games last season, scoring nine runs and stealing six bases. Also looking to find playing time are first-year players Kristin Paul (Greensburg, Pa./Greater Latrobe) and Sharon Dudek (Honeoye Falls, N.Y./Honeoye Falls-Lima). The only position the Gators lack depth in is catcher, but Sanford has high expectations for her first-year player at the position, Marci Potuzko (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area). “Marci will provide a great presence for us behind the plate,” said the head coach. “She is a freshman, but she does not present herself as such in a typical way. Marci is up for the challenge of stepping in and taking on the role of catcher. It is a very important position, and she has some work to do to develop, but she has a very good base of talent and came from a very good high school program – it is going to be a seamless transition.”
“Allison had a great year for us as a freshman, and got a lot of playing time. She is a gusty player who battled on the mound and grew significantly as a collegiate pitcher. She was a different pitcher at the end of the year than she was at the beginning and really stepped up for us. We were really pleased with her contribution last year. She should be ready to go and has a year of NCAA Tournament experience, which you can’t exchange for anything. She is our veteran pitcher, and we will look to her to set the tone for our entire pitching staff. With Amanda, we are very excited about her potential after her phenomenal high school career and we will look to her to contribute significantly throughout the year.” The Gators open their strong 2008 schedule at the Sea Gull Invitational hosted by Salisbury University, before facing off against perennial powerhouses Bridgewater State, Illinois Wesleyan and Montclair State at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Florida. The northern season starts on March 26 when the team hosts the Purple Raiders of Mount Union College, before opening the conference season with a pair of games against the Yeowomen of Oberlin College on April 1. A mid-season Ohio road trip consisting of trips to Gambier, Cleveland, Wooster and Berea sets up a run of three home games, as the Gators will host Ohio Wesleyan on April 12, Denison on April 19 and Washington & Jefferson on April 20. “We schedule the two tournaments at the very beginning of the season with a purpose,” said Sanford. “My philosophy is to go hard from the beginning – we go to tournaments that force us to come out of the gate hard. For a team to become better, you have to play the best, and that is why we go to Salisbury and the Florida Rebel Spring games. We want to be playing the top teams. Our team knows that we are going to be challenged right away and they know that is part of our growth as a program. We have to charge into our season and those tournaments with the mentality that we are ready for any challenge, and we are going there to win. They are not warm up tournaments where we try to get our feet under us – we go there ready to show what we have, and make some noise from the start.”
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Senior Co-Captain Abby Bodenlos (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy) and junior Rachel Ryan (West Salem, Ohio/Northwestern) return for the Gators in the middle, Bodenlos (pictured above) a second baseman and Ryan (pictured left) a shortstop, giving the Gators an up-the-middle presence that will be hard pressed to duplicate in Division III. Bodenlos is the defending NCAC Player of the Year while Ryan earned Tournament Most Valuable Player honors a season ago. Both earned All-Region honors, Bodenlos on the first team and Ryan on the third team.
Wills batted .231 for the Gators, driving in 22 runs, second best on the squad. Her numbers skyrocketed in conference play, as the sophomore batted .349 with 14 runs batted in during the 14 games of league action. Burr (pictured right) finished the regular season with a .270 batting average, a home run and 18 runs scored, and like her teammate in the outfield, flourished in conference action, batting .371 with eight runs scored and recorded an on-base percentage of .421. Reilly, a slap-hitting senior, batted .177 during the year, but finished the season with nine steals in 12 attempts, second most on the team, and scoring 17 times, with an on-base percentage of .301 due to drawing 13 walks and being hit by a pitch.
The pitching staff will be comprised of two very skilled pitchers, sophomore Allison Korotkin (Birmingham, Mich./Detroit Country Day) and first-year Amanda Downey (Essex Junction, Vt./Essex). Last year Korotkin (pictured left) managed a 9-6 overall record with a team-best 2.22 earned run average en route to being named honorable mention All-League and earning All-NCAC Tournament Team honors. She added 59 strikeouts against just 49 walks, and had five shutouts. She shined during the conference season, as she went 4-3 in league play with a 2.01 earned run average, striking out 28 batters. Downey, while inexperienced at the collegiate level, has no shortage of experience of being in the pitcher’s circle during important games. She led her team to the 2007 Vermont State Championship after her team finished as runners-up over the previous two seasons. For her accomplishments, she was named the Vermont Softball Gatorade Player of the Year during her final campaign, compiling a 41-4 overall record in addition to being named first team All-Metro as a sophomore, junior and senior.
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