Bowling Green State University Athletics
BGSU Softball Season Wrapup
May 22, 2017 | Softball
Falcons end 2017 campaign with 24-32 overall record, 10-14 MAC ledger
• The Bowling Green State University softball team has seen the 2017 season come to an end. Head coach Sarah Willis and the Falcons finished the year with an overall record of 24-32 and a Mid-American Conference mark of 10-14.
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BGSUÂ SOFTBALLÂ LINKS
Release/Notes as a PDF
BGSU 2017Â Media Guide
Falcons Offering a Plethora of Camps this Summer
TRUST THE PROCESS
• BGSU amassed much-improved statistics in multiple categories in 2017, including in the win column. The Falcons bested last season's overall and MAC victory totals, and BG nearly tripled last year's home win total. The latter feat is even more impressive given the fact BG played three fewer games at Meserve Field this year than last year.
• BGSU fell just shy of qualifying for the MAC Tournament. After finishing 12th overall in the final 2016 MAC standings, however, and after being picked to finish sixth (i.e., last) in the East Division in the 2017 coaches' poll, the Falcons were in the race for a MAC Tournament berth until the final day of the regular season.
• BGSU won six more games in 2017 than in '16, and the team's MAC win total was four victories higher than the previous year.
WELL THEN, THIS WOULD BE MORE, WOULDN'T IT?
Year   Overall   MAC   Home
2016 Â Â 18-36Â Â Â 6-17Â Â 3-11
2017 Â Â 24-32 Â Â 10-14 Â 8- 3
NOTING THE FALCONS
• The Falcons, as mentioned, finished the 2017 season with an overall record of 24-32, and BGSU went 10-14 in the Mid-American Conference. BG, picked to finish sixth in the MAC's East Division in the preseason coaches poll, placed fifth in the final divisional standings.
• BGSU finished as close to first place in the division as the Falcons were to last place. BG was seven games behind East Division-winning Ohio, and the Brown and Orange ended the season seven games clear of sixth-place Buffalo.
• BGSU wrapped up the home portion of the schedule with an 8-3 record. Falcon pitchers threw 10 complete games, including four shutouts, in the 11 games at Meserve Field this spring.
• Freshman RF Kendyl Wheeler hit a team-leading .328 in her initial collegiate campaign, while redshirt junior SS Aspen Searle batted .324 on the year. Wheeler, despite missing the final 10 games of the season due to injury, led the team with three triples, and finished third on the club in stolen bases (five) and fourth in total bases (54).
• Searle paced the Brown and Orange in hits (58), doubles (14), total bases (87) and slugging percentage (.486), and she tied for the team lead in runs batted in, with 35. Searle was second on the Falcons in homers (five) and runs scored (25) and third in on-base percentage (.384).
• Sophomore OF Alex Sorgi batted .313, while redshirt junior 1B Chelsea Raker hit .311 on the year. Sorgi led the Falcons in runs scored (39) and stolen bases (17), and she was second on the team in hits (57) and on-base pct. (.393). Sorgi tied for second on the club in walks (23) and finished third in total bases (61).
• Raker had BGSU-best totals of six homers and 26 walks, and she also paced the Falcons in both on-base pct. (.400) and slugging pct. (.491). Raker tied Searle for the BG lead with 35 RBI, and she finished second in doubles (12) and total bases (82) and third in hits (52).
• Senior 3B Haley Schrock, a four-year starter, batted .266 on the season. She tied for second on the club in walks (23) and finished third in doubles (seven) and homers (two). Sorgi had 16 RBI and Schrock 14, ranking them third and fourth, respectively, in that category.
• Schrock had seven sacrifice flies this year, a new school single-season record. She led the MAC and was tied for third in the entire nation in that category as of May 19.
• Sophomore OF Hannah Giammarino and junior C Laine Simmons hit .250 and .238, respectively. Giammarino finished second on the Falcons in stolen bases, and was a perfect 8-for-8 in steal attempts in 2017. Simmons had six doubles on the year to rank fourth on the club.
• In the circle, four different Falcons made at least four starts, with all four throwing at least one complete game.
• Three of the four Falcon hurlers were sophomores in 2017. One of those sophs, Meredith Miller, went 13-10 with a 2.90 earned-run average. In addition to wins and ERA, Miller led the Falcon pitchers in appearances (30), games started (22 - tied for team lead), innings pitched (157), strikeouts (118), complete games (16) and shutouts (four).
• Sophomore Brooke Parker had seven wins and won four of her last eight decisions. She had a deceiving record of 7-15 on the year, with an ERA of 3.10. Parker appeared in 29 games, with 13 complete games in her 22 starts, and she had 59 strikeouts and a save. Another soph, Kiley Sosby, was 3-4 with a 4.54 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings. Sosby allowed opponents to hit just .197 against her.
• Senior Briana Combs went 1-3 with a 6.46 ERA. She has made eight appearances in the circle, starting four games, before suffering an injury to her pitching hand. Combs continued to help the Falcons despite the injury, making seven pinch-running appearances over the team's final nine games of the year.
• The Falcons had 376 hits to the foes' 388 this year, with a team batting average of .263 to the opponents' .273.
• Four players – Raker, Schrock, Searle and Sorgi – started all 56 games, while Giammarino made 47 starts, 2B Katee Hinkle 45 and Wheeler 44. Simmons and senior OF Sami Parave started 40 and 35 times, respectively, while freshman C Logan Everett made 24 starts in her first spring as a Falcon.
• BGSU finished the season with records of 8-3 at Meserve Field, 4-21 in true road games and 12-8 in neutral-site contests. In MAC play, the Brown and Orange went 8-3 at home and 2-11 on othe road.
• Head coach Sarah Willis and her staff – assistant coaches Katie Reiff and Lauren Gambone, volunteer assistant Lyndsey Clark and alumnae coordinator Kolleen Kopchak – welcomed back 12 letterwinners, including five starters, from a year ago.
• BGSU, as mentioned earlier, was picked to finish sixth in the MAC's East Division according to the MAC's preseason coaches' poll.
THANKS, SENIORS
• On April 29, five Falcons were recognized on Senior Day at Meserve Field. That quintet included Briana Combs, Katee Hinkle, Sami Parave, Chelsea Raker and Haley Schrock. All five either scored or drove in a run in that day's game, an 8-2 win over Akron in the final home game of their respective BG careers.
• Two of the five – Hinkle and Raker – have a year of eligibility remaining, but have earned their undergraduate degree. All five have a cumulative grade-point average of 3.42 or higher, and all five are either currently enrolled in or have been accepted into graduate school.
FASCINATING FALCON FACTS
• BGSU played a total of six teams that qualified for the NCAA Championships, and the Falcons also faced a pair of schools that were chosen to play in the inaugural National Invitational Softball Championship.
• Exactly 25 percent of BGSU's 2017 games – 14 of 56 contests – came against schools that participated in the NCAA Championships (Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Louisiana, UIC, Michigan and Kent State) or the NISC (Western Kentucky and Ohio). BGSU picked up a 3-2, neutral-site win over Oklahoma State in mid-March, just three days after the Falcons posted a 6-4 road victory against Western Kentucky.
• Senior Haley Schrock, redshirt junior Aspen Searle and freshman Kendyl Wheeler picked up awards at the Falcons' 2017 banquet on May 8. Searle was named the team's Offensive Player of the Year, while Schrock took home BG's Defensive-Player-of-the-Year award. Wheeler was the winner of the team's Meserve Award. More information about the awards can be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.
• Wheeler then picked up her second honor in as many days, as she was named to the MAC's All-Freshman Team the following afternoon.
• Senior Briana Combs was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District Second Team. She earned her undergraduate degree in August of 2016, as a sport management major with a perfect 4.00 cumulative GPA. Combs is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Business at BGSU, is on track to earn that degree in August, and again has a perfect 4.000 cumulative GPA.
• The Falcons went 8-3 at Meserve Field after finishing with a 3-11 home mark last year. Pitching was a big reason for that home success. In those 11 games, sophomores Meredith Miller and Brooke Parker combined for 10 complete games (five apiece), and the Falcons had an ERA of just 1.44.
• Parker has thrown five complete games in as many starts at Meserve – both in 2017 and in her career – and she went 4-1 with an ERA of just 1.00 in home games this year.
• Miller was 4-2 with a 1.83 ERA at Meserve Field in 2017.
• The Falcons' total of 10 MAC wins is the highest since the 2012 team finished the regular season with a 15-7 conference record.
• Sophomore OF Alex Sorgi scored 39 runs on the year, the fifth-highest single-season total in BG history.
• Senior 3B Haley Schrock, as mentioned earlier, had seven sacrifice flies this season, a new school record. Schrock broke the BGSU career record in that category as well, with nine. Redshirt junior 1B Chelsea Raker had eight career sac flies, tying her for second in BG history.
• Schrock finished her BG career ranked third in school history with 85 walks.
• Schrock played in 206 games as a Falcon, starting them all. She finishes fourth in school history in career games started, and winds up tied for 11th in games played.
• Redshirt juniors Chelsea Raker and Aspen Searle each have made their mark on the program, both in 2017 and over the previous few years. Raker ends her career tied for seventh in career homers (18), and she is eighth in RBI (88). Raker is also ranked among the top 15 Falcons in history in doubles, batting average, slugging pct., total bases, walks and sac flies (tying for second in the latter category).
• With one year remaining in her Falcon career, Searle is tied for 10th in BGSU history with 176 career hits. She is currently tied with one of her coaches, Kolleen Kopchak, on that list. Searle is sixth in school history in homers (19), RBI (93), batting average (.321) and slugging pct. (502), and she is tied for ninth in runs (92), 10th in total bases (275) and deadlocked for 10th in doubles (34).
• The Falcons scored 64 runs in MAC games in 2017, a four-run improvement over the previous year. BG averaged 2.67 runs per game in '17, slightly better than the 2.61 runs per contest the Falcons scored in MAC games in 2016.
• A big reason for BGSU's four-game improvement in MAC play in 2017, though, was due to pitching and defense. In 2016, BG allowed 145 runs – a whopping 6.30 per game – in 23 MAC games. This season, however, the Falcons nearly cut that number in half. BG surrendered 3.46 runs per game (83 in 24 games) vs. league foes in 2017.
• Wheeler hit a BG-best .366 in MAC games this year, while Sorgi batted .329 with a team-leading 13 runs scored against conference competition.
• The Falcons stole a total of 23 bases in 28 attempts last year. This season, BG swiped 43 bases in 52 attempts. No BG player stole more than seven bases a year ago, but Sorgi went 17-for-20 this year.
• BGSU's overall total of 386 hits this season was the program's highest since the 2006 club had a school-record 424 hits.
• BGSU players slated to return in 2018 combined for 65.7 percent of the team's runs scored, 63.0% of the Falcons' hits and 93.9% of the program's innings pitched in 2017. Those returnees will be joined by seven signees as well as Trista Mokienko, who played in 96 career games from 2014-16 before missing the 2017 season due to injury. .
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BGSUÂ SOFTBALLÂ LINKS
Release/Notes as a PDF
BGSU 2017Â Media Guide
Falcons Offering a Plethora of Camps this Summer
TRUST THE PROCESS
• BGSU amassed much-improved statistics in multiple categories in 2017, including in the win column. The Falcons bested last season's overall and MAC victory totals, and BG nearly tripled last year's home win total. The latter feat is even more impressive given the fact BG played three fewer games at Meserve Field this year than last year.
• BGSU fell just shy of qualifying for the MAC Tournament. After finishing 12th overall in the final 2016 MAC standings, however, and after being picked to finish sixth (i.e., last) in the East Division in the 2017 coaches' poll, the Falcons were in the race for a MAC Tournament berth until the final day of the regular season.
• BGSU won six more games in 2017 than in '16, and the team's MAC win total was four victories higher than the previous year.
WELL THEN, THIS WOULD BE MORE, WOULDN'T IT?
Year   Overall   MAC   Home
2016 Â Â 18-36Â Â Â 6-17Â Â 3-11
2017 Â Â 24-32 Â Â 10-14 Â 8- 3
NOTING THE FALCONS
• The Falcons, as mentioned, finished the 2017 season with an overall record of 24-32, and BGSU went 10-14 in the Mid-American Conference. BG, picked to finish sixth in the MAC's East Division in the preseason coaches poll, placed fifth in the final divisional standings.
• BGSU finished as close to first place in the division as the Falcons were to last place. BG was seven games behind East Division-winning Ohio, and the Brown and Orange ended the season seven games clear of sixth-place Buffalo.
• BGSU wrapped up the home portion of the schedule with an 8-3 record. Falcon pitchers threw 10 complete games, including four shutouts, in the 11 games at Meserve Field this spring.
• Freshman RF Kendyl Wheeler hit a team-leading .328 in her initial collegiate campaign, while redshirt junior SS Aspen Searle batted .324 on the year. Wheeler, despite missing the final 10 games of the season due to injury, led the team with three triples, and finished third on the club in stolen bases (five) and fourth in total bases (54).
• Searle paced the Brown and Orange in hits (58), doubles (14), total bases (87) and slugging percentage (.486), and she tied for the team lead in runs batted in, with 35. Searle was second on the Falcons in homers (five) and runs scored (25) and third in on-base percentage (.384).
• Sophomore OF Alex Sorgi batted .313, while redshirt junior 1B Chelsea Raker hit .311 on the year. Sorgi led the Falcons in runs scored (39) and stolen bases (17), and she was second on the team in hits (57) and on-base pct. (.393). Sorgi tied for second on the club in walks (23) and finished third in total bases (61).
• Raker had BGSU-best totals of six homers and 26 walks, and she also paced the Falcons in both on-base pct. (.400) and slugging pct. (.491). Raker tied Searle for the BG lead with 35 RBI, and she finished second in doubles (12) and total bases (82) and third in hits (52).
• Senior 3B Haley Schrock, a four-year starter, batted .266 on the season. She tied for second on the club in walks (23) and finished third in doubles (seven) and homers (two). Sorgi had 16 RBI and Schrock 14, ranking them third and fourth, respectively, in that category.
• Schrock had seven sacrifice flies this year, a new school single-season record. She led the MAC and was tied for third in the entire nation in that category as of May 19.
• Sophomore OF Hannah Giammarino and junior C Laine Simmons hit .250 and .238, respectively. Giammarino finished second on the Falcons in stolen bases, and was a perfect 8-for-8 in steal attempts in 2017. Simmons had six doubles on the year to rank fourth on the club.
• In the circle, four different Falcons made at least four starts, with all four throwing at least one complete game.
• Three of the four Falcon hurlers were sophomores in 2017. One of those sophs, Meredith Miller, went 13-10 with a 2.90 earned-run average. In addition to wins and ERA, Miller led the Falcon pitchers in appearances (30), games started (22 - tied for team lead), innings pitched (157), strikeouts (118), complete games (16) and shutouts (four).
• Sophomore Brooke Parker had seven wins and won four of her last eight decisions. She had a deceiving record of 7-15 on the year, with an ERA of 3.10. Parker appeared in 29 games, with 13 complete games in her 22 starts, and she had 59 strikeouts and a save. Another soph, Kiley Sosby, was 3-4 with a 4.54 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings. Sosby allowed opponents to hit just .197 against her.
• Senior Briana Combs went 1-3 with a 6.46 ERA. She has made eight appearances in the circle, starting four games, before suffering an injury to her pitching hand. Combs continued to help the Falcons despite the injury, making seven pinch-running appearances over the team's final nine games of the year.
• The Falcons had 376 hits to the foes' 388 this year, with a team batting average of .263 to the opponents' .273.
• Four players – Raker, Schrock, Searle and Sorgi – started all 56 games, while Giammarino made 47 starts, 2B Katee Hinkle 45 and Wheeler 44. Simmons and senior OF Sami Parave started 40 and 35 times, respectively, while freshman C Logan Everett made 24 starts in her first spring as a Falcon.
• BGSU finished the season with records of 8-3 at Meserve Field, 4-21 in true road games and 12-8 in neutral-site contests. In MAC play, the Brown and Orange went 8-3 at home and 2-11 on othe road.
• Head coach Sarah Willis and her staff – assistant coaches Katie Reiff and Lauren Gambone, volunteer assistant Lyndsey Clark and alumnae coordinator Kolleen Kopchak – welcomed back 12 letterwinners, including five starters, from a year ago.
• BGSU, as mentioned earlier, was picked to finish sixth in the MAC's East Division according to the MAC's preseason coaches' poll.
THANKS, SENIORS
• On April 29, five Falcons were recognized on Senior Day at Meserve Field. That quintet included Briana Combs, Katee Hinkle, Sami Parave, Chelsea Raker and Haley Schrock. All five either scored or drove in a run in that day's game, an 8-2 win over Akron in the final home game of their respective BG careers.
• Two of the five – Hinkle and Raker – have a year of eligibility remaining, but have earned their undergraduate degree. All five have a cumulative grade-point average of 3.42 or higher, and all five are either currently enrolled in or have been accepted into graduate school.
FASCINATING FALCON FACTS
• BGSU played a total of six teams that qualified for the NCAA Championships, and the Falcons also faced a pair of schools that were chosen to play in the inaugural National Invitational Softball Championship.
• Exactly 25 percent of BGSU's 2017 games – 14 of 56 contests – came against schools that participated in the NCAA Championships (Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Louisiana, UIC, Michigan and Kent State) or the NISC (Western Kentucky and Ohio). BGSU picked up a 3-2, neutral-site win over Oklahoma State in mid-March, just three days after the Falcons posted a 6-4 road victory against Western Kentucky.
• Senior Haley Schrock, redshirt junior Aspen Searle and freshman Kendyl Wheeler picked up awards at the Falcons' 2017 banquet on May 8. Searle was named the team's Offensive Player of the Year, while Schrock took home BG's Defensive-Player-of-the-Year award. Wheeler was the winner of the team's Meserve Award. More information about the awards can be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.
• Wheeler then picked up her second honor in as many days, as she was named to the MAC's All-Freshman Team the following afternoon.
• Senior Briana Combs was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District Second Team. She earned her undergraduate degree in August of 2016, as a sport management major with a perfect 4.00 cumulative GPA. Combs is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Business at BGSU, is on track to earn that degree in August, and again has a perfect 4.000 cumulative GPA.
• The Falcons went 8-3 at Meserve Field after finishing with a 3-11 home mark last year. Pitching was a big reason for that home success. In those 11 games, sophomores Meredith Miller and Brooke Parker combined for 10 complete games (five apiece), and the Falcons had an ERA of just 1.44.
• Parker has thrown five complete games in as many starts at Meserve – both in 2017 and in her career – and she went 4-1 with an ERA of just 1.00 in home games this year.
• Miller was 4-2 with a 1.83 ERA at Meserve Field in 2017.
• The Falcons' total of 10 MAC wins is the highest since the 2012 team finished the regular season with a 15-7 conference record.
• Sophomore OF Alex Sorgi scored 39 runs on the year, the fifth-highest single-season total in BG history.
• Senior 3B Haley Schrock, as mentioned earlier, had seven sacrifice flies this season, a new school record. Schrock broke the BGSU career record in that category as well, with nine. Redshirt junior 1B Chelsea Raker had eight career sac flies, tying her for second in BG history.
• Schrock finished her BG career ranked third in school history with 85 walks.
• Schrock played in 206 games as a Falcon, starting them all. She finishes fourth in school history in career games started, and winds up tied for 11th in games played.
• Redshirt juniors Chelsea Raker and Aspen Searle each have made their mark on the program, both in 2017 and over the previous few years. Raker ends her career tied for seventh in career homers (18), and she is eighth in RBI (88). Raker is also ranked among the top 15 Falcons in history in doubles, batting average, slugging pct., total bases, walks and sac flies (tying for second in the latter category).
• With one year remaining in her Falcon career, Searle is tied for 10th in BGSU history with 176 career hits. She is currently tied with one of her coaches, Kolleen Kopchak, on that list. Searle is sixth in school history in homers (19), RBI (93), batting average (.321) and slugging pct. (502), and she is tied for ninth in runs (92), 10th in total bases (275) and deadlocked for 10th in doubles (34).
• The Falcons scored 64 runs in MAC games in 2017, a four-run improvement over the previous year. BG averaged 2.67 runs per game in '17, slightly better than the 2.61 runs per contest the Falcons scored in MAC games in 2016.
• A big reason for BGSU's four-game improvement in MAC play in 2017, though, was due to pitching and defense. In 2016, BG allowed 145 runs – a whopping 6.30 per game – in 23 MAC games. This season, however, the Falcons nearly cut that number in half. BG surrendered 3.46 runs per game (83 in 24 games) vs. league foes in 2017.
• Wheeler hit a BG-best .366 in MAC games this year, while Sorgi batted .329 with a team-leading 13 runs scored against conference competition.
• The Falcons stole a total of 23 bases in 28 attempts last year. This season, BG swiped 43 bases in 52 attempts. No BG player stole more than seven bases a year ago, but Sorgi went 17-for-20 this year.
• BGSU's overall total of 386 hits this season was the program's highest since the 2006 club had a school-record 424 hits.
• BGSU players slated to return in 2018 combined for 65.7 percent of the team's runs scored, 63.0% of the Falcons' hits and 93.9% of the program's innings pitched in 2017. Those returnees will be joined by seven signees as well as Trista Mokienko, who played in 96 career games from 2014-16 before missing the 2017 season due to injury. .
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Players Mentioned
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P/Util.
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OF
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