Bowling Green State University Athletics
Liz (Vrabel) Knoblauch To Be Inducted Into Athletics Hall Of Fame
September 22, 2017 | General, Softball, Hall of Fame
Bowling Green, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University Athletics Department will induct the 51st class into the Athletics Hall of Fame on Oct. 20 at the Stroh Center. A reception will take place at 6:15 pm, with the induction ceremony beginning at 7:15 pm. Tickets are available for $15 for Falcon Club members or $30 for the general public. Please contact Greg Baker in the BGSU Athletics Ticket Office to reserve your spot today by phone (419-372-8619) or e-mail at bakerg@bgsu.edu.
Over the course of the five weeks leading up to the Hall of Fame induction, we will introduce you to each of the five inductees. Our second inductee in the Class of 2017 is Liz (Vrabel) Knoblauch.
Previous Inductee Releases
Ginny (McGee) Beneke
Liz (Vrabel) Knoblauch, a native of Pittsburgh, Pa. and a 2006 Bowling Green graduate, finished her softball pitching career at BGSU as the program's career leader in wins, strikeouts, strikeouts per seven innings, shutouts and appearances. She still holds nearly all of those records.
"There are many people who deserve an enormous thank you for playing an important role in my softball career," Knoblauch said. "Thank you to my parents and sisters for your dedication and unwavering support from the start. Thank you to Coach Leigh Ross Dakich and Coach Kyle Jamieson for your faith in me and for molding me into a pitcher I didn't know I could be. Most of all, thank you to all of my teammates I was lucky to play with at BGSU. Together, we worked hard, motivated each other, and created a family environment that I'm proud to have been a part of. Finally, many of the blessings I enjoy today stem from my experiences as a student-athlete at BGSU. I met my husband in BG and my career in medical sales started on campus with a college recruiter. I am eternally grateful to BGSU and proud to be a Falcon!"
Her 768 strikeouts is over 200 more than any other player in school history and her 7.12 strikeouts per seven innings also remains a program record. With 67 career wins and 29 career shutouts, Knoblauch remains at the top of the program leaderboard in four significant pitching categories.
During her tenure at BGSU, the Falcons won 126 games, the most wins in a four-year span in program history. Knoblauch was a first-team All-MAC performer in 2005 and was named second-team All-MAC in 2003, 2004 and 2006. As a junior, she was MAC Pitcher of the Year, as well as an All-Great Lakes Region selection. During that stellar junior season, Knoblauch went 17-14, leading the MAC with a 1.75 ERA and 237 strikeouts.
Knoblauch posted four of the top five single-season strikeout totals in program history, including the record of 237. She also ranks second in school history in appearances, innings pitched and complete games, as well as fifth in games started and seventh in winning percentage. She became the first Falcon to be named to the MAC All-Tournament Team on two occasions. In MAC Tournament games, Knoblauch posted a career record of 6-3 with a 0.47 ERA, allowing only four earned runs in 59 career innings. She was laughably unhittable over the final three years of her career at the MAC Tournament, going 5-1 with a 0.18 ERA.
As a team, BGSU won the MAC Tournament during her sophomore season in 2004 and the Falcons tied the school record for wins during her senior season in 2006, going 37-23.
Knoblauch is married to Kyle, a former BGSU baseball pitcher, and lives in the northern suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisc. They have two children – Eden (6) and Henry (3). Knoblauch is a senior sales representative for Teva, and the couple owns and operates B.A.T.S. Sports Academy, an indoor baseball/softball facility dedicated to developing young student-athletes who have the dream of playing in college.
Over the course of the five weeks leading up to the Hall of Fame induction, we will introduce you to each of the five inductees. Our second inductee in the Class of 2017 is Liz (Vrabel) Knoblauch.
Previous Inductee Releases
Ginny (McGee) Beneke
Liz (Vrabel) Knoblauch, a native of Pittsburgh, Pa. and a 2006 Bowling Green graduate, finished her softball pitching career at BGSU as the program's career leader in wins, strikeouts, strikeouts per seven innings, shutouts and appearances. She still holds nearly all of those records.
"There are many people who deserve an enormous thank you for playing an important role in my softball career," Knoblauch said. "Thank you to my parents and sisters for your dedication and unwavering support from the start. Thank you to Coach Leigh Ross Dakich and Coach Kyle Jamieson for your faith in me and for molding me into a pitcher I didn't know I could be. Most of all, thank you to all of my teammates I was lucky to play with at BGSU. Together, we worked hard, motivated each other, and created a family environment that I'm proud to have been a part of. Finally, many of the blessings I enjoy today stem from my experiences as a student-athlete at BGSU. I met my husband in BG and my career in medical sales started on campus with a college recruiter. I am eternally grateful to BGSU and proud to be a Falcon!"
Her 768 strikeouts is over 200 more than any other player in school history and her 7.12 strikeouts per seven innings also remains a program record. With 67 career wins and 29 career shutouts, Knoblauch remains at the top of the program leaderboard in four significant pitching categories.
During her tenure at BGSU, the Falcons won 126 games, the most wins in a four-year span in program history. Knoblauch was a first-team All-MAC performer in 2005 and was named second-team All-MAC in 2003, 2004 and 2006. As a junior, she was MAC Pitcher of the Year, as well as an All-Great Lakes Region selection. During that stellar junior season, Knoblauch went 17-14, leading the MAC with a 1.75 ERA and 237 strikeouts.
Knoblauch posted four of the top five single-season strikeout totals in program history, including the record of 237. She also ranks second in school history in appearances, innings pitched and complete games, as well as fifth in games started and seventh in winning percentage. She became the first Falcon to be named to the MAC All-Tournament Team on two occasions. In MAC Tournament games, Knoblauch posted a career record of 6-3 with a 0.47 ERA, allowing only four earned runs in 59 career innings. She was laughably unhittable over the final three years of her career at the MAC Tournament, going 5-1 with a 0.18 ERA.
As a team, BGSU won the MAC Tournament during her sophomore season in 2004 and the Falcons tied the school record for wins during her senior season in 2006, going 37-23.
Knoblauch is married to Kyle, a former BGSU baseball pitcher, and lives in the northern suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisc. They have two children – Eden (6) and Henry (3). Knoblauch is a senior sales representative for Teva, and the couple owns and operates B.A.T.S. Sports Academy, an indoor baseball/softball facility dedicated to developing young student-athletes who have the dream of playing in college.
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