BULLDOGS TAKE SPRING BREAK TRIP TO KISSIMMEE, FLORIDA FOR REBEL GAMES

March 4, 2009

BULLDOGS TAKE SPRING BREAK TRIP TO KISSIMMEE, FLORIDA FOR REBEL GAMES

SMITHFIELD, R.I.- After taking home their first Division I victory in their last trip to Florida, beating Saint Francis (PA) in the Florida Gulf Coast Tournament, the Bryant University softball team will take one last trip to the Sunshine State for the Rebel Games over spring break. The squad will play eight games, taking on South Dakota, Yale, IPFW, Valparaiso, SIU-Edwardsville, Maine, Bucknell and Youngstown State.

The Bulldogs lost their first five games of the season in early February as part of the Centenary Tournament, but played much better softball last weekend in the FGCU Tournament. The team lost two tough games to Colgate, falling 8-7 in extra innings and 3-2 on a run in the Raiders' last at-bat, while winning their first Division I game over future Northeast Conference opponent, Saint Francis (PA), 2-0. Sophomore pitcher Samantha Houseal (Mount Joy, Pa.) went the distance in the contest, surrendering just four hits while striking out six on her way to the shutout. Bryant scored two runs without a hit in the first inning to take an early lead that they would not relinquish. The team looks to build on that success in their final tournament of the season before playing their home opener on March 17 against Holy Cross.

Scouting the Opponents
The University of South Dakota Coyotes enter the Rebel games with a 3-1 record, winning three games in the Husky Dome Invitational hosted by St. Cloud State University. The Coyotes enter the 2009 season, their second year under Coach Amy Klyse, led by Great West All-Conference performers Tagney Jones  and Brittany Donohue. Jones hit .318 with two homers and 22 RBI a year ago and also had six doubles. Donohue also had a solid season on the mound, going 8-11 with a 2.44 ERA, while striking out 90 batters. USD returns six starters overall, including shortstop Callie Roan (.211, two homers, 11 RBI last season), catcher Rachel Fricke (.209, one homer, 10 RBI), outfielder Emily Chvatal (.175, six RBI), pitcher/utility player Mel Johnson (.205, one homer, 12 RBI) and second baseman Dani Bahlmann (.177, four RBI). Fricke has started of the season with a hot bat, going 7-for-14 with four RBI through the first four games. Courtney Heim and Donahue have split time on the mound, with Heim posting a 2-1 record with a 2.44 ERA in 14 innings and Donahue going 1-1 with a 4.57 ERA.

The Yale Bulldogs will be playing their first action of the season after winning 20 games a year ago. The team returns eight starters and 14 letterwinners from last year, including four seniors. One of those seniors, Rebecca Wojciak, comes into the 2009 season ranking fifth all-time at Yale in strikeouts with 179 and seventh in wins with 24. She is a two-time All-Ivy League honorable mention. Catcher Katie Edwards, another of the seniors, is just three homeruns shy of the school record, belting 14 for her career. She is coming off shoulder surgery and will most likely be limited to designated player duties, while McKynlee Westman will see most of the action behind the plate. Junior centerfielder Ashley Sloan has led the Bulldogs in batting in each of her first two years. Last spring her .377 average was the 10th best in a season in school history, and she led the team in hits (52) and stolen bases (11).

Runners-up in the Summit League Tournament in 2008, the IPFW Mastodons were picked to finish seventh in the preseason coaches' poll this season. The Mastodons return starting catcher Kristina Karpun, who batted .331 last season as a freshman with a team-best 10 doubles and 26 runs batted in. Sophomore Rachel Staschuk also returns, coming off a solid season where she batted .283 at the plate with three home runs, nine doubles, and 11 RBI, while also going 5-8 as a pitcher with a team-best 3.10 ERA and 88 strikeouts in 104 innings of work.

Picked to finish fifth in the Horizon League this season, Valparaiso is coming off a school record 30 wins last year, as they 13 letterwinners from a team that led the nation with an average of 2.57 stolen bases per game. The Crusaders finished second in the league last season, playing their first year in the Horizon League. Stephanie Kelly is the top returning pitcher, posting a 5-4 record in 12 starts with a 2.66 ERA in 2008. After graduating three seniors from their starting infield positions, the Crusaders have just two returning players that have seen a lot of playing time in Katie Williams and Sadie Conner. The two split playing time at third base a year ago, as Williams committed just two errors and had a fielding percentage of .977. Two three-year starters return for their senior seasons in the outfield in Karen Korb, the school's record holder for stolen bases in a season, and Ashley Wolter. So far, Valparaiso is 0-1 this year, after having four of their five games scheduled for the Frost Classic in Chattanooga, Tenn. Cancelled. They fell, 7-6, to Missouri State in their lone contest.

The SIU-Edwardsville Cougars have gone 10-3 this year, playing their first NCAA Division I schedule. One of their wins was a 14-0 victory over Bryant in the Centenary Tournament back on February 6. The 2007 National Champions have won 30 or more games in each of the last 13 seasons, but are now making the same transition as the Bulldogs into Division I, as they will become members of the Ohio Valley Conference in the 2011 season. Four starters are batting over .300 right now, as Lauren Zemburski leads the way with a .394 batting average while hitting two homeruns and driving in 15 RBI. Erika Taylor enters the tournament as the squad's top pitcher, recording seven wins with just one loss this year to go along with a 1.23 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 45.2 innings.

First-year coach Deb Smith leads the Blackbears of Maine into play this year after being tabbed to finish fourth in the America East preseason coaches' poll. The Blackbears, led by Kristen Calvetti's .386 batting average, have gone 5-9 in their non-conference schedule so far this year. Alexis Souhlaris has already belted five homers on the year while driving in 11 RBI, while Ashley Kelley and Jenna Balent have each posted two victories on the mound. Maine has used four different starting pitchers in their fourteen games, with Kelley starting four and the rest starting three apiece. Kelley has registered a 1.64 ERA in 38.1 innings. The team also boasts the reigning America East Player of the Year in Ashley Waters, who has started the season batting .326 with one homerun and 11 RBI.

2008 Patriot League Coach of the Year, Heather Rakosik, leads the Bison of Bucknell into the 2009 season, coming off a second-place tie in the Patriot League last season. The Bison are 5-5 through ten games this year. The team earned six all-league selections, but will have a lot of holes to fill after graduating key players from a year ago. Lone returning pitcher Katie McDonald will carry the majority of the load on the mound, earning four victories thus far this season while posting a 3.92 ERA in 25 innings. Sophomore Alison Ford has stepped up at the plate, leading the team with a .400 average through five games while knocking in nine RBI.

The Penguins of Youngstown State enter 2009 with a new look that includes first year head coach Brian Campbell and seven newcomers to the roster. Kim Klonowski anchors an inexperienced infield, coming off a season where she hit .234, playing 14 games at first base as well as seven at third and six as the designated player. She is the only returning infielder with experience at her current position. The Penguins do return four starting pitchers, including top starter Cheryl Cale, who won eight games while striking out 64 last season. YSU has started the season with a 0-4 record, after being swept in a four-game series against George Mason. The team  has been tabbed to finish eighth of nine teams in the Horizon League this year.

The Bulldogs
Houseal has started eight of the Bulldogs' ten games so far this year, after starting 21 games in 2008 and posting a 10-9 record. The sophomore is 1-8 with a 3.27 ERA this season, picking up the first Division I win for Bryant against Saint Francis (Pa.) in the Florida Gulf Coast Tournament.  Offensively, senior captain Anne Dobemeier (Buffalo, N.Y.) leads the team with a .261 batting average, while fellow captain Ashley Coon (Levittown, Pa.) had one homerun and a team-high five RBI. The squad will play eight games over spring break before returning home to play their Division I home opener on March 17 against Holy Cross.