Rader, who also advanced to the national meet in 2001 and already holds six school records, made the biggest splash, finishing fourth in the 200-yard butterfly, good for All-America honors. Along with the national accolades, Rader's time of 1:52.41 was a personal best and a new school record. During the season, Rader's time dropped 12 full seconds, quite an astounding figure. 

The Tigers opened the season with four straight wins, sweeping doubleheaders from Carroll and Central (Iowa) and outscoring their foes 40-12. Even as Wittenberg lost four of its last six while in the warm and sunny climes of Ft. Myers, Fla., the Tigers continued to bash the baseball, putting up 12 runs in the second game of a doubleheader against Calvin and 15 in the first game against Westfield State. 

Since returning to Ohio and the accompanying 40-degree temperatures, Wittenberg has cooled off a bit and has posted a 2-3 mark. Last week, Wilmington and Ohio Dominican both posted wins over the Tigers before Wittenberg swept a doubleheader against Muskingum on Saturday and then fell 6-4 to Urbana on Sunday. 

The offensive onslaught has been led by senior utilityman Scott Hirsch (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain), who has started all 15 games this season while alternating between the outfield and second base and has posted a.480 batting average. He has collected two home runs, 17 runs scored, 11 runs batted in and six stolen bases while batting primarily in the leadoff position. 

Also batting above .400 this year are senior catcher Nate Williams (Urbana, Ohio/Urbana), who is hitting .453 and leads the team in RBI with 15 and doubles with seven, senior centerfielder Lance Dill (Bellville,Ohio/Clear Fork), who has 12 RBI and team-bests of 18 runs and nine stolen bases, freshman outfielder Matt Foster (Granville, Ohio/Granville),who is hitting .429 in 10 games, and senior shortstop Bryan Burke (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick), who has been slowed by a hamstring injury but raised his batting average to .400 with a pair of home runs against Urbana. 

The Tigers' most significant question mark entering the season - pitching - remains unanswered. Junior Brian Robinson (Columbus, Ohio/Centennial) has been the team's best out of the bullpen, compiling a 1.04 earned runaverage in six appearances. 

Among the team's victories in Florida were decisions against Division I scholarship schools Cleveland State and Quinnipiac. The Tigers swept both of them and also upended St. Ambrose before winning a crucial 4-3 decision against Wheaton. That win solidified Wittenberg's position among the top 10 in the region - at last check, the Tigers ranked ninth as a team, with the top eight advancing to the NCAA Division III tournament in May. 

The Tigers went 5-4-1 in Florida earlier this month but suffered a major blow when freshman Jen Fleming (Dayton, Ohio/Chaminade-Julienne)went down in the first game of the year with a broken leg. She was expected to be a major contributor, and losing her for the year dropped the team down to just 12 healthy players.
 

Since returning from the trip, the Tigers have been having a tough time, especially on the mound, as opponents are batting .285 against Wittenberg pitchers and have collected 119 hits in just 103 innings. Offensively, the Tigers are scoring some runs, six more than their opponents overall,and have two regulars hitting better than .300. 

Leading the charge with the bat has been junior centerfielder Beth Walters (Westerville, Ohio/DeSales), who is hitting a sizzling .457 in 16 starts. She leads the team with two home runs, 12 runs batted in, 33 total bases and six doubles. Senior shortstop Christy Schneider (Fairfield,Ohio/Fairfield) has also been hot of late, raising her batting average to .333 over the weekend in losses to Albion and Adrian. Schneider, who bats leadoff, tops the squad in runs with 20 and is tied for the team lead in doubles with six. 

Last week, the Tigers returned from a 1-1 Spring Break trip that included a loss to Regis College and a win over Salve Regina in Panama City, Fla. to go 1-2. Wittenberg upended visiting Puget Sound on Monday by a 12-9 count but then was defeated twice on the road over the weekend by St. Vincent and Frostburg State. 

The offense has generally been holding its own so far this year. Against Puget Sound, senior Erin Jacobsen (Fairport, NY/Penfield) scored five goals to power the offense. In a 12-9 overtime defeat at St. Vincent on Saturday, junior Cara Romanowski (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) had a season-high six goals, while Jacobsen chipped in with two. Then against Frostburg State, the Tigers got a pair of tallies from Romanowski and a goal and an assist from sophomore Kate Williston (Wooster, Ohio/Wooster). 

Harris, a first-team All-NCAC selection, averaged 12.6 points and 8.5rebounds during the season and had 12 double-doubles to his credit.