2000 Wittenberg Softball Press Releases

May 2, 2000--
(30-12, 13-1 NCAC)--Wittenberg won its first-ever NCAC title with victories in last week's action. The Tigers split with Denison posting a 2-0 victory in the first game of the doubleheader but fell 6-1 in the second game. To clinch the conference title, Wittenberg swept Hiram 12-0 and 3-1 in Saturday's action.

Several Tigers have had outstanding performances in this record-setting season. Freshman outfielder Alea Bruggeman (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) is leading the NCAC in batting with a .492 average and stolen bases with 21.Sophomore shortstop Christy Schneider (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield) is third in the conference with a .459 batting average and junior first base Carissa Clagg (Springfield, Ohio/Northwestern) is batting .389, fifth in the NCAC.

Senior pitcher Carey Oakes (Pleasant Hill, Ohio/Newton) has continued to leave her mark in the Tiger record books. She has already set school records for strikeouts (123) and wins (18) in a season and also now holds the career wins record (42) and career strikeouts record (240).

Oakes is leading the conference in earned run average with a 1.10 ERA, in strikeouts with 123 and wins with 18. She is first in the NCAC in RBI's with 31 and 11th in batting (.336).

In team stats, the Tigers are leading the conference in batting with a .343 team average and are second on the mound with a 2.05 ERA.

In last week's NCAA Division III poll the Tigers earned their first-ever ranking with a fifth place spot in the Central Region. Bids for the NCAA Division III tournament will be released on Sunday, May 7.

April 25, 2000--
(26-11, 10-0 NCAC)-- The Tigers continued their climb to the top of the conference race when they shut down NCAC foe Allegheny 11-3 and 7-6 in action on Saturday. The Tigers are sitting one game ahead of Denison in the standings with the true test to be played out on Wednesday when Wittenberg travels to Granville to face the Big Red in hopes of clinching their first ever conference title.

In action last week, several Tigers had outstanding performances in the two victories over the Gators. Freshman outfielder Alea Bruggeman (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) went one-for-three with one RBI in first game of the twinbill and then was three-for-four in the second contest. In the first game, junior first baseman Carissa Clagg (Springfield, Ohio/Northwestern) knocked in two runs for the Tigers and then in the second game went two-for-three with a double.

Senior pitcher Carey Oakes (Pleasant Hill, Ohio/Newton) earned Player of the Week honors for her performance in Saturday's contest. Oakes recorded the Tiger win in the first game, allowing only four hits and three runs while striking out four and walking only two. In the second game, she picked up the save striking out the first batter she faced. She has already set school records for strikeouts (110) and wins (15) in a season. Oakes is leading the conference in earned run average with a 1.21 ERA, in strikeouts with 110 and wins with 15. She is third in the NCAC in RBI's with 29.

Sophomore shortstop Christy Schneider (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield) and freshman outfielder Alea Bruggeman are both making their marks at the plate for the Tigers. Schneider is second in the conference in batting with a .483 average and Bruggeman is third with a .479 average. Bruggeman is also leading the NCAC in stolen bases with 18.

In team stats, the Tigers are leading the conference in batting with a .345 team average and are second on the mound with a 2.23 ERA.

This week the Tigers face Denison on Wednesday in key conference match-up, Heidelberg in non-conference action on Friday and then wrap-up their regular season against Hiram on Saturday.

April 18, 2000--
(24-11, 8-0 NCAC)-- The Tigers continued on their record-setting ways last week as they set a school record for most victories in a season with 24. The previous record of 23 was set just last season under the direction of first-year head coach Becky Hall.

Wittenberg has also continued to play a successful conference schedule including posting four shutouts in last week's conference schedule. The Tigers shut down Ohio Wesleyan 9-0 and 8-0 early in the week, then battled Wooster 5-0 and 13-2 before stopping Oberlin 14-0 and 15-1 last Saturday.

Senior pitcher Carey Oakes (Pleasant Hill, Ohio/Newton) finished the week with an impressive 3-0 record and three shutouts for the Tigers. In three contests she threw 24 strikeouts and allowed only two hits. Oakes is leading the conference in wins with a 14-4 pitching record and is second in strikeouts with 6.24 per game and earned run average with a 1.15 ERA.

Also making contributions for the Tigers is freshman outfielder Alea Bruggeman (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) who is third in the conference with a .464 batting average and is leading the NCAC in stolen bases with 17. Bruggeman has started all 35 contests and is second on the team in hits with 51. Second in the NCAC in batting is sophomore shortstop Christy Schneider (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield) who has a .468 average and is leading the team in hits with 52. Junior first base Carissa Clagg (Springfield, Ohio/Northwestern) is ninth in the conference with a .367 batting average and has recorded 199 putouts for the Tigers this season.

The Tigers face non-conference opponent Heidelberg in a make-up game on Wednesday, travel to Findlay on Thursday and then host conference rival Allegheny on Saturday in a battle for the top spot in the NCAC.

April 11, 2000--
(18-11, 2-0 NCAC)--The Tigers finished another successful week posting a 6-1 record with wins against Thomas More early in the week and then winning their own weekend invitational against Thomas More, Anderson and Case Reserve.

Senior pitcher Carey Oakes (Pleasant Hill, Ohio/Newton) finished the week with an impressive 4-0 record. In four contests she threw 31 strikeouts while walking only five opponents and pitching two shutouts. Oakes is leading the conference in wins with an 11-4 overall record, is second in strikeouts with 5.79 per game and third in earned run average with 1.36.

Freshman outfielder Alea Bruggeman (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) has made an immediate contribution for the Tigers. She is fifth in the conference in batting with a .430 average and first in stolen bases with 13. Bruggeman, who has started every contest, is leading the team in hits with 40 and runs scored with 30.

Another contributor to the success of the Tigers is sophomore shortstop Christy Schneider (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield) who is fourth in the conference with a .443 batting average.

Wittenberg has another busy week of conference action ahead with contests against Ohio Wesleyan on Wednesday, Wooster on Thursday and Oberlin on Saturday.

April 4, 2000--
(12-10, 2-0 NCAC)-- The Tigers started the week with their home opener against Otterbein and posted two victories and then went on to post two more victories over Kenyon in their conference opener last Saturday.

Freshman Alea Bruggeman (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) has made an immediate contribution for the Tigers. In last week's action she was 8-13 with a triple and six RBI's, including the game-winning hit in the first game against Otterbein. She is fourth in the conference in batting with a .426 average and is second in the conference in stolen bases with 11.

Leading off for the Tigers is sophomore Christy Schneider (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield) who is third in the conference with a .433 batting average. Schneider has knocked in 15 runs and is second on the team in hits with 26.

Senior Carey Oakes (Pleasant Hill, Ohio/Newton) is continuing her successful career on the mound in 2000. Oakes is first in the conference in wins with a 7-4 record, tied for second in earned run average with 1.59 and second in strikeouts with 56.

Wittenberg has a full schedule this week with action against Heidelberg on Tuesday, Thomas More on Thursday and hosting its own invitational on Saturday and Sunday. Anderson, Case Reserve and Thomas More will be on hand for this year's two-day tournament.

March 27, 2000--
(8-10, 0-0 NCAC)-- The Tigers opened their schedule in Fort Myers, Florida during their annual spring break trip and posted a 6-4 overall mark in the five days. Since then they have recorded victories over Wilmington and Mt. St. Joseph, but have fallen in the last five contests.

Sophomore Christy Schneider (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield), the NCAC's top newcomer in 1997, is leading the team at the plate with a .474 batting average and is fourth in the conference. She has knocked in 11 runs and recorded 18 hits.

Freshman Alea Bruggeman (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) has made an impressive mark in her first collegiate season. She is second on the team with a .400 batting average after starting every contest. Bruggeman has 20 hits in 50 at bats and has recorded a team-high 16 runs for the Tigers.

Making immediate contributions on the mound for the Tigers is senior Carey Oakes (Pleasant Hill, Ohio/Newton). Oakes is third in the NCAC with a 1.55 ERA and second in strikeouts with 37.

Wittenberg hosts Otterbein on Wednesday in its home opener and hosts Kenyon on Saturday to open the conference schedule.

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