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May 20, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

THIS SEASON IN PANTHER SOFTBALL

The University of Northern Iowa softball team wrapped up the 2008 regular season May 3 and 4 with a three-game homestand against Illinois State. In game one of Saturday's contest, the Panthers found themselves down 4-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh, UNI turned four hits into four-runs to take a 5-4 win from the Redbirds. In game two of the twin bill Illinois State held off the Panthers second late-game rally of the day and held on for a 8-6 win. The Redbirds proved worthy of their second-place standing in the Valley with a convincing 15-2 win over the Panthers in their final game of the season. Despite not earning a place in the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Softball Tournament, the Panthers finished just shy of the eight-team field, earning a ninth-place finish with an overall record of 20-28 and 5-16 in MVC Play.

 

LEADING OFF

•   Sophomore Jen Larsen earned the Panthers' first All-MVC selection since 2003. Larsen finished the season with a .317 overall batting average and .318 in conference play. The sophomore led the Panthers with seven home runs, including three game-winning homers. Larsen registered seven multiple-RBI games, including a career-high five RBIs against UT-Martin (March 2). Besides being a strong force at the plate for the Panthers, Larsen led the way in the circle also, posting the lowest ERA on the team (3.34). Larsen tossed 127.2 innings, including 10 complete games and two shutouts.

 

•   Megan Machovec finished the season in fourth place in The Valley standings with a batting average of .366. The sophomore finished in second place in The Valley in triples (5) and sixth place in hits (56). Machovec led the Panthers in runs (32), hits (56), stolen bases (8) and triples (5).

 

•   Senior Stephanie Aguero led by example at the plate this season for the Panthers. Aguero ended the season second on the team with a .361 batting average, while connecting for 53 hits, 11 doubles, five home runs, 31 RBIs and 28 runs scored.

 

STEADY IMPROVEMENT

UNI softball has shown gradual improvement in recent seasons and 2008 was no different. Although the Panthers ninth place finish put them just shy of earning a spot in the eight-team Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, they improved their final standing one spot from last season.

 

UNI also improved its winning percentage from .373 in 2007 (19-32 overall) to .416 (20-28 overall) in 2008.

 

BACK ON THE FIRST TEAM

Sophomore Jen Larsen became the first Panther since 2003 to earn a place on the All-Missouri Valley Conference first team. Angela Higgins was the last player to earn a first team spot as a catcher in 2003. The Panthers' Rachael Rogers earned second-team honors in 2004 and 2005, along with Erin Strellner and Tracy Davis.

 

CHANGING THE RECORD BOOKS

The 2008 Panthers earned themselves a place in the record books after compiling a .971 fielding percentage. That tops 2001's previous record of .966. The Panthers also finished the season with 41 errors, shattering the previous record for fewest errors with 52 set in 1998.

 

IMPROVING AT THE PLATE AND IN THE CIRCLE

UNI held opposing teams to a .302 batting average in the 2008 season, an improvement from .328 in 2007. The Panthers improved their own batting average from .257 in 2007 to .258 in 2008. UNI's pitching staff recorded a 4.05 ERA this season, a significant improvement from 2007, when the staff compiled a 5.00 ERA.

 

CONFERENCE IMPROVEMENT TOO

The Panthers showed improvement in all areas of the game especially in conference statistics. UNI improved its batting average from .252 in 2007 to .256 in 2008, along with drawing 54 walks in 2008 in comparison to 43 in 2007.

 

The Panther pitching staff allowed 186 hits in 21 games this season in comparison to 234 in 22 games in 2007. UNI allowed just 129 runs in 2008, improving from 164 in 2007.

 

LATE INNING RALLY

Down 4-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning against Illinois State (May 3), UNI rallied to put four runs on the board to take a 5-4 win from the Redbirds. With two outs, Kelly Papesh drilled a solo home run to right field that sparked the Panther comeback. Ashley Lepley followed with a double, and scored off a Megan Machovec single. Stephanie Aguero scored Machovec off a single and Jen Larsen reached base on a Redbird error. Rachel Gerking loaded the bases for the Panthers after drawing a walk. Stephanie Aguero then scored the winning run off a Amber Smith wild pitch. The win marked the Panthers first victory over the Redbirds since April 18, 2001, and snapped  Illinois State's six-game winning streak.

 

MULTIPLE-HITS, MULTIPLE-RBI

The Panthers' three top hitters this season, Megan Machovec, Stephanie Aguero and Jen Larsen each had their fair share of mulitple-hit and mulitple-RBI games. Machovec served as the Panthers' lead-off batter and connected for 18 multiple-hit games. Aguero registered 14 multiple-hit games along with 9 mulitple-RBI games, including a career-high five RBIs against Drake (April 6). Larsen finished the season with 11 multiple-hit games and seven multiple-RBI games.

 

ONE HIT WONDER

UNI clinched its second win over a Big Ten opponent this season with a 3-0 win over Wisconsin (April 9). Brittney Balduf registered the Panthers only hit of the contest, a three-run home run, to give the Panthers the win.

 

DOUBLE TIME

Stephanie Aguero connected for three doubles in the Panthers three games against Indiana State (April 19-20), while fellow Panther Crystal Keiper drilled two. Keiper registered both her extra-base hits in the second game against the Sycamores while Aguero drilled a double in each of the three contests over the weekend. Aguero led the team and finished tied for fourth in The Valley with 11 doubles this season. Keiper connected for seven doubles for the Panthers this season.

 

BIG TEN VS. UNI

UNI finished the season 2-3 against Big Ten opponents, with wins over Minnesota and Wisconsin and losses to Iowa (two) and Minnesota. Both the Panthers losses to Iowa have come by just one run. In fact, all three of the Panthers losses to Big Ten opponents have been by one run. The Panthers topped Minnesota 6-4 (Feb.. 15) before falling to Iowa 1-0 (Feb. 16). UNI met Minnesota two weeks later at the UT-Martin Classic, this time falling to the Gophers 1-0. UNI earned its second win over a Big Ten opponent April 9 against Wisconsin, 3-0. The final loss to a Big Ten opponent came April 23 at Iowa by a score of 5-4.

 

SHUT `EM OUT

In the Panthers' two contests against Wisconsin (April 9) and Missouri State (Apr. 13), UNI allowed zero runs and just eight hits. The Panthers have tossed seven shutouts this season, with shutout wins over North Dakota, Arkansas, Ball State, Bradley, Wisconsin, Missouri State and North Dakota State.

 

FIRST ROUND-TRIP

Freshman Michelle Phillips connected for her first home run in the Purple and Gold in the Panthers' conference game against Creighton (March 29). Phillips went 2-for-3 at the plate in the game; including two runs, two RBIs and a double.

 

ENDING THE STREAK

UNI snapped Nebraska's 44-game winning streak in home non-conference games as they took a 2-1 win over the Huskers in game one of the doubleheader contest March 30. In the process, UNI earned its first win over the Huskers since 1994 to break a seven-game losing streak to Nebraska. The win was just UNI's second victory in 16 attempts against the Huskers.

 

MAKING AN IMPACT

The Panthers six underclassmen made their impact on stat books for the Panthers this season. The six have combined for 154 of the Panthers 324 hits (48 percent), 76 of the 172 runs (44 percent), 65 of the 163 RBIs (40 percent), 16 of the 45 doubles (36 percent), five of the nine triples (56 percent) and 10 of the 25 home runs (40 percent).

 

TOP OF THE ORDER

Megan Machovec proved to be consistently strong at the top of the order for the Panthers this season as the sophomore led the team with a .366 batting average. Machovec connected for a team-high 56 hits, including four doubles, five triples and one home run. Machovec also led the team in stolen bases (eight). In the final game of the series with Drake (April 6) Machovec finished the game three-for-three with a double and two RBIs.

 

TO THE FINISH

The pitching duo of Ashley Lepley and Jen Larsen proved their pitching endurance in 2008. Lepley finished the season with 11 complete games, while Larsen followed closely behind with 10. The duo pitched 247.1 of the Panthers 317.2 innings in 2008.

 

SEND `EM HOME

Jen Larsen finished the season with 31 RBIs in the Panthers 48 games, including seven multiple-RBI games. Larsen registered 44 hits, including five doubles and seven home runs.

 

NEARING THE TOP

The Panthers finished the season in the top five in four of the Valley's batting categories. UNI is in the top half of the Valley categories in: batting average, on-base percentage, doubles, and triples.

 

DRIVING `EM HOME

Junior Crystal Keiper (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson) made an instant impact on the Panther offense, uncorking a homer in her first outing in the Purple and Gold against Dayton (Feb. 9). The junior connected again on a long-range bomb, this time helping the Panthers to a 7-2 advantage over South Dakota State (Feb.10). Keiper continued her hard-hitting efforts blasting a homer to help the Panthers top Minnesota, 6-4 (Feb. 15).

 

STARTING `EM ALL

Senior Stephanie Aguero started all 197 games of her four-year career for the Panthers. Aguero is one of two Panthers to start in all of the team's 48 games this season. Sophomore outfielder Rachel Gerking also started all 48 games for the Panthers in 2008.

 

DRIVING HOME A WIN

Jen Larsen (Moline, Ill/Moline) has connected for four career game-winning home runs in just two years as a Panther, three coming in the 2008 season. Larsen connected for her seventh round-tripper of the season in the Panthers 4-1 win over North Dakota State (April 22). Larsen has connected for game wining home runs in the Panthers previous wins over San Jose State (March 7), Western Illinois (Feb. 14). Larsen's first career game-winning home run was in the 2007 season when she sealed a Panther victory over North Dakota State with a walk-off homer.

 

STARTING HIS CAREER OFF RIGHT

This season marks the debut of Panther head coach Ryan Jacobs. Jacobs led the Panthers to a 7-2 start, the best start to a season since the 2002. Jacobs owns the second-best start to a season by a first-year Panther head coach since 1974, when Jane Mertesdorf started the season 8-1. That was UNI's first season of softball.

 

GOING THE DISTANCE

Sophomore pitcher Sarah Bakey showed she also has the ability to go the distance for UNI in the circle. Bakey earned her second win of the 2008 season tossing complete game for the Panthers against Western Illinois (Feb. 14). Bakey allowed the Westerwinds just five hits in seven innings.

 

The week before against North Dakota (Feb.10), Bakey tossed the first complete-game shutout of her career. She allowed just three hits to a Fighting Sioux team that, in its previous game, had scored 14 runs on 14 hits, while also recording eight strikeouts.

 

Bakey finished the season with five wins and one shutout in 55.2 innings of work.

 

CAREER FIRST

Megan Machovec (DeWitt, Iowa/Central) hit her first career home run against North Dakota (Feb. 10) as part of the Ramada UNI-Dome Classic. Machovec's inside-the-park homer plated a pair of runs to break the teams' scoreless deadlock in the bottom of the third inning.

 

YOU COMPLETE ME

Senior pitcher Ashley Lepley (Albia, Iowa/Albia) threw  a team high 11 complete-games this season for the Panthers. Lepley tossed 119.2 innings while finishing the season with a 9-10 record.

 

DOME OPENER

For the second time as an NCAA Division I team and just the fourth time ever, the Panthers opened a season at home.  UNI has begun its season with a home game only four times in its 34-year history, with both the 1977 and 1978 campaigns commencing with a home date against Wartburg College, and the 2007 season beginning against North Dakota State in the UNI-Dome. 

 

The Ramada UNI-Dome Classic's games also marked the second consecutive season UNI softball played in the UNI-Dome. In the 11 seasons from 1987-1997, the Panthers hosted an annual tournament in the Dome under various names.  The facility also previously served as a backup site for regular-season games in the event that inclement weather made the outdoor surface at Panther Park unplayable.

 

A NEW HOME

Following the Panther's opening weekend in the UNI-Dome, the team played its remaining home games at the new home of UNI Softball, Robinson-Dresser Sports Complex. The facility, located along West 12th Street just northwest of the UNI campus, replaces Panther Park, which had served as the Panthers' home field for 30 seasons, beginning with the 1978 campaign.

 

Robinson-Dresser boasts many of the amenties lacking at Panther Park, including a press box, permanent seating and on-site restrooms and concessions facilities. The Panthers will open their first season at Robinson-Dresser with a doubleheader against Iowa State on March 26.

 

AN EXPERIENCED BATTERY

An experienced core of pitchers and catchers will likely determine how successful the Panthers can be in 2008. The Panthers return all four pitchers that saw action in the circle in 2007, including sophomores Jen Larsen and Sarah Bakey and seniors Ashley Lepley and Liz Adams.

 

Adding to the experience will be the return of two veteran catchers in junior Kelly Papesh and senior Heather Tarter. The duo combined to start all of UNI's 51 games a season ago, with Papesh starting 31 games before being sidelined near the end of the season after suffering a broken finger, leaving Tarter to serve as the Panthers' primary catcher.

 

THE OFFENSE RETURNS

Coming off one of the most productive offensive seasons in school history, UNI returns a majority of that output for the 2008 season. After losing only  three players, the Panthers look to continue their high offensive output. The Panthers return 86 percent of their home runs from last season, along with 87 percent of the RBIs, 85 percent of the hits and 82 percent of the runs from the 2007 season.