One could not really blame the Mid-American Conference coaches for pegging the Ohio softball team as the conference's worst team in their preseason projections.
The Bobcats had just come off a season in which they were, in fact, the worst team in the MAC, managing to win only four contests against conference opponents.
On top of that, the team's already-weak offense had lost its best hitter, second baseman Jenny Tisevich, to graduation and had a new coach that was unfamiliar to the conference.
So how on earth did the Bobcats not only make the eight-team conference tournament, but also steal a win against No. 4-seed Central Michigan in the tournament without seemingly improving?
I think we just realized early on that we had a lot of potential
pitcher Candace Warden said. We knew that we could do a lot of damage to teams and we just took that confidence with us into games.
We've always thought we could make it to the MAC tournament and do a great job catcher Maghan Lunsford said, but this year it was all there. There was never a doubt in our minds that we weren't going to make it.
This increased confidence, which led to nine more victories than last season, can also be attributed to first-year Bobcats' coach Jill Matyuch, who said that getting to know her players before the season and installing her different methods of coaching helped build the team's confidence.
It was definitely a growing process she said, but it was also the fun part because everything we did was brand new. I just had to build a foundation
implement my way of doing things and have them buy into it.
Having one of her pitchers emerge as one of the best in the conference did not hurt either.
After a season in which she was used primarily as the second starter, Michelle Sauter showed early in the season that she was going to be the team's ace. In a tough loss in March against Vermont, the right-hander became the first Bobcat since 2002 to strike out more than 15 batters in a game when she fanned 16 Catamounts.
Sauter's dominance continued throughout the season as she collected a team-high 12 victories and finished fifth in the MAC with a 1.97 ERA, which led to her being named to the All-MAC Second Team.
Her spin on her pitches was really tight when the season started
and she was able to create some endurance
Matyuch said. Her mental game also got better in terms of knowing what pitches to throw to certain batters in certain situations.
Although their hitting struggled throughout most of the season, the Bobcats' got many timely hits that led to important victories. Big hits like pinch-hitter Cathy Walters' two-run home run, which led to the team's biggest upset of the year, over nationally-ranked Virginia Tech, were the staple of Ohio's offensive output.
This style of offense could also be linked to the team's downfall at times during the season, however, as the team wasted many sterling pitching efforts from Sauter and Warden, leading to 14 Ohio losses in one-run contests.
Matyuch said that the Bobcats will be even better when they are able to be on the winning side of these close games more consistently.
I would have liked to finish higher than we actually did
Matyuch said. There were about four or five games this season that I thought could've gone the other way. Hopefully we can improve on that next season and get to where we want to be as a team.
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Andrew Gribble
