Sports
Ohio Softball Grabs Seven Recruits
By: Kellen Becoats
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Ohio softball had a busy early signing period as it added seven students-athletes to the 2015-2016 recruiting class Thursday.
The recruiting class includes five players from Ohio and two from California.
Natalie Alvarez, a catcher from Long Beach, Calif., will add a big bat to the Bobcats arsenal as she recorded nine triples, 28 doubles, 98 RBIs and 10 home runs during her four years at Millikan High School. She also recorded a .450 career batting percentage and helped take her team to the third round in the CIF Southern Section on the way to a second-place finish in the Moore League.
Taylor Bowman was just named to the All-County team as well as First Team All-League and All-District in West Jefferson, Ohio. She also served as her team’s captain and help guide them to a league championship and district runners-up.
Another recruit with multiple awards to her name is Deanna Cole. The incoming student from Akron, Ohio, was recently awarded Portage Trail Conference Metro First Team Middle Infield for her work with the Ohio Blue Lasers softball team. She also earned All-District First Team Middle Infield as well as All-State Second Team Middle Infield and the Scholar Athlete Award. Cole will also bring some speed to Ohio’s lineup as she broke the Ohio state record for stolen bases in 2013. She also guided her team to a 2012 League Championship, District Runners-up in 2013 and an ASA National Championship for the 16-under in 2014.
Another speedster that coach Jodi Hermanek brought in is Jordan Sullivan. The Mason, Ohio, native led William Mason High School to the 2014 ASA USA National Championship, where they won the whole thing. She also helped her team to the OHSAA State Final Four in 2013.
Hermanek personally earmarked both players and hopes they will add some speed to the Ohio’s lineup.
Alexandra Day will also bring speed to the Bobcats. In addition to bringing home back-to-back Team MVP awards, she was named to the First Team All-Conference and Second-Team All-District in 2014.
In the circle, Morgan Geno and Jamie Wren will bring some much-needed relief to current pitchers Savannah Jo Dorsey and Lauren McClary. Geno held an ERA of .88 in 2014 while tallying 219 strikeouts in 120 innings pitched. She also brings a big bat to Ohio as she recorded 31 hits, 21 RBIs and five home runs while averaging a .492 batting average and .692 on-base percentage through 2014.
Those numbers helped her claim SVC Co-Player of the Year. She also holds her school’s ERA record of 1.21 and tied the home run record with 13.
Wren, a left-handed pitcher from Whittier, Calif., is coming off a season where she went 25-3, held an ERA of .45 and tallied 112 strikeouts. She will also be a potential big hitter for the Bobcats, as she completed the 2014 season with a .463 batting average, a .715 slugging percentage and snagged 34 RBIs on the way to winning MVP and being on one of the top-20 teams in California. She also won Best Offensive Player in 2013.
With the help of these new faces the Bobcats will hope to capitalize on a superb season last year, where they won the MAC Tournament and earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament.