TERRE HAUTE — Danville Area Community College’s young softball team posted a 14-25 record this spring, bolstered by strong contributions from three Wabash Valley area graduates, and welcomes more area players to strengthen next year’s team.
Leading the Jaguars this year was Greencastle’s Lyndie Alspaugh, who had an 11-8 pitching record and a 3.46 ERA. She also led the team in batting with a .330 average while driving in 21 runs.
For her efforts, Alspaugh was voted Most Valuable Player, Pitcher of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.
“She was the leader on a very young team,” DACC Coach Jimmie Evans said. “Without her stellar pitching performance this season, we would have had a hard time getting wins. She will be greatly missed next season.”
Terre Haute South’s Kylee Anderson was an offensive force for the team all season. She finished with a .304 batting average, fourth best on the team, and was first or second in nine other offensive categories.
Anderson led the team in slugging percentage at .574, home runs with two, and tied for team lead in triples with three. She was second on the team in runs (22), at bats (115), and total bases (66). She tied for second in RBI (20), hits (35) and doubles (7) while also leading all outfielders in assists with three.
She was awarded the “Jaguar Slugger” Award, which goes to the player that demonstrated the most overall offensive presence on the team. She was also voted Honorable Mention All-Mid-West Athletic Conference.
“She brings a lot of power, attitude, and intensity to our team and we expect great things out of her next season,” Evans said. “She is definitely going to be expected to lead next year's team.”
West Vigo’s Maegan Payne made her way to Danville between the fall season and the spring season and also had a great deal of success.
“She was a tremendous addition to our team,” Evans said. “She was definitely a great find for us.”
Payne led the team in runs scored with 27, tied for second in hits (35) and doubles (7), and was third in batting average (.310), at bats (113) and stolen bases (13). She also won the team’s “Pride and Hustle” award.
“She rebounded from an early season knee injury to help key the team's turnaround, both offensively and defensively,” Evans said. “She has decided to forego her final season at DACC to concentrate on her academics, which I admire her for and wish her the best of luck.”
Lindsay Nugent of Paris also contributed for the Jaguars, recording a 1-7 pitching record and hitting .103 while earning a Gold Glove Award for her defense. She will be joined next year by a host of former Paris Tigers, as Alicia Randall, Katie Meagher and Sarah Snyder will join the DACC program.
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• Montgomery’s staff named best — The Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville softball coaching staff, led by Casey native Sandy Montgomery, has been honored as the 2007 NCAA Division II Coaching Staff of the Year.
Montgomery and Assistant Coach Valerie McCoy will be honored at the 2007 National Fastpitch Coaches Association National Convention that will be held Nov. 28-Dec. 1 at the Las Vegas Hilton.
The SIUE staff earned the honor after guiding the Cougars to their first NCAA Division II softball national title in May. Montgomery, in her 19th season at the school, led SIUE to the NCAA tournament for the eighth straight year.
The Cougars finished the season with a 49-8 record, won the Great Lakes Valley Conference title and took the Great Lakes Regional trophy. SIUE won its last 16 games and 25 of 26 as it finished No. 1 in the final NFCA Division II Top 25 poll for the first time.
Montgomery was a standout player for SIUE following her Casey career, and was the losing pitcher in the 1982 Division II national championship game as a freshman.
In her career from 1982-85, Montgomery won 84 games, including 42 shutouts, and struck out 659 batters while posting a microscopic 0.86 ERA. Those four marks still stand as school records.
She finished two innings short of the school record by toiling 785, and her .763 winning percentage is the third best in school history.
The elusive title came in the Cougars’ next-to-last Division II season before making the transition to Division I. Montgomery, now 682-324-2 as a head coach, is ready to take her program into the next level.
“Our goals aren’t going to change,” she told the Mattoon Journal-Gazette. “It will be a long time until we win a [Division I] national championship if we ever do. But I’ve got a whole team of DI mid-major players and we’ve all said let’s win a Division II championship.”
• Baker to St. Mary-of-the-Woods — Shakamak’s Chelsea Baker has a letter-of-intent to play college softball for coach Gary Rodgers at St. Mary of the Woods.
“I've always wanted to play ball at St. Mary of the Woods,” Baker, a catcher, told the Greene County Daily World. “I got the chance with the scholarship.”
Baker hit .260 this year for the Lakers, who finished 16-10. She four doubles, a triple and a home run, had 12 RBI and scored eight runs during the 2007 season.
“I know I need to work on my hitting,” she said. “I'm also going to work on getting better at throwing out runners.”
• Odds and ends — Recent North Central grad Andrew Gilman will continue his basketball career at Wabash College.
• Robinson’s Marvin Washington will play college basketball at Rock Valley College in Rockford, Ill.
• Former Indiana State player Norman Wells has transferred to John A. Logan College in Illinois.
• Jeremiah Wise, one of the last remnants of ISU’s ill-fated attempt at heavily recruiting the Chicago area, is looking to transfer from the University of Illinois. Wise sat out last season as a redshirt after leaving ISU, but a conversation with Coach Bruce Weber has inspired him to look for yet another home.
“We had some talks and I just said, ‘Do you want to play?’ He said yes,” Weber told the Champaign News-Gazette last month. “We talked about how his chances were going to be very slim here. I think after he went home and talked some things over with his family, it came down to Illinois educationally or wanting a chance to play somewhere.”
• Keenan Ellis, who played for Indianapolis Cathedral as a freshman and was at one point ranked among the nation’s top players, will play for former Indiana Coach Mike Davis at Alabama-Birmingham.
Last month, Ellis played in the Demetrious Johnson Charitable Foundation All-Star Basketball Game in St. Louis. Ellis accounted for 15 points, including five dunks.
Other former Hoosiers playing for UAB next year will be Indiana transfer Robert Vaden, a former all-Big Ten selection, and the coach’s son, Mike Davis Jr. Both are juniors.
• Owen Valley’s Jared Maners will play basketball for former Vincennes University Coach Dan Sparks at Wabash Valley College next year.
• Donald Cloutier, a member of the first of Lawrence North’s three state championship teams, has transferred from Western Michigan to the University of Indianapolis. He will have two years of eligibility remaining.
Joey Bennett is a former Tribune-Star sports reporter and copy editor who now teaches and coaches at Northview High School in Brazil. He can be reached at tribstarcollegereport@yahoo.com, and his Web site listing all known players playing collegiately can be found at www.tribstarcollegereport.com.
College Report
College Report: Wabash Valley athletes big contributors for DACC
- College Report
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Catching up as the school year winds down
Odds and ends from here and there as the school year quickly winds down. For starters, high jumper Nick Jaeger of Terre Haute South was named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference’s male track & field newcomer of the year:
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College Report: Lively earned collegiate upgrade with strong play
Hillary Lively signed to play Division II basketball at Maryville (Mo.) during her senior year at North Vermillion, but those plans changed and she would up at nearby Danville Area Community College — where she recently concluded an outstanding two-year career.
Lively was impressive enough to earn a Division I scholarship to Southeast Missouri State of the Ohio Valley Conference, and both her future and past college coaches think she will continue to succeed there.
“She fits what we need,” SEMO coach Ty Margenthaler said. “She has college experience, she is strong and physical and plays well around the basket and moves well.
“Her strength, rebounding and touch around the basket will be a big help. On the defensive end, she’ll be able to guard a true center.” -
COLLEGE REPORT: Valley prep athletes getting ready for next level
The NCAA “regular” signing period begins Wednesday for all sports except football, field hockey, soccer, track and field, cross country and men’s water polo.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Conferences honor Valley softball players
Several Wabash Valley area college softball players have been honored by their respective conferences for outstanding play this spring.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Jake Newton makes big impact for Lincoln Trail College
Jake Newton had a long time between playing in competitive basketball games, a span of about 18 months, and used the frustration from that long dry spell to produce a stellar freshman season for Lincoln Trail College this winter.
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COLLEGE REPORT: A.J. Reed earns SEC Player of the Week honors
After belting three home runs during a five games last week, Kentucky sophomore left-handed pitcher/first baseman A.J. Reed was named Southeastern Conference Player of the Week.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Spring newcomers making marks
Several freshman baseball and softball NCAA Division I players from the Wabash Valley have already made immediate impacts at their new schools, while others are waiting for their turns to shine.
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COLLEGE REPORT: A.J. Reed named third-team preseason baseball All-American
Two-way sophomore standout A.J. Reed was one of three University of Kentucky players named third-team preseason All-America by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Sponsler honored after big week for Wabash men's hoops
Wabash College freshman Ross Sponsler of Terre Haute North was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the period ending Jan. 6.
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COLLEGE REPORT: North grad Hughes finds success after facing preseason adversity
A.J. Hughes knew he was in for a battle as he competed with three other walk-on punters in the preseason for the lone starting job on the Virginia Tech football team.
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Etling, Meggs enjoying great year
It’s been a great year so far with more to come for a pair of longtime friends and St. Patrick’s School classmates.
Former Terre Haute resident Jack Meggs quarterbacked the Bellevue Wolverines football team to the Washington Class 3A state championship this fall, culminating with a 35-3 win over Sammamish Eastside Catholic — Bellevue’s fifth straight crown.
Danny Etling, meanwhile, has completed graduation requirements at Terre Haute South and is preparing for an upcoming high school all-star game and his first college classes in a couple of weeks. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Valley’s women’s college hoops players start strong
Several women’s college basketball players from the Wabash Valley have gotten off to good starts this season on the hardwood. Highlights:
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COLLEGE REPORT: Mayhew, Mascari provide fall highlights
Several dozen Wabash Valley athletes enjoyed successful fall seasons collegiately in cross country and tennis this year. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Former North teammates start strong in college
Former Terre Haute North teammates Ross Sponsler and Matt O’Leary made their college basketball debuts last week and had outstanding initial performances. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Shoemaker OBP leads Chisox farmhands
Former Indiana State, Olney Central and Northview baseball standout Brady Shoemaker opened a lot of eyes last summer in the Chicago White Sox farm system, earning him a spot on a mlb.com blog team that highlighted the team’s outstanding minor leaguers at each position.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Boeglin has plenty of ISU memories, but not all are related to basketball
Melanie Boeglin, an All-American who played on the women’s basketball team at Indiana State from 2002-2006, will be inducted into the 21st class of the Indiana State University Athletics Hall of Fame on Thursday.
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COLLEGE REPORT: North grad leading DePauw volleyball in winning streak
DePauw’s volleyball team has won seven straight matches entering this weekend’s DePauw Invitational, including four straight wins last weekend to capture the Rose-Hulman invitational title.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Engle moving up football coaching ranks
Michael Engle graduated from DePauw University in the spring of 2011 with a degree in political science and future plans to advance his studies in law school.
Being a coach’s son and a competitive athlete by nature, Engle has put those plans on hold for now. -
COLLEGE REPORT: From Terre Haute South to Division I competition to coaching careers
Adriane Wunderlich and Katelyn Bishop both turned stellar high school careers at Terre Haute South into Division I collegiate careers at Indiana State and Southern California, respectively.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Former prep athletes getting ready for fall college season
An impressive total of at least 122 Wabash Valley athletes and coaches will be competing collegiately for the first time during the upcoming school year or have changed schools to continue their careers.
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COLLEGE REPORT: SP’s Boetjer is Indiana’s Miss Softball
South Putnam’s Brooke Boetjer, who will be a freshman on the Indiana University softball team next spring, was named the 2012 Indiana Miss Softball last month between games at the North/South All-Star games in Carmel.
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College report: North grad Mayhew is second team all-American at IU
Indiana University running standout Zach Mayhew of Terre Haute North was honored earlier this month as a second-team All-American by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
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College report: Bloomfield runner to join IUPUI track, cross country teams
Bloomfield track/cross country standout Julie Riggins will be joining the developing IUPUI program next fall as one of six incoming recruits.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Roberts takes coaching position at UNC-Greensboro
Terre Haute native Mike Roberts is continuing his climb up the college basketball coaching ladder, recently departing Rice for a spot as the associate head coach at North Carolina-Greensboro.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Valley grads playing role for No. 13 Vincennes
A few springtime odds and ends:
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COLLEGE REPORT: Shouse making his mark for Danville Community College
Derek Shouse definitely flew under the radar in his one season of playing for the Terre Haute South boys basketball team last winter.
Not highly recruited, he made his way to Danville Area Community College as a walk-on with the hopes he could find his way onto the court at some point. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Bullock finds sunny home to continue tennis career
Most college athletes progress along similar paths to get to their final destinations athletically, but Terre Haute South grad Taylor Bullock’s route to the Eckerd College women’s tennis team was a little different than most.
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COLLEGE REPORT: TH South QB entertains Division I offers
Danny Etling’s trek to being a big-time college quarterback took a huge step this week when the Terre Haute South junior picked up a scholarship offer from Purdue, according to 247sports.com.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Seibert stepping up her game
Terre Haute South grad Haley Seibert has seen the usual ups and downs of her freshman basketball season at Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne and is making the most of her opportunities this season.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Vikings Waters, Barton excited about college basketball
West Vigo grad Lauren Dailey helped the Lady Vikings basketball program to a lot of success at the end of the 1990s, and went on to play for Eastern Illinois from 2001-2004.
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Catching up as the school year winds down
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