ST. MARY-OF-THE-WOODS —
Eight times, St. Mary-of-the-Woods has captured some form of a national championship in softball.
But 2011 was not one of those times.
This past weekend at Akron, Ohio, coach Gary Rodgers’ Pomeroys competed in the eight-team U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national tournament.
They defeated Judson (Ala.) College 5-1 Friday, beat Penn State Mont Alto 5-2 and lost to Judson 3-2 Saturday, then knocked off Judson 6-2 before losing the two-out-of-three championship series in two games to Rochester (Mich.) College by scores of 3-0 and 8-6 Sunday.
They finished second, just as they did in 2010 and 2006.
“We played our usual game up until the championship series,” Rodgers assessed after the team returned to Terre Haute. “Those last two games, we did not play St. Mary-of-the-Woods softball. We made some baserunning mistakes and we made some fielding errors that we don’t normally make… We outhit them both games. We had 13 hits just in the last game [against Rochester].”
Rodgers isn’t shy about saying he thinks The Woods would defeat Rochester “four out of five times” in most situations, but obviously this past weekend was not one of those situations.
Although the Pomeroys did not win the national title this year, they did leave with several individual honors.
Named USCAA All-Americans were sophomore Kelsey Rosselli of Terre Haute, juniors Sara Goelz (who pitched almost the entire tournament over the weekend) and Jessica Jonas and senior Chelsee Gerber of Clay City. Named USCAA Academic All-Americans were Rosselli, juniors Goelz, Leah Miller and Libby Wright and sophomores Jennie Faker and Ashtynn Masterson.
Rodgers said he’ll miss the four graduating seniors — Gerber, former Shakamak High School player Chelsea Baker, Aubrey Stich and Katelyn Tillotson — but he’s hoping to add more Wabash Valley talent to go with Rosselli next season.
Rosselli ended up leading the team with a .377 batting average, 26 runs, 46 hits and 10 doubles, while Jonas was tops in home runs (three) and runs batted in (23).
Rosselli, a former Terre Haute North standout, usually batted lead-off, but her defensive skills are worth mentioning as well.
“She’s a mainstay for us out there in center field,” Rodgers said. “She covers the gaps well, she gets a good jump on the ball and she has a nice, strong arm.”
As for the Pomeroys’ 17-22 record in 2011, Rodgers said he’s to blame for it.
“I really got us into a competitive schedule,” he explained. “We played eight ranked NAIA teams and we played one ranked [NCAA] Division II team in Spalding University. If we would have stayed at our level, we definitely would have had a better record.”
“Overall, I thought we had a really good season,” Gerber said from a player’s perspective. “We played some really good teams, but that prepared us for the national tournament… Second place isn’t what we wanted in Akron, but second in a national tournament isn’t bad at all.”
“I felt like this year we kinda struggled a little bit trying to get our team together at the beginning of the season,” Rosselli added. “That showed in our games a little bit. But we did a lot of talking about it during the season and we got better. Once nationals came, we buckled down and we worked as a team.
“I’m really looking forward to next year. When we first start out, we’re going to have a little bit more of a stable lineup.”
For the record, The Woods won national championships in softball in 2008, 2007, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2000 and 1997.
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods
Related Photos
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At bat: Sophomore Kelsey Rosselli was the leading batter for The Woods this season. Submitted photo
Discussion
Pomeroys battle to second at national championship
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A time for firsts: SMWC seniors have national title aspirations
Even though St. Mary-of-the-Woods College has won eight national titles in softball in the last 16 years, seniors Sara Goelz and Jessica Jonas are among the many current Woods players who have not been part of a national championship team.
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Federal audit says SMWC should return $42M in student aid
A federal audit says St. Mary-of-the-Woods College should return $42 million in loans and grants made to students between 2005 and 2010, something the college plans to challenge.
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This underdog has its day
It’s been an up-and-down regular season for the St. Mary-of-the-Woods College women’s basketball team, but it concluded on a definite uptick.
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The mane attraction: Woods students learn about careers in equine world
A horse can be a powerful therapeutic tool, something Chris Marks knows firsthand.
“I’ve seen children with autism speak their first word to a horse,” causing their parents to “dissolve in a puddle of emotion,” said Marks, chairman of the Equine Studies program at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College.
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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ROUNDUP: Rose, The Woods post weekend victories
Rose-Hulman relied on a balanced scoring attack and a strong defensive effort to earn a 55-44 women’s basketball victory Saturday over Mount St. Joseph.
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SMWC topples Rose-Hulman
After a sluggish first half for both teams, St. Mary-of-the-Woods College found enough offensive rhythm in the final 20 minutes to outlast host Rose-Hulman 51-41 in the 19th annual Clabber Girl Trophy women’s basketball showdown Tuesday night inside Hulbert Arena.
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METRO ROUNDUP: SMWC’s Runyon wins USCAA cross country title
Blinding snow and freezing temperatures couldn’t stop Saint Mary-of-the-Woods junior Stephanie Runyon, an education major from Noblesville, from becoming the 2011 U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association women’s national champion in cross country Friday.
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Trimmed roster may benefit SMWC
“Less is more” is a statement with many, many meanings, attributed to many, many sources through the years.
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Dottie King becomes 16th president of St. Mary-of-the-Woods College
As the mother of six children, Dottie King learned early on the importance of setting priorities and achieving the right balance between family, education and work.
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Pomeroys battle to second at national championship
Eight times, St. Mary-of-the-Woods has captured some form of a national championship in softball.
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Shearing Time
You’ve probably never seen a haircut quite like this.
Alpacas, remarkably sweet-looking members of the camel family, were getting their annual shearing last week at the White Violet Center for Eco Justice at St. Mary-of-the-Woods. -
SMWC puts up fight in tourney
St. Mary-of-the-Woods downed Judson 6-2 Sunday morning in the semifinal round of the 2011 USCAA national softball championships, earning a trip to the best-of-three title series.
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BREAKING: St. Mary-of-the-Woods College names Dottie King as 16th president
Dottie L. King, Ph.D. has been appointed the 16th president of St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, the board of trustees announced today.
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Ex-Wildcat finds new home at Woods
Many people find “the path of least resistance” as a preferable way to proceed in life. After all, less risk is involved with a sure thing.
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NEW: St. Mary-of-the-Woods College announces academic changes
St. Mary-of-the-Woods College announced today a refocus of its academic programs. An afternoon news conference is under way at SMWC, which posted a notice about the changes on its website, www.smwc.edu.
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Marian holds off Rose women’s second-half charge
Marian University relied on a strong defensive effort to hold off a second half Rose-Hulman charge and earn a 61-52 women’s basketball victory Saturday afternoon.
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Influx of new players has Pomeroys on rise
With a steady influx of “Killer B’s,” the fortunes of the St. Mary-of-the-Woods’ women’s basketball team are once again on the rise.
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Woods soccer goes 1-1, earns national honors
St. Mary-of-the-Woods returned from the United States Collegiate Athletic Association soccer finals with a 1-1 record and a host of national honors.
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Six St. Mary-of-the-Woods teams compete in national tournaments
St. Mary-of-the-Woods College athletics celebrates the end of a phenomenal year during the 2009-10 season as six teams competitively competed in national tournaments.
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Rosselli, other Valley talent leads Woods into national softball tourney
The St. Mary-of-the-Woods softball program is no stranger to national tournaments.
The Pomeroys claimed some form of a national championship in 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008, the last several sanctioned by the U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA). -
St. Mary-of-the-Woods plans Saturday commencement
St. Mary-of-the-Woods College will celebrate its 169th commencement Saturday. Graduation activities will begin at 10:30 a.m. with the traditional baccalaureate mass in the Church of the Immaculate Conception.
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Woods, Rose softball teams split doubleheader
Rose-Hulman and St. Mary-of-the-Woods College split a softball doubleheader that featured the longest athletic contest in history between the two schools on Friday night.
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Ring Day a much anticipated event at The Woods
Ring Day is a much anticipated and special day for most students, but for two St. Mary-of-the-Woods External Degree students in particular it was an especially great experience this year.
- Injury bug bites: St. Mary-of-the-Woods basketball trying to get and stay healthy A myriad of injuries have plagued the St. Mary-of-the-Woods women’s basketball team in recent seasons, forcing the Pomeroys to compete on numerous occasions with just seven, six and sometimes only five players able to play.
- The Woods appoints new vice president for development St. Mary-of-the-Woods College President David G. Behrs has announced the appointment of Serafina I. Spatola as vice president for development.
- St. Mary-of-the-Woods takes fourth in national tournament
- The Woods celebrates 168th commencement More than 140 students are expected to participate in St. Mary-of-the-Woods College’s 168th Commencement Ceremony on Saturday.
- Untold Stories: Film takes unique look ‘Inside Iraq’ At 7 p.m. Monday, St. Mary-of-the-Woods College will present “Inside Iraq: The Untold Stories,” which will include a film showing and discussion with the director of the film, Mike Shiley. The presentation, which will be in the Cecilian Auditorium of the SMWC Conservatory of Music building, is part of the College’s Four-Star series, and it is being co-sponsored by the SMWC Student Activities Committee. The presentation is free and open to the public.
- TH to promote ‘Crossroads of Higher Education’ at Statehouse Terre Haute may lie near Indiana’s western border, but business, education and government leaders want state lawmakers to know that the city that bills itself as the “Crossroads of America” is also the “Crossroads of Higher Education.”
- St. Mary-of-the-Woods College announces budget measures The downturn in the economy is taking a toll at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, where donations to its Annual Fund are down 40 percent, or about $250,000, over the same time last year, college President David Behrs said in a letter to faculty and staff.
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