Ferris’ season comes to an end

HOUSTON – The ending did was hardly the way Ferris State University would have written the script, but the Bulldogs’ Cinderella season finally came to an end.

In a battle of teams facing elimination, top-ranked Lock Haven scored once in the first, fifth and sixth innings to grab a 3-0 win against Ferris to end the Bulldogs’ season at the 2008 NCAA Division II Women’s Softball National Championships at Memorial Park on Friday afternoon. For a team not ranked nationally and just a No. 6 seed in its own region, entering NCAA Tournament play, the Bulldogs fell just a few wins shy of winning the sport’s ultimate prize – a national championship.

In spite of the loss, head coach Keri Becker was upbeat as she emphasized to her team the magnitude of its accomplishment this season – finishing fifth nationally.

“I’m extremely proud of the young ladies on this team. You hate to give a pep talk after a tough loss, like this one, but I wanted them to take the time to appreciate what they have accomplished this season,” said Becker, whose Bulldogs struggled against Lock Haven’s outstanding pitcher, Kristin Erb (seven innings, one hit and two walks). “They needed to take time to appreciate what they had accomplished and look toward the future and what they need to do to be able to get back to this point and maybe beyond this point.”

Offense, expected to be the team’s strength this year, was what let the Bulldogs down during nationals. Ferris managed just two runs (in a 2-0 win over Francis Marion in the opening round) in three games in Houston. Mathematically speaking, it’s challenging to win much scoring only two runs in three games.

“I really feel bad for three people,” said Becker, whose Bulldogs had their season end at the hands of the nation’s No. 1-ranked NCAA Division II team. “I feel bad for Katie (Kraai, Ferris’ lone senior) because we would have liked to have been able to do something to keep her season going for a little longer than we were able to. And, I also feel for our pitchers. I think Holly (Bruntjens) and Sarah (Mueller) have pitched well for us all season and they’ve kept us close in games and that’s all you can ask for from your pitchers. We just needed to give them some more runs for some more support.”

Still, it’s hard to feel too bad at the end of such a special season.

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Becker: A challenge has been issued

HOUSTON – Minutes after Ferris State University’s season came to an end at the NCAA Division II Softball National Championships, head coach Keri Becker brought her team together out beyond the left field fence at Memorial Park.

In that setting, following a 3-0 defeat to Lock Haven that ended Ferris’ season with a fifth-place showing at nationals, Becker challenged her team to build on the successes of the 2008 campaign. The Bulldogs, who finished with a record of 35-18, graduate senior third baseman Katie Kraai, but expect to return the bulk of their team intact with some new additions that will be blended in through recruiting.

“I challenged them (the players) to make it a point to work hard between now and next season to put themselves in a position to be able to get back here,” said Becker, whose Bulldogs fell to a Lock Haven squad ranked No. 1 in the nation. “We know we have the players coming back to be able to put ourselves back in this position and our players know the things that they have to get better at between now and then to get back here and to try to move even beyond what we were able to accomplish this season.”

The 2008 spring campaign was highlighted by Ferris’ first trip to nationals since making back-to-back appearances in 1998 and 1999.

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Bulldogs Showing How Much They Want Success At Nationals

HOUSTON – Who knows how long Ferris State University’s remarkable streak will continue in the NCAA Division II Softball Championships?

Currently, the streak is five games and 43 innings; and, most incredible of all, it has come in the NCAA Division II Softball Championship Tournament.

Wednesday, in its first competition at the NCAA Division II Softball National Championships since 1999, the Bulldogs kept their streak of shutouts alive. Since a disappointing 3-2 loss to Wayne State, in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Softball Tournament, Ferris has regained its focus. In the Great Lakes Regional Championship, in Edwardsville, Ill., the Bulldogs recorded a shutout of Saginaw Valley State, 1-0; another of Lewis, 1-0 in 15 innings; Wayne State, 4-0; and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, 1-0, in the title-clinching victory. Then, on Wednesday at Memorial Park in Houston on day one of the national tournament, Ferris earned a 2-0 win over Francis Marion to keep that streak alive.

“I think we’ve just wanted it and I think that has been the big key to our success (since the GLIAC Tournament),” said Ferris junior pitcher Sarah Mueller, who picked up the win against Francis Marion and also had a couple of hits with a run scored as the Bulldogs improved to 35-16. “I think we’re all focused again and we all just want to win so bad right now so we can keep this season going.”

There also is another motivation for Mueller and so many of the other Bulldogs.

“We want to keep our season going for as long as possible … we just don’t want it to end,” said Mueller, who leads the Bulldogs into today’s (Thursday) second-round NCAA Division II National Softball Tournament against No. 22 St. Edward’s, a first-round winner over Barry. “We don’t want Katie (Kraai, the Bulldogs’ lone senior) to play in her last game. … We want her to play for as long as possible.”

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