Season Review: Softball caps stellar 2022 season with second straight NCAA Tournament berth

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — With COVID-19 issues forcing a withdrawal from the NCAA Tournament, sixth-year head coach Jackie Price described the end of the Ohio Northern softball team's 2021 season as "devastating." The Polar Bears returned in 2022 intent on qualifying for the national tournament yet again and did just that in what was a stellar season.

"We had a really good season," Price said. "We started off a little slow, but we found our groove when conference play started. We had a lot of younger players step up this year, which helped us out a lot. We're continuing to make a lot of good strides with this program."

The Polar Bears were 13-2 in games played on their home field in 2022 and finished the season at 24-11 overall, including a 16-2 mark in the Ohio Athletic Conference. It was the program's ninth straight winning season.

Northern got out to an inauspicious start with a 4-6 record through its first 10 games but rebounded to go 20-3 in a closing stretch that included its 11th OAC Regular Season championship and seventh OAC Tournament title.

"We were phenomenal in the OAC Tournament," Price said. "Being able to host really helped us out, and we came out ready to go, and we were playing to our highest ability."

As OAC Tournament champions, the Polar Bears earned their second consecutive berth in the NCAA Tournament, and they garnered a No. 24 ranking in the Division III National Fastpitch Coaches Association's final regular season poll on May 10.

ONU opened the 2022 NCAA Tournament with a tight 5-4 loss in nine innings to regional host Millikin (Ill.), which closed the year ranked No. 9 in the national poll, and was subsequently eliminated with a 4-1 defeat to Alma (Mich.).

"Going into regionals, we lost some of our fire from the conference tournament," Price said. "We played well, but we weren't who we were in the OACs. It was tough to lose those two games when we felt like we could have won that region."

Northern closed the year just outside the top 25 in the NFCA poll, receiving eight points to sit in the 26th spot.

The Polar Bears' team success was accompanied by a number of individual accolades. Freshman pitcher Ashley Lenser (Brookville) and sophomore catcher Kaylie Griffin (Grafton/Elyria Catholic) led the way, earning a spot on the NFCA All-Region VII Second Team.

Lenser, a two-time OAC Pitcher of the Week award winner in 2022, was also named to the All-OAC First Team as the conference's Pitcher of the Year and Rookie of the Year in addition to being selected to the All-OAC Tournament Team.

Lenser is ONU's third Pitcher of the Year honoree all-time, joining two-time winner Kirsten Lightel ('15, '18), and is the program's fifth Rookie of the Year award winner and first since Kylie Asmus in 2016. She finished the season with a 12-4 record, 1.46 ERA, two saves and a 74-to-11 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 110.1 innings spanning 18 appearances in the circle, including 14 complete games. She posted six shutouts, including a no-hitter at Muskingum on April 15, and was also productive at the plate, batting .307.

Lenser finished the season with the best ERA in the OAC and the ninth-best single-season ERA in program history. She also led the conference in complete-game outings, tied for third in wins and ranked ninth in strikeouts.

"Ashley did a phenomenal job for us this year. She's a great person who works really hard," Price said. "It was good to see her grow throughout the year and come out and take care of business without any fear despite being a freshman. She went out and made a name for herself and was a huge part of why we were so successful this year."

In her first season as a starter, Griffin started 32 games, primarily at catcher, and led the team in batting average (.411), runs (32), hits (44), home runs (6) and RBIs (27) and tied for the team lead in doubles (7) and triples (1). She ranked third in the OAC in batting average, fourth in home runs, fifth in runs, tied for ninth in hits and 10th in RBIs.

Griffin joined Lenser on the All-OAC First Team and All-OAC Tournament Team this season. She is a career .387 hitter through 42 games at ONU.

"Kaylie didn't get to play much as a freshman, and she came out and proved herself this season," Price said. "She's one of those players who steps up in big moments, and when the pressure is on, that's who you want up to bat. She handles any situation phenomenally, and she takes control of everything when she's on the field. She had a phenomenal year and was a huge part of why we were so successful."

Another All-Conference First Team selection, junior third baseman Sydney Motylinski (Ida, Mich.) batted .277 with five doubles, one triple and one home run as part of her 26 hits in 33 games this season. She scored 14 runs and tied for second on the team with 17 RBIs. An All-OAC Second Team selection in 2021, Motylinski is a career .322 hitter with 76 hits, including 13 doubles, two triples and 12 home runs, to go with 53 RBIs in 77 games.

Senior outfielder Rachel Hish (Gainesville, Va./Patriot), junior pitcher Allie Bican (Solon) and senior shortstop Lauren Renner (Columbus/Hilliard Bradley) were also All-OAC honorees this season. Hish and Bican were named to the Second Team, and Renner was an Honorable Mention pick who was also selected to the All-OAC Tournament Team.

Hish had a team-best 10 steals, which was tied for ninth in the OAC, and ranked third on the team in batting average (.311), runs (19) and hits (32) in 35 games played. She joined ONU's 100-Hit Club this season and closed the year with a career .328 average. An All-OAC First Team and All-OAC Tournament Team selection in 2021, Hish has 118 career hits with four doubles, three triples, 22 RBIs, 70 runs scored and 18 steals in 126 games at ONU.

Bican paired with Lenser to form a potent tandem in the pitching circle for Northern in 2022. She finished second to Lenser in the OAC with a 2.10 ERA and was 6-1 with one save and 41 strikeouts over 53.1 innings spanning 10 appearances, including seven starts and five complete games. Bican's junior season was highlighted by her five-inning no-hitter against John Carroll on April 29. Through three seasons at ONU, she is 12-10 overall with a 2.97 ERA in 172 innings over 34 appearances, including 24 starts. She ranks 11th all-time at ONU with 159 strikeouts in her career.

Renner ranked second on the team with a .320 batting average and was tied for second with 17 RBIs in 2022. She tallied 31 hits, including six doubles and a home run, in 33 games played. An Honorable Mention All-OAC and OAC All-Tournament Team selection in 2021, Renner is a career .327 hitter with 18 doubles, one triple and four home runs as part of her 84 hits to go with 41 RBIs and 38 runs scored in 83 games.

The OAC also recognized Price and assistant Erica Cross as the 2022 Coaching Staff of the Year. That marked the second such honor for Price and her staff, who also earned the award in 2018.

Other standouts this season included seniors Hannah Rubel (Swanton/Notre Dame), Abby Elliott (Loveland/Ursuline) and Stacey Walters (Sunbury/Big Walnut).

Rubel was selected to the All-OAC Tournament Team and finished the year with a .302 batting average and 32 hits, including four doubles, to go with 16 RBIs in 34 games. In 110 games over four seasons at ONU, she has a .277 average with 11 doubles and one triple as part of 83 hits to go with 47 RBIs and 39 runs scored.

Elliott joined Hish as a member of ONU's 100-Hit Club this season, and they are tied for 29th all-time with 118 career hits. An All-OAC Second Team selection as a freshman, Elliott batted .283 this year and tied Griffin with a team-high seven doubles. She ranked second on the team with 32 hits, 26 runs scored and two home runs while also adding a triple, 12 RBIs and three steals in 34 games played. Over 125 games in her four seasons at ONU, Elliott boasts a .307 average with 22 doubles, six triples and three home runs along with 58 RBIs and 74 runs scored.

Walters was 4-3 in eight starts spanning 41 innings in the circle for ONU in 2022. She pitched three complete games and posted a 3.41 ERA with 41 strikeouts. A Second Team All-OAC selection as a junior, Walters is 24-12 in 47 career appearances, including 38 starts, with a 3.95 ERA over 237.2 innings in her four seasons at ONU. She ranks 10th all-time with 162 strikeouts in her career.

Price offered high praise for her 2022 senior class of Walters, Rubel, Renner, Hish and Elliott.

"This year's senior class has been great," she said. "All of them really bought in and led this program, and they've been integral to our success the past few years."

The Polar Bears also shined in the classroom this season, as eight players earned Academic All-OAC recognition. That list included Rubel, Renner, Hish, Walters, Elliott, junior Annika Murray (Hilliard/Bradley) and sophomores Alex Daum (Wapakoneta) and Marika Johnson (Columbus/Worthington). This marked the third such honor for Hish, Walters and Elliott and the second for Rubel, Renner and Murray.

Looking ahead, the Polar Bears are aiming to continue their recent run of success in the 2023 season.

"I'm excited to see what we can do next season. We lose quite a few starters, which will hurt us, but the younger kids that stepped up this year and some of the incoming freshmen we have coming in will help fill that void," Price said. "We should be battling to win the conference tournament and go to regionals again next season. I'm really excited about the future of our program."