Contact:
Doug Aiken
(714) 997-6900
Release Date: June 4, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Chapman Baseball, Softball Clean House With Postseason Honors
ORANGE – Six Chapman softball players and three baseball players were named to their respective All-West Region teams last month, as a result of highly successful seasons from both teams.
Three baseball players earned All-Region honors led by junior right-hander Jeff Green (Santa Clarita/Valencia High), who posted a record of 11-5 and an ERA of 2.26. The honor is the second such for Green in two years as a Panther. Green became just the fourth 11-game winner in the school’s Division III history and just the second career 20-game winner. The first team selection is his first.
Senior shortstop/relief pitcher Brian Sanders (Placentia/El Dorado High) put the finishing touches on an extraordinary four-year career with a second-team All-Region selection. Sanders, who led the Panthers in home runs (5), runs batted in (37) and total bases (77), also finished 13th in the nation with seven saves as a part-time closer. He struck out 31 batters in 30 innings pitched. Sanders ranks seventh in Chapman’s DIII history with a career .353 batting average and is tied for the school record with 21 career homers. He has been selected to the All-West Region team three times in his career.
Junior right-hander Scott Akamine (Anaheim/Savanna High) earned All-Region honors for the first time in his career, having been selected to the third team. The versatile Akamine, whose primary responsibility was as closer, made several long-inning relief appearances and one start in 2004. He posted a 5-2 record and a 2.74 earned run average and finished seventh in Division III with eight saves. He struck out 69 batters in just 62 1/3 innings.
The Chapman women, who earned their first berth in the NCAA Division III national championship tournament since 2000, had five players named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-West Region second team. Sophomores Kailee Roeser (River Forest, IL/River Forest High) and Meredith Cipolla (Pleasanton/Amador High) each won the honor for the second time in their careers at outfield and first base, respectively. Junior catcher Ashlie Vohs (Las Vegas, NV/Bonanza High) won the award for the first time in her career. Roeser batted .355 with 10 doubles and a pair of home runs, while Cipolla hit .354 with a career-high eight homers and 41 RBI. Vohs had the best year of her career offensively, batting .323 during the regular season with three homers and 20 RBI. She also threw out 9-of-26 would-be base stealers (34.6 percent).
Seniors Brittany Ziegler (Irvine/Woodbridge High) and Melissa Simerlink (Tustin/Tustin High) earned At-Large bids on the second team. Ziegler led the team in 12 offensive categories including average (.450), doubles (18) and home runs (12) and ranked among the top-10 in Division III in RBI per game (1.2) and slugging percentage (.848). Simerlink finished her four-year career on a high-note with career-best numbers in batting average (.373), home runs (7), doubles (10) and RBI (39).
Freshman right-hander Maggie Wilder (Bakersfield/Stockdale High) was named to the All-West Region third team for compiling a team-best 12 victories and striking out 89 batters in 101 innings pitched.
Six players were also named to the first annual All-Independent team, an all-star team comprised of Independent schools across Division III. Ziegler, Simerlink, Cipolla and Wilder were each named first team All-Independent, while Roeser and junior outfielder Keely Starr (El Segundo/El Segundo High) were named to the second team. Starr batted .327 with 40 runs scored and a team-high 17 stolen bases in 2004.
Ziegler was named All-Independent Player of the Year for the offensive
numbers she produced this season, while Wilder was named Co-Freshman of
the Year. Chapman head coach Janet Lloyd, who won her 300th game and guided
the Panthers to their sixth World Series appearance in 10 years, was named
Coach of the Year.
Four Panthers Named To Verizon All-District Teams
ORANGE – Three Chapman baseball players earned Verizon Academic All-District VIII honors for excelling in the classroom as well as on the field in 2003-04. Junior right-hander Scott Akamine, who also earned All-West Region honors, was named to the first team with a 3.68 grade-point average, while majoring in legal studies. Graduate student Brian Sanders, who earned his teaching credential this year while playing out the final year of his four-year baseball career, posted a 3.9 GPA in post-graduate studies and earned All-District honors. Also, senior outfielder Shaun Donahoe (Huntington Beach/Huntington Beach High) was named to the All-District team with an outstanding 3.83 GPA in communications.
Sanders then became the first Chapman baseball player since Pat Stevens in 2000 to earn Verizon Academic All-America honors, as he was named to the third team for his accomplishments on and off the field.
Sophomore first baseman Meredith Cipolla earned Verizon Academic All-District
VIII softball honors for the first time in her career. Cipolla, an All-Region
selection as well, posted a 3.51 grade-point average in political science
to go along with her outstanding numbers on the field and earned second
team recognition.
Chapman Women’s Water Polo Has Two Selected To All-America Team
ORANGE – There were many firsts this year for the Chapman University women’s water polo team, which finished the regular season ranked fifth overall in Division III – the highest final ranking ever for the program. The Panthers, who posted a 17-13 record in 2004, added to that with the announcement that two Chapman players were named to the All-America team for the first time.
Senior driver Allison
Sloane (Stockton/Lincoln High) was named to the Division III second
team following a season in which she led the team in both goals (58) and
assists (36) and finished third in steals (54). Sophomore 2-meter Kristina
Eich (Huntington Beach/Edison High) earned honorable mention to
the All-America team with career-highs in goals (53) and assists (30),
both of which finished second to Sloane on the team. It is the first such
honor for both women. The Panthers have never had more than one player
named to the All-America team.
Crampton Breaks Her Own School Record In Final Track Meet
CLAREMONT – At the season-ending women’s track and field meet in Claremont
on May 15, junior Kelly
Crampton (Livermore/Granada High) set a new school mark in the
3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 12:25.2. Crampton finished third
in the event overall. She shaved nearly 12 seconds off her previous time
of 12:37.1 in 2003. Crampton also holds the school record holder in the
women’s 5K as a member of Chapman’s cross-country team in 2002.
Last Month’s Results
Baseball
| Date | Opponent | Result | Record |
| 5/13 | George Fox (OR)* | L, 1-3 | 28-12 |
| 5/14 | La Verne* | W, 6-2 | 29-12 |
| 5/15 | Trinity (TX)* | L, 2-7 | 29-13 |
Panthers Bounced Early From Regional Playoffs – A 2-1 lead in the ninth inning wasn’t enough to secure a berth in the West Region championship game. That was the advantage Chapman held over Trinity (TX) before the top-seeded Tigers rallied with one out to tie the game in the ninth, then exploded for five runs in the tenth inning to eliminate the defending national champions and earn a date with George Fox (OR) in the regional championship. The Panthers were held to just six hits in the 7-2 loss and both runs were unearned after senior outfielder Shaun Donahoe (Huntington Beach/Huntington Beach High) brought home a run after reaching on a fielding error, then scored on junior first baseman Jason Mooneyham’s (Rancho Santa Margarita/Trabuco Hills High) RBI single in the third. After the Tigers tied the game in the top of the ninth, the Panthers appeared poised to spoil the comeback. Pinch-hitter C.J. Castillo (Seattle, WA/Seattle Prep) led off the bottom of the inning with a double, then advanced to third on a sacrifice, but was stranded there.
In the opening game of the regional tournament, the fourth-seeded Panthers squared off against third-seeded George Fox (OR) in a rematch of last year’s West Region championship game. All-American right-hander Scott Hyde baffled Chapman for nine innings, allowing just six hits and striking out ten batters. Chapman’s lone offensive highlight came in the sixth inning as senior catcher Matt Graves (Glendora/Glendora High) hit a towering solo home run off of Hyde, the 14th of his career. Sophomore left-hander Billy Sulentor (Rancho Palos Verdes/Mary Star High) and senior Brian Sanders (Placentia/El Dorado High) allowed just one base runner over the final four innings in relief, but the damage had been done in a 3-1 defeat. George Fox advanced to the World Series where the Bruins won their first-ever Division III national championship, keeping the trophy in the West Region.
With their backs against the wall, the Panthers got the best outing
of the year from sophomore right-hander Buddy
Klovstad (Orange/El Modena High). Klovstad, who spent the second
half of the season as Chapman’s number-two starter, pitched eight solid
innings of eight-hit, two-run baseball to earn his fifth win. He also struck
out seven batters, tying a career-high. With the effort, Klovstad lowered
his ERA to 1.86 – fourth-best in the school’s Division III history. Chapman
pounded out 15 hits, including a pair of doubles from Jason Mooneyham,
who also drove in two. Klovstad and freshman outfielder Tyler
Dean (North Plains/Century High), who was 5-for-9 in the three
games, each earned All-Tournament honors. The Panthers finish the season
ranked 25th in the ABCA Division III Coaches Poll.
Softball
| Date | Opponent | Result | Record |
| 3/7 | Cal State Hayward* | W, 2-1 | 33-8 |
| 3/8 | East Texas Baptist* | W, 3-1 | 34-8 |
| 3/9 | Linfield (OR)* | L, 0-1 | 34-9 |
| Linfield (OR)* | W, 3-2 | 35-9 | |
| 3/14 | vs. Moravian (PA)# | L, 6-7 (9 inn.) | 35-10 |
| 3/15 | vs. Alma (MI)# | W, 7-6 (15 inn.) | 36-10 |
| 3/16 | vs. Muskingum (OH)# | L, 1-2 | 36-11 |
#National Championships (in Salem, VA)
Panthers Knock-Off Top-Ranked East Texas, Earn A Berth In West Region Championship Game – Senior third baseman Melissa Simerlink’s (Tustin/Tustin High) two-run infield single bottom of the fifth gave the Panthers the lead for good and a win over Division III’s top-ranked ETBU, 3-1. The win put Chapman in the West Region championship game with Linfield needing to beat the Panthers twice on Sunday to keep them from advancing to the national championships. Sophomore right-hander Marissa Becerra (Orange/Mater Dei High), who eliminated the Tigers in last year’s regional tournament with a 1-0 win, continued to baffle East Texas, allowing just seven hits and one unearned run.
Ziegler’s Walk-Off Single Completes Comeback Win, Sends Panthers To The Series – Facing elimination after losing the first of two games to the fifth-seeded “Cinderella” Linfield (OR), the Panthers rallied from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game in the fourth, then won it in the bottom of the seventh on a one-out, bases-loaded single from senior shortstop Brittany Ziegler (Irvine/Woodbridge High). Chapman rallied for a pair of runs in the fourth on an RBI single by freshman designated player Sandra Burns (Anaheim/Canyon High), followed by an RBI double by junior catcher Ashlie Vohs (Las Vegas, NV/Bonanza High). Marissa Becerra picked up the win with fourth and a third shutout innings in relief – her second win of the tournament – and finished with a perfect 0.00 ERA in two games. The regional championship is the sixth for Chapman in the past ten seasons and first since 2000. Becerra, Burns, Ziegler, Melissa Simerlink, junior outfielder Keely Starr (El Segundo/El Segundo High) and freshman pitcher Maggie Wilder (Bakersfield/Stockdale High) each earned All-Tournament honors.
Chapman Goes Overtime While Splitting First Two Games In Salem – The Panthers rode the roller coaster that comes with the pursuit of a national championship in their first two games in Salem, going from jubilation to heartbreak – twice – back to jubilation and finally, just plain exhaustion. The Chapman offense, which struggled in the regional tournament with a .223 batting average, exploded out of the gates in the first game of the World Series, scoring five runs in the first inning versus Moravian (PA). The Panthers made it 6-1 in the bottom of the sixth and needed three outs to advance to the winner’s bracket. Then the wheels fell off. Moravian scored five times in the top of the seventh – only three of which were earned – to tie the game and force extra innings. A run in the ninth inning spelled doom for Chapman, which was left stunned and heartbroken. The Panthers out-hit Moravian, 14-12, including three hits apiece from Brittany Ziegler and Melissa Simerlink.
Chapman struck first again versus Alma (MI) in an elimination game on Saturday, but saw the lead quickly disappear in the third when the Scots scored four runs and took a 4-1 lead. It remained that way until the sixth when the Panther bats livened, tying the score on a two-out, two-run double from Simerlink. The Panthers scored two more runs in the seventh to take the lead, but for the second time in as many days, Chapman blew a seventh-inning lead and the Scots tied the score to force extra-innings. The two teams sparred for the next seven innings without budging. Marissa Becerra, the third CU pitcher of the day, had pitched seven and two-thirds shutout ball heading into the 15th – the second longest game in Division III championships history. Sandra Burns led off the 15th with her team-high third hit of the day and took third on a sacrifice bunt by sophomore second baseman Katherine Searing (Arcadia/Arcadia High) that resulted in a throwing error. After the Panthers loaded the bases with one out, pinch-hitter Kristy Smith (Big Bear Lake/Big Bear High) hit a fly ball to leftfield, deep enough to score Burns with the game-winning run. Becerra shutdown Alma in the bottom of the inning for her third win of the playoffs.
Panthers Eliminated In Another One-Run Affair – As if two extra-inning games in the days prior weren’t enough, the Panthers had to endure a lightning delay that pushed the start of their game with Muskingum (OH) back five hours and ten minutes. When they finally got to playing, it was over as quick as it had begun – one hour and 37 minutes and Chapman was eliminated from the World Series in a 2-1 defeat. The Panther bats, a strength all season – managed just three hits, including doubles from Brittany Ziegler and Melissa Simerlink to give Chapman its only run. The Panthers didn’t get cheated from experiencing “playoff softball” as it was the fifth straight game the Panthers had played that was decided by one run. Six of their seven playoff games were decided by a run. Ziegler was named to the All-Tournament team after hitting .429 (6-for-14) with two doubles and four runs scored.