Taryn Hensel

The 2005 Wittenberg softball team has gotten off to a rocky start to the season, but there is still plenty of time to turn things around, starting with a North Coast Athletic Conference doubleheader opener at Ohio Wesleyan on Wednesday.

Most recently, the Tigers lost three of four on a weekend trip to Michigan, but they did end up on a positive note as seniorNorah Gillam (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) tossed a complete-game 5-1 victory over Olivet.

The doubleheader split with Olivet put the Tigers at 4-16 at the halfway point of the season.

On Saturday, Wittenberg was defeated by perennial powerhouse Alma, 5-0 and 12-4, as defense once again betrayed the Tigers. Wittenberg's record is somewhat deceiving since the Tigers have played four nationally ranked teams in 2005 and were swept by two of the top teams in the Great Lakes Region in recent weeks (Alma and Bluffton).

Speaking of Bluffton, the Tigers went down to a doubleheader sweep, 2-0 and 2-0, against the Beavers in their home opener on March 30. That doubleheader came after an eight-day layoff. After starting the season 1-9 in the tough SunWest Tournament at Chapman University in Orange, Calif., Wittenberg lost 12-0 and 8-0 to nationally ranked Muskingum on March 19 and then rebounded for victories of 8-0 and 8-2 at Wilmington on March 22.

For the season, the Tigers' leading hitter is senior Ashley Lands (Dover, Ohio/Dover), who has collected 23 hits (22 of them singles) and has a robust .390 average. Batting out of the leadoff spot, Lands leads Wittenberg with a perfect 5-of-5 in stolen bases and she ranks second with 12 runs scored. Four lineup regulars are batting at least .300 this season, including sophomore Stephanie Zorn (Grapevine, Texas/Colleyville), who has the team's only triple and only home run while batting .310 with a team-leading 13 runs scored out of the cleanup position.

The team's pitchers have been victimized by too many defensive lapses. Gillam leads with a 3.00 earned run average and three of the team's four victories. She has allowed 59 hits, 20 walks and 40 runs in 52 innings spanning nine games. But the most important number is 17 unearned runs allowed.

Also of note is the play of freshman Taryn Hensel (Marion, Ohio/Ridgedale), who leads the Tigers with 10 appearances. She has a 1-3 record and an ERA of 4.60. Her pitching performance against Wilmington earned NCAC Pitcher of the Week honors on March 28.