May 6, 2015
All-Heartland Conference (PDF)
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University softball team placed three players on the All-Heartland Conference First Team thanks to a record-setting offensive explosion in 2015. Recognized for the Beavers were seniors Jess Kuzara (Flat Rock, Mich./Huron) and Ariana Muffo (New Athens, Ill.) along with junior Ashley Knippen (Wapakoneta). Selected to the Second Team were freshmen Josie McElroy (Mt. Orab/Western Brown) and Jessie Madzia (Massillon/Tuslaw). Senior Emily Kolezynski (Strongsville) earned Honorable Mention All-HCAC honors.
Picking up right where she left off following a 2014 campaign that saw her named First Team All-Central Region and First Team All-Heartland Conference as a junior, Jess Kuzara ignited a Bluffton offense that set a school record with 50 home runs this season, 27 more than the previous mark of 23 set in 2013! She topped the Heartland Conference with 43 runs scored which also set a school mark for runs in a season. Her 45 hits and nine homers were both 2nd in the HCAC. In conference contests, Kuzara topped the competition with 24 runs, seven dingers and 49 total bases while her .907 slugging percentage was 2nd in the HCAC. Kuzara's nine homers is 2nd to Lindsey Miller's 11 on Bluffton's single season list. Her 32 RBI this year places her 7th all-time, while her 14 stolen bases is tied for 9th all-time. Defensively, Kuzara added 108 assists which is tied for 4th all-time. Her 84 total bases are 6th on Bluffton's single-season list and her .651 slugging percentage is 7th all-time.
Kuzara's career numbers are even more impressive as the Kathryn E. Little Outstanding Female Athlete is at the top of the record book with 119 runs scored. She has two of the top three single season marks with 43 runs this season and 41 runs scored as a junior. Her 19 homers is just one behind Miller's career mark of 20. Kuzara is 2nd all-time with 102 RBI and 257 total bases. Her 35 doubles and 155 hits are 3rd all-time, while her five triples are tied for 2nd. She played in 152 games (7th all-time), started 144 (8th all-time) and tallied 449 at bats (5th all-time). Her .345 batting average is fifth all-time and her .572 slugging percentage is 4th in the career record book. She was superb at the hot corner, finishing with 292 career assists (5th all-time). She is one of just 11 Beavers to hit two home runs in a game, a feat she accomplished at Rose-Hulman this season. Kuzara earned HCAC Player of the Week honors for her work that week.
Ariana Muffo continued to show the Heartland Conference why she is the best all-around catcher in the HCAC. Muffo, who has earned First Team honors in each of her three seasons of collegiate softball after missing her freshman campaign with a shoulder injury, led the conference with 129 at bats and her 40 runs were second to teammate Jess Kuzara. She was 5th in the HCAC with seven homers while her three triples were 3rd in the conference. Her 40 runs are 4th on Bluffton's single-season list while her seven bombs are tied for 5th. Muffo's 80 total bases are 8th for a season.
The 2014 All-Central Region selection also left an indelible impression on the career record books, starting with a .357 batting average that is 3rd all-time. She slugged .578 (3rd all-time), had an OBP of .423 (8th all-time), scored 103 runs (2nd to Kuzara), ripped 34 doubles (4th all-time), tallied 132 hits (9th all-time), launched 14 long balls (3rd all-time) and drove in 79 runs (7th all-time). Muffo also drew 41 walks (7th all-time), finished with 214 total bases (6th all-time) and stole 29 bases (tied for 8th all-time). Her 399 putouts rank 9th and her .976 field percentage is 12th on the career list.
Junior Ashley Knippen had a breakout season for the Beavers, collecting her first All-Heartland Conference hardware. The standout center fielder did not commit an error in posting a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage! Her six home runs were 7th in the conference and tied her for 7th on Bluffton's single season list. She crossed the dish 30 times (6th in the HCAC) which placed her 13th in Bluffton's record book. A true team player, Knippen led the conference with 10 sacrifice bunts, helping the Beavers set school records of 243 RBI and 274 runs scored. Her two homers against Manchester make her one of 11 Beavers in school history to accomplish this and her five RBI in the same game are 4th all-time for a single contest.
Knippen is 8th all-time with a .335 career batting average and her .525 slugging percentage is 6th all-time. Her 25 two-baggers are 9th all-time while her eight home runs are tied for 10th. She is 12th on the career list with 58 RBI. The two-sport standout, who also starts at goalkeeper for the Bluffton women's soccer team, has stolen 16 bases (tied for 20th all-time) and her .982 fielding percentage is 5th all-time.
Freshman Josie McElroy put up numbers that demonstrated why she was the one of the most feared, and certainly fearless, hitters in the Heartland Conference. Not looking for a free pass, McElroy drove in an HCAC-best 43 runs, including a conference-high 22 in league contests! Her 89 total bases were tops in the HCAC and her nine home runs were 2nd. She scored 26 runs which was 11th in the conference. Her .724 slugging percentage placed her 2nd in the HCAC and she fanned just nine times, the same number of homers she pounded. McElroy went yard twice against Manchester en route to being named the HCAC Hitter of the Week. For her superb efforts the conference coaches selected her Second Team All-HCAC as the Designated Player. She is already tied for 8th all-time with the nine home runs.
Proving to be a versatile weapon both as a starting pitcher and right fielder, freshman Jessie Madzia collected Second Team All-HCAC honors as a hurler. She notched a 2.25 earned run average, 3rd in the HCAC, while her 1.96 ERA in conference contests was second in the HCAC. Her 17 starts were third in the conference, while her eight wins placed Madzia 6th. The 2.25 ERA has her 15th all-time for a single season at Bluffton. Madzia was named the HCAC Pitcher of the Week following a four-day stretch in which she nailed down victories over Olivet, Case Reserve and Rose-Hulman as the Beavers went 6-0! Madzia also smashed five homers (8th in the HCAC) in just 69 at bats.
Senior Emily Kolezynski capped off her career at Bluffton by being named Honorable Mention All-Heartland Conference. Kolezynski finished 10th all-time with just 2.14 walks per seven innings and her 2.68 strikeouts per game are 13th all-time. She amassed 58 appearances (9th all-time) and her .310 career batting average places her 20th all-time.
In conjunction with the All-Heartland Conference awards, the conference has announced the All-HCAC Sportsmanship Team for 2014. This award has been developed as part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative. Members of the All-HCAC Sportsmanship team are selected by the coaches and their teammates as individuals who demonstrate the ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field/court of competition. Kolezynski was also recognized for her sportsmanship this season.
The Bluffton University softball team put together its best offensive season in school history and its defense was also up to the task as the Beavers pounded 50 home runs, eclipsing the previous school mark by 27 dingers! A .330 batting average equaled the 2014 club for the best BA in school history and 20 points higher than the any other year at Bluffton. Bluffton's .551 slugging percentage was nearly 100 points higher than the previous mark of .452 set in 2013. The 2015 Beavers also obliterated school marks with 243 RBI, 621 total bases, 274 runs and 83 doubles while the 26 victories this season was bested only by the 2009 squad that went 30-13. The Bluffton defense turned a school-record 26 double plays and posted an all-time best .958 fielding percentage! Coach Bruder led her squad into a 9th straight Heartland Conference tournament, the only school to accomplish that feat since the tourney went to a limited format!
-BEAVERS-
