Pair of university softball players HCAC Players of the Week
A pair of Bluffton University softball players were honored for their work on the diamond in Florida over the past week. Juniors Jess Kuzara (Flat Rock, Mich./Huron) and Chloe Shell (Covington) led the Beavers to an 8-2 mark at the Gene Cusic Classic and were named HCAC Hitter of the Week and Pitcher of the Week, respectively.
Jess Kuzara provided the punch for Bluffton's lineup as the Beavers went 8-2 in Florida. She finished the week 12-of-28 for a team-best .429 batting average. The third baseman led the team with 10 RBI, 12 runs scored, 12 hits, seven walks and a home run. She also paced the team with 6-of-6 on stolen bases, a .607 SLG percentage and a .528 OBP.
Chloe Shell did the job in the circle for the Beavers, going 4-2 in her six Florida starts. She finished the week with a 1.62 ERA in 30.1 innings of work. Shell fanned 22 batters while tossing three complete games. She got stronger as the week went on, throwing a Thursday no-hitter against St. John Fisher, a team that earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament a year ago, before limiting Salem State to two runs, none earned, on Friday in her final game at the Gene Cusic Classic.
Bluffton's Wednesday game scheduled for Adrian has been canceled and the site of Saturday's contest, slated for Trine, will be determined later in the week. Check the Bluffton University softball page for updates.
Stories Posted This Week
Thursday, October 15, 2026
- DeWine announces $200M Rural Health Transformation program award
- Herb program with Marge Lafollette, Oct. 15
- Prairie seeding activity at Bluffton University, October 24
- Food for thought: Choline for the brain
- Results for 5K on October 2, Bluffton University Homecoming event
- 15 minutes with Sherry Miller, senior center activities coordinator
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
- Ada Icon headlines, October 14
- CANCELLED Main St. closure on October 15
- Frederick Clyde Warren founded True-2-Form Plastics
- October 15 Bluffton Schools athletics lineup, streaming
- Pirate boys soccer beats Wapak in regular season finale
- Pirate girls soccer defeats Liberty Center
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- Bluffton University earns recognition in U.S. News & World Report rankings
- Obituary for Deborah "Debbie" Welch, 74
- Spirits and exorcism presentation during University Spiritual Life Week Forum
- Dodging bullets: Bluffton oral history 90+ years after Dillinger robbery
- Nora Matthews named BHS Student of the Month for September 2026
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Tuesday, October 13, 2026
- Ada Icon headlines, October 13
- Bluffton area Women in Business meeting October 15
- Leo club glasses collection
- Night at the (Swiss Historical) Museum, October 24
- Woodcarving ornament workshop at Swiss Heritage Center
- Barefoot nature walks at the Nature Preserve
- Pirate volleyball seeded 4th
- Beavers sports roundup, October 6-11
- Bluffton leaf pickup scheduled for last week of October
- Pirate boys soccer shuts out Bellefontaine
- Watch an after school movie at the Bluffton Public Library
- Dunlap awarded OSBA humanitarian award