{"id":26609,"date":"2024-06-24T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-24T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/?p=26609"},"modified":"2024-06-20T09:08:42","modified_gmt":"2024-06-20T14:08:42","slug":"warhawk-almanac-2008-softball-teams-remarkable-run","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/archives\/26609","title":{"rendered":"Warhawk Almanac: 2008 Softball Team&#8217;s Remarkable Run"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Written by Jacob Ober<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2008, the UW-Whitewater Warhawks softball team made their longest postseason run since 1987 by advancing to the NCAA Division III World Series. This would mark the 13<sup>th<\/sup> overall appearance for the Warhawks softball team in the NCAA Division III tournament.<a href=\"#_ftn1\" id=\"_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a> The Warhawks defeated defending national champion DePauw University in back-to-back games with final scores of 2-1 and 6-2 in the regional round, moving them forward to the championship round. Head Coach Brenda Volk said, \u201cThis team is amazing\u2026There is not just one individual that we rely on. It seems like every game someone different steps us with a big hit or a big play. Every single person on the field and in the dugout has contributed to our success this year and it is a great feeling.&#8221;<a href=\"#_ftn2\" id=\"_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.uww.edu\/images\/library\/blog\/2008_Softball_Promo.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of promotional shot of Warhawk softball players for 2008 NCAA Division III tournament\" height=\"150\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Promotional picture for the 2008 NCAA Division III Softball Tournament, featuring two UW-Whitewater Warhawk players.[3]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>At the start of the championship round, the Warhawks would lose 5-4 to New York-Cortland before notching four straight wins to earn a spot in the World Series Title Game.<a href=\"#_ftn3\" id=\"_ftnref3\">[4]<\/a> The Warhawks advanced thanks to a 2-1 victory over Louisiana College, the number one-seeded team in the tournament. They were led by a stellar performance from starting pitcher Jessica Stang, co-winner of the 2008 WIAC Pitcher of the Year Award, who went the full 7 innings and only allowed one run on seven hits. After falling behind 1-0 in the bottom of the 6<sup>th<\/sup> inning and down to their final three outs, the Warhawks roared back in the top of the 7<sup>th<\/sup> and took a 2-1 lead thanks to a 2-run home run by right fielder Suzanne Gersich, her 12<sup>th<\/sup> of the year.<a href=\"#_ftn4\" id=\"_ftnref4\">[5]<\/a> \u00a0In securing the victory, the Warhawks earned their spot in the World Series Title Game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.uww.edu\/images\/library\/blog\/2008_Softball_2ndPlace.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of 2008 softball team posing with 2nd place trophy\" height=\"150\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">UW-Whitewater 2008 softball team posing for a team photo with the NCAA Division III Runner-Up Trophy.[6]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, the Warhawks\u2019 remarkable run would end in the final game, where they lost to UW-Eau Claire 4-3 in extra innings. Despite getting out to a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning on a home run by Gersich, UW-Eau Claire would strike back to tie the game in the bottom of the 7<sup>th<\/sup>, sending the game into extra innings. In the bottom of the 9<sup>th<\/sup>, UW-Eau Claire slugger Jill Janke hit a 1-1 pitch over the fence for a walk-off home run, ending the Warhawks\u2019 season in heartbreaking fashion.<a href=\"#_ftn5\" id=\"_ftnref5\">[7]<\/a> However, the 2008 Warhawks softball team would be a team to remember, as they set numerous school records, including most runs scored in a season (319), most home runs (68), most RBIs (275), most total bases (751), and most strikeouts (337) and strikeouts per game (6.74).<a href=\"#_ftn6\" id=\"_ftnref6\">[8]<\/a> Individually, center fielder Amy Gahl set a record for most hits in a season (70), a record that would stand for almost a decade before being broken by Mallory Klotz in 2017, who recorded 71 hits.<a href=\"#_ftn7\" id=\"_ftnref7\">[9]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.uww.edu\/images\/library\/blog\/2008_Softball_Trophy.jpg\" alt=\"Members of the 2008 softball team posing with trophy\" height=\"150\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">UW-Whitewater softball players hold the NCAA Division III National Runner-Up Trophy.[10]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Warhawks would return to the NCAA Division III Championship in 2014, although they failed to qualify for the World Series Title Game. No Warhawk softball team has made it to the World Series game since the record-breaking 2008 team. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" id=\"_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> Mike Daly, \u201cWarhawks eliminate No. 1 team to advance to final 8,\u201d <em>The Royal Purple<\/em>, May 14, 2008.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref2\" id=\"_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> Sara Kuhl, \u201cQuest for national championship titles continues for softball, baseball team,\u201d University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Athletics, May 12, 2008, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uww.edu\/news\/archive\/2008-05-softball-baseball-playoffs\">https:\/\/www.uww.edu\/news\/archive\/2008-05-softball-baseball-playoffs<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[3] \u201cWarhawks Earn Spot in World Series Title Game,\u201d University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Athletics, May 19, 2008, <a href=\"https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/news\/2008\/5\/19\/softball_05192008_louisiana.aspx\">https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/news\/2008\/5\/19\/softball_05192008_louisiana.aspx<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref3\" id=\"_ftn3\">[4]<\/a> \u201c2008 Softball Schedule,\u201d University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Athletics, <a href=\"https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/sports\/softball\/schedule\/2008\">https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/sports\/softball\/schedule\/2008<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref4\" id=\"_ftn4\">[5]<\/a> \u201cWarhawks Earn Spot in World Series Title Game,\u201d University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Athletics, May 19, 2008, <a href=\"https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/news\/2008\/5\/19\/softball_05192008_louisiana.aspx\">https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/news\/2008\/5\/19\/softball_05192008_louisiana.aspx<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[6]\u201cWarhawks Finish Second in NCAA Division III Tournament,\u201d University of Wisconsin Whitewater Athletics, May 19th, 2008, <a href=\"https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/news\/2008\/5\/19\/softball_05192008_eauclaire.aspx\">https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/news\/2008\/5\/19\/softball_05192008_eauclaire.aspx<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref5\" id=\"_ftn5\">[7]<\/a> Ibid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref6\" id=\"_ftn6\">[8]<\/a> \u201cSoftball Season Records,\u201d University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Athletics, <a href=\"https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/sports\/2024\/5\/2\/softball-season-records.aspx\">https:\/\/uwwsports.com\/sports\/2024\/5\/2\/softball-season-records.aspx<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref7\" id=\"_ftn7\">[9]<\/a> Ibid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[10] \u201c2007-08 athletics year in review,\u201d <em>The Royal Purple<\/em>, August 27, 2008.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Written by Jacob Ober In 2008, the UW-Whitewater Warhawks softball team made their longest postseason run since 1987 by advancing to the NCAA Division III World Series. This would mark the 13th overall appearance for the Warhawks softball team in &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/archives\/26609\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17710,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[318635],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26609","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archives-arc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26609","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17710"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26609"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26609\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26617,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26609\/revisions\/26617"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uww.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}