Participating in athletics at the collegiate level can be a difficult undertaking, especially in Division III. With the odds of becoming a professional athlete more than remote, some high school stars make the decision to focus strictly on academics and give up the sports they love.
Natalie Worcester, a former Wellington High softball player and current College of Wooster sophomore, made the choice to hang up her softball cleats and pursue a degree in political science. But after spending a year away from the diamond, Worcester decided she could handle the academic and softball demands.
“I was uncertain on how I would deal with a college sport and the academics,” Worcester said following a recent game. “It’s very challenging at Wooster, so I wasn’t sure of what I was going to do. So far, I’ve been able to manage it. I’m doing my junior independent study, so that’s a little rough, but it’s doable.
“I’m really happy I’m back playing. Last season, when I was off, I just missed it so much and I knew that I could make time for it. I had to do it.”
The Fighting Scots are happy Worcester decided to return. Wooster had a 9-5 record after competing in the 2008 Gene Cusic Classic in Fort Myers, Fla. That’s the best record the Scots have posted on their southern trip since they went 8-7 in 2004. A year ago, Wooster finished with a 6-10 mark on the spring trip.
A five-game losing streak, however, has dropped their record to 11-13, 1-3 in the North Coast Athletic Conference.
 “It’s been very positive,” Wooster coach Lori Schimmel said of the season. “They’re having a good time, a lot of fun, but we’re working hard and that’s the mixture that we’ve been trying to get this season.
“A couple games that we have lost, that’s been the problem. We get down in the dumps a little bit. If the team has a good inning, we can bounce back, too. If we could continue that, then that’ll give us a good season.”
“I think we’re doing great,” Worcester said. “We have the potential to upset some teams that think we’re just a pushover. I definitely could see us making a stance. A lot of people from our previous season don’t really think that we’re much of a team, but we’ve really pulled it together, especially in Florida.”
The spring trip was a chance for Worcester to prove to herself and the team that she was ready for a return to the diamond. While in Florida, Worcester surprised everyone, including herself, with the way she hit the ball. She left with the hope of playing well enough to earn a starting spot and came back with the best slugging percentage in the NCAC.
“I wasn’t really sure how (good) I would be,” said Worcester, who is batting .308, second best on the team, with a home run and 10 RBIs. She also leasds the team in triples (two) and is second in doubles (three).
“I wasn’t sure that I would get that much playing time,” she said. “I didn’t have any expectations of me doing really well, but I knew I just wanted to do it. I figured I’d go out and give it my all and see where it takes me.
“I was so nervous,” she added. “I was really nervous beforehand because every pitch that was pitched, I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, it’s coming to me, it’s coming to me.’ I was
all-around nervous about everything.”
She got over the nervousness quickly.
“She’s definitely come out of nowhere,” said first baseman Katelynn Caywood (Firelands). “She’s a sophomore and she just added to our team this year. It’s definitely been a surprise.”
“She’s worked really hard at it,” Schimmel said. “Within the fall and coming into the winter session, she works hard and that’s all you can ask her to do. It’s been a nice surprise. … She’s still learning the game a little bit. She’ll listen to any constructive criticism that you’re going to give her. She’s a joy to be around so that makes it even that much easier. She’s very coachable.”

News and notes

The Cleveland State Vikings baseball team is 9-12 after Sunday’s 3-2 loss to Wright State at Pipe Yard. Southview graduate John Brown has been in 10 games and earned the start in five. In those appearances, Brown has played solid defense at first base. He has 48 putouts, one assist and just one error.
• Phil Brua is contributing to the Oberlin College baseball team. The freshman from Avon is pulling double duty as a pitcher and catcher. He’s batting .314 with eight walks and nine runs scored. On the mound, he has a 4.50 ERA over eight innings in five appearances. He’s struck out six and walked two.
• Notre Dame College’s baseball team has a strong contingent of Lorain County players on the roster. Elyria’s Dustin Taulbee, a senior shorststop, is leading the team with a .355 average and 10 doubles. He also has 16 runs scored and 10 stolen bases. Mike Wilsey, a senior infielder from Vermilion, has a .347 average with 17 runs scored, a home run and 13 RBIs. Former North Olmsted Eagle and Myers University transfer Ken Fields leads the 10-11 Falcons with a 2.36 ERA. In five starts, Fields is 2-2 with 13 strikeouts in 262/3 innings pitched. Opponents are hitting just .245 against him.
• In three appearances for the Tiffin Dragons baseball team, Elyria native Brandon Tober has posted a 4.76 ERA. He has five strikeouts in 52/3 innings.
• The Bowling Green women’s track and field team started the outdoor season with an impressive showing at the Bluffton Invitational. The Falcons won the meet with 253 total points. Amherst graduate Tiffany Dziak won the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.54 seconds.
• Courtney Zupancic of North Ridgeville is steadily improving as Ohio Northern continues its outdoor track and field season. Zupancic helped the Polar Bears achieve a second-place finish in the Ohio Athletic Conference Split Meet in Wilmington. The forensic biology major earned third place in the shot put (38-03/4) and second in the hammer throw (126-10).
Contact Matt Florjancic at 329-7135 or mflorjan@bw.edu.
 

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