.png)
.png)
Softball Inks Five During Early Signing Period
11/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Nov. 19, 2008
TULSA, Okla. - The University of Tulsa head softball coach John Bargfeldt announced today the signing of five high school seniors - Cassidy Bowen, Samantha Cobb, Caitlin Everett, Keri Leach and Kalynn Schrock - to national letters of intent. The five student-athletes will join the team for the 2010 softball season.
"We are excited about the class because it adds athleticism to our team - all five players," Bargfeldt said. "They are also versatile players - players that you can plug in to different positions. We are also excited about the fact that we are balancing out the number of left-handed hitters in our lineup with right-handed hitters. This class is bringing in two left-handed hitters."
Cassidy Bowen is a catcher from Claremore, Okla. A senior at Claremore High School, Bowen played two years for Claremore and two years for Grove High School. In high school, Bowen was a four-year all-conference selection, the conference Player of the Year as a senior, and was named a Tulsa World All-Metro player. She also was an all-region and all-state selection as a senior, and won the Ferguson Jenkins Award. On the field, Bowen hit .400 with six home runs, 28 RBI and 27 runs scored during her senior year. She led Grove to the state finals as a sophomore, where the team finished as runner-up. She is also a Wendy's High School Heisman Athlete, a two-year all-conference basketball player, and was a state qualifier in track and field as a freshman. Bowen plans to major in exercise sports science.
"Cassidy was the first player to commit for us, and she is a catcher by trade," Bargfeldt said. "She is athletic enough that she can play other places in the infield. She has very strong defensive skills and throws very well. She is also exhibiting some power with her bat. We are excited about continuing on a strong legacy of catchers we've had here the last few years. She is somebody who looks like she has the potential to stop the running game, and that is one of the first things I look for in a catcher."
Samantha Cobb is a shortstop from Lakeview Centennial High School in Garland, Texas, where she has been a three-year starter at shortstop and the clean-up hitter for her team, going into the 2009 softball season. As a junior, she was named a first team All-District 10-5A shortstop after hitting .486 with a 1.043 slugging percentage and a .629 on-base percentage. She also led District 10-5A in home runs in 2007 with five dingers and in 2008 with six. She is also 32-for-32 in stolen bases in her three years thus far.
In addition to softball, Cobb plays golf and volleyball, where she has been a four-year starter and team captain for her volleyball squad. In 2008, she was the team's Most Valuable Player in softball, volleyball and golf. Cobb is a member of the Lakeview Senior Class Leadership Team and was awarded the 2008 AAA Award at her school for excellence in academics, athletics and arts. She is enrolled in the four-year television and broadcasting magnet at Lakeview High School, and plans to major in communication in college.
"We project Samantha to play one of our middle infield positions, possibly even third base," said Bargfeldt. "She is a very strong athlete. She has great instincts and is a multi-sport athlete, and you can just see her athleticism as soon as you walk on the field. Offensively, she has shown an awful lot of power at the plate. In the games I have seen her play, she has really good hand-eye coordination and makes good contact."
Caitlin Everett is an outfielder from Forney High School in Forney, Texas. A centerfielder, she was a 2008 all-state selection, first team all-district and second team all Dallas-Fort Worth metro selection. In 2008, Everett hit .588 with two home runs, 15 RBI and 58 stolen bases. She was also a 2007 first-team all-district selection in volleyball. Academically, she is on pace to graduate in the top 5 percent of her class, and plans to go into nursing in college.
"Caitlin Everett is a real centerfield candidate because of her running speed," Bargfeldt said. "I expect her to come in here and probably be the fastest runner on the team. She has converted over to the left side of the plate, and has been making great strides in developing and perfecting a short game in hitting from the left side. We are excited to have her because she is the type of player that we haven't had a lot of since I've been at The University of Tulsa."
Keri Leach is a versatile player from Olympia High School in Stanford, Ill., who has the ability to play either infield or outfield for the Golden Hurricane. In high school, she pitched for her team, leading it to a second place finish in the state finals in 2008, while posting a 32-2 record and a 0.79 earned run average. She also hit .484 with 12 doubles, seven triples, and nine home runs, tallied 46 RBI and carried a .905 slugging percentage. Leach is a two-time Chicago Tribune first team all state and a three-time Illinois Coaches Association all-state selection. She is also a three-time all-conference honoree, a three-time Peoria Journal Star first team all-area selection, and a three-time Lincoln Courier first-team all-area, in which she was also named the 2007 Player of the Year. Leach has carried a 3.5 GPA with high honors throughout high school.
"Keri Leach is a very versatile left-handed power hitter," said Bargfeldt. "We've seen her versatility, in that we have seen her play a number of positions for her summer team, and then she pitched every game for her high school team. We really are bringing her in as a left-handed hitter, and once she gets here we'll find out whether her best spot for our team is going to be in the infield or the outfield."
Kalynn Schrock is a left-handed pitcher from Choctaw High School in Choctaw, Okla. In 2008, she posted a 28-4 record in 209 innings, giving up only eight earned runs with a 0.27 ERA, 340 strikeouts and 20 walks. In addition, she recorded one save, 22 shutouts and two no-hitters. She also hit .391 at the plate. Schrock was named the conference MVP as a junior and a senior, and was a 2008 all-state selection and the 2008 USSSA Nationals Offensive MVP. She was also an all-conference selection as a sophomore and an all-conference honorable mention honoree as a freshman. She plans to major in secondary education.
"We are excited to have Kalynn as a left-handed starting pitcher for us, who is going to add a different element to our staff than what we have," Bargfeldt said. "We haven't had a left-handed pitcher for a while, so that's going to give us an option on that side. We feel like she is strong enough, that she is going to come in and immediately compete with our other two pitchers on staff. She also bats right-handed and has played some at first base."
Tulsa opens the 2009 season Feb. 6-8 at the 2009 Aggie Classic hosted by Texas A&M in College Station, Texas, with its first game at 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 6 against Texas-San Antonio. All Golden Hurricane softball news, results and information is available at www.TulsaHurricane.com.
