Two varsity coaching positions for fall sports programs at Hilliard Darby High School were filled last week. Athletics director Chad Schulte announced the hiring of Liz Rundio as the varsity girls volleyball coach and Jonathan Ulry as the varsity boys soccer coach.
"I can't stress enough how excited I am about coming back to Darby since it's where I first started," Rundio said.
Rundio was a former varsity assistant at Darby before spending the last two seasons in the same role at Watterson. Though she was a varsity assistant with Watterson, Rundio spent most of last season at the helm of the team as head coach Chuck Gleich battled health issues. She helped lead the Eagles to a 16-10 record and a district runner-up finish.
"Liz did a fantastic job at Watterson," Schulte said. "She had experience here and head coaching experience. She also played volleyball herself and was looking for all the same things we are."
Rundio said her main concern is building Darby back into a winner.
"It's been a bit rough for Darby the last couple years, so to come in as a new coach you have to set high standards and expectations," Rundio said. "You want to build a strong program with commitment and have the girls excited about playing volleyball."
Rundio takes over for Megan Ballinger, who resigned because of family reasons and time concerns. Ballinger coached Darby the last two years. Last season the Panthers finished 2-17 overall and were sixth at 0-10 in the OCC-Central Division.
Ulry replaces Brad Fouts, who spent the last five years at Darby. Fouts resigned in March. Ulry also serves as the girls lacrosse coach. Last season, Darby was 6-10-3 overall and sixth at 0-4-1 in the OCC-Central.
Ulry spent last fall coaching the girls program at Reynoldsburg where he led the Raiders to a 4-9-4 overall record, including a 1-3-2 mark in the OCC-Ohio. The previous year he served as a varsity assistant and junior varsity coach for the Westerville North boys program.
"The transition to coach two sports has always been appealing to me," Ulry said. "I've always wanted to coach a boys soccer program at the Division I level, so when the position became opened I applied."
Ulry said his main goal will be getting the Panthers back to the level they were at in 2007 when they tied for the league title.
"The last couple years have been a struggle," Ulry said.
Both programs want to increase their numbers. The opening of Bradley saw both the volleyball and boys soccer teams lose more than 50 percent of their players with the student-athletes being reallocated into the new school districts.
"I think the main thing is you want to be involved with the middle school and club programs around the area," Ulry said. "You want to create an awareness of what the program is doing."
The New Albany High School softball team has six games over the next seven days, including three OCC-Capital Division contests that could determine whether the Eagles will continue their march toward the league championship.
New Albany plays host to Delaware today in a league game before playing host to Dublin Coffman and Westerville Central on Saturday. The Eagles return to league play Monday at Mount Vernon.
After playing Tuesday at Worthington Kilbourne, they have a league game Wednesday at home against Hilliard Bradley.
Delaware, Bradley and Mount Vernon appear to be the Eagles' main competition in the OCC-Capital, as all three joined New Albany in the top half of the league standings before last Monday.
The Eagles aren't overlooking any opponents, but they are eyeing their rematch with Bradley on Wednesday. Entering play last Monday, Bradley was the only undefeated team in the league.
The Jaguars are led by pitcher Kellie Roudabush, who led Hilliard Darby to a Division I state semifinal appearance last year. On April 5, Roudabush allowed just two hits in Bradley's 7-0 win over the Eagles.
"I think against Bradley we were a little unfocused last time," catcher Tiffany Goodrich said. "We dug ourselves in a hole and we know we can't do that against them. We're ready to play them again."
"I think we were a little too excited," first baseman Krystal Clark said. "We should've been more focused."
Coach Patrick Finn said the final score was somewhat misleading.
"The box score doesn't tell the true tale about how we played defense," Finn said. "Only two of their hitters got after us and we kept everybody else in check. We had 11 strikeouts and Roudabush struck out 11, so we matched her. But she got a hold of some balls when she was batting and produced quite a few of their runs.
"We learned a lot from that game. I think we were a bit tentative going against (Roudabush). We need to be more aggressive against a pitcher like that."
New Albany will lean on its bats during the coming stretch. Scoring runs has been a strength for the Eagles going back to last year and they are excelling at the plate again. Before last Monday, Jenna Greenberg led the team with a .583 batting average, Clark was batting .538 with four RBI, Goodrich was batting .462 with a team-high five RBI and seven runs and Lindsey Medich was batting .286 with six runs.
In a 10-3 win over Watkins Memorial on April 7, the Eagles collected 17 hits, with both Clark and Goodrich going 3-for-4 with one RBI.
Though Finn had expected New Albany to score a lot of runs, he said a small lineup adjustment for the Watkins Memorial game might have made the lineup stronger. Finn moved Medich, who had been batting in the middle of the lineup because of her power, to leadoff.
"Lindsey was one of our power hitters, but she's got good speed and she's been getting on base quite a bit," Finn said. "Our first two batters were lefties and they were just hitting the ball right at the defense, so we decided to move things around and had great production with it."
At a glance
Below are the recent results and coming schedule for the New Albany softball team:
*April 7 -- Defeated Watkins Memorial 10-3
*Last Friday -- Def. Olentangy Orange 5-1
*Last Monday -- Def. Franklin Heights 4-3
*Last Wednesday -- Played Big Walnut
*Today -- Home vs. Delaware
Saturday -- Home vs. Dublin Coffman and Westerville Central
*Monday -- At Mount Vernon
Tuesday -- At Worthington Kilbourne
*Wednesday -- Home vs. Hilliard Bradley
Of note: The Eagles were 5-1 overall and 3-1 in the OCC-Capital before last Wednesday.
*OCC-Capital contest
It's not unusual for high school coaches to struggle with the added pressures of keeping up with a career and raising a family.
Dublin Scioto High School girls basketball coach Todd Hardesty began to sense that this season.
"We made it work this past winter, but by the time it was over I was spent and I didn't know at the end if I had done a good enough job as a dad, a coach or a math teacher," he said.
With three daughters playing basketball, the oldest a freshman at Olentangy, Hardesty, 43, knew the time had come to spend more time in the stands as opposed to on the bench.
As first reported on ThisWeekSports.com last week, Hardesty announced his resignation after guiding the Irish to a finish of 15-6 overall and a share of the OCC-Cardinal Division title, the program's fifth in a row.
It was the first time since 2003-2004 that Scioto failed to reach a Division I district semifinal following a 44-39 loss to Pickerington Central in the second round of the tournament.
"I hate to see him go, but he's doing it for the right reasons," athletics director Kip Witchey said. "We've had a great run over the past several years, and I think it will be an attractive position. We'd like to have it filled before school lets out."
This isn't the first time Hardesty has left the program. He resigned in 2000 after the team went 24-82 in its first five seasons.
When he returned in 2002, he built a program that's become one of the best in the area with a Division I district championship and regional final appearance in 2007 and three district final appearances.
In those eight years, Scioto went 142-42 and lost just eight league contests in the last six seasons.
In 2007, the Irish finished atop the state poll with an undefeated regular season (20-0). That year Hardesty was honored as Coach of the Year by the state coaches association.
In 2006, he was the Associated Press Coach of the Year.
District 10 named him Coach of the Year in 2006 and 2007.
"Those last eight seasons have really been a great ride for us," Hardesty said. "I think we could put ourselves up against just about any Division I program. We were certainly knocking at the door. It certainly starts and ends with all the great players we've had."
Among those great players is Crystal Murdaugh, the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,197 points. She is playing for North Carolina A&T this season in Greensboro.
This year's senior class left with four consecutive OCC championships and a record of 75-11.
"He's one of those coaches who you know cared about every single player," senior Lindsey Kell said. "I was one of his students so I knew him on and off the court. Every year, he told us we could go as far as we wanted to go. He had a lot of faith in his players and he always backed us up."
Hardesty hasn't ruled out a returned to coaching, but next season he'll simply be a dad.
"I'm well aware I could go back to it one day," he said. "But right now I'm going to be wearing more blue and gold (Olentangy's school colors). But in my heart, obviously, it will be green and silver for a long, long time."
The Marysville High School softball team doesn't consider it just one season. It plays three.
"There's Florida, where we go down and see who's going to play where," coach Chris Shirer said. "Then we come back and start our OCC season, and we try to win a championship. And when that's done, we gear up for the (district) tournament."
After mixed results in Florida, the Monarchs are in the thick of things in the OCC-Cardinal Division. They are 10-4 overall with only one conference loss, a 5-4 setback to Olentangy Liberty on April 5.
They led 4-0 heading into the fifth inning before a Liberty rally.
"We're kind of searching right now," Shirer said. "There are days when we hit the crap out of the ball. There are days when we don't play any defense. There are days when we play great defense.
"So, I'd guess consistency. That's what we're looking for."
The Monarchs are 3-1 in the OCC-Cardinal and have made a habit of winning close games. They've won five of their last seven games. Four of those five wins are by two runs or less, and both losses are by one run - Liberty and 1-0 to Upper Arlington on April 10.
"The 1-0 loss to UA, we just didn't take care of the ball," Shirer said. "We get the bases loaded to get the force out, but what do we do the next pitch? We throw it in the dirt, wild pitch, 1-0.
"I'm waiting for them to come together as seniors."
Senior pitchers Dani Steepe and Chelsea Burns haven't been as successful as expected. Steepe was first-team all-district in Division I last year with a 0.87 ERA when the Monarchs won an OCC-Cardinal title.
"Dani has struggled a bit this year," Shirer said. "She has a 1.05 ERA and Burns has a 1.85 ERA. Again, we harp on them. They have to hit their spots.
"They can't throw wild pitches with bases loaded and things like that."
Marysville isn't hitting as well as it would like, either. A 13-0 drubbing of Westerville is more of an aberration than the norm for a team after seniors Shelby Allmon, Paige Thompson and Lindsay Hershberger all hit over .300 last year.
"We're hitting .261 as a team, and that's not a Marysville team," Shirer said. "We're usually around .300 or .325."
This isn't what Marysville expected at the midway point of the OCC-Cardinal. However, the Monarchs feel their OCC and district championship hopes remain alive.
The Monarchs play Dublin Scioto on Monday before kicking off the second round of the conference on Wednesday at Olentangy Liberty.
"Right now we're just focused on the OCC. That's it," Shirer said. "Our schedule will prepare us for the district. That's another mindset. That's when we'll go into our third season."
Columbus Dispatch does an excellent Q&A with Grove City Senior and Ole Miss bound pitcher Mike Mayer,
• Age: 18
• Class: Senior
• Grade-point average: 3.95 (National Honor Society)
• Sports: Football, basketball and baseball
• College: Mississippi (Will be a baseball pitcher on scholarship and will major in business)
Question: How many people spell your name "Meyers"?
Answer: Just about everybody who doesn't know me. A lot of colleges got my name wrong. Most people I don't even correct. My mom will say something and then they'll start pronouncing it and spelling it correctly.
Q: You are going to be playing in the Southeastern Conference. That's a pretty good league. Which teams that recruited you got the bad news?
A: There was Toledo, Ohio State, Wake Forest, Tennessee, N.C. State and Kent State. I chose Mississippi because my goal is to play in the College World Series, and I think I have the best shot there. Toledo was the hardest school to tell them no because I really liked the coaches.
Q: When did you visit Mississippi?
A: I went at the end of July with my mom. My dad couldn't come because it was a week or two before the school levy and he was in charge of things. I got offered a scholarship and knew it was the place for me as soon as I stepped on campus. I waited for my dad to go down before committing because he has been a big part of my athletic career.
Q: You are going to be the Yankee.
A: The lifestyle is different. You don't see the huge buildings. Oxford is small. The food is definitely different, and there isn't too much of it that I don't like. I love the seafood, especially the fried catfish. There are no Applebee's or Charley's. They are all mom-and-pop places. It's different, too, because all the girls get dressed up for football games. I've been told there have been more Miss Americas than Heisman Trophy winners from Ole Miss. It's four to two.
Q: How traumatic was it when the school levies failed and extracurricular activities were done away with last fall?
A: Grove City is a pretty good athletic school, and you come to all the games when you are little and dream of playing on that football field. It was my senior year and football was taken away. It was someone else's choice that I wasn't going to play. I didn't go to other games.
Q: Coach Ryan Alexander said you did a lot for the levy passage.
A: A lot of people tell me they saw me in Sports Illustrated and on ESPN and CNN. When you're a kid, you want to be in SI. But I talked to all those people for all the wrong reasons.
Q: You are a veteran in front of the camera.
A: The hardest part was after the levy failed and not speaking how I really felt. I didn't want to get into trouble. I was nervous at first. Then it became natural. It actually was easy because I cared so much about what I was talking about. People don't think we need things inside the school because we have great teachers and our test scores are so high. But you have to keep up.
Q: How crazy was it the night the levy passed?
A: I got two hours' sleep. It was an exciting day, but a long day. We didn't know it would pass until really late. We were in the church across the street watching the results. We were losing by 2,000 votes the whole night and then we came back. We had to wait even longer when a (voting) machine broke down.
Q: What do you do in your off time?
A: I hang out with friends and watch Ohio State games, Clippers games and high school games. It doesn't matter what sport. I don't really get into TV except for ESPN, ESPN2 and the MLB Network. I'm not a big music guy.
Q: What are you thinking in the dugout between innings? Most teams leave their pitcher alone.
A: You don't think about pitches you threw that were hit. You try to learn from them. You go over the hitters that are coming up. You say, "He struck out the last time on the inside fastball. Maybe I'll throw it again." I'll talk to the catcher, coaches and people who keep the books. I want information. The guy at the end of the bench might have played against one of the other hitters.
Q: This was your last high school spring-break trip to Florida for baseball. Any pranks?
When Heather Miller's parents, Jeff and Cherie, took her to the doctor for an eye exam shortly before her fourth birthday, it was expected to be a routine checkup before the start of preschool.
That's when Miller was diagnosed with optic nerve hypoplasia, a medical condition in which a person's optic nerve is small, pale and missing several fibers.
In Miller's case, she is legally blind in both eyes, with a corrected central vision of about 20/250 and very little peripheral vision.
Cherie Miller said people often are impressed and amazed to see her daughter compete in track and field against athletes without physical disabilities.
As a member of the Hilliard Darby High School girls track and field team, the freshman throws the shot put and discus and runs the 200 meters and other middle-distance races.
"She's our miracle child," Cherie Miller said. "When Heather was diagnosed, her doctor said that she could have also had trouble with her speech, hearing or mobility, so we consider ourselves very fortunate. I'm extremely appreciative that God gave me as close to a regular child as he could and that Heather's able to do so many of the things that she loves."
Miller already has earned the attention and respect of several of her teammates, including senior hurdler Xerina Hughey, a Miami University recruit.
"I think she's amazing," Hughey said. "I give her major props, because I've seen her run and she's good. If I had the same vision problems, I don't know if I could do what she does."
Despite her limited vision, Miller never shied away from participating in a wide variety of sports with her friends and classmates as a youth, including floor hockey and gymnastics. She began running in the Lions Club's annual track and field meet for blind and visually impaired children when she was 8 years old, and she competed for the Memorial Middle School team as a seventh- and eighth-grader.
"It's hard to have a disability, but I do everything I can to move on and make sure it doesn't hold me back," Heather Miller said. "It's cool to hear people tell me I'm very good at track and field even though I do have a disability."
When she runs on a sunny day, Miller has to wear sunglasses to reduce the glare of the sun so she can see the running lanes on a track with more clarity. If the lines that mark the running lanes are faded, she looks for the athletes running next to her and listens to the noise they make to help her maintain her lane.
Miller starts races from a standing position, but she recently has started learning how to use starting blocks.
In her first high school meet April 6 at Worthington Kilbourne, she finished the 200 in 39.66 seconds.
"The toughest thing about starting blocks is to get my footing down without falling, because the vision in my left eye is worse than my right eye," she said. "But I'm starting to learn to use blocks, because they can be a big help in getting out to a good start."
Running sometimes has led to painful consequences for Miller. Four years ago, she broke two of her front teeth after running into a metal pole on a playground while running away from a friend. Last year while running the 200, she collided with a girl who unexpectedly stepped into her lane.
"I've run into many things and many people over the years, so I don't get worried about it," she said. "I feel safe running track, because I trust that everyone will stay in their lanes, because no one wants to get disqualified."
Throwing the shot put and discus also comes with some unique challenges for Miller, who is 5-foot-4 and 107 pounds.
She isn't able to use spin techniques in either event for fear of losing her sense of direction and throwing out of bounds. Instead, she uses her feet to feel where the edge of the throwing circle ends and then uses a glide technique. On April 6, Miller threw the shot put 13 feet, 1/4 inch and threw the discus 35-9 1/4.
"Once I put my foot up against the metal ring that surrounds the throwing area, I know in my head where the lines are and I just follow my instincts," she said.
Miller's biggest fear about competing in the shot put or discus is hitting someone who is too far away for her to see. Last year, she came close to hitting a Memorial assistant coach with the discus during a practice.
"That's the one thing I worry about," she said. "I thought I heard my coach walk off the field and I almost hit him because I couldn't see him. I never want that to happen again."
Darby girls track and field coach Don Seymour said Miller has fit in well with the rest of his athletes. "Heather competes so well I wouldn't even know she has a disability if no one would have mentioned it," Seymour said. "She's very energetic and she seems pretty confident. She's a nice young lady who is eager to work hard and improve because she wants to be successful."
Miller also is a member of Darby's astronomy and Spanish clubs and sings in her school's concert choir. She enjoys creating pottery and already had eight poems published in school newsletters before arriving at Darby.
Miller is planning on attending college and is interested in eventually pursuing a career in a medical field. But she said competing in track and field has given her an extra special sense of accomplishment.
"It feels good to show people that I can overcome (my disability) the way I have, and it feels good to be a part of our team," she said. "I'd love to improve enough to be able to compete in a (varsity) invitational someday, and I'd love to see us win our first OCC championship before I graduate."
With her team trailing host Olentangy 6-0 in the first half on April 6, Hana Abu-Kwiek, a junior midfielder for the Olentangy Orange High School girls lacrosse team, watched a steady stream of Pioneers fans heading for the exit.
That just might have been the inspiration Orange needed, as the Pioneers cut their deficit to 8-5 by halftime before rallying for a 13-12 OCC-Ohio Division victory.
Abu-Kwiek scored four goals, including the winner with 41 seconds remaining, as the Pioneers posted their second win over Olentangy.
"Something made that trigger in us go off," Abu-Kwiek said. "We beat them last year and we knew we had to come out and play really awesome to pull it off."
Offensively, Orange is well ahead of where it started last year. In the first seven games last year, the Pioneers averaged 5.1 goals a game, which included being shut out 19-0 by New Albany. In the first four games this year, that average has jumped to 11.3.
"(As a first-year team) we had to start cold last year," coach Jaime Miller said. "This year the girls are starting to get the hang of working together.
"That game (against Olentangy) might be a source of inspiration for them. I know we'll continue to fight even if we're six goals down."
The Pioneers expect to be tested on Saturday when they face Evanston (Ill.) Township at 2 p.m. and Massillon Jackson at 5 p.m. at the annual Hannigan-Galipault tournament at Thomas Worthington.
"It's a great opportunity for our team," said Miller, whose team lost to Gates Mills Hawken 7-2 and Libertyville (Ill.) 7-3 at the event last year. "We get to play two teams we don't normally get to see and observe other teams. They need to go watch games and see what works and doesn't work and then incorporate that into their game."
• Olentangy coach Alicia Linden hopes her team can shake off the loss to Orange and get back on track defensively.
"This one is going to take a little while to get over," Linden said.
"This game meant so much to our team. A lot of our girls played with their players (before Orange opened prior to the 2008-09 school year)."
The Braves were allowing an average of 13.3 goals in their first three games. They visit Westerville North today before participating Saturday in the Hannigan-Galipault tournament, where they will face West Chester Lakota West at 10 a.m. and Cincinnati Mariemont at 2 p.m.
Olentangy then visits last year's Division II state champion, New Albany, on Tuesday. The Eagles moved up to Division I this year.
"Hopefully, we can win both our games at the Hannigan tournament," said Linden, whose team defeated Cincinnati Indian Hill 8-6 and lost to Hawken 12-5 at the event last year. "We've never done that before.
"The whole day is very taxing and rough on our system. Usually, if we lose the first game, we bounce back in the second. If we win the first one, we come into the second game a little too confident. We have to treat each game as a separate contest and not like they're connected."
• Liberty began a stretch of seven games in nine days last Tuesday against Watterson.
Included in that span are two games in the Hannigan-Galipault tournament on Saturday. The Patriots will play Centerville at 10 a.m. and Liberty Township Lakota East at 1 p.m.
At a glance
Below are the recent results and coming schedules for Liberty, Olentangy and Orange girls lacrosse teams:
LIBERTY
- *March 30 -- Lost to Westerville North 11-9
- *April 6 -- Lost to New Albany 21-3
- *April 7 -- Defeated Hilliard Bradley 18-5
- Last Tuesday -- Played Watterson
- *Last Wednesday -- Played Westerville Central
- Saturday -- At Hannigan-Galipault tournament (Thomas Worthington)
- *Tuesday -- At Pickerington club
- Wednesday -- Home vs. Hartley
- April 22 -- Home vs. Columbus School for Girls
Of note: The Patriots were 1-2 overall before last Tuesday and 1-2 in the OCC-Ohio before last Wednesday.
OLENTANGY
- March 30 -- Lost to Columbus School for Girls 17-12
- April 1 -- Def. Hilliard Davidson 12-10
- *April 6 -- Lost to Orange 13-12
- *Last Tuesday -- Played Westerville Central
- *Today -- At Westerville North
- Saturday -- At Hannigan-Galipault tournament (Thomas Worthington)
- *Tuesday -- At New Albany
- Wednesday -- At Dublin Scioto
Of note: The Braves were 1-2 overall and 0-1 in the OCC-Ohio before last Tuesday.
ORANGE
- March 31 -- Lost to Bexley 11-10
- *April 6 -- Def. Olentangy 13-12
- April 8 -- Def. Hilliard Davidson 10-6
- Last Saturday -- Def. Dublin Scioto 12-9
- *Last Tuesday -- Played Westerville North
- Saturday -- At Hannigan-Galipault tournament (Thomas Worthington)
- *Tuesday -- Home vs. Westerville South
- April 22 -- Home vs. Hilliard Darby
Of note: The Pioneers were 3-1 overall and 1-0 in the OCC-Ohio before last Tuesday.
Softball: Area coaches poll
Division I
TEAM REC PTS
1. Grove City (8) 8-2 77
2. Hilliard Davidson (4) 7-1 54
3. Pickerington Central (1) 8-2 50
4. Upper Arlington 5-1 38
5. Gahanna (1) 4-1 30
6. Thomas Worthington (1) 7-2 25
Division II
1. Lakewood (6) 7-1 47
2. Canal Winchester (1) 7-1 34
3. Granville 6-1 28
4. DeSales (1) 4-2 26
5. Hilliard Bradley 3-0 17
6. Licking Valley 6-5 15
Division III
1. North Union (6) 9-1 47
2. Liberty Union (1) 3-3 37
3. Mount Gilead 6-3 35
4. West Jefferson 5-3 28
5. Berne Union 6-3 14
6. Highland 9-1 7
Division IV
1. Danville (2) 2-4 14
2. Newark Catholic 3-4 10
3. Millersport 4-6 8
4. Fisher Catholic 3-5 6
5. Ridgedale 2-8 4
Despite seeing his team out-score its first three opponents by a combined 44-3 margin, Upper Arlington boys lacrosse coach Ted Wolford seems far, far from relishing the moment.
Not that he's going to give any of those wins back. He just figures there's no time for it right now.
"I don't know as we've been fully tested yet," said Wolford. "The big thing will be how well we play against better competition, and how we do in more stressful situations."
You have to figure the Golden Bears have been creating a whole lot of stress for other people (most recently visiting Cincinnati Sycamore with an 11-1 win Wednesday, April 7), but Wolford expects UA will be thrust into the fire Saturday, April 17, at approximately 8 p.m.
That's when the Golden Bears travel to face ancient foe Thomas Worthington, with what's likely to be a frenzied host of Cardinals fans.
"It's the longest continuous rivalry in the state," Wolford said. "One of those things we look forward to."
Prior to that, UA faces a challenge against visiting Dublin Coffman Wednesday, April 14 (7:30 p.m.).
The Shamrocks have proven to be a handful recently.
"They've played us harder than most teams," Wolford said. "Last year was a one-goal game both times we played them, and I don't think they graduated that heavy from that team."
Going over Gahanna Lincoln's non-league softball schedule, coach Jim Campolo remarked about its toughness.
"I don't know why the guy made a schedule like that," he said. "Unfortunately, it was me.
"There are no easy games. It's going to be one of those years where we could wind up being, record-wise when we go into the (postseason) tournament, nowhere near where we've been in the past.
"But still, we'll probably have a better team."
Campolo has already proved to be prophetic. The Golden Lions, 25-4 last season, were 4-3 after a Saturday, April 10, road doubleheader against two pretty tough Central Ohio teams. They suffered two close losses -- 2-0 against Upper Arlington with the Golden Bears' All-Ohio pitcher Audrey Plant in the circle, and 2-1 vs. Marysville after the Monarchs scored a run in the eighth extra inning.
Also on the non-league slate, Lincoln earlier lost 5-4 to Greenville and defeated Centerville 9-3.
But Gahanna enjoyed a 3-0 record in the Ohio Capital Conference Ohio Division through last week, having beaten Newark (22-1), Lancaster (5-1) and Pickerington Central (3-0).
This week, the Lions were looking at playing at Pickerington North Monday, April 12, hosting Grove City Wednesday, April 14 (5:15 p.m.), and then traveling to Reynoldsburg Thursday, April 15 (5:15 p.m.).
The ladies host their Gahanna Softball Showcase Friday and Saturday, April 16-17.
They are also very experienced, with more than a handful of leaders. There are 11 returning letterwinners, seven of them senior captains.
"I decided that they've all worked their hind end off in the offseason," said Campolo. "They've been very dedicated to the program; they've been with us for four years. Not all of them are starters, but they've worked just as hard as the starters."
Leading the upperclassmen is catcher Kayla Ledbetter, a Division I All-Ohio player last spring, as well as the All-Central District and All-OCC Ohio Player of the Year, and a Miami University signee.
Cathlene Beck is a two-year starter at first base, while Kelli Lennox (second-team all-league) is back as a two-year second base veteran.
Kim Lennox, another All-OCC second-team pick in 2009, is now in her third straight year in a starting pitching role.
Three other senior captains are Alyssa Clancy, a third base candidate going into the season, Kate Jacobs and Meredith Brim.
"The biggest part of our nucleus returns," the coach said. "We have our two starting pitchers back, we have our catcher back, our first baseman back, our second baseman back. Two of our three outfielders have starting experience.
"We had to replace the left side of our infield, but that's pretty much it. We have a couple of kids that have worked hard and they look like they're going to be sound there."
Other letterwinners are junior Brandis Fishel, another Lions pitcher who also plays left field, alternating with sophomore sister Montana Fishel.
Junior Tiyona Marshall, an all-league honorable mention, returns to center field where she started last season. She was Gahanna's leadoff hitter in '09.
Junior Cassidy Minor was a preseason right field candidate.
Tanya Busby (right field), Kaitlyn Hann (third base) and Sarah Seidel (shortstop) have also competed for jobs.
"Our league is an absolute killer," said Campolo, last year's district coach of the year. "If you look across the board, any one of the teams in our division is capable of beating anyone in our division.
"Grove City has got their pitcher back, Groveport has got their pitcher back, Newark has their pitcher back. So I don't care who you look at, everyone will probably be improved over last year, simply because they have another year of experience.
"Both Pickeringtons are always very well coached and very disciplined. They'll be very strong. Lancaster, I know their numbers are way up this year. So they're looking for good things down there.
"It's just one of those things. We're going to have to be ready to play every time we step on the field."
Gahanna was Friday, April 9, and also got a measure of revenge when they shut out Central.
The Tigers nipped the Lions 5-4 in a D-I district final last May.
"Our league is an absolute killer. If you look across the board, any one of the teams in our division is capable of beating anyone in our division."
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