Terre Haute Miss Softball America, Inc. / The Diamond: In the Local News

Tuesday, July 10
Congratulations to the 8U Indiana Fire!!!!
IN THE TRIBUNE STAR:
Fire Second: At the Terre Haute Miss Softball America park, the Indiana Fire 8U team placed second to Center Grove on Sunday in the Amateur Softball Association State tournament.
The Fire beat Bloomington Lightning, Jennings County Fire & Ice and the Wabash Valley Sharks on their way to the Championship game.  Team members are: Skylar Akers, Elyse Babb, Caitlyn Cantrell, Josie Collier, Kaitlyn Coundry, Briley Hadley, Lauryn Haskell, Autumn Mikolajczyk, Kiara Morse, Natalie Scamihorn, Kaylee Snowden and Kaitlyn Woodward.

Tuesday, June 19
Softball Scene: Girls youth softball is flourishing
Published: June 16, 2007 10:59 pm            

Softball Scene: Girls youth softball is flourishing across

By John Benton
Special to the Tribune-Star

As a part of the Indiana Amateur Softball Association Junior Olympic program, girls youth softball is flourishing on the local softball scene.

Local programs such as Miss Softball America, the Wabash Valley program and Covered Bridge Girls Softball (Montezuma) registered more than 50 teams in 2006 and expect to exceed those numbers in 2007. Other local programs registering with the ASA in 2006 were Riley with 16 teams and West Terre Haute with five; they also expect to see a growth in registrations this summer.

Statewide, the number of registered girls fastpitch teams is also on the rise. As noted by Indiana ASA Junior Olympic commissioner Cindy Inman, the growing interest in travel teams is especially noteworthy. As proof, Inman expects to see more than 125 teams register for competition in this weekend’s Hoosier State Games.

Competition in that event is slated for Brownsburg, Plainfield, Mooresville, Center Grove, Bloomington and Indianapolis’s Chuck Klein Field. Fastpitch play is open to girls 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18-and-under teams. A slowpitch competition is also scheduled.

Approximately 12 local teams are expected to participate in Hoosier State Games competition. The local softball scene will also see youth team competition. The MSA softball facility will be hosting the 8-and-under state tourney, while the Wabash Valley facility is hosting a girls 10, 12 and 14-and-under Class C tourney (league teams only).

The public is welcome and encouraged to attend each of the tournaments mentioned above. It’s an opportunity to see the future stars develop.

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Tuesday, June 19
Woods' Sisters have roots at MSA
Published: April 27, 2007 12:35 am            

Hughes, News & Views: The Woods' Erica and Jessica Ketner prepare to play together for last time

The Tribune-Star

Playing softball is so important to sisters Erica and Jessica Ketner that it’s almost as necessary as breathing to their lives.

Both start for St. Mary-of-the-Woods’ team, which will compete in the U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national tournament today and Saturday at Mattoon, Ill.

Erica, a 22-year-old senior, plays third base and some catcher. Jessica, 21 and a junior, is the shortstop.

Both are key contributors offensively. Erica is batting .418 with three home runs and 18 runs batted in, while Jessica is batting .327 with two homers and 12 RBIs.

But rattling off statistics doesn’t begin to tell the story about these softball addicts.

Erica started playing at Terre Haute’s Miss Softball America complex when she was 5, then little Jessica joined the program the next year.

Erica’s first MSA coach was Arlene Clatfelter, a former women’s fastpitch standout with the Terre Haute Chevettes. The sisters were on different teams during their first few years in the sport, but father Keith Ketner moved Jessica up in age group so they’d be able to play on the same teams together.

“It was good for me because she was always looking out for me,” recalled Jessica, who enjoyed playing on the same teams with Erica. “We got along so well.”

“Softball’s always been in our family,” Erica Ketner said. “Members of our family played at the [Terre Haute Softball] Stadium on First Street. When we were kids, we’d chase foul balls and play catch there.”

When they grew up, they each played four seasons — three together — for coach Dee Gosnell at Terre Haute South High School.

“It was awesome,” said Erica, a 2003 South graduate. “My senior year, she got moved into the infield with me, so that was pretty cool.”

With Jessica having one more year at South, Erica decided to take her athletic talents to The Woods.

“I knew they always had a good softball program,” she explained. “Plus, I had played with and against several of their players, who I knew were good players.”

Erica specifically mentioned her appreciation of current teammates Ashley Loomis and Amanda Daniel, whom she had battled against for so many years as youths.

When Jessica Ketner prepared to graduate from South in 2004, choosing a college wasn’t terribly difficult. She followed in her older sister’s footsteps.

They even have the same major — elementary education. Erica plans to graduate in January 2008 after she completes her student teaching.

“I don’t know what kept [NCAA] Division I people from recruiting Erica,” said Gary Rodgers, who’s wrapping up his first season as The Woods’ coach. “She is just an outstanding player. Jess is too. They’re two good athletes and they’re mainstays of this ballclub.”

As a freshman and sophomore, Erica played on back-to-back Woods teams that captured USCAA national championships at LaGrange, Ga. Jessica played on the second of those teams.

Last year, the Pomeroys finished runner-up to Robert Morris-Springfield in the national tournament at Mattoon.

“We played five games in one day,” Erica recalled. “We were all pretty tired.”

This year, Jessica wants to win her second national title, which would be Erica’s third.

“I’m really wanting to do it for her more than for myself,” Jessica emphasized. “It’s gotta be hard knowing it’s your last year of college softball.”

Ready for the inevitable, Erica figures she’ll probably give Jessica a big hug after their last game together, regardless of how it ends.

“It’ll be kinda weird,” the older Ketner sister admitted, “but I think it’ll really hit me when next season rolls around and I feel like I’m supposed to be playing.”

By next spring, Rodgers will undoubtedly wish Erica was still on the Pomeroys’ roster. “Erica is someone we’ve had to look really hard for a recruit to replace her,” he said.

Even when Erica is finished with collegiate softball, the sisters will have plenty to do together. They’ll support their younger sister, Danielle Ketner, who plays for Terre Haute North.

They also plan to play slowpitch softball together someday.

And they’ll probably reminisce about the tough wins and crushing losses they experienced.

“We’ve always been competitive,” stressed Erica, who added that she and Jessica never worried about whose stats were better between them. “I’m really hard on her sometimes because I know how much ability she has.”

Reflecting on her years of competitive softball, Erica acknowledged that they wouldn’t have been the same without Jessica.

“There were times when we didn’t get along,” Erica said. “But all in all, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”


Tuesday, June 19
Katie Ico
• Iocoangeli a scholar — Terre Haute North grad and former St. Mary-of-the-Woods softball player Katie Iocoangeli was one of three Indiana State Sycamores named to the Missouri Valley Conference Softball Scholar-Athlete team.

To be eligible for the MVC Scholar-Athlete Team athletes must hold a GPA of at least 3.00, be of sophomore standing or greater, and have competed in at least 75 percent of the games played by their team that season.

Iocoangeli, who has a 3.77 GPA in elementary education, was named to the MVC second team. This season, she hit .207 BA with nine runs, six doubles, three home runs, 20 RBI, 14 walks and 153 putouts with a fielding percentage of .980.

She made 38 starts on the season, splitting time between first and second base.