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#17
Emily Forbes
Senior
SS/P |
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Emily Forbes
Major: Mathematics/Secondary Education
Hometown: Bourbonnais, Ill.
High School: Bradley-Bourbonnais HS
Emily is one of two 4-year EC softball players on this year’s team. She has improved each season, bringing her batting average to .353 last year. As a freshman, she was the Best Newcomer in both softball and volleyball. Last year, she was SLIAC Pitcher of the Week at the beginning of the season. This year, both Emily and Coach Sweitzer hope to have her play at shortstop all season. Her goal is to have no mental errors and not allow bad things to get to her this season – and to have fun during her senior year! This year in volleyball, she broke the Eureka digs record with 2,053 for her 4-year career.
Outside of athletics, she has been on the Dean’s List every semester at EC. Emily also earned the high honor of Sophomore of the Year for Eureka for 2005-06. She is a State Farm Scholarship winner and eligible for the Presidential Scholarship. She is also an RA, Admissions Ambassador and currently student teaching to finish up her education degree.
AWARDS:
Team Best Newcomer (2005); NIIC All-Academic (2005-06); SLIAC All-Academic (2007); NFCA Scholar-Athlete (2006-07); SLIAC Pitcher of the Week (March 5-11, 2007); Team Best Newcomer (Volleyball, 2004); SLIAC Honorable Mention All-Conference (Volleyball, 2007); SLIAC Hitter of the Week (March 31 – April 6, 2008)
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#12
Brittany Gardner
Senior
OF |
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Brittany Gardner
Major: Physical Education
Hometown: Mooresville, Ind.
High School: Mooresville HS
Brittany returns for her second season on the softball diamond after wrapping up one of the finest career in Eureka College women’s basketball history. She wound up ranked in the top 10 in school history career points and assists in addition to her school record for made three-point field goals. She was named to the SLIAC All-Conference Second Team following the season. Coach Sweitzer expects her to solidify the Red Devils’ outfield, and get her bat heated up this spring. Savvy, quick and a fast-learner, Brittany has a great love of competition that results in a skill-set that is a key to any ball club. Combined in her two sports, she has started her last 74 games, including all 30 softball contests last year.
AWARDS:
Team Best Newcomer (Basketball, 2004-05); SLIAC 2nd Team All-Conference (Basketball, 2007-08); School record holder – Most three-point field goals made (career & game) |
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#18
Natalie Lardi
Senior
3B |
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Natalie Lardi
Major: Criminal Justice
Hometown: South Wilmington, Ill.
High School: Gardner-South Wilmington HS
Natalie is in her fourth season with the Red Devils. She comes to Eureka from Gardner-South Wilmington High School where she was a 4-year letter-winner in both basketball and softball. Lardi was Most Valuable Player in softball and a Kankakee and Joliet All-Area selection in both sports. She was also a First Team All-Conference shortstop and the team’s Best Defensive Player as both a junior and senior. Having stepping into the third base position last year, Lardi recorded a solid .957 fielding percentage. She also received last year’s Most Improved Award and was an NFCA award recipient. Natalie has worked hard in the off-season to improve her conditioning as well as to bring the new players into the program. She is a natural leader, being team captain in 2007 and 2008. Much is expected of Lardi this season. Her high self-confidence along with conditioning should propel Natalie and the Red Devils to the top of their game.
AWARDS:
Team Most Improved (2007); NFCA Scholar-Athlete (2007) |
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#30
Brandi Payne
Senior
C/OF |
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Brandi Payne
Major: Environmental Science
Hometown: Eureka, Ill.
High School: Eureka HS
Brandi returns for her second season with the Red Devils. At Eureka High School, Brandi was a 4-year letter-winner in softball and basketball, earning all-conference recognition in both sports during her junior and senior years. At Black Hawk East, she earned NJCAA Player of the Week honors and was an SSC Tournament Region 4 pick in 2005. Brandi earned her A.S. degree in agricultural science at Black Hawk East, and is majoring in environmental science at EC. She was named the team’s Most Improved following the basketball season this year after averaging 7 points and 7 rebounds per game. Brandi was a rock defensively last season, committing only one error while starting all 30 games at either catcher or outfield. She registered a .351 on base percentage with 8 walks and 7 hit by pitches against just 12 strikeouts in 79 at bats. Spending much of her time hitting second in the order, she led the team in sacrifices.
AWARDS:
Team Best Newcomer (Basketball, 2006-07); Team Most Improved (Basketball, 2007-08 |
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#10
Nicole Pitts
Senior
IF |
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Nicole Pitts
Major: Athletic Training
Hometown: Pekin, Ill.
High School: Pekin HS
Nicole returns for her 3rd season with the Red Devils after improving at second base as a 30-game starter in her year season. Last year she saw a little bit of time in the outfield as well. She will be expected to contribute in the catching spot as well as second base and outfield this year. Her goal this year is to really show a lot of improvement in any position she is put in. She was a 2-year letter-winner at Pekin Community High School where she was also a member of the marching band. She is currently involved in the student athletic training program. Nicole tied for the team led last season in walks with 12 en route to a .341 on base percentage. Her batting average improved 106 points from the previous year as she hit 3 doubles and had 8 runs and 8 RBIs. |
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#17
Nicole Ropp
Junior
IF/OF |
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Nicole Ropp
Major: Physical Education
Hometown: Minonk, Ill.
High School: Fieldcrest HS
A transfer from Illinois Central College with an Associates degree in arts and science, Nicole realized her passion and love for sports after taking two years off. While being part of the Red Devils basketball team, she still manages to find time to pick up a bat and ball during softball season and hopes to be a great asset to the Red Devils program this spring. Graduating from Fieldcrest H.S. in 2005, she was a two sport athlete as well, being involved in basketball and softball all four years. She was a three-year starter on the varsity softball squad, helping win the first and only regional championship for FHS. After her team won conference both her junior and senior seasons, she was chosen to be on the All-Midstate Conference First Team as an infielder both years. She also led the team in batting average her senior year. She played in the Pantagraph All Star softball game as well as the All-Area/Intercity basketball game. Nicole was the fourth leading scorer on the EC basketball team this season, averaging 5.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game, while starting 17 out of 25 games. |
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#34
Abby Segal
Junior
P |
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Abby Segal
Major: Elementary Education/Special Ed.
Hometown: Peoria, Ill.
High School: Limestone HS
Abby joins the Red Devils after transferring from Lincoln College where she was Honorable Mention All-Conference her first year and Academic All-Conference and team captain her sophomore season. A member of Phi Theta Kappa, she went on to graduate on the Dean’s List at Lincoln. Abby was a four-year letter-winner, team captain and National Honor Society member at Limestone Community High School. She is active with teaching and working with children with disabilities and the Up Till Dawn Committee for St. Jude’s. Coach Sweitzer will look to Abby to strengthen the Eureka pitching staff this season.
AWARDS: SLIAC Pitcher of the Week (March 17-23, 2008); SLIAC Pitcher of the Week (March 24-30, 2007) |
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#23
Kelsey Brandt
Sophomore
P |
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Kelsey Brandt
Major: Psychology
Hometown: Morton, Ill.
High School: Morton HS
Kelsey is a second year player for the Red Devils. Last year, she made the transition from high school to college quite well. She was named SLIAC Pitcher of the Week twice, and was named Honorable Mention All-Conference following the season. She was also named the team’s Best Newcomer, leading the team with a 6-7 record, 84 innings pitched and 63 strikeouts. She threw a perfect game April 10, 2007 versus Lincoln Christian, which was one of just five tossed in NCAA Division III last season. Kelsey was a three-year letter-winner at Morton H.S. A lefty, Brandt has natural movement on her pitches, possesses a great repertoire of pitches and has the ability to keep opposing batter off balance.
AWARDS:
SLIAC Honorable Mention All-Conference (2007); Team Best Newcomer (2007); SLIAC Pitcher of the Week (April 2-8, 2007); SLIAC Pitcher of the Week (April 9-15) |
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#17
Jill Doty
Sophomore
P/IF |
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Jill Doty
.Major: Business Administration
Hometown: Metamora, Ill.
High School: Metamora Township HS
Jill is in her first season with the Red Devils and comes from Metamora Township H.S. After taking a year off from the game, she is excited to be back on the softball field. At Metamora, she played basketball for two years and softball for four. In softball, Jill earned the Team Player Award her junior year, All-Conference her senior year and was co-captain both years.
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#13
Mary Garbett
Sophomore
1B/OF/C |
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Mary Garbett
Major: Pre-Veterinary Medicine
Hometown: Georgetown, Ohio
High School: Western Brown HS
Mary returns for her second season at Eureka. After seeing limited playing time last season, Garbett will likely be leaned on more this season as a reserve and occasional starter. A SLIAC All-Academic Team member from last season, she is a Presidential Scholar and received a Fine and Performing Arts scholarship for her work in the theatre. She is also member of Eureka’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Mary possesses good mechanics and promising bat. She has worked on her speed, strength and agility in the offseason, which will help both her and the team this season.
AWARDS:
SLIAC Academic All-Conference (2007) |
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#40
Cathy Kalnicky
Sophomore
P/C/IF |
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Cathy Kalnicky
Major: Biology
Hometown: Bolingbrook, Ill.
High School: Plainfield Central HS
Cathy Kalnicky started all 30 games in her first season at Eureka last year. She recorded one of the best freshman campaigns in EC history, leading the team in batting average (.395), slugging percentage (.617), on base percentage (.457), doubles (7), home runs (3) and runs batted in (25) in 2007. A skilled, complete talent, Kalnicky appeared in nine games as a pitcher, posting a 2-4 mark and the squad’s best batting average against. She expects to start where she left off last year, and is back in full health after playing last season with a shoulder injury. Kalnicky is a biology major and aspires to be a teacher and coach one day. She is a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and CAB member. |
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#24
Molly Wolber
Freshman
OF |
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Molly Wolber
Major: Physical Education
Hometown: Rock Falls, Ill.
High School: Rock Falls HS
Molly is in her first year as a Red Devil, coming from her Rock Falls H.S. This is her first year experiencing the outfield as she was a part of a regional championship winning team as the starting third baseman during her junior year of high school. During her senior year, Molly was named First Team All-Conference as the team’s designated hitter while recovering from surgery, from which she is now healthy. She was also named Academic All-Conference throughout high school. Being new to the college atmosphere, Molly has adjusted very well by achieving the Dean’s List and acquiring a Presidential scholarship. She is hoping to help the Red Devils have a winning season and a win a SLIAC championship.
AWARDS:
SLIAC Hitter of the Week (March 24-30, 2008) |
