By: Matthew Florjancic, Correspondent
BEREA, OHIO -- In the sport of fast-pitch softball, the third base position is key. It is truly the "HOT corner" as often times the 3B has to field with both skills and instinct when an opposing batter smashes the ball.
Luckily for the past two seasons, the Baldwin-Wallace Yellow Jacket softball team has received outstanding defense at third base from senior Vicki Munnings (Stow/ Stow-Monroe Falls High School). Today (May 2), Munnings will play her final collegiate games in the Brown & Gold when the Yellow Jackets, 17-18 overall, host nonleague foe Allegheny (Pa.) College in a doubleheader on Seniors’ Day at the Cuyahoga County Fairgounds Field in Berea at 3:30 p.m.
Since transferring from NCAA Division II Ashland University, Munnings has been a mainstay in the line-up. Even though three-quarters of the infielders are seniors, Munnings is the only one returning to the same position that she played a year ago.
Two-time All-American catcher Nicole Loudin (Sheffield Lake/ Elyria Catholic) made the switch from behind the plate to shortstop. Fellow senior All-OAC and Academic All-OAC player Casey Ward (Amherst/ Marion Steele) was brought in from the outfield to handle second base. And, at 1B, the freshmen duo of Caitlin Myor (Sheffield Lake/ Elyria Senior) and Shae Monschein (Wellington) alternate.
Munnings, an exercise science major, knows the youthful Yellow Jackets have had big wins this season, including beating the then sixth-ranked Muskingum College on April 1.
"I think a lot of the fans and as well as the players are impressed that we beat Muskingum and have been so competitive all season despite the fact that we are so young," said Munnings, who is batting .252 with one home run and six runs batted-in this season. "We have nine freshmen, four seniors, two juniors and two sophomores.
"It is hard with the young mentality on the field," said Munnings. "We have been working all season to get them to both realize their potential and that they have four years to better themselves."
Munnings has started all 35 games for the Jackets at third base. In addition to her .252 batting average, she has 26 hits in 103 at-bats with 15 runs scored, three doubles and one triple. But that is just a part of the key statistics. More importantly, Munnings has a .971 fielding average with 44 putouts and 88 assists and has committed just four errors.
Her teammates have really noticed a strong work ethic in Munnings. They appreciate her efforts and are sometimes caught off-guard at how talented she is on the diamond.
"She is always talking, which is a good thing because you need to be communicating on the field," said Loudin, who will end her career today as B-W’s all-time home run leader (37). "She had a diving play that was very critical at the end of the Heidelberg game so that we could sweep them.
"I could not believe she got a glove on it, much less, made the play," Loudin added. "She is an outstanding defender who has made us better in all aspects of the game."
As a junior in 2005, Munnings batted .271 with five doubles, one home run and seven RBI. Prior to her junior year, Munnings transferred to Baldwin-Wallace from Ashland. Though it was a difficult decision, she realized it was necessary to make the change.
"I was in athletic training and we were supposed to be accredited at the end of my freshman year, but Ashland did not pass the accreditation process," said Munnings. "Then again at the end of my sophomore year, AU were supposed to get accredited and did not pass again.
"It was a 50-50 chance for AU To pass accreditation during my junior year and I couldn’t take that chance," she added. "So I came here for athletic training and to complete my degree."
A transfer meant leaving her friends, classes and everything she became familiar with in two years at Ashland. For Munnings, it also meant giving up a scholarship to play softball.
"I was on scholarship at Ashland and it was really hard," Munnings said. "I had to leave all my friends and everything because of school, not because I wanted to. It was purely an academic decision at that point."
Coming to an unfamiliar place was challenging for Munnings, especially when others thought she was two years younger than she was.
"It was really hard to start over because everybody thought I was a freshman," Munnings stated with a smile. "People would say, Oh, that freshman, and I’d say, No, I’m a junior! Once we all became familiar with each other it got much easier and more enjoyable."
While the move from Ashland to Berea was hard to take at first, she knows it was a good thing for her career.
"Now that I look back on it, I think it was a good decision," said Munnings. "I try not to regret anything and look at the different opportunities it has presented. Now that I am in Cleveland and know the many opportunities that are out there, I don’t regret the decision at all and I appreciate the opportunity that B-W has afforded me both in exercise science and in softball."
With a degree in exercise science and a minor in coaching, Munnings is planning on a career in women’s sports.
"I hope to work with a female athletic team," said Munnings. "As I have worked with the girls these past two years, a lot of them are uneducated in what the girls need for lifting or any type of fitness.
"They try to bring in something the baseball team or football team is using and try to apply it to them," Munnings added. "Females have to train differently. My goal is personal training and education with health in general."
While she was a Stow-Munroe Falls Bulldog, Munnings got the opportunity to represent her country in a softball tournament in Paris, France. It was a big thrill for Munnings to wear the red, white and blue overseas.
"I was asked to play in France on a World Cup team in the 2001 World Cup," she said. "One of the girls from my high school was also asked.
"It was a lot different, a different culture," Munnings added. "We placed second, losing in the championship game to another team from the U.S.A. on a passed ball. "It was an unbelievably great experience and one that I will remember for the rest of my life."
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