The Herald Bulletin

Evening Update

Sports

Discussion

August 15, 2007

PH's Falkenberry to play at Butler

Rick Teverbaugh

There was a time when athletes were noticed by college coaches in one of two ways.

Either the high school coach sent tapes of the athlete or the college coach went to the prep games to view that player in person.

Today’s technology has improved upon that plan a bit.

So when Pendleton Heights’ slugging first baseman Erin Falkenberry wanted to catch the eye of colleges, she showed a little initiative.

“I sent my DVD to Butler and they sent me a letter back saying they were interested,” said Falkenberry. The end result of that interest is that Falkenberry has signed a letter of intent to go to Butler and play softball there for head coach Jeanne Rayman. “Coach (PH’s Scott) Hall spoke with them and they came to a practice of ours.”

Butler fit a lot of the parameters that Falkenberry wanted for her college.

“I wanted a college that was larger than my high school but not too big,” she said.

As a junior on the Arabians top-ranked team, Falkenberry led the team and the area in home runs and runs batted in and was second in hitting only to her teammate Becca Butler. She hit nine home runs and batted over .500.

“They told me they are impressed with my hitting,” said Falkenberry. “They will have two of their top hitters gone when I get there. They said I will compete at first base.”

“Butler will be getting one of the premier power hitters in the state,” said Hall. “She will definitely bolster their offense down there.”

She knows of one part of her game on which she is placing a lot emphasis in the offseason.

“I definitely need to work on my fielding,” she said. “I’m not comfortable with it yet. There have been times in the past when I haven’t played at that position.”

In college she knows that the pitchers will be better than high school. But she also knows that the mound is further back at that level, giving her more time to react to pitches. “This past summer I played in quite a few games where the pitcher worked from 43 feet,” said Falkenberry. “Every weekend I’ve been playing in tournaments with my travel team. I’m taking two or three weeks off right now, but I’ve just been playing to have fun. There’s really not been any pressure.”

Relieving the pressure is one of the reasons she decided to commit to college before her senior year begins. “I just wanted to get it over,” she said. “That way I can relax and not worry, if I have a bad game, who might have been there watching.”

With three seniors from the 2007 Arabian team moving on to NCAA Division I teams, Falkenberry understands a bit more might be expected from her in 2008.

“But we have a good group of players in my class,” she said. “I think we’re all going to step up our games. So I really won’t feel as much pressure as if I were the only senior.”

Falkenberry is undecided about her specific area of study at Butler but is confident it will be in the business realm.

“I am thrilled for Erin,” said Hall. “Butler was very high on her list of college choices. Erin has always put a high value on her academics and now she is going to be able to play D1 softball and while getting a great education. Another added bonus is that she will be close so we can go see her play. I am very happy for Erin and her family. She has worked very hard for this.”









Text Only
Sports
  • 1216 sports swimming 022.jpg Anderson tankers ready for sectional

    It has been a long time since the Anderson High School boys’ swim team last dipped its toes into competitive waters. Nearly a month, in fact. That will change when the team travels to Hamilton Southeastern for sectional preliminaries this Thursday.

    February 12, 2012 1 Photo

  • George Bremer.jpg George Bremer: Dunham tied to Arabians

    Pendleton Heights senior Kellen Dunham is one of three players widely considered to be the front-runners for this season’s Indiana Mr. Basketball award. The other two — Hamilton Southeastern’s Gary Harris and Park Tudor’s Yogi Ferrell — were named last week as participants in this spring’s McDonald’s All-American Game. Dunham was left out. That doesn’t kill his chances to win the state’s most coveted individual honor, but it does inextricably tie those hopes to the Arabians’ postseason fortunes.

    February 12, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0213 Hummel.jpg Boilers get back on track with win

    Robbie Hummel scored a season-high 27 points and pulled down a game-high nine rebounds Sunday as Purdue snapped Northwestern’s three-game winning streak with an 87-77 victory.

    February 12, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0213 Phil web'.jpg Mickelson crushes Tiger

    He knew his game was getting close, and he broke through with flair Sunday in the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. That turned out to be Phil Mickelson, not Tiger Woods. In a big, big way.

    February 12, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0213West Virginia Notre Dame web.jpg W. Virginia women upset No. 2 Irish

    Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said her team had it coming to them. “I thought we’ve been building up to this game now for a couple of weeks,” she said. “We just haven’t played well for a long time.” The second-ranked Irish almost played well enough Sunday, but West Virginia ended their 21-game winning streak with a 65-63 victory.

    February 12, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0213 Purdue Ohio St web.jpg Prahalis lifts No. 10 OSU women past No. 16 Purdue

    Samantha Prahalis, the only senior on Ohio State’s roster, has been through a lot of battles on the court. So it figured that when the No. 10 Buckeyes were badly in need of a bucket on Sunday against No. 16 Purdue, it was their most experienced player who supplied a dagger of a 3-pointer with 41 seconds left to pave the way to an 80-71 victory.

    February 12, 2012 1 Photo

  • DSC_0010.JPG Two individuals, one team to bowling state finals

    The high school bowling semistate held Saturday at Cooper’s Sport Bowl narrowed down the field of local bowlers, advancing only two individuals and one team to the state finals next weekend.

    February 11, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0212 sports ahs vs phhs 043.jpg Rick Teverbaugh: Anderson's Carter small but her speed is deadly

    There are sometimes very big reasons for a team to win a basketball game.
    Sometimes, the reason is very small.
    In the case of the Anderson Lady Tribe, they won the Greenfield Sectional championship Saturday night for a very small reason — a 5-foot-4 reason, to be exact.

    February 11, 2012 1 Photo 1 Slideshow

  • DSC_3337.JPG Arabians' Todd fulfills promise on mat

    Pendleton Heights' Mason Todd improved his season record to 37-0 en route to winning the 120-pound title at the New Castle Fieldhouse. He will be one of four local wrestlers to participate in the Parade of Champions to kick off the 74th IHSAA Individual State Tournament on Friday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

    February 11, 2012 1 Photo

  • 1218 Hogan AU.JPG Ravens soar past Grizzlies

    The Anderson University men’s basketball team has been in tournament mode for the past three weeks.
    But the Ravens took a big step toward the actual postseason Saturday afternoon with a 79-65 victory against Franklin in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play.

    February 11, 2012 1 Photo