Four Titans Chosen To WIAC All-Centennial Softball Team

UW-Oshkosh's Nila Gruenewald, Ronessa Stampfli, Whitney Tornow and Jamie Ziegel received spots on the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Softball All-Time Team. The league rewarded 20 outstanding players for its centennial anniversary celebration.

Gruenewald (1982-85) was the first All-American in program history during 1985, when she pitched 244 of the team's 257 innings. She finished with a 25-9 record, 177 strikeouts and a 1.00 earned run average. The Titans captured WIAC championships during both 1984 and 1985. Gruenewald (Bonduel • Bonduel High School) concluded her 80-game career with 26 shutouts and 403 strikeouts.

A four-time WIAC Pitcher of the Year, Stampfli (2005-08) won 75 games and struck out a WIAC-record 1,019 batters. After setting the league record with 294 K in 2006, Stampfli (Brodhead • Brodhead High School) posted a 0.87 ERA in 2007. She was named a NCAA Division III All-American in 2007 as UW-Oshkosh won the conference title with a 36-11 record.

Tornow (2007-10) is the only Titan with two All-America selections. She was part of the 2007 WIAC title, which was the school's first in 15 years. Tornow (OF) received 2009 WIAC Player of the Year after hitting .482 with 12 home runs. During the 2010 campaign, she broke her own record with a .500 batting average. Tornow (Neenah • Neenah High School) finished as UW-Oshkosh's all-time leader in homers (31), RBI (146), runs scored (122), walks (89) and stolen bases (28). She ranks second in the WIAC in career slugging percentage at .777.

Ziegel (1984, 86-88) helped the Titans to their first NCAA Tournament in 1984. The catcher was named a 1987 All-American after becoming the first UW-Oshkosh player to hit .400. Ziegel (Wausau • Wausau West High School) ended her career with a .357 batting average, 168 hits, 104 RBI and 15 triples.

UW-Eau Claire owned five players on the all-time team with Heidi Bergstrom (1997-2000), Casey Leisgang (2005-08), Mallory McKinney (2004-07), Jill Schoenike (1996-99) and Lisa Schueler (1997-2000). The other school with at least three members was UW-Whitewater, which placed Amy Gahl (2006-09), Valerie Kerkman (1996-99) and Jessica Stang (2008-11) on the squad.

The rest of the all-time team featured Kelly Rutta (1998-2001) and Dana Zajdel (1995-98) of UW-Stevens Point, Suzanne Brion (1994-96) and Erin O'Connell (2002-05) of UW-Stout, Erin Kegley (2003-07) and Sarah Tarasewicz (2002-05) of UW-Superior, Jenna Ahnen (2008-11) of UW-La Crosse and Emily Howlett (2006-08) of UW-River Falls.

UW-Eau Claire's Leslie Huntington (2002-present) and UW-Whitewater's Brenda Volk (1999-present) were named the WIAC's all-time coaches.

The WIAC is recognizing the outstanding individuals from the league's 100-year history. All-time teams are being selected in those men's and women's sports that have been classified as "championship" sports at some point since 1913. Additional teams will be released on a weekly basis throughout much of the 2011-12 academic year.

All-time team members will receive certificates from the conference and it is hoped that most, if not all, of the recipients will be in attendance or represented at the WIAC Centennial Banquet in Madison on Aug. 4, 2012.

More information on the activities and events associated with the WIAC Centennial is available at www.wiacsports.com.