2023 LADY BUCCS SOFTBALL
SEASON PREVIEW:
Covington returns all but two players from last year’s team that finished with an 18-7 overall record and a 10-1 record in the inaugural season of the Three Rivers Conference where the Lady Buccs shared the league title with Miami East.
Lost to graduation were Parker Metz and Kierra Hinnegan.
Leading the way for the Lady Buccs in 2023 will be seniors Meg Rogers, Nigella Reck, Erika Gostomsky, Reagan Lemp and Mar Newhouse. Rogers and Reck were first-team all-league selections a year ago, while Lemp and Newhouse were second-team selections and Gostomsky was named honorable mention. Reck was also a first-team selection in the Southwest District after compiling a .600 batting average on 45 hits, 29 runs scored, 13 doubles, 2 triples, 5 home runs and 46 RBI.
Junior Karyanne Turner was a second-team selection in the league as well, while junior Kamryn Barnes was named honorable mention. Both return to the lineup as well, along with sophomores Elizabeth Coblentz and Maggie Anderson. The return of Anderson is an added bonus after she missed her entire freshman season a year ago due to an injury.
A talented freshman class joins the Lady Buccs and will contribute greatly to the success Covington hopes to have this season. The freshmen are Whitney Burns, Jayda McClure, Taylor Foutz, Patience Alexander and Emma Ouellette.
With the talent and experience the Lady Buccs have on their roster, there are expectations of another great season.
SEASON IN REVIEW:
The 2023 Covington Lady Buccs put together a historic season as a team and with several individual players garnering state and national recognition for their accomplishments on the field.
As a team, the Lady Buccs finished with a 28-5 overall record for an 85.7% winning percentage and finished 12-2 to earn a share of the conference championship in the TRC – a conference that had three teams win district championships, Covington, Miami East and Riverside. It was the tenth conference title in school history for Covington and the 11th district championship.
The 2023 Lady Buccs had one of the most potent offensive teams in program history as they tallied 434 runs on the season for an average of 13.56 runs per game and allowed just 102 runs for an average of 3.18 runs per game.
Several players had historic seasons and some of the seniors capped great careers despite losing their freshman season due to covid-19.
Seniors Nigella Reck and Meg Rogers finished in the top-20 on the National Leader Board is several categories.
Nigella Reck was 13th in the nation in RBIs with 72, 14th in home runs with 15, 15th in runs scored with 69, 19th in batting average with 0.708, and 19th in on-base-percentage with 0.769, while Meg Rogers was 11th in the nation in runs scored with 73 and 15th in wins with 19.
On the state leader board for all divisions Nigella Reck was 2nd in RBIs with 72, 3rd in home runs with 15, 3rd in runs scored with 69, 6th in batting average with 0.708, 7th in on-base-percentage with 0.769, and 14th in slugging percentage with 1.340. Meg Rogers was 1st in the state in runs scored with 73 and 5th in wins with 19. Senior Mara Newhouse with 12th in RBIs with 46 and 12th in runs scored with 48, while sophomore Maggie Anderson was 5th in RBIs with 56 and junior Karyanne Turner was 13th in RBIs with 45.
At the state level in Division IV, even more Lady Buccs finished in the top 20 in several categories.
Nigella Reck was 1st in home runs with 15, 2nd in RBIs with 72, 2nd in batting average with 0.708, 2nd in on-base percentage with 0.769, 3rd in runs scored with 69 and 4th in slugging percentage with 1.340.
Meg Rogers was 1st in runs scored with 73, 1st in wins with 19, 15th in on-base percentage with 0.657 and 17th in strikeouts with 139 and 18th in RBIs with 32 despite being the leadoff hitter for the Lady Buccs.
Maggie Anderson was 4th in the state in Division IV in RBIs with 56 and was tied for 17th in runs scored with 39, while Mara Newhouse was 8th in RBIs with 46 and 9th in runs scored with 48 and Karyanne Turner was 9th in RBIs with 45 and tied for 17th in runs scored with 39.
Also finishing in the top 20 in categories in Division IV were Erika Gostomsky, who was 9th in wins with 9, and Reaghan Lemp, who was 13th in RBIs with 38.
The Lady Buccs made their mark in the state record books by reaching the top ten in 10 categories, including setting a state record for the most hits in a season and tying a state record for the most home runs in an inning. Here are the list of where the Lady Buccs finished in the top ten in Ohio state records.
TEAM STATE RECORDS (TOP 10):
1st – Hits in a Season – 488
2nd – Runs Scored in a Season – 434
INDIVIDUAL STATE RECORDS (TOP 10):
1st (Tied) – Home Runs in a Inning – 2 by Nigella Reck vs Northridge
2nd (Tied) – Intentional Walks in a Game – 4 by Nigella Reck vs Tri-County North
3rd – Most Hits in a Season – 75 by Nigella Reck
3rd (Tied) – Most Hits in a Game – 6 by Maggie Anderson vs Lehman
4th (Tied) – Most RBIs in a Season – 72 by Nigella Reck
6th (Tied) – Consecutive Game with a Home Run – 5 by Nigella Reck
8th (Tied) – Most Home Runs in a Season – 15 by Nigella Reck
9th – Career RBIs – 179 by Nigella Reck
(THANKS TO RENEE RECK AND COACH DAN CAIN FOR PROVIDING ALL OF THE STATS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE SEASON.)
2023 LADY BUCCS SOFTBALL SCHEDULE
DATE
OPPONENT
H/A
RESULT
SECTIONAL
DISTRICT
REGIONAL
2023 NATIONAL LEADER BOARD (TOP 20)
CATEGORY
RANK
PLAYER
STATS
BATTING AVG.
19TH
NIGELLA RECK
0.708
ON-BASE %
19TH
NIGELLA RECK
0.769
HOME RUNS
14TH
NIGELLA RECK
15
RBIs
13TH
NIGELLA RECK
72
RUNS SCORED
11TH
15TH
MEG ROGERS
NIGELLA RECK
73
69
WINS
15TH
MEG ROGERS
19
2023 STATE LEADER BOARD - ALL DIVISIONS (TOP 20)
CATEGORY
RANK
PLAYER
STATS
BATTING AVG.
6TH
NIGELLA RECK
0.708
ON-BASE %
7TH
NIGELLA RECK
0.769
SLUGGING %
14TH
NIGELLA RECK
1.340
HOME RUNS
3RD
NIGELLA RECK
15
RBIs
2ND
5TH
12TH
13TH
NIGELLA RECK
MAGGIE ANDERSON
MARA NEWHOUSE
KARYANNE TURNER
72
56
46
45
RUNS SCORED
1ST
3RD
12TH
MEG ROGERS
NIGELLA RECK
MARA NEWHOUSE
73
69
48
WINS
5TH
MEG ROGERS
19
2023 STATE LEADER BOARD - DIVISION IV (TOP 20)
CATEGORY
RANK
PLAYER
STATS
BATTING AVG.
2ND
NIGELLA RECK
0.708
ON-BASE %
2ND
15TH
NIGELLA RECK
MEG ROGERS
0.769
0.657
SLUGGING %
4TH
NIGELLA RECK
1.340
HOME RUNS
1ST
NIGELLA RECK
15
RBIs
2ND
4TH
8TH
9TH
13TH
18TH
NIGELLA RECK
MAGGIE ANDERSON
MARA NEWHOUSE
KARYANNE TURNER
REAGHAN LEMP
MEG ROGERS
72
56
46
45
38
32
RUNS SCORED
1ST
3RD
9TH
17TH
17TH
MEG ROGERS
NIGELLA RECK
MARA NEWHOUSE
KARYANNE TURNER
MAGGIE ANDERSON
73
69
48
39
39
WINS
1ST
9TH
MEG ROGERS
ERIKA GOSTOMSKY
19
9
STRIKEOUTS
17TH
MEG ROGERS
139
CAREER MILESTONES
HITS (100)
RBIs (100)
RUNS (100)
HOME RUNS (25)
STRIKEOUTS (400)
Nigella Reck – 165
Meg Rogers – 132
Mara Newhouse – 125
Karyanne Turner – 122
Nigella Reck – 179
Mara Newhouse – 114
Meg Rogers – 156
Nigella Reck – 140
Nigella Reck – 25
Meg Rogers – 400
POST SEASON HONORS
FIRST TEAM – THREE RIVERS CONFERENCE
Nigella Reck – Senior (Athlete of the Year)
Mara Newhouse – Senior
Meg Rogers – Senior
Erika Gostomsky – Senior
Dan Cain (TRC Coach of the Year)
SECOND TEAM – THREE RIVERS CONFERENCE
Maggie Anderson – Sophomore
Karyanne Turner – Junior
HONORABLE MENTION – THREE RIVERS CONFERENCE
Kamryn Barnes – Junior
Reaghan Lemp – Senior
ALL-SOUTHWEST DISTRICT
Mara Newhouse – First Team
Nigella Reck – First Team
Meg Rogers – First Team
Dan Cain – Southwest District Coach of the Year
ALL-OHIO:
Nigella Reck – First Team
Meg Rogers – First Team
Mara Newhouse – Second Team
NIGELLA RECK NAMED FIRST TEAM ALL-AMERICAN
Nigella Reck was named First Team All-American by the NFCA (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) as a shortstop and also earned All-American recognition as an infielder by EIS (Extra Innings Softball) for her amazing performance on the softball field as a senior in 2023.
2023 COVINGTON LADY BUCCS
