By Dan Ryan, Bethune-Cookman Athletic Communications
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- What if we told you … that a softball team that got knocked out of its conference tournament would go on to rally and win an NCAA regional tournament and become the first HBCU team, in any sport, to compete in a Super Regional?
Fifteen years ago saw Bethune-Cookman's destiny season of 2005 culminate against the University of Texas in a two-game super regional after the Wildcats stunned the college softball world twice the week before – first by receiving an at-large bid to the 64-team tournament, then knocking off host Florida and USF to win the Gainesville regional title.
The 30-for-30 is set for 2035, but for now, here's the 15-for-15 honoring that season. Well, 15 facts, anyway.
REGULAR SEASON
1) Bethune-Cookman finished the regular season 42-15 and on a 21-game winning streak that extended to 23 after the first day of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Tournament.
2) The signature win of the regular season? Feb. 22, 2005 at Sunnyland Park against the Florida Gators. (That's right, Florida came to Daytona Beach. Heck, Bethune-Cookman hosted Florida State, Arkansas, Hawaii, Harvard and Minnesota just to name a few in the years before). Katie Finn and Viveca Patterson combined for a three-hit shutout and Andrea Thomas drove in three runs for the athletic program's first-ever triumph over the Gators.
3) In addition to Florida, other quality wins in 2005? Northwestern, UCF, Stetson (3 times), Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Fordham, UMASS, UTEP, Virginia Tech.
Was the team's strength its offense or defense? Yes.
4) Bethune-Cookman ranked 10
th in the nation in batting average (.316) and 25
th as a team in runs scored.
5) Amber Jackson's stats? She ranked 1
st in the nation in runs per game (1.13 avg); 5
th in the nation with her .453 batting average; 12
th in the nation in RBIs (77) and slugging percentage at (.792); scored 77 runs and smacked 14 home runs; she also had eight triples and 14 doubles. Jackson was masterful at getting on base and hitting runners in, while also making those hits count by stealing 34 bases.
6) Complementing the power was the base speed – Melanie Johnson finished 4
th in the national in stolen bases (43-44, .63 per game) and the team earned a ranking of 4
th in the nation with 150 (2.21 avg per game).
7) Rachel Kilbert only struck out seven times in 143 at bats, the 19
th best ratio in the nation.
8) In the circle, all three pitchers posted ERA's of 1.56 or lower, led by Bethune Cookman Hall of Famer Lauren McCoy's 1.16, 24
th in the nation. Patterson and Finn posted 1.25 and 1.56, respectively and Patterson ranked 8
th in the nation with six saves.
9) And if someone did get on base? The Wildcat defense was ranked 12
th in the nation in double plays per game (.43).
MEAC TOURNAMENT
10) Bethune-Cookman opened the MEAC Tournament with a 13-1 win over Morgan State and a 3-1 win over North Carolina A&T State, but Florida A&M stunned the Wildcats with a 7-5 decision in the semifinals. Bethune-Cookman stayed alive by beating Hampton 10-3 in the elimination bracket to earn a spot in the championship game. The Wildcats beat Florida A&M 8-3 in the first game, but the Rattlers took a 4-3 decision in the second game to win the MEAC title.
GAINESVILLE REGIONAL
11) As stunning as the conference tournament loss was, Bethune-Cookman stunned the softball nation when it became the first HBCU team, in any sport, to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Regional Tournament. It was somewhat of a scramble to get the team back to Florida back for the regional at Gainesville, as the MEAC Tournament was held one week prior to most other conference tournaments, and with the academic year coming to a close, most of the team had packed their dorm rooms and traveled to their hometowns for summer break. In addition, Coach Watten had traveled to Dallas, Texas to be with her mother, who was to have kidney transplant surgery on May 5
th (just three days after the MEAC Softball tournament that she actually was in attendance for in Florida).
12) Showing no fear and having nothing to lose, Bethune-Cookman went 3-0 to capture the regional title, including a second win over Florida (3-2) and two wins over USF (8-4 and 5-2). Bethune-Cookman never trailed in the three games, nearly run-ruled USF in their meeting and overcame five errors in the second. McCoy threw 18 2/3 innings. The Wildcats were the fourth seed in the Gainesville regional and became one of only two non-seeded teams (DePaul) to advance to Super Regionals.
SUPER REGIONAL
13) Bethune-Cookman advanced to face Texas -- and pitcher Cat Osterman, a member of the U.S. Olympic Team who entered the best of three with 19 consecutive shutouts and a 41-inning scoreless streak. Osterman struck out 20, but McCoy – backed by two double plays – kept Texas off the scoreboard until a controversial ninth-inning call kept the Longhorns at bat and Jacqueline Williams' two-out single gave Texas a 1-0 decision. Tiffany Bowser and Meghan McGuire had the two Wildcats hits. Texas won the second game 6-1, ending the Wildcats' season at 49-19.
14) National media picked up the Bethune-Cookman story the week of the regional, including a
USA Today profile, the
Dallas Morning News and a young
Orlando Sentinel reporter named Jemele Hill before she shot to national prominence at ESPN.
15) Bethune-Cookman finished the season ranked No. 23 in the ESPN.com/USA Today in addition to No. 18 in the final NFCA/
USA Today Coaches poll.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Holly Bussey -- Would serve as an assistant at B-CU, now head coach at New Smyrna Beach (Fla.) HS
Katie Finn -- Physical therapist in Portland, Ore.
Amber Jackson -- Played professionally from 2007-09. Former head softball coach at Delaware State, teaching in Africa; B-CU and MEAC Hall of Fame enshrinee
Melanie Johnson (Anthony) -- Medicaid Branch Chief for the Division of Medicaid and Children's Health Operations, the largest CMS regional office responsible for the oversight of eight states located in Atlanta, Ga.
Rachel Kilbert — FAMU law school graduate - Personal Injury Attorney at William McBride Law Group, P.A.
Lauren McCoy (Donaldson) -- Former head coach at Howard; B-CU Hall of Fame enshrinee
Megan McGuire (Simmons)— Principal at Twin Rivers Unified School District, Sacramento, CA - married to BCU baseball alum Micah Simmons
Christie Middleton — Head Softball Coach - Sam Houston High School,
Viveca Patterson — Communication Specialist at Med Trans Corporation and Flight Comm— Intern at Alexander J. Paret & Associates - Grapevine, Texas
Jaime Scott -- Staffing manager at amazon.com
Sarde Stewart -- Program Manager at Easter Seals Southern California
Andrea Thomas (Moore) — Math Teacher at Okaloosa County School District and a mother of one
Christina Trimble -- Bethel Supernatural School of Ministry
Rhoenita Yancey -- Head softball coach at Gateway Community College, Phoenix, Ariz.