BIO:

Jane Scheper Meier began her 15-year slow pitch softball career in 1964, competing in a Catholic Youth Organization League at the age of 13.  Two years later she joined Ducker’s to compete in the Friday Night Women’s League in Covington, where she would catch the eye of two eventual Hall of Fame coaches: Commie Currens and Merle Williams.  Jane joined Currens’ Burger Beer team for the 1971- ’72 seasons, then, after a season with the Cincinnati Cardinals, became the starting left-fielder and number two hitter for Williams’ legendary Sorrento’s Pizza teams.  Competing at the highest level of play over the next six years, Sorrento’s became one of the dominant teams in Women’s slow pitch softball, compiling a 483-68 won-lost record and an .877 winning percentage. Playing 90-plus games every summer, Sorrento’s collected numerous invitational titles, captured three Amateur Softball Association Metros and a Midwest Regional crown, and finished in the top ten in ASA National or USSSA World Tournament play in five of the next six seasons.  The team’s greatest achievement came in 1976 in Chattanooga, Tn. where they won ten games in a row to climb out of the losers’ bracket and stun the North Carolina Rubiotts in a double-finals to win the ASA Women’s Major National Championship. A .401 hitter during her six years with Sorrento’s, Jane was ultimately named to the Greater Cincinnati Women’s All-Century team in 2000.

Jane has also achieved extensive local, regional and national recognition, honors and awards for her expansive community involvement, contributions and service as a board and committee member, volunteer, speaker, teacher, coach and athletic director. She has been inducted into nine Halls of Fame and received five national awards for her leadership achievements.

During her a 31-year career as a coach and athletic director at Northern Kentucky University, Jane coached four eventual members of the Greater Cincinnati Softball Hall of Fame, including Brenda Ryan, Pam Patrus, Amy Flaugher and Tina May Tuck.

BIO:

Her managers and coaches and teammates all agree that they could not have asked for a better teammate than Carole “Baldy” Baldauf Replogle. Described as a dependable player and a base-running and defensive specialist in left and right centerfield, Carole simply out-worked and out-hustled the competition. When the game was on the line and a team needed a clutch play in a crucial part of the game, Carole was the player you wanted to have the ball hit to. During her 21-year career, during the height of women’s slow pitch softball, she was a mainstay on the roster of two National Championship teams, Rutenschroer Floral (1970) and Sorrento’s Pizza (1976). Many credit Carole with winning the 1970 National Championship after making a diving catch in the outfield behind another outfielder while doing what Carole always did, backing up a teammate. A lifetime .300 hitter, Carole also claims four ASA Metro Champions to her resume among some 49 tournament titles her teams collected.

BIO

Melissa (Merrell) Stenger was a first-team Greater Cincinnati All-Century left-centerfielder for the Northside K of C team that captured three ASA National and two USSSA World Tournaments from 1977-1985.  Missy was only 15-years old when she tasted her first national title, as she helped lead Northside to an ASA 15-Under Girls’ Youth National Championship in 1974.  Then in 1977, Northside bagged its second ASA national title in the 18-Under Girls’ Youth National Tournament in York, Pa.  Just a month later, Northside stunned the USSSA Women’s Class “B” World Tournament field with a victory in Beloit, Wi.  Northside was the first youth team to win a USSSA “B” National Tournament.  Missy was Most Valuable Player in both York and Beloit.  Then in 1979, she collected yet a third national/world tournament MVP award when Northside captured the ASA Women’s “A” National Tournament in Grand Prairie, Tx.  Missy also claimed the batting title in Grand Prairie with an .818 average.  Even more astonishing than Northside’s Women’s B World title in 1977 was their 1985 victory in the USSSA Women’s Class “A” World Tournament in Concord, Ca., where K of C upset their heavily favored Cincinnati arch-rival, Famous Recipe, on the way to the title.  Famous Recipe had been ranked the number one in the nation throughout the entire ’85 season.  Missy was named to the All-World team.  Overall she won 23 MVP or All-Tournament awards in ASA National, USSSA World or USSSA National Invitational Tournament play during her 20-year career with Northside K of C and then later with AES.

BIO:

Amy Flaugher of Alexandria, Ky., began her 15-year softball career at the age of 13, playing in youth leagues in Maysville before competing at the collegiate level for Northern Kentucky University from 1978-1982.  After graduating from Northern, she joined Sorrento’s Pizza for two years (1982-1983), earning All-American honors at the Amateur Softball Association Women’s Major National Tournament in 1983 when Sorrento’s captured a runner-up finish.  Amy moved on to Northside K of C in 1984, then spent her final four years in the game (1985-1988) with the legendary Empress Chili team.  In her very first season with Empress, Amy was named Most Valuable Player at the Ohio USSSA State Tournament.  She was selected to All-Tournament teams in three USSSA National Invitationals during the 1985 and ’86 seasons, and pitched Empress to back-to-back USSSA World Series titles in 1986 and ’87.  Amy earned All-World honors both years, as she compiled a 15-1 record and held her opponents to just 2.5 runs per game.  She went on to win a third consecutive title with Empress in 1988.  Amy’s lifetime pitching record was an impressive 469-70 with a world tournament won-lost record of 23-3.   Offensively, she was a place-hitter with a lifetime batting average of .450.

BIO:

Shirley JoAnn Patterson was the pitcher for the most successful team in women’s softball in the 1970’s, Sorrento’s Pizza of Norwood.  During an eight-year span from 1973 to 1980, Sorrento’s finished no worse than 4^th in five Amateur Softball Association National Tournaments, winning the title in 1976.  Patterson was named to the ASA National Tournament All-American team four consecutive seasons, winning National Tournament MVP honors in 1975, first-team All-American honors in 1976, and second-team All-American honors in 1977 and 1978.  Patterson spent twelve years pitching in Greater Cincinnati, playing for Sweeney Chevrolet in 1970, the Cincinnati Cardinals in 1971 and Rutenschroer Floral in 1972 before joining Sorrento’s in 1973.  She was best known for pitching – especially her precision placement and high arch – and defensive skills.  She had a lifetime ERA of 3.4, and in the 1976 Nationals she compiled an amazing 1.7 ERA.  Patterson’s husband Larry was Sorrento’s assistant coach.  He would scout other teams and signal Shirley from the bench to pitch high and tight, low and inside, etc.  And Patterson was capable of placing the ball precisely where players did not want the pitch.  Patterson recorded one no-hitter during her career, and had a lifetime won-lost record of 675 and 85.  In National Tournament play she was 50-13.  She was named to the Greater Cincinnati All-Century Team in 2000.

BIO:

Amazingly, Vickie Stambaugh won three ASA National Championships with three different teams over a five-year span.  Stambaugh’s titles came in 1972 with Riverside Ford, 1973 with Sweeney Chevrolet, then in 1976 with Sorrento’s Pizza.  Known for her speed and defensive skill in the outfield, Stambaugh started in either left field or right centerfield throughout her ten-year career.  Offensively, she was a singles hitter who used her speed and ability to run the bases.  After spending 1971 and ’72 with Riverside, Stambaugh joined Sweeney Chevrolet for the 1973 and ’74 seasons before finishing her career with Sorrento’s Pizza (1975-1980).  In addition to winning three national titles, Stambaugh’s teams earned a 5^th place finish in the 1971 National Tournament, a 3^rd place finish in 1977, and back-to-back 4^th place finishes in 1979 and ’80.  Stambaugh’s two most successful seasons came in 1973, when her Sweeney Chevrolet team lost only three games and swept to the ASA National Championship with a 6-0 record, and in 1976, when Sorrento’s won ten straight games after losing their opening contest to capture the National title.  Sorrento’s went 92-8 that season, and Stambaugh was named to the All-American 1^st team.  Stambaugh also earned All-American honors in 1972 with Riverside.  Stambaugh also captured five ASA Cincinnati Metro Championships.

BIO:

From 1969 through 1980, Chris Winter was the starting left-centerfielder and leadoff hitter for several of the most successful teams in women’s softball – all of which were from Cincinnati.  After launching her career in 1969 with Hall of Fame manager Commie Currens and his legendary assistant Merle Williams, she went on to capture four Amateur Softball Association National Championships, including with Rutenschroer Floral in 1970, Riverside Ford in 1972, Sweeney Chevrolet in 1973 and Sorrento’s Pizza in 1976.  The 1976 title was her most memorable, as Sorrento’s lost its first game of the tournament, then stormed back to win ten in a row – double-dipping the Rubiotts of Graham, NC in the finals in Chattanoog, Tn.  In addition to winning four national titles, Chris’ teams also finished 3rd once, 4th twice and 5th once, and captured six ASA Cincinnati Metro crowns.  Her blazing speed not only helped her earn a reputation as one of the best defensive outfielders in the country, but also as one of the most dangerous and successful leadoff hitters in the game.  The left-handed batter hit .439 for her career, but compiled an amazing .595 OBA due to her ability to beat out slow ground balls hit to the left side of the infield.  If the ball bounced more two or more times before it reached the shortstop or 3^rd baseman, Chris was almost always safely onboard.  And her speed forced countless errors, with anxious infielders either bobbling grounders or making off-target throws.  Chris was named to numerous All-Tournament teams during her career, and in 1977 was selected a 1^st team All-American at the National Tournament, when Sorrento’s finished 3^rd.  Her teams also won countless invitational tournaments during her career, and in 2000 she was named to the Greater Cincinnati All-Century team.

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Michelle Ann Cummins was the premier shortstop in Greater Cincinnati during the nineties, powering both ABP (1992) and Empress Chili (1993) to a 4^th place finish in the USSSA Women’s “A” World Series.  Later in the Masters 35-Over program she helped lead Ty-1-On to four U-Trip World Championships in five years from 2001-‘06.  She also captured a Women’s “B” World title with Ty-1-On in 2007.  A lifetime .550-.600 hitter with good power in the gaps, Cummins also had excellent speed.  She won back-to-back Greater Cincinnati “Player of the Year” honors in 1992 and ’93, and was a four-time All-World selection, including 1992 with ABP at the Women’s “A” World Series, and then in 2001, 2003 and 2004 in the Masters program with Ty-1-On.  She was also named World Tournament MVP in 2003.  Cummins’ teams won numerous State Championships and National Invitational Tournaments during her 37-year career, and she was named to several all-tournament teams in those events.  Her biggest thrill was when Empress Chili upset Cannon Illusions in the winners’ bracket finals of the USSSA World Tournament in 1995 before losing in the championship game.

BIO:

Reenie Fitzgerald played with several legendary Greater Cincinnati teams during her early career, including Dairy Cottage (1964-1968), Escue Pontiac (1969), Tri-State Auction (1970) and Cincinnati Cardinals (1973-1975).  In 1974, she helped lead the Cardinals to an Amateur Softball Association Cincinnati Metro Championship and a berth to the National Tournament in Jacksonville, Florida.  But it wasn’t until Reenie began to play in the Masters and Senior program that she really hit her stride.  In 1993, she joined Northern Cincinnati Sports Medicine, which captured the USSSA Women’s 35-Over World Tournament in Columbia, SC.  Reenie had finally won a World Tournament and was named to her first All-World team.  Northern Cincinnati Sports Medicine went on to win two more 35-Over Worlds with Northern Cincinnati Sports Medicine in 1998 and 1999, then joined the Ohio Cardinals in 1999.  Over the next twelve years, the Cardinals won eight world titles, and Reenie has been named to ten All-World teams, and earned four World Tournament MVP awards.  Primarily a pitcher, her lifetime won-loss record is an incredible 345-92, and she is 56-9 in world tournament play.  Reenie boasts a career batting average of .620, and while she has been primarily a singles and doubles hitter throughout her career, she does hit with occasional power.  In 2007, Reenie was honored with the USSSA DeBeer-Richard Pollak Sportswoman of the Year award at the organization’s National Meeting in Daytona Beach, Fl.

BIO:

It was obvious that Theresa Shepherd was destined for softball greatness at an early age, as her Sweeney Chevrolet teams captured a USSSA Girls Youth World title and four ASA Mid-West Regional crowns.  Her talent earned her a full ride at Miami University, where she still holds four records and was named to two All-Conference teams.  After earning Greater Cincinnati “B” Player of the Year honors while still at Miami, she made the transition to “A” ball in 1990, and was selected to three All-World teams with Empress Chili in the early nineties.  Later she played for Cannon’s Illusions/TPS, winning a USSSA Women’s “A” World Championship in 1998 and earning All-World honors for the fifth time.  She spent the 2000-2005 seasons with ABP/Kinder Sharks, claiming All-World honors three more times while leading the Sharks to three more World titles.  She rejoined Kinder Sharks in 2008, earning her 9th All-World selection.  Primarily a 2nd baseman throughout her 28-year career, she is a life-time .563 hitter.