Chandler pitching way into history

    Some athletes play great; others are truly great players.
    GCSU pitcher Mandy Chandler falls into the latter category.  She is one of the most dominant athletes in school history, and a surefire GCSU Hall of Famer.
    Despite being a junior, Chandler already holds seven career records at GCSU, including wins, appearances, games started, complete games, shutouts, innings pitched and strikeouts. 
    This season she helped lead GCSU to the 2008 Peach Belt Conference title with a four-win performance in the PBC Conference Tournament. Her record for the 2008 season thus far stands at 24-7, including 25 complete games, 11 shutouts and 287 strikeouts in 217 innings pitched.  Opponents have scored an average of less than one run per game against Chandler this season.
    The dominance doesn’t stop there, either. 
    On May 14, 2006, Chandler tied the NCAA Division II record for strikeouts in a game while fanning 23 batters over 16 innings.  Her 16 strikeouts in a 2-1 win against Lenoir Rhyne College on March 10, 2007 are tied for the sixth-best in NCAA Division II history for a seven-inning game.  She’s a three-time All-Peach Belt Conference player, and in 2007 was named to the Daktronics All-Southeast Region team as a sophomore.
    “I’m competition-hungry, I don’t like to lose,” Chandler said.  “When I’m out there, I want the other team to know that I’m going to strike them out.  I do what I do, and I like to get strikeouts.”
    With seemingly every pitch and every game, Chandler continues to cement her place in GCSU history, piling up strikeout victims as frustrated hitters flail almost helplessly at her assortment of rising fastballs, curveballs, screwballs and change-ups.
    But were it not for a late roster opening in May of 2005, she may not have been a Bobcat.
    “In high school, I played in kind of a low-profile region,” she said.  “I had no idea how to get recruited.  I had some offers from other schools, but I didn’t really like them.  Then, in May of my senior year, I E-mailed (head coach) Ginger (Chaffinch) as sort of a last resort.  She said that she just had a pitcher leave, and I went to try out.  I liked Ginger when I first met her, and she said she wanted to sign me after the tryout.  I was the last person on the team that season.”
    It worked out well for the Bobcats.  In Chandler’s first season, she helped the Bobcats win a school-record 45 games by going 23-4 with 199 strikeouts over 191 innings pitched.  It was just a sign of things to come.
    Lost in her athletic successes is the fact that Chandler is also one of the top student-athletes in the conference.  She has twice been named to the Peach Belt Conference Presidential Honor Roll, which further exemplifies the commitment that has made her a successful pitcher.
    One of the most exciting parts about Chandler’s career is the fact that her senior year still lies ahead. 
    If the previous three seasons are any indication of what’s ahead, it should be a great year for the GCSU softball team.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 25 2008. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry