During her first three seasons at BW, Butzer has been plagued by a number of nagging injuries that have kept her from realizing her full potential. Veteran Yellow Jacket Head Coach Cheri Harrer is hoping that Butzer can stay injury-free and reach her full potential.

 

"When Jessica is healthy, she is both an outstanding player and team-leader," said Harrer, who has won 377 games at BW and led her program to 10 NCAA Division III National Tournament appearances in the last 13 seasons, including a year ago when her team finished 27-3 overall. "Our hope is that she has an injury-free senior season and gets the chance to enjoy a full season."

 

Basketball has always been a very important part of Butzer's life. The first time that Butzer was on a team goes all the way back to when she was in fourth grade.

 

"I first started to play on a basketball team when I was in fourth grade," said Butzer, who carries a 3.4 grade point average as a sport management major and marketing minor. "But I've been playing ever since I was six years-old with my dad."

 

When Butzer was young, her father sparked her interest in sports. He introduced her to many different sports, so she began loving sports at a really young age. Out of all of the sports that her father taught her, basketball was the one sport that stuck out the most to Butzer.

 

"My dad has been a big inspiration to me along with the rest of my family," said Butzer, who averaged 3.6 points-per-game last season and currently has 257 points, 89 assists and shoots 50 percent from the field in 61 career games. "My entire family has been such a great source of support."

 

Prior to coming to BW, Butzer was recognized for many achievements such as Special Mention All-Ohio, first- team All-Ohio Cardinal Conference, first-team All-District 4, first-team All-Northeast Inland District and first-team All-Daily Record as a senior.

 

Her interest in basketball has been a huge part of her life and also was a deciding factor in her choice of college.

 

"I decided to attend to Baldwin Wallace University because of the quality education that the college had to offer and the fact that I could continue to play basketball so close to home," said Butzer, who is a member of the BW Sport Management Club and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

 

As a freshman, Butzer saw action in 20 of 32 varsity games and scored 3.2 ppg. with 28 assists and 10 steals She missed the first 12 games of the season with a pre-season injury. But once healthy, she helped the Yellow Jackets compile a 27-5 record, win the OAC title and advance to the "Elite Eight" of the 2006 NCAA Division III National Tournament.

 

As a sophomore, Butzer saw additional playing time despite the lingering effects of the injury from her freshman campaign. She averaged a career-high 5.6 ppg. with 38 assists and nine steals as BW finished 19-7 overall.

 

A year ago, Butzer again was injured during the pre-season and missed the first 11 games. But true to form, she returned to play in 18 contests, average 3.6 ppg. and shoot 51% from the floor as BW won both the OAC regular season and OAC Tournament crowns and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III national tourney with a 27-3 slate.

 

Despite the nagging injuries, Butzer's teammates know her value.

 

"Jess is someone who you can always count on whether it is on or off the court," said fellow senior point guard Rachael Quiring (Brunswick/ Parma Heights Holy Name). "She has one of the fastest pull up jump shots that I've ever seen, and she always seems to make it too."

 

"Jess is a great leader and she displays great passion when she plays," continued Quiring. "You always know that she will do just about anything to help the team. She is very unselfish. I am fortunate to play alongside such a great person and friend."

 

Harrer also sings Butzer's praises.

 

"Jessica is a solid player and an outstanding ball handler," said Harrer. "Her pull up jumper cannot be stopped. She also can make big plays on the defensive end with her hustle and desire."

 

In BW's first two games this season, the eighth-ranked Yellow Jackets are 1-1 overall after travelling to Union, New Jersey and beat Salisbury (Md.) University, 73-34, and lost to fourth-ranked and host Kean (N.J.) University, 81-68, at the Kean Tipoff Tournament. The game versus Kean was much closer than the score as BW led by seven points at 53-46 with 10:46 left and trailed by just five points at 73-68 with 1:28 to go in the game.

 

After spending four years playing at BW, Butzer has many great memories to carry with her for the rest of her life such as the long trips taken to places such as Las Vegas, Nevada and San Antonio, Texas; winning two OAC regular season and two OAC Tournament titles; and most importantly being able to spend time with her teammates.

 

"My teammates are amazing," said Butzer. "I've never been so close to anyone else outside of my immediate family. We're like a family. We have such great chemistry together, and hang out all the time outside from basketball. It will be the thing that I definitely will miss the most, so for now, I want to make the most of every opportunity."

 

Even though Butzer's collegiate career will draw to a close after this season, she hopes to stay involved in sports long after receiving her diploma.

 

"My dream job after college would be having a marketing job and working for a major sports franchise," said Butzer. "My academic major and experiences while at BW have prepared me well. Now I have to go out and sell myself to an employer. I am looking forward to that too."

 

The Yellow Jackets are back in action on Saturday, November 29 when they travel to Washington, Pennsylvania and play Washington & Jefferson College at 3:00 p.m.  The first home game is on Tuesday, December 2 when they host traditional rival Wittenberg University in the Rudolph Ursprung Gymnasium of the Lou Higgins Center.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION, please contact BW Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327, by FAX machine at 440-826-2329 or via e-mail at kruple@bw.edu. To contact Head Coach Cheri Harrer, please call 440-826-3299 or e-mail at charrer@bw.edu. You can get all of the latest BW athletics information by visiting our Web site at www.bw.edu/athletics.