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One
of the most versatile female athletes ever at Bellevue
Senior High School was Jennifer Swartz, who earned a total
of 10 varsity letters for the Lady Red – three in
volleyball, three in basketball, and four in softball.
As a
sophomore, she was a member of the 1994 state ranked NOL
champion volleyball team as a defensive specialist. She
earned the best defensive player award in 1995 as a junior,
then was elected team captain her senior year. She was
honorable mention All-NOL, led the league in serve
percentage (99%), was fourth in serve reception (94%), and
earned the Coach’s Award and Best Defensive Player Award.
In
basketball, Jen was three-year starter at point guard and
was a member of the 1994-95 second place NOL team that
finished as sectional champs, Bellevue’s highest finish in
11 seasons. She led the NOL in 3-point percentage at 38.4%,
was the team leader in assists per game (3.9) and was second
on the team with 2.7 steals per game.
Her
junior season, she was second team All-NOL and first team
All-District, was named outstanding offensive player for her
team, led the squad in points (11.4), assists (2.6), and
steals (2.7) During a game against Tiffin that season, she
scored 16 points in the fourth quarter which set an
unofficial team record for points in one quarter.
As a
senior, she co-captained the Lady Red, was second team All-NOL
and All-District, won the most outstanding offensive player
award and helped lead the team to the districts for the
first time in 13 seasons. She was named to the Wendy’s-WLEC
All-Star game and finished her career 10th on the all-time
Lady Red scoring list with 547 points. She also finished
third on the all-time assists list with 178 and seventh on
the free throw percentage list at 77.9%.
Finally, as a shortstop, Swartz started and lettered all
four years of high school in the sport of softball. She was
named to the Grove City Northwest All-Star team three years,
was honorable mention All-NOL in 1994, first team All-NOL in
1995, and first team again in 1996. During her sophomore
campaign, the Lady Red finished No. 2 in the polls at 25-2
overall. She led the team in runs scored (34) and fielding
percentage (.959). She was second in stolen bases (24) and
third in hits (32), sacrifices (5), and walks (18). During
the 1996 season, she was first team All-District and third
team All-Ohio. She played the entire season with a broken
thumb and still was team leader in game-winning RBIs (4), on
base percentage (.524) and batting average (.364). She was
second in sacrifices (4) and walks (10). She also earned the
Ohio High School Fastpitch Softball Coaches Award that
season.
Jen
was also inducted into the BSHS National Honor Society, was
a 1997 NOL Scholar Athlete, won the 1997 Archie Griffin
Sportsmanship Award, and was the 1997 Gazette Award winner
as the most valuable female athlete.
In
college, Jen was a two year member of the Findlay University
basketball team and was captain in 1998-99.
Jen
currently resides in Norwalk. |