COLUMN: Linda Carothers' time has come

From Jeff Wieland's "Peanuts and Crackers Jacks," Fall '95 From Jeff Wieland's "Peanuts and Crackers Jacks," Fall '95Somewhere out by the junction of the Schuylkill Expressway and Exit 41, the Penn women's softball team split with La Salle yesterday afternoon. For those who have been watching -- and they are few -- this marks the Penn softball program's 11th consecutive losing season, and sixth in a row with at least 20 losses. With a full 12 games left to play, the smart money has the Quakers losing at least 30 for the first time in school history. There can be no question it is time for a change. An unprecedented change. A coaching change. Linda Carothers' time has come. Carothers is the only skipper the University has ever known. A former professional softball player at the national level and successful national amateur coach, Carothers has been Penn softball since she took the helm at the program's inception in 1974. The problem is Penn softball has never been much. In her 22-year career, Carothers has compiled a less-than-respectable 168-243-2 record for a .408 winning percentage. She has brought only one Ivy League title to West Philadelphia. That was way back in 1981, which was oddly enough the last year Penn finished higher than third in the Ancient Eight. Granted this season's woes cannot be blamed entirely on Carothers. It was a transition year from the first pitch, and a slew of early-season injuries didn't help matters. But there comes a point where they can't all be transition years, and when a team loses 20 games for six straight years, the problems must go deeper than the personnel between the lines. After all, the last time Penn had a winning season, this year's roster was still in elementary school. In the dugout, Carothers is a compulsive conservative who has been known to leave even her own players scratching their heads. Last season in a twin bill with St. Joseph's, Carothers cost the Quakers at least one game, and possibly a sweep, with a pair of decisions one might politely call ill-conceived. Trailing by five runs with one out and runners on second and third, Carothers signaled for Stacey Thompson -- the team's leading hitter at .394 -- to bunt for a reason that remains a mystery to this day. The bunt turned into a popout to the catcher that quickly became an inning-ending double play. Thompson could only shrug as she trotted back to the dugout. It got worse. In Penn's final at-bat of the nightcap, Melanie Bolt stepped up to the plate with one out and the Quakers trailing by two. Again Carothers called for the bunt, presumably to move the next-to-tying run into scoring position with two out. Penn would lose the game 3-2. "Apparently the rules we learned in Little League don't apply in college," reserve catcher Shannon Hembrough said after the game. Hembrough has since left the team. While fast pitch softball, with its tendency toward dominant pitching, undoubtedly lends itself to conservative managing, Carothers is the Jesse Helms of college skippers. The Quakers would certainly not hurt themselves by hiring a more aggressive coach for the part-time position. However, it should not really be a question of policy or personality. After 22 years, it should be a simple matter of wins and losses. Put 'em on either side of a scale and weigh 'em. If the loss side hits the concrete, so should the coach. It is harsh and it is vicious and it is cold, but it is reality for every other major Division I college program in America. The truth is Fran Dunphy or Al Bagnoli or Bob Seddon would have been a memory years ago with Carothers' record. But somehow, whether due to faith, sheer indifference or some unknown reason, Carothers has persisted while the program has perished. The time has come for a resurrection. When will we meet Penn softball's new savior? Jeff Wieland is a College sophomore from Aptos, Calif., and a sports writer for The Daily Pennsylvanian. Peanuts and Cracker Jacks appears alternate Tuesdays.