Big Ten yields zero wins

Dating back to the 2001 season, the IU softball team has lost 30 consecutive Big Ten games and are now 0-10 in league play this season. But why is no one concerned?\nWell thus far, IU has lost seven Big Ten games in a row by just three runs or less after getting blown out of Columbus, Ohio, by the Buckeyes in the conference opener. Over the weekend, the Hoosiers lost four games to Northwestern and No. 24 Illinois by a combined seven runs including two two-run losses to the Illini on Sunday. \n"The Big Ten is an amazing conference," junior Abby Stark said. "Yeah, we are 0-10, but our level of play is not indicative of our record."\nStark is a native of Vancouver, Wash., which is in the Pacific Athletic Conference area. She chose IU to have a chance to play in the Big Ten.\n"Next to the PAC-10, the Big Ten is a great conference," Stark said. "Everything about the Big Ten, the schools and the programs are great."\nIf there is such a thing as an impressive 0-10 conference record, IU has it. It plays in softball's second toughest conference, which consists of eight teams with 20 wins and one with 19. \nIn the seven Big Ten losses by three runs or less, IU has been a play or two or even one clutch hit away from changing the outcome of the ball game. \n"Except for the two games at Ohio State, we've been in every game coming down the stretch," Stark said. "We are so ready to explode."\nIn the last two seasons, the Big Ten has represented itself in the College World Series with Iowa in 2001 and Michigan last year. Big Ten teams continue to recruit upper tier talent from out West, as IU's roster includes eight girls from either California, Las Vegas or Arizona, while Wisconsin's roster consists of seven girls from California alone.\n"IU is able to get the top recruits because of the education and area," assistant coach Mickey Dean said. "Take that combo along with the campus, put it into a package and that's what you sell."\nHeading into Wednesday's tilt with border rival Kentucky, IU has a 14-12 out of conference record including wins over some upper elite programs including San Jose State. Their above .500 record out of league plays proves the rigorous competition that the Big Ten features. \n"(Big Ten teams) know how to play as they recruit the best players in the country," coach Sara Hayes said. "They have such successful athletic programs as a whole, that they know how to win."\nWith eight Big Ten games remaining, IU is looking to snag that elusive first Big Ten victory but will have to wait until Sunday when it travels to Iowa City, Iowa, to battle the 2001 World Series participant Hawkeyes. \n"It will mean a great deal to the upperclassmen to get their first Big Ten victory," Dean said. "We are looking to be at the top of this conference in the future"