| Scott Sollmann |
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 | Class:
Freshman
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| Hometown:
Cincinnati, Ohio
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| High School:
St. Xavier
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| Height / Weight:
5-10 / 180
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| Position:
Second Baseman
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| Birthdate:
04/01/1982
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| Bats::
Right
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Key addition who could give Notre Dame its best defensive play at second base in seven-year Paul Mainieri era ... a pure all-around athlete who has made seamless transition to infield, after playing mostly outfield as a prep ... ironically now plays for a coach (Mainieri) who has a history of converting middle infielders into outfielders ... very few players at the college or pro level have been successful with such a move, among them L.A. Dodgers SS Bill Russell and Chicago Cubs 2B Chad Myers ... combines with freshman 1B Joe Thamann to give Irish tremendous range and athleticism on right side of infield ... rated by Baseball America as No. 4 newcomer in the BIG EAST (Irish freshman RHP Aaron Edwards is third on that list, Thamann fifth) ... pieced together one of the top athletic careers in Cincinnati-area high school history ... brings great range to second base due to his instinctive sense of play and lightning-quick reactions ... an accomplished batter who could be a catalyst from the number-nine hole (filling another Mainieri pattern of placing a second leadoff hitter at the bottom of the order) ... has a compact, level swing that is effective against a variety of pitchers ... can hit effectively to all fields and a tough bunter as well ...a proven winner at many levels in a variety of sports ... follows in footsteps of his brother Scott Sollmann (’94-’96), an all-conference centerfielder with the Irish who was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in seventh round of the ’95 draft (he recently was signed by the Arizona Diamondbacks system) ... the elder Sollmann holds Notre Dame records for stolen bases in a season (52, ’96) and career (101) while his .372 career batting average ranks third ... could become 12th known Notre Dame baseball player to follow his brother (as letterwinners, see p. 2) ... sophomore RHP Ryan Kalita also could earn that distinction (his brother Tim was a LHP at Notre Dame from ’97-’99 and–ironically–was picked by Detroit in the seventh round of the ’99 draft, duplicating Sollmann’s selection from three years earlier) ... adds another element to the offense due to his speed on the bases ... could provide some pop from ninth spot ... one of eight Ohio natives on Irish roster ... joins Notre Dame program that has produced 61 letterwinenrs from Ohio ... inherits number three jersey worn by 2000 tri-captain Matt Nussbaum, in addition to speedy OF Dan Bautch (’90-’92, 68 career SBs), 2B Greg Layson (’91-’94, .321, 700 career ABs) and catcher Bob Lisanti (’92-’96).
PREP & PERSONAL: Presented with prestigious Buddy LaRosa Male Athlete of the Year Award for Cincinnati tri-state area, after concluding his stellar three-sport career at St. Xavier High School ... ended his career ranked among St. Xavier’s top 10 career batting average leaders (.427), after hitting .418 in 2000 and earning first team all-city honors ... earlier had served as starting point guard on state championship basketball team, averaging 10 points per game and connecting on 42 percent of his three-point shots for team that beat Cleveland Bedford in state title game ... earned all-league honors in basketball for 1999-2000, plus honorable mention all-region and all-city ... drew interest from college football recruiters, after earning first team all-state and regional player-of-the-year honors for ’99 football season ... captained '99 football team to 10-1 season, spot in the state tournament round of 16 and a No. 12 national ranking by USA Today ... also received the “That’s My Boy Award,” which recognizes all-around excellence in academics, extra-curricular involvement and football achievement ... hit .429 as junior team MVP, with five home runs, 18 stolen bases and 20 RBI on a team that went 20-4 and advanced to sectional finals (he was named all-city) ... his ’98 baseball stats included a .301 batting average and eight stolen bases on team that reached sectional finals ... played for one of the nation’s top summer-league teams, the Midland (Ohio) Redskins ... posted team-best totals in batting average (.442) and stolen bases (39) for 2000 Midland squad that went 50-10 and finished third in national tournament (where he was named all-tournament) ... played in prestigious Team One National Showcase and Team USA Tournament of Champions ... his football exploits included setting school records for career rushing yards (nearly 4,000), points (364) and TDs (60, besting his brother Scott's record of 58), plus a single-season record of 1,450 rushing yards in ’98 and single-game records for rushing yards (316, in 40-14 win over Colerain in ’98 regional) and TDs (six, vs. Cleveland St. Ignatius in eighth game of ’99) ... totaled 260 rushing yards, two rushing TDs and a passing TD in first round of ’99 state playoffs, vs. Moeller (a 49-32 win) ... named first team all-league three times in football ... four-year starting point guard on four conference championship basketball teams, earning all-league honors three times ... led Bombers to ’98 state title basketball game, losing to Canton McKinley ... member of the National Honor Society ... third child in his family to play college sports (his sister Staecy played soccer at West Virginia) ... father Rich Sollmann participated in football and track at Wooster ... born April 1, 1982, in Cincinnati ... son of Rickey and Kathleen Sollmann ... full name is Steve Richard Sollmann ... enrolled in the First Year of Studies ... intends to major in marketing.
