An outstanding athlete, Lorie Ceremuga enters the Youngstown State University Athletic Hall of Fame after a distinguished career for the YSU women's softball program.
A 1978 graduate of Poland High School, Ceremuga continued her education at Youngstown State University. She graduated with a 3.17 grade point average with a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering and received a master's degree in mathematics.
As an athlete, Ceremuga played third base for the YSU slow-pitch softball team in 1979 and was a member of the first fast-pitch team in 1980.
An important contributor her freshman year, Ceremuga guided the Penguins to a 17-3 record and a slow-pitch state championship. YSU defeated Miami, 7-3, in the state finals.
Ceremuga was hitting .43 8 going into the state tournament and finished the season with a .413 average and 13 runs batted in.
In 1980, Ceremuga was a member of the first YSU fast-pitch softball team. The team ended the regular season with a 14-6 record and won the fast-pitch state championship. Ceremuga was a vital part in the first round I 1- 10 win against Cleveland State. The Penguins were down 10-6 in the sixth inning when she hit a grand slam to tie the game. In extra innings, Ceremuga then hit a single and scored the game-winning run.
That season, Ceremuga led the team with a .300 batting average.
As a senior in 1982, Ceremuga hit one home run against West Virginia and finished the season with a .175 batting average and five runs batted in.
Ceremuga still holds the school record for most career triples with nine. Ceremuga also contributed to two team single-game records, most home runs and most runs batted in. She drilled one of three home runs against Cleveland State in 1980 to set the single-game record, and collected one of 12 runs batted in against Wright State in 1981.
Today, Ceremuga is a network engineer for Ciber, Inc., and resides in Painesville, Ohio.
