The Virginia Cavaliers reached the postseason in 2017 for the first time in four seasons. Though the Cavaliers just snuck into the conference tournament as the #8 overall seed, first-year head coach Joanna Hardin says the experience helped her team a lot. “The way that we finished the season, they tasted a little bit of success. I think they got a little taste of the fruit of their labor… winning more games and improving on the previous season was great, but our kids were happy, but not satisfied at the end of the season. It was good, for us as…
Author: jmcleod
Saint Francis University boasts one of the smallest athletic departments in the nation at the Division I level, but watching the Red Flash softball program play in 2017, they looked at times like a team with resources four times their own. “Last season was obviously a really fun year,” said head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift of the season that saw her team record forty-nine wins, including pairs of victories against Power Five teams Texas Tech and Penn State, as well as eventual NISC champion Liberty. “When we first came in and began building the program, based on the commitments and the…
Nestled in San Marcos in central Texas is Texas State University. The home of nearly 39,000 students, the Bobcats also play host to one of the nation’s best pitchers. “Any time that you put the ball in [Randi Rupp’s] hands, you have a chance to beat anybody in the country,” head coach Ricci Woodard said of her senior pitching ace. “She gives us a chance to compete with anybody on the field.” After a 2017 season that saw the Bobcats put together a 42-17 record and five wins over Power Five teams, including eventual Women’s College World Series participant Baylor.…
(If you missed our 2017 Year in Review, check it out here.) 2017 was a year full of big games, breakout stars, controversy, and crazy happenings. Players you’ve never heard of became household names. Top-level teams took losses to other teams that were supposed to be on a lower level. Coaches changed jobs, and sometimes changed jobs again. Controversy swirled around some of the game’s top programs and for some, it still swirls. The year of 2018 is now upon us. Everything that 2017 brought is now in the past, and there’s a lot of softball to look ahead for…
The year of 2017 was a full one in the softball world. From January to December, there always seemed to be something happening. Here’s a look at our countdown of the top happenings, biggest storylines, and most memorable moments of 2017. 11. Kevin Blaskowski leaves West Texas A&M — This piece of news out of the Division II ranks was shocking. Blaskowski had enjoyed enormous success at WTAMU over twelve seasons as head coach, after restarting the softball program in the mid-2000s. The Lady Buffs won 467 games under Blaskowski’s leadership and had appeared in the NCAA postseason eight times. Blaskowski led his…
Ask a softball fan and they’ll tell you that the road to the top of the SEC softball scene traditionally rolls through Gainesville, Knoxville, Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge, and Auburn. Oxford, Mississippi joined that list in 2017, and Texas A&M coach Jo Evans is on a mission to add College Station to the list sooner rather than later. “I think we can make a run [at a conference championship],” Evans said. “The SEC will always have us ready to make a great run against the best teams in the postseason, and that’s what is most important to me… this year, we…
Who is she? Brittany Lastrapes, a former outfielder for the Arizona Wildcats. What is she known for? As a Wildcat from 2008-2011, Lastrapes earned four all-American honors, including nominations to the first-team in 2009, ’10, and ’11. She also earned all-conference honors in each of her four seasons. When she graduated from Arizona, Lastrapes was the program’s record holder for career doubles with sixty-six and ended her career with a .417 batting average. Lastrapes started all of her team’s games during her four-year career and was a member of the US National Team from 2007-10. Here’s something interesting… Brittany is one of three…
For most coaches, replacing one-third of your starting batting order and your top pitcher, while continuing to contend for a national championship would be an impossible task. For Arizona’s Mike Candrea, that scenario is his reality, though he doesn’t believe it will keep his Wildcats from contending amongst the game’s elite. “It’s hard for any coach to say ‘I’ve got [those spots] filled,” said Candrea. “I look back at those seniors that we lost, I remember what they were like as freshmen and sophomores. That’s a big part of this job, to help people grow, help them graduate, help them…
When Jamie Pinkerton was selected to begin the Montana softball program from the ground up, one of his first tasks as the Grizzlies’ head coach was to hire Melanie Meuchel as his assistant coach. A Missoula, MT native and formerly a longtime assistant coach at Nevada, no one predicted that just four years later, Meuchel would herself be the Griz head coach. After Pinkerton accepted the head coaching position at Iowa State, Meuchel was officially named the full-time head coach in October. “You know, it was just one of those things,” Meuchel said. “I’ve always felt very comfortable being an…
Former Lamar outfielder Brittany Rodriguez has transferred to Louisiana-Lafayette for the 2018 season. Rodriguez, who spent two seasons at Lamar and will be a senior this coming season, will be eligible to play immediately. Rodriguez earned first-team all-Southland conference honors in 2016 and 2017 and was named to the all-conference tournament team in her sophomore season of ’16. She hit .391 during her two seasons as a Cardinal and set a program record immediately in 2017 with seventy hits, a single-season’s best. She broke her own record in 2017 with eighty-one hits on the season. Rodriguez figured prominently into the Cardinals’ plans in…