FULTON, Mo.—The (RV) William Woods University softball team gets its 2014 season underway on Friday afternoon, as the Owls travel to Shawnee, Okla., for the Oklahoma Baptist University Tournament.
The Owls, who are receiving votes in the NAIA preseason poll, return plenty of key components on offense and on the mound, while also bringing in some fresh faces that look to make an impact this year. WWU is coming off an impressive 2013 season, where the team won its second American Midwest Conference title in the past three seasons and earned a trip to the NAIA Opening Round in Jackson, Miss.
Senior
Lindsey LeCuru looks to build off her stellar 2013 campaign, where the Jefferson City, Mo., native led the offense in numerous categories including batting average (.371), hits (43), home runs (six), runs batted in (24) and slugging percentage (.560).
Kacey Scharnhorst will be another hitter to keep an eye on, as the junior had a career-year at the plate last season, finishing with a .340 batting average and contributed 19 RBI. Other hitters to keep an eye at the dish, who batted over .300 in 2013 include,
Shelby LeCuru (.328),
Caroline Sicht (.324) and
Macy Wierschem (.314).
On the hill, head coach
Tracy Gastineau returns the 1-2 punch in seniors
MacKenzie Bowden and
Becca Schemmer. Bowden, picked up AMC First Team All-Conference honors, after ending the year with a career-low 1.36 ERA in 20 games, had 19 complete games for a 13-8 record in 139 1/3 innings pitched and added a K/BB ratio of 193/55. She also became the school's all-time leader in strikeouts with 590.
Schemmer, a Huntsville, Mo., native, closed out the year with career-highs in wins (11), complete games (15) and shutouts (five). The senior also posted 2.14 ERA, struck out 53 batters and held opponents to a mere .249 batting average.
With the 2014 season just one day from starting up, the coaching staff and players are itching to get on the field. "We are definitely ready to apply what we have done indoors, put it on the field and play together," said coach Gastineau.
"The weather looks good in Oklahoma, so we are excited to get the year started.
On Friday, the Owls start off with a 12:00 p.m. first pitch against Bethany College (Kan.), who are coming off a 31-18 record, finished in second place in the Kansas Collegiate Athletics Conference and earned a spot in the NAIA Opening Round.
"They aren't ranked, but had a winning record last year, went to the NAIA Opening Round and have some common opponents like we have played," said Gastineau. "It should be a very exciting first game of the season for both teams."
Game two on Friday afternoon begins at 4:00 p.m., against Bacone College (Okla.), a team that went 22-24-1 in 2013, but finished in third place in the Red River Athletic Conference, after going 16-7-1 in conference play.
"We have never played Bacone before, so it will be exciting to play a new team, who has done well in the Red River," said Gastineau.
On Saturday afternoon, the Owls will play reigning KCAC champion and No. 24-ranked Friends University (Kan.) at 12:00 p.m. The Falcons are coming off a 43-8 overall record last year, including going a perfect 18-0 in the KCAC, where they beat Bethany College 5-3 in the championship game. The team then advanced to the NAIA Opening Round, where they defeated University of Houston-Victoria, before falling in its final two games.
After a tough game against No. 24 Friends, the finale of the tournament isn't any easier, as WWU goes toe-to-toe with host and No. 15-ranked Oklahoma Baptist University, with first-pitch being at 2 p.m. The Bison's went 33-23 in 2013 and 11-13 in the Sooner Athletic Conference.
"Getting into a flow and rhythm and adjusting to dirt vs. turf, along with other elements will be important this weekend," said Gastineau. "I am hoping we improve each and every game, remember what we did during the fall season and adjust to different pitchers, as our hitters have only seen ours these past few months," she added.
Coach Gastineau will look to these four games as a chance for a lot of players to get playing time, while also seeing what lineup could work best the rest of the season. "Everybody has worked hard, so I believe they should get an opportunity to play and make an impact," said Gastineau. "There will be a lot of different looks in the lineup, but we will be consistent in some areas where we aren't as deep," she added.
Fans stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow evening for full recaps and scores on the Owls season opener from Shawnee, Okla. Live stats will be provided for three of the four games, with the 4 p.m. game against Bacone on Friday not having live stats. To follow the stats click
HERE.
