Wittenberg Softball Head Coach Becky Hall welcomes 11 letterwinners, including three 2011 All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) honorees, back to the lineup in 2012 as the Tigers look to bounce back from a 13-24 record a year ago.

Laura Rose '14

Offense figures to be the team's strength, with three of the four hitters who finished 2011 with batting averages above .300 back in the line-up. Leading the way is sophomore outfielder Laura Rose (Riverside, Ohio/Stebbins), who was outstanding in her inaugural collegiate campaign with a team-best .371 batting average to go along with team-highs of 10 doubles, 39 runs scored and 27 runs batted in. She earned first-team All-NCAC honors.

Senior Tori Amicon (Galloway, Ohio/Hilliard Darby), who batted .370 and .319 the last two years, respectively, will swing her potent bat for one more season in Betty Dillahunt Field. She was a first-team All-NCAC honoree in 2010 and has been a mainstay in the line-up at both first base and designated player during her first three years in the Red & White.

Senior shortstop Jessica Snyder (Northfield, Ill./New Trier) is the Tigers' other returning .300 hitter. En route to second-team all-conference honors in 2011, Snyder batted .310 and tied for the team lead with 39 hits in a team-high 126 official plate appearances.

Katelyn Davis '12

Snyder anchors what appears to be a solid infield, as she will be flanked by battle-tested seniors in third baseman Fallon White (Fairborn, Ohio/Northmont), who started 29 games a year ago, and second baseman Katelyn Davis (Bethesda, Ohio/Union Local), a stellar defensive player who raised her batting average to .238 in 2011. Amicon is likely to share duties at first base with sophomore Kaitie Harrison (Springfield, Ohio/Kenton Ridge), who hit .245 and drove in 20 runs in her first collegiate season. Sophomore Emily Ervin (Lewisburg, Ohio/Tri-County North) saw limited action a year ago, but she figures to challenge for playing time in the infield as well.

Rounding out a quality defense through the middle of the field is senior catcher Brooklyn Cox (Dayton, Ohio/Vandalia Butler), who has started 66 games over the last two years and committed just six errors and allowed 11 passed balls. She also holds the school record for sacrifice hits in a season with 19 in 2010 before raising her batting average to a respectable .238 in 2011.

In the pitcher's circle, Hall will first turn to sophomore Rachel Ross (Westerville, Ohio/South), who earned second-team All-NCAC honors in 2011 after posting a 3.41 earned run average in 121 innings of work. She finished with a 7-11 record in 19 appearances, including 18 starting assignments. Senior Anna Kvartunas (Springfield, Va./Paul VI Catholic) also returns after making 14 appearances a year ago, and the Tigers are counting on a return to health and form for sophomore Kelby Kittles (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee), who appeared in seven games as a freshman before missing all of 2011 due to injury.

Four freshmen have bolstered the roster, with Julia Williams (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) adding depth to the pitching staff and Shelby Knapp (Springfield, Ohio/Springfield) potentially filling a spot in the outfield in place of graduated all-conference standout Jessi Allen. Carly Cribbs (Rochester, Mich./Rochester) and Ashlee Wright (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) round out a solid recruiting class.

Written By: Ryan Maurer
Photos By: Erin Pence