After two straight years reaching the championship game of the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament before coming up one run short, the Wittenberg softball team is on a mission in 2015. Head Coach Laura Matthews believes she has put the pieces in place to complete that mission.
The Tigers have won 47 games in Matthews’ first two seasons at the helm of the program, but they haven’t broken through to earn a berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament. To break the program’s 12-year playoff drought, Matthews must first find a way to replace three of the finest players in Wittenberg softball history in outfielder Laura Rose, pitcher Rachel Ross and third baseman Kaitie Harrison.
Seven players who started at least 17 games in 2014 return, however, including the Tigers’ top two hitters in junior shortstop Loren Combs (Cincinnati, Ohio/Turpin) and sophomore outfielder Abby Baker (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield). Combs earned first-team All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) and third-team All-Central Region and Baker was the NCAC Newcomer of the Year and a second-team all-region selection a year ago. Both finished with a batting average above .400 while starting all 35 games in 2014.
The lineup will also be bolstered by the return of senior catcher/designated player Ashlee Wright (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont), who shares time behind the plate with junior Ali Newton (Dublin, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson) and sophomore Tori Simek (Conneaut, Ohio/Conneaut). Offensively, Wright batted .340 in 2014 and pounded five home runs while driving in 23.
Junior first baseman Kaela Hughes (Columbus, Ohio/Watterson) also returns after raising her battling average nearly 70 points in 2014 while playing nearly flawless defense. She was not charged with a single error while handling more than 200 official chances a year ago.
Rounding out the returning starters are sophomore second baseman Casey Hobbs (Fairborn, Ohio/Carroll), who batted .290 in her inaugural collegiate campaign, and junior outfielder Shannon Lance (Loveland, Ohio/Kings), who batted .253 but played errorless defense in 29 starts in left field. In addition, senior Shelby Knapp (Springfield, Ohio/Springfield) provides outfield depth.
Other returning letterwinners include junior infielder/pitcher Lacey Eigel (Pickerington, Ohio/North), senior infielder Emma Ficke (Cincinnati, Ohio/Princeton) and sophomore Carley Sullivan (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern).
While there are several position battles still to play out, the biggest question mark for Matthews is in the all-important pitcher’s circle. Hughes has the most collegiate experience, but she took the ball in just four games a year ago, posting a 2.86 earned run average in 14.2 innings of work.
Eigel and Hughes will both have opportunities to pitch again in 2015, but several first-year players are expected to take the ball as well, including Chelsea Zang (Cincinnati, Ohio/Seton) and Abby Haab (Dublin, Ohio/Jerome). They headline a strong class of newcomers, which also includes infielders Sam Bausch (Cincinnati, Ohio/Turpin), Lindsey Blair (Delaware, Ohio/Hayes) and Charlee Clark (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson).
Written By: Ryan Maurer