2010 Season Preview: Softball Looks To Bounce Back
SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Following a 2009 season that was derailed by injuries and just plain bad luck, the Swarthmore College softball team has high hopes that it can quickly rebound in 2010 and continue its recent run of success on the softball diamond.
Head coach Renee Clarke, who enters her seventh season with the Garnet, will be looking to improve the upon last year’s 5-11 record in the Centennial Conference and maintains optimism that this squad has what it takes to return to the postseason.
Much of that optimism stems from the return of senior Kathryn Riley. One of the best two-way players in the Centennial Conference and perhaps all of Division III, Riley (left) enters her final season in the Garnet and Grey as one of the most feared players at the plate and on the mound. Last season, she was named First Team All-Centennial for the third straight season last year – becoming the first Swarthmore softball student-athlete to ever accomplish that feat. She put up impressive numbers at the plate, ranking among the Centennial leaders in several offensive categories--batting average (.420), hits (42), slugging percentage (.500) and on-base percentage (.500). Riley was just as successful on the pitching mound in 2009. The right-hander had a great season, posting 115 strikeouts in a total 112.1 innings pitched. She ranked among the pitching leaders in strikeouts and earned run average (2.55).
At the plate, juniors Krista Scheirer and Kira Kern (bottom right) are also expected to provide some pop in the line-up. First-baseman Scheirer was named to the All-Centennial Second Team after being among the team leaders in offensive categories – slugging percentage (.433), RBIs (19), doubles (9) and home runs (2). In the Centennial Conference she ranked in the top-10 for doubles and hit-by-pitches (3). The first baseman was also stellar in the field, sporting an impressive .970 fielding percentage for the season. Kern returns behind the plate for Swat following a 2009 season that saw her get it done on both the offensive and defensive ends. At the plate, Kern finished second on the teams in hits (36) and third in batting average (.308). In addition to throwing out thieves on the basepaths, Kern was a proficient runner herself, tying for third in the Centennial with 13 stolen bases.
Sophomore Liz Cushing – who started all 37 games at shortstop for the Garnet in 2009 - returns to the infield in 2010, while senior
Michele Perch, junior Zoe Hendrickson, junior Melissa Emmerson, junior Maggie Vizcarra and sophomore Sasha Wijeyeratne all return to the outfield.
Much of the season will hinge on the play of an impressive class of 10 freshmen that will need to contribute immediately. Garnet newcomers for 2010 include: Erin Curtis, Angelica Sanchez, Isabel Sanchez, Emily Richardson, Katie Teleky and Allison Coleman in the infield, Samantha Bennett and Kate Smayda patrolling the outfield, and Danielle Seltzer behind the plate.
On the mound providing depth behind Riley will be sophomore Marley Spector and freshman Julia Tallarico.
The Garnet open the season at home on March 6 with a doubleheader against Morristown State. After that, they depart for a southern swing over spring break, taking on three opponents in North Carolina (Guilford, Peace and Meredith). Swarthmore’s Centennial schedule kicks off with a game at Dickinson on March 27, before returning home to face Ursinus on March 30.