Softball Team Looks to Transform Team with New Young Squad

As the softball season kicks-off, our ladies of the diamond started of slow but now have picked it up in the last three games. Starting the season with three wins and six losses was not exactly how they planned to start. The important thing to note, however, is that the girls are actually 3-and-1 in conference play.

The team has a very young squad this year will face many obstacles this season.

“We have a very young team. Freshmen outnumber all other classes combined, and we do not have any seniors. I think the biggest challenge will be for everyone to step up and be a leader when most have never played college softball before,” said redshirt sophomore outfielder Kara Walling, who is one of only two players older than a sophomore on the team.

Being that the season is only nine games in to the 47 game season, the team has a lot of goals set for the upcoming season.

“We really wanted to make this a whole new year, whole new team. We really struggled last year. Since we lost so many players, we wanted to transform the entire program and become a better team. We have some specific stat goals, but we mostly want to compete well in the RMAC tournament,” Walling said about the goals for the season as a team.

The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) has some tough teams this year. Look for the Orediggers to continue to compete against the strong teams such as Metro State and Regis, both opponents still coming up on the schedule.

“The toughest opponents will definitely be Metro State and Regis, and they are also our biggest rivals,” stated Walling.

We all know about the commitment to school that must be made to be successful here. What most students do not realize is the time commitment that it takes to compete as a softball player here.

“Softball is a very complex game with many facets. Because of this, practices can take 3-4 hours, 4 days during the week, plus two full 8-hour days on Saturday and Sunday for our double headers,” fellow upperclassman junior Paige Noehring said about the commitment and time spent to play softball as an Oredigger.

“This season is an ‘away’ season so we will be traveling more than half the time, whether it be to Southern Colorado, New Mexico, or just downtown Denver,” added Noehring.

With this being an “away” season, making it out to support and see your Orediggers play will help the young crew gain confidence and compete at a level they are not used to. The next home games will be Saturday and Sunday, March 5^th-6^th, where they will continue to compete in the tough RMAC conference.