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Nationally-ranked Huskies set sights on NCC crown
This year's version of the SCSU softball squad is doubly blessed in that it has nine returning players with significant experience and only one senior. How far will they go?
 Media Credit: Christine Johnson/Editor Sophomore hurler Nicole Webb will be the anchor of a strong pitching staff for the SCSU softball team. The team gained more than it lost in the off-season, and the outlook is good for the Huskies, who are ranked 21st in the national poll.
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After a 37-15 overall record last season and a second-place finish in the NCC tournament behind the eventual national champion, University of Nebraska, Omaha Mustangs, the SCSU women's softball team looks forward to something it lacked last season: experience.
Thanks to nine returning players that saw a significant amount of playing time last season, six of whom started every game, the Huskies find themselves ranked 21st in the National Fastpitch Coaches' Association preseason poll.
Head coach Paula U'Ren also recruited a group of freshmen and a couple transfers that will make immediate contributions.
"(The freshmen) should step right in," U'Ren said. "We expect (Abby) Velta and (Megan) Fuches to step right into starting roles."
The left-handed Fuches will have the tough assignment of starting at third base and filling the leadoff spot left by sophomore Lindsay Mutcheson, who had shoulder surgery this winter. Mutcheson, who will be redshirted, was the team's second best hitter last season, sporting a .320 average.
Transfers Trish Halvorsen and Megan Grimes add more raw talent and experience to the Huskies' lineup. Halvorsen is a junior catcher from Dawson Community College in Montana, where she was named All-American, All-National, and twice All-Conference. Aside from being a Gold Glove-type defender behind the plate, Halvorsen will bring some power to the offense. She was second in the nation in home runs last season. Halvorsen will most likely be splitting time with junior Melissa Wood, who started all 52 games last season but had shoulder surgery in the off-season. If Wood stays healthy, she will most likely win the starting job.
Grimes, a transfer from Lake Sumter Community College in Florida, will be one of the three solid, experienced pitchers the Huskies will feature this season. Grimes is a down-ball pitcher with a screwball that will leave batters swinging at air.
Sophomore Nicole Webb will return to the mound after an extremely impressive freshman year where she posted a 25-10 record and a 1.40 earned run average. Webb is a great hard-throwing curve ball/rise ball pitcher that will probably fill SCSU's top pitching spot.
Junior Tiffany Rose will also be returning for the Huskies as a pitcher, after spending a lot of time last year in the outfield. Although her time in the outfield cut down on her pitching time, she helped the Huskies considerably on the mound last season with a 2.06 ERA and three shutouts in 20 starts. The three right-handers should put together one of the most impressive pitching staff the Huskies have seen in years.
"We have some depth," U'Ren said. "It's the first time in a couple of years that we have three really talented throwers with Grimes, Rose and Webb. They all throw with a different style, so it will be a nice balance to have and they've all pitched in the conference, so it should be a pretty strong staff."
The Huskies will be diving head first into the beginning of the season next week. They will be playing in tournaments in Pensacola, Fla., March 10 to 13 and Columbus, Ga., March 15 to 16, where they will face off against some of the nation's best teams. Although the Huskies will be wearing a target on their back now that they're ranked, they know that there are still larger fish to fry.
"It's great to be ranked, but it comes down to winning the games," Webb said. "We see who is ranked number one, and we want to get 'em."
Due to classic Minnesota weather, the Huskies will have little time to make adjustments to outdoor fields against teams such as the defending national champion UNO Mavericks and Kennesaw State, Ga., who are currently ranked 1st and 3rd, respectively.
"These teams that we're playing have already been out the last 20 days playing and they've already had a couple games under their belts," U'Ren said. "We just need to go out and try and get better everyday, since we're coming from an indoor surface to finally being able to play outdoors, and just make the big adjustments and be able to pick up on it right away. We need to come out and compete like an NCC team should."
As for goals this season, U'Ren and the Huskies are looking nowhere short of the top, which means that they will not hesitate to try and dethrone fellow NCC powerhouse UNO.
"We want to go back out and compete against them to the best of our ability and try to stay on top of one of the toughest conferences in the nation," U'Ren said.
Bobby Hart can be reached at: [email protected]
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