Despite the still less than favorable weather, the Saint Louis University softball team begins its season this weekend with a five-game tournament in Las Vegas.
“I’m excited,” Head Coach John Conway said. “I think they’re ready to start playing now. I don’t think I could say that at this point in my first two years, but I think right now they are ready to go.”
Conway begins his third season as the SLU softball coach with only seven upperclassmen on a roster of 20; however, Conway is pleased with where his team is at.
“This is probably the most talented group I’ve had here in the three years I’ve been here, so I’m excited to get going with them. We have two pitchers left from last year’s team. So, this year with the pitchers being a year older and the freshmen we have coming in I think we’ll be stronger than we were last year. We’re a lot healthier than last year. It’ll take us some time to get going but we’re going to finish up better than we were last year.”
While Conway is optimistic, he is also realistic when it comes to the youthfulness of his squad. “It’s going to be a learning experience in the beginning. It’s going to take 20-30 games to figure everything out, but I feel pretty good about the depth I have,” Conway said.
Senior Rachel Heet agrees that the team’s prospects are favorable.
“They are mature and I don’t think they will hinder us in the least,” she said.
The team will need the freshmen to step up, as the Billikens’ schedule is one of the toughest in the Atlantic-10 Conference.
“We probably play seven or eight top-25 programs this year. But, it’ll make us stronger for conference, because it’s all about conference. Playing those types of programs will make us stronger,” Conway said.
Sophomore Kristin Nicoletti expresses his agreement with Conway.
“It kind of makes you nervous, but it will only help us in the end,” she said.
While winning some of the tough non-conference games would greatly excite the team, finishing well in the conference is the Billikens’ ultimate goal. Last season, the Billikens’ finished in a tie for fourth-place in the conference.
In a pre-season poll, they are picked to finish fourth again; Conway believes the team can make a run for the A-10 Championship.
“My goal for the conference is to win it. UMass is the favorite and has a senior All-American pitcher, but I think we’ll be right up there with them. I think it’s realistic if we can stay healthy and our pitching improves as the season goes on. I think we can do it,” Conway said.
The team begins its long road to the A-10 tournament this weekend, with the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic in Las Vegas. The Billikens will be playing Southern Utah, Virginia, UNLV, Hawaii and Michigan over three days.
“My goal is to go 3-2. It would be good to go and compete there,” Conway said.
The Billikens face some stout competition as Michigan is ranked in the top 10 nationally and Hawaii has received votes in some national polls.
The softball season will be marked by many tough games with some potential growing pains at the beginning of the season. However, the softball team is excited to start playing and is confident it can improve on last season’s performance.
“Everybody might be a little nervous at first, but I think our abilities will shine through in the end,” Nicoletti said.
In the mean time, the team is a work in progress.
“Getting comfortable and finding where everybody is going to be fitting in is going to take some time,” Conway said. “But, I feel [we’re] ready to go.”
