Head Coach Christy Connoyer is not worried about expectations, wins or losses for the Billikens. She is more concerned with the processes – the little things which go into sustained excellence.
Luckily for her and her team, however, the attention paid to detail is paying dividends. Sitting at 21-16 overall and 6-4 in Atlantic 10 play, the Billikens are slowly creeping up the standings and into the upper-echelons of Atlantic 10 softball.
“The point being is work for the process, and the wins will come. These guys put in a ton of effort….you know they play with a lot of heart and energy,” Connoyer said.
In sports such as baseball and softball, attention to the smallest things is what translates to wins and losses. Connoyer has stressed the importance of execution throughout her first year as head coach.
“It is about execution. Executing your bunts, executing a pitch on the outside corner, executing hitting an inside pitch, executing throwing out a runner. If you execute those processes, the wins will follow,” she said.
SLU started fast, winning 10 out of their first 14 games against teams such as Villanova, Radford and Lipscomb before dropping a 12-0 decision to in-state rival Mizzou. The challenging non-conference slate also included a trip to California for the University of California-Riverside Tournament.
The Billikens posted a 1-3 record at Riverside, falling to North Dakota twice, UC Riverside, and splitting games with Harvard. They finished their West Coast swing with contests against San Diego and San Diego State, with SLU defeating the former by a 4-0 score.
With a 15-10 record, SLU headed into conference play with a chance to make some serious noise. They opened up with two games against lowly La Salle on March 18 and 19, winning both.
The Bills cooled off against A-10 foes Fordham and Charlotte, however, splitting the series with both teams. In the 2-0 victory against Fordham, junior pitcher Hannah Huebbe was nearly untouchable, throwing a complete-game three-hit shutout to ensure the SLU victory.
In the series against Charlotte, senior Kristin Nicoletti collected her 200th career hit, padding the school record which she already owns. As a leadoff hitter, she acts as the spark for the Billikens, setting the table for the two through five hitters to drive in runs, a job she performs well.
Nicoletti, a fixture of the SLU softball program, has posted a .350 batting average and a stellar .418 on base percentage, both highest on the team, while starting all 37 games for the Billikens. She also leads the team in stolen bases, successfully swiping 17 bags in 20 attempts.
“I’m a slapper, so I pretty much try to hit the ball into the ground and get something going, see how the defense is playing, just make some chaos and get them to throw it around. We rally a lot – once somebody gets on, other people will get on too,” Nicoletti said when asked about her role in the offense.
“That’s when we’re successful, when we get on someway and somehow.”
Her 42 hits on the year are the third highest in the A-10.
SLU took on Southern Illinois, where Connoyer was formerly an assistant before taking the head-coaching job at SLU. The Billikens dropped both games by scores of 3-2 and 5-1, respectively.
They picked right back up in A-10 play on April 1, blasting Rhode Island in successive days by a score of 7-0 in both games before being swept by Massachusetts.
The season has been one marked by close games and strong pitching. Huebbe and junior Kelcie Matesa have anchored the pitching staff, combining to earn 17 Billiken wins. Matesa has thrown five shutouts on the year and recorded 102 strikeouts, both team bests. Huebbe owns a 2.73 ERA, a team low, and has been the No.1 starter throughout the season.
“They both do a great job of hitting their spots, keeping teams off balance, getting an offense tog uses…they do a nice job of setting up hitters. They work well with [Alyson] Brand, our catcher, to exploit weaknesses. They keep at it,” Connoyer said.
The Billikens continue their chase for A-10 supremacy on Saturday, April 9 when Dayton comes to town for a doubleheader.
Six teams are within two games of each other in the conference standings, giving the Billikens as good of a chance as anyone to capture a conference title.
