By Katie Miller, Sports Information Public Relations Intern
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) – The UW-Eau Claire softball team starts their 2015 campaign this Sunday, March 1st versus Buena Vista University at the Irish Sports Dome in Rosemount, MN. Last season, the Blugolds went 25-16 overall and placed fourth in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) with a 9-5 conference record.
Leslie Huntington enters her 14th season as head coach with a 369-188 record. Huntington is 31 wins away from her 400th career win, which would also be the program's 800th victory.
UW-Eau Claire's 2015 schedule includes five teams ranked in the NFCA preseason Top 25 poll, including four teams ranked in the Top 10. Two of those teams participated in the 2014 NCAA Championship.
"We always put together a difficult schedule," said Huntington. "We need to challenge them [the players], and challenge them early. We want to know if we can compete with the best teams in the country and there is no other way to find that out than to play them. It's going to be fun, it's going to be challenging. But with a senior-heavy team, this is the type of schedule we need to play."
The 2015 team welcomes back 17 returning players, including eight starters and six seniors.
Four players earning All-WIAC honors return this year. Amanda Fischer (Sr.-Wausau, Wis./West) received All-WIAC First Team honors in 2012, 2013, and 2014. Fischer was also named a 2014 NFCA Division III Third Team All-American for the second year in a row, only the fourth Blugold to earn All-American honors twice. In 2013, she was the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year and last season tied the school single season homerun record with 11 homeruns. Taylor Pierce (Sr.-Ashwaubenon, Wis./Ashwaubenon) received a second All-WIAC First Team selection in 2014, her first being in 2012. Laura Raflik (Sr.-Plover, Wis./Pacelli) snagged her first All-WIAC First Team honor in 2014. Casey Arnold (Sr.-Kaukauna, Wis./Kaukauna) was All-WIAC Honorable Mention in 2014.
The Blugolds are shaking things up a bit in hopes of improving on last season's record.
"Reflecting on the results of recent seasons the coaching staff has challenged our own thinking with regard to our preparation this year," said Huntington. "That has led to some significant changes in our practices. I'm hopeful we'll see the effects of those changes in our performance in games, especially early in the season."
The team welcomes five freshmen: catcher Carlie Christensen (Fr.-Ellsworth, Wis./River Falls), pitcher Jordan Cockroft (Fr.-Ithaca, Wis./Ithaca), outfielder Darby Raffel (Fr.-Middleton, Wis./Middleton), in/outfielder Kiley Rondeau (Fr.-Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee), and outfielder Mikayla Watters (Fr.-Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake).
Huntington says she is pleased with the freshmen understanding their role on the team and hard work they put in at practice.
"Our freshmen have some great older players to learn from this year, and it's a bit of a luxury to not have to rely so heavily on freshmen as our season gets underway."
The first pitch of the 2015 season is slated for 8:00 a.m. on Sunday. Eau Claire and Buena Vista have met nine times with UW-Eau Claire holding an 8-1 advantage. The last time the teams met was in 2011 with the Blugolds sweeping the doubleheader, 6-1 and 6-5.
