By: Jake Krier, UWEC Sports Information
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) - This group wants to 'Make It Count.' That's the theme of the upcoming season for the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire softball team, as mentioned by Head Coach Leslie Huntington. The program's winningest coach hit the 400-win mark last year en route to being named the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Coach of the Year for her fifth time. Returning for her sixteenth season leading UW-Eau Claire, Huntington is excited for the year ahead.
"I love our work ethic -- our players really love working hard every day," said Huntington. "Along with that work ethic is the most selfless group of players I've coached. They truly want to see everyone on the team succeed."
The Blugolds found much success as a team last season, winning their second-straight WIAC regular season title and the program's eleventh overall championship, earning the right to host the conference tournament. However, in heart-breaking fashion, Eau Claire eventually was topped 2-1 in a marathon thirteen-inning WIAC Championship against UW-Whitewater, resulting in not receiving an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament.
Despite the difficult conclusion to the previous season, things are looking optimistic for this year's squad, which returns a core of seven seniors and plenty of younger talent as well.
"We are going to rely heavily on our senior class, but we have some young players who have shown that all they need is a little game experience, and they will be ready to contribute," added Huntington. "Our young pitchers are coming along well and have learned quickly about the importance of throwing quality pitches."
Leading the charge will be Lauren Blasczyk (Sr.-Appleton, WI/East), who posted a perfect 7-0 record in the WIAC regular season and lead the conference with an overall earned run average of 1.51. The Appleton-native has not lost a conference game in regular season play in over two years now and was also awarded a spot on the All-WIAC First Team, the CoSIDA All-Academic Sixth District™ softball team, and the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Great Lakes All-Region Second Team a year ago.
Equally impressive on the offensive side, was Evie Schaller (Sr.-Chippewa Falls, WI/Chi-Hi). Schaller earned WIAC Co-Position Player of the Year honors following her topping the conference in overall hits, RBIs, doubles, and total bases, while finishing second in batting average, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage. The transfer led the Blugolds in eight offensive categories in her first season at Eau Claire and was named to the NFCA Great Lakes All-Region First Team.
Another significant contributor to the Blugolds offense was Leah Wolff (Sr.-Middleton, WI), joining the previously mentioned Blasczyk and Schaller on the WIAC All-Conference and NFCA Great Lakes All-Region teams.
In addition to those previously highlighted, other Blugolds to have great results last year included Rachel Heffel (Sr.-Racine, WI/Case) and Brooke Varian (So.-Madison, WI/West), both of whom were named to the All-WIAC Honorable Mention Team.
These returners can be expected to lead the way in 'making it count' this year for the UW-Eau Claire team that has opened up the 2017 campaign ranked No. 14 in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Poll.
The Blugolds begin their season on Friday, March 3 with the Rochester Dome Tournament. After playing four games over the course of opening weekend, the team is off until their spring break trip down to Florida in mid-March. They'll take part in the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, FL from March 16-18 followed by the PFX Games in Clermont, FL from March 20-22.
"The three days we were able to get outside was a shot in the arm for the entire team," said Huntington. "We saw some really positive things in that space being outside, and we are looking forward to being tested with our opening weekend in Rochester and then on our 12-game trip to Florida in a couple weeks."
Conference play starts on April 5, when the Blugolds will host UW-River Falls. This is the first of three WIAC opponents making their way to Eau Claire. The others, UW-La Crosse (April 18) and UW-Platteville (April 29), will take on the Blugolds at their "new" home of Bollinger Field.
The Blugolds will travel to UW-Whitewater (April 8), UW-Oshkosh (April 9), UW-Stevens Point (April 22), and UW-Stout (April 26) to wrap up their conference schedule. WIAC Tournament play is slated to take place May 5-7.
Follow the action all season long on Blugold Game Day.
