USF Softball Returns!

The 2012 softball season is here as they open the season with a huge tournament at home, giving them a great chance to get off to a solid start.  First on the schedule is Maine. 

Maine went 18-31 last year, going 7-12 away from home.  The Bulls are hoping to get further this season and into the postseason and have a great chance in the first game to get the year started right.  Here are some of the players to watch for in the first game of the season (first game begins at 1:45 PM). 

Maine returns senior short stop Jennifer Eberhardt.  She hit .329 last season with 6 homeruns, 24 RBIs, and had an OBP of .422, doing a lot of damage for the lineup.  Sophomore RHP/INF Kylie Sparks hit .286 last year with 2 RBIs.  She went 5-5 on the mound with a 3.67 ERA.  She pitched 89.2 innings, allowing 115 hits, while walking 22 and striking 36 batters and allowing batters to hit .313 against her (threat on the mound or at the plate). 

Senior infielder Margaret Holton hit .233 last year with 3 RBIs.  Senior infielder Brynne Davis hit .219 with one triple and drove in 6 runs (not a lot of power and run production returning for the Black Bears).  Junior 1st baseman Hilary Kane hit .200 with 1 home run and 12 RBIs (looking for more power this season).  On the mound is junior RHP Beth Spoehr.  She went 9-12 last year with a 3.58 ERA.  She worked 125 innings allowing 137 hits while walking 33 and striking out 77 batters (allowed .269 batting average against her). 


Maine does not return a lot of offensive firepower in this first game of the season.  The Bulls will have the advantage with their bats and the strong returning pitching rotation that Eriksen can call upon.  USF should come out firing away in this game. 


After the first game of the season, the Bulls will take on Florida Gulf Coast (game should start at 4PM, but it could start a little later depending on the end time of the first game). 

Florida Gulf Coast went 31-25 last season, including 5-7 away from home. This is the first game of the season for the Eagles (they face Florida tomorrow).

The Eagles are led by sophomore outfielder Tori Williams (5-2).  She batted .275 last year with 2 triples, and drove in 4 runs.  She walked 16 times and struck out 44 times.   Junior outfielder Mariah Fernandez (5-7) hit .251 with 3 home runs and drove in 29 runs (walked 18 times and struck out 55 times).  Sophomore catcher/1st baseman Emily Lanier (5-10) hit .250 with 5 home runs, driving in 23 runs.

Sophomore 2nd baseman Brittney Garabedian (5-6) returns after hitting .236 with 10 home runs and 23 RBIs (big time power threat).  Sophomore 3rd baseman Kirsten Bennbnowski (5-6) returns after hitting .225 with 2 home runs and 15 RBIs.  Sophomore outfielder Jessica Barnes (5-8) returns after hitting .218 with 3 home runs and 18 RBIs.  The Eagles also have a strong pitching rotation that returns for the 2012 season. 

Junior RHP Stephanie Sullivan (5-5) returns after going 7-6 last year with a 1.95 ERA.  She worked 79 innings, allowing 82 hits, 22 walks and struck out 36 batters, so look for her to come out strong in the first game. Senior RHP Morgan Campen (5-10) returns after making 14 appearances last season, compiling a 2-1 record with a 4.59 ERA.  She pitched 32 innings while allowing 44 hits, walking 10 and striking out 13 (.312 opponents batting average). 

This is another game that the Bulls should win.  The Eagles have a solid returning team, but with the offensive firepower the Bulls have in their batting order, they should be able to come out in the second game and go for another win.