Feb. 12, 2008

THIS WEEK: Saint Louis kicks off the 2008 softball campaign this weekend after posting a program-record 29 wins in 2007. The Billikens open the season at Southeastern Louisiana's Lion Classic in Hammond, La. SLU will take on UT Martin in the season opener on Saturday, Feb. 16, at 10 a.m. before facing Jackson State at 12:30 p.m. The Bills wrap up their first day of competition with a 4 p.m. contest against the host Lady Lions. Saint Louis returns to the field on Sunday, Feb. 17, for a 10 a.m. game against Grambling State. Then SLU, which is the only team opening its season at the tournament, will complete the classic with a 12:30 p.m. contest against Mississippi Valley State.

FOR STARTERS: The Billikens will try to snap a string of five straight losses in season openers when they take on UT Martin on Saturday, Feb. 16. SLU has gone just 2-8 in its last 10 season openers.

SCOUTING THE SKYHAWKS: UT Martin (1-3) kicked off the 2008 campaign at the Georgia State Tournament last weekend. The Skyhawks defeated Lipscomb in the season opener before dropping games against Georgia State (twice) and Georgia. Sophomore outfielder Ashley Benbow leads the squad with a .385 average, and sophomore Laura Roberts has a team-high three RBIs. Senior right-hander Ashton Strode (1-0) owns a team-best 3.38 ERA and seven strikeouts in two appearances. As a team, UT Martin is hitting .212 and scores 1.75 runs per contest. The pitching staff has a 4.33 ERA while opponents are hitting .283. Head coach Donley Canary is in his eighth season with the Skyhawks. His career record stands at 179-158-1. SLU leads the all-time series 18-14.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS: Jackson State (2-2), which hosts SEMO on Thursday, started it's season last weekend at the HBCU Showdown in Atlanta, Ga. The Tigers opened the season with a loss to North Carolina A&T on Saturday but came out on top against Norfolk State 10-9 later in the day. JSU went on to defeat South Carolina State 2-1 on Sunday before falling to Florida A&M 9-1 to cap the tournament. Kenya Peters is in her sixth season as the Tigers' head coach. She owns a 66-114 career mark. This is the first meeting between the two teams.

SCOUTING THE LADY LIONS: Last weekend, Southeastern Louisiana (4-0) out-scored its opponents at the Alabama State Tournament 21-3. The Lady Lions, who received three votes in the latest USA Today/NFCA Division I poll, face South Alabama on Wednesday before hosting the Lion Classic. Junior Heather Sherrill sparks the offense with a .583 average, seven hits, seven RBIs and a 1.167 slugging percentage. Senior right-hander Rachel Ray leads the pitching staff with a 2-0 record, one save and 19 strikeouts while senior right-hander Nicole Schoenberger has a team-best 0.00 ERA in four innings of work. The Lady Lions, who average 5.25 runs per game, are batting .314 as a team. The pitching staff has a combined 0.75 ERA and holds opponents to a .176 average. Head coach Pete Langlois is in his 14th season with the Lady Lions. His career record is 311-391. The Lady Lions own a 2-0 advantage in the series vs. SLU after downing the Billikens 5-3 and 17-8 last season.

SCOUTING THE LADY TIGERS: Grambling State (2-2), which plays at Louisiana College on Wednesday, began its season last weekend at the HBCU Showdown in Atlanta, Ga. The Lady Tigers dismantled South Carolina State 16-1 in the season opener before defeating Florida A&M 4-2. However, GSU fell to Hampton 8-6 and Norfolk State 7-1 to round out the tournament. The 18-player Grambling roster includes 11 freshmen and two junior college transfers. Rookie Brandi Payne leads the pitching staff with a 1.12 ERA. She is also the team's top hitter with a .750 average after going 3-for-4 in the season opener. Freshman LaQuisha Wood, who had six RBIs against SCSU, has driven in a team-best 10 runs, and junior Takeia Edwards and freshman Marissa Handley trail Payne with identical .429 averages. As a team, the Lady Tigers are hitting .236 while averaging 6.75 runs per contest. The Grambling State pitching staff, which allows 4.5 runs per game, has a 3.81 ERA. Head coach Wilbert Early is in his first season with the Lady Tiger program. This is the first meeting between SLU and Grambling State.

SCOUTING THE DELTA DEVILETTES: Mississippi Valley State opened the 2008 season at the HBCU Showdown in Atlanta, Ga., last weekend. Lee Smith is in his seventh season as the Delta Devilettes' head coach. He has a career record of 146-156. SLU won the only game between the two teams, 4-3, on March 15, 2007. MVSU takes on Mississippi State on Wednesday before heading to the Lion Classic.

2008 PROGNOSTICATIONS: After finishing third in the 2007 Atlantic 10 regular-season race, the 2008 Billikens have been selected to finish third in the preseason coaches poll. Massachusetts was chosen to finish first while Fordham followed in second place. Charlotte and Temple round out the top five in fourth and fifth, respectively.

A SEASON TO REMEMBER: To say that the 2007 Saint Louis Billiken softball season was a success would be a huge understatement. Last season, first-year head coach John Conway led his team to a program-best 29 victories and their first appearance in the Atlantic 10 Championship. The 2007 squad established team records in slugging percentage, games played, at bats, runs, hits, doubles, home runs, RBIs, total bases, walks, stolen bases, innings pitched, pitching strikeouts and putouts.

THE A-10 CHAMPIONSHIP: Third-seeded Saint Louis opened the A-10 Championship with a 5-4 come-from-behind victory over No. 6 George Washington. The following day, SLU dropped a 10-2 decision to No. 2 Fordham, but a 1-0 victory over No. 5 Charlotte the ensuing day set up a rematch against the Rams. With the Billikens facing elimination, they scored four times in the top of the sixth inning to upset the Rams and earn a spot in the title game. Saint Louis was up early against Massachusetts, but the Minutewomen rallied down the stretch to claim the 9-3 win and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

CAREER CLIMBERS: The SLU pitching tandem of Lorena Floccari and Ashley Levan continues to move up the program's career charts in various statistical categories. Floccari is already the Billikens' career leader in saves (5) and appearances (108) while ranking second in games started (74) and innings pitched (491.2). Meanwhile, Levan is second on the career charts in wins (31), appearances (87), shutouts (11) and strikeouts (472).

ROOKIE RECORDS: Nicki Jost made quite an impact in her first season on the Saint Louis softball team. She set program standards for freshmen in nearly every offensive category, including games played (62), games started (59), at bats (186), runs scored (33), hits (53), doubles (14), home runs (5), RBIs (28) and total bases (82).

RANK AND FILE: The Billikens will take on seven teams that received votes in the 2008 USA Today/NFCA Division I Preseason Poll released on Jan. 23. In-state rival Missouri came in at No. 25 with 76 votes while UMass, Creighton and Southern Illinois garnered 38, 23 and 7 votes, respectively. Mississippi Valley State, Fordham and Florida Atlantic each earned one vote.

COACH John Conway: Head coach John Conway enters his second season as the Billiken skipper after leading Saint Louis to a program-best 29 wins in his first year. Conway, who came to SLU after four seasons as head coach at Division III Fontbonne, owns a 146-84 career record. His staff is comprised of assistant coach Bill Rosner, pitching coach Russell Cooper, volunteer assistant Dr. Terry Moore and graduate assistant Kendra McNichols.

AND YOUR NAME IS?: Billiken fans will notice some unfamiliar faces on the field this season as the 2008 softball squad features 10 new players. SLU's eight freshmen are Kristain Burger (Chaffee, Mo. / Notre Dame), Tori Holland (Columbia, Mo. / Hallsville), Allison Hopke (Vandalia, Mo. / Van-Far), Erin Kelly (River Forest, Ill. / Fenwick), Kristin Nicoletti (St. Louis, Mo. / Oakville), Keri O'Keefe (Tremont, Ill. / Tremont), Jenna Polacek (Omaha, Neb. / Maran) and Caitlin Trevillyan (Grayslake, Ill. / Carmel). The Bills also have two transfers in junior Katie Johns (The Dalles, Ore. / Wash U) and sophomore Morgan Finn (Ogden, Ill. / Lake Land College).

DILL PICKLE: Junior outfielder Annie Dillinger (Dupo, Ill. / Fontbonne) stole 19 bases in 2007, which led the Billikens and tied for third in the league ... hit .236 with 37 hits, nine doubles, 24 RBIs and a team-high tying five home runs ... committed just two errors in the outfield for a .967 fielding percentage.

EBB AND FLOW: Senior pitcher Lorena Floccari (Tallmadge, Ohio / Walsh Jesuit) was named to the A-10 All-Academic team ... posted a 10-14 record with a 4.17 ERA ... led the team with 34 appearances in the circle ... struck out 82 batters in 127.2 innings pitched.

CLOSE SHAVES: Sophomore pitcher Stacy Gillette (Palatine, Ill. / William Fremd) compiled a 4-5 mark with a 5.31 ERA ... struck out 30 batters in 62 innings of work ... earned the win over Fordham in the A-10 Championship, which helped SLU advance to the title game.

TURN UP THE HEET: Junior outfielder Rachel Heet (St. Louis, Mo. / Mehlville) earned a spot on the A-10 All-Championship squad after tallying a team-best seven hits in the tournament and tying the A-10 record for doubles in a tournament with three ... hit .299 with 50 hits, 30 runs, nine doubles, a team-high three triples and 26 RBIs in 2007 ... hampered by a back injury for a portion of the season.

IT'S HERBIE HANCOCK: Senior infielder Jody Herbert (Moline, Ill. / Alleman Catholic) played in just 24 games in 2007 after suffering an injury ... finished the season with eight hits and four RBIs.

JOST IN THE NICK OF TIME: Sophomore catcher Nicki Jost (St. Louis, Mo. / Oakville) earned A-10 All-Rookie team accolades ... tied for third in the A-10 with 14 doubles in 2007 ... ranked fourth in the conference with 186 at bats ... batted .285 with 53 hits, 33 runs, 14 doubles and a team-best 28 RBIs ... posted a .974 fielding percentage.

LEVAN ON THE EDGE: Senior pitcher Ashley Levan (Springfield, Ill. / Sacred Heart-Griffin) finished the 2007 campaign ranked 14th in the nation with 9.8 strikeouts per seven innings ... was a member of the A-10 first-team, the A-10 All-Academic team and the A-10 All-Championship squad ... posted 221 strikeouts, the second-best total in the conference ... put together a 13-10 ledger with a 2.56 ERA ... notched a team-high four shutouts and two saves in 158.1 innings.

THE O.C.: Sophomore utility player Rachel O'Connell (Arlington Heights, Ill. / Hinsdale Central) played in 59 games with 51 starts ... hit .174 with 20 hits, 19 runs and a team-best 21 walks.

I WANNA BE RICH: Sophomore infielder Shana Richard (Nashville, Ill. / Nashville Community) is the Billikens' top returning hitter after posting a .316 average in 2007 ... recorded 31 hits, four doubles and 13 RBIs.

HEY SCHMITTY: Sophomore infielder Brittney Schmidt (Columbia, Ill. / Columbia) played in 56 games with 51 starts last season ... hit .153 with 17 hits, 13 runs and four RBIs.

Printer-friendly format	Email this article