2002 Wayne State Softball Outlook

The Wayne State softball team heads into the 2002 campaign with a young squad that will challenge for the league title and perhaps earn a spot into the NCAA Tournament. The Warriors are coming off a 37-20 campaign in 2001 that saw them finish second in the GLIAC after posting a 15-5 conference mark. WSU, who entered the GLIAC Tournament as a No. 2 seed last year, fell to Grand Valley in the championship game (4-3).

"It’s going to be a very competitive season," said head coach Gary Bryce. "With only one senior, we are a young team that placed second in the conference last season. With another year under our belts and the addition of some talented freshmen, we should be very tough to beat in the GLIAC and will make a run at Grand Valley for the title this year."

This season, the Warriors will once gain face one of the toughest schedules in the nation with a young squad that only has one senior. A big positive for the team is the fact that the lone senior is All-American Kelly Kashmerick (Flushing). Kashmerick, who will play centerfield and bat first in the lineup, hit .404 last season with 82 total hits, 17 doubles, five triples, three home runs and 25 RBI. In addition, Kashmerick started all 57 games for the Warriors in 2001, while crossing the plate a team-high 43 times.

"Kelly is our only senior and she will be looked to for leadership by the younger players," said Bryce. "She was very consistent for us last season and she is a tough all-around competitor. We’ll need good things from her in order to be successful."

Other key offensive players will be sophomore Beth Berry (Blissfield) and junior Betsy Kirk (Etobicoke, Ontario).

Berry will play first base after starting all 55 games at that position last season. She finished second to Kashmerick in many statistical categories last season, but led the team with six home runs and 33 RBI as a freshman. She ranked second on the team in hits (64), runs (29) and doubles (14), and also led the team with a .998 fielding percentage in 2001.

Starting her third season at second base, Kirk has been known in year’s past as a defensive playmaker. Kirk started all 57 games at second last season, ranking second on the team in fielding percentage (.969). Despite hitting .257 at the plate, Kirk still finished third on the team in hits (48), runs (25) and doubles (7).

"Beth and Betsy’s performances will be a big factor in our success," said Bryce. "Both players started in every game for us last season and provided solid offense and defense. Beth and Betsy are as good as any first and second basemen in the league."

Other veteran players that will see significant time are juniors Katie Pickhover (Fenton) and Tiffany Korzetz (St. Clair Shores/Lakeview), as well as sophomores Lindsay Sammut (New Baltimore/Lakeview), Maria D’Agostino (Wixom/Walled Lake Western), Leah Ondrovick (Tecumseh) and Johanna Proulx (Brampton, Ontario). Proulx finished behind Kashmerick, Berry and Jen Daniel last season with a .277 batting average, while D’Agostino, who started 55 games at catcher, and Ondrovick had 43 and 34 hits, respectively.

"Overall, we are better than last year’s team," said Bryce. "We lost just two players from last year squad and return a solid group of hitters that all saw significant time last season. Our supporting cast will do what it takes to be successful."

Junior Connie Milroth (St. Clair Shores/Lakeview) and senior Amy Thiede (Riverview) will handle a majority of WSU’s starts on the pitching mound in 2002. In 29 starts last season, Milroth led the Warriors with 20 wins (20-10 record) and a 2.34 ERA with six shutouts and 83 strikeouts. Thiede went 17-9 with a 2.64 ERA, to go along with six shutouts and 167 strikeouts.

"A lot of our success depends on how Connie and Amy pitch this season," said Bryce. "They performed very well last season, however, I expect them to bring it up another notch this year."

Bryce has brought in another strong freshmen class that will see a lot of playing time early on in 2002. Lisa Gauthier (Burton/Kearsely) highlights the group and will split time between the outfield, pitching and serving as the designated player. Sara LeBlanc (LaSalle, Ontario) will see time in the outfield and at first base, while Jenna McWilliams (Tecumseh) will start at shortstop.

"We have another solid freshmen class that will see time in the lineup right away," said Bryce. "They will make an immediate impact on the team."

In the GLIAC preseason poll, WSU was picked second with Grand Valley, the defending league champion, placing first. The Warriors will face one of the toughest schedules in the nation by taking on nine teams that are mentioned in the national top 25 with most contests being played in WSU’s first three trips. Wayne State will travel to the Owl Classic at Kennesaw State in Atlanta, Ga. (Feb. 22-23), the NFCA Division II Lead-Off Classic in Dallas, Texas (March 1-3) and the Spring Rebel Games in Orlando, Fla. (March 9-16) to start the season.

The Warriors also will host their annual Wayne State Tournament on March 23-24, before starting the league season versus Mercyhurst and Gannon at home (March 29-30). The GLIAC Tournament will be held on May 3-4 at Ashland with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament on May 11-12.