Season Preview
mayday! defending champion softball team
looks to return to postseason

Play in May.

That’s the goal for the Muhlenberg softball team, which surprised everyone by winning the 2009 Centennial Conference championship. After two years of missing the CC playoffs and having their season end in April, the Mules tied for the biggest turnaround in league history, finishing in second place. They won their fourth CC title of the decade as the highest remaining seed when the second day of the playoffs was rained out.

Now the Mules, who open their nine-game Spring Break trip with a game against Rensselaer

Van Waalwijk connected for 17 hits last year after combining for 16 in her first two.

at the National Training Center in Clermont, Fla., on Saturday, are set to build on the momentum from last year and defend their championship.

“It does feel different,” said Jenna Van Waalwijk, who as the lone senior on the team can appreciate the improvement the most. Muhlenberg was 17-51 overall and 10-22 in the CC her first two years before going 19-18, 12-4 in 2009. “All of our returners know what it feels like to win.”

Van Waalwijk had a turnaround of her own last year. The outfielder hit a career-best .293 with two of Muhlenberg’s school-record 12 home runs. With two of the bigger bats – a first-team all-conference player and an all-region player – graduated, the Mules may have a different look on offense this spring.

“We’re going to get a lot more singles and

Brewer was third in the CC in batting average and on-base percentage and fifth in slugging percentage last year. She also was fifth among CC pitchers in strikeouts.

doubles,” said Van Waalwijk. “I think we will produce a lot of runs, because we can put the ball in play, and I think we’ll do better in pressure situations. We also have quickness, so we’ll produce runs with aggressive baserunning and stealing.”

Muhlenberg’s top returning hitter is junior Ashley Brewer, who is coming off a fabulous year in which she hit .422 with two home runs and 17 RBI and was named to the All-CC second team as a utility player. Junior Jess Kasza batted .291 and anchored the defense at shortstop, and catcher/corner infielder Brittany Blohm had an impressive freshman season, hitting .280 and knocking in 14 runs.

Sophomore Shelby Smith drove in eight runs and hopes to have a breakout year offensively after moving from third base to second, her more natural position. Junior Alyssa Epstein gives the team depth on the bench and in the outfield.

In the circle, the Mules return their entire staff. Brewer was 9-10 with a 2.43 ERA overall and 6-3 with a 1.66 ERA and two saves in CC competition. Junior Alyssa Bruckner earned All-CC honorable mention after going 9-8 with a team-best 2.17 ERA and six shutouts, including a no-hitter against Dickinson.

“Both improved so much last year. I’m excited to see how much they’ve improved this year,” commented Van Waalwijk. “The experience they got last year will make them much better pitchers.”

The addition of two pitchers in the incoming class may help lessen the burden on Brewer and Bruckner. Muhlenberg’s entire freshman group of eight is expected to contribute and give the team more options and flexibility.

“They are all really good and bring a lot of energy to the program,” said Van Waalwijk. “I’ve been impressed by how ‘into it’ they all are. Looking at them, you might not know they’re freshmen.”

After returning from Florida, the Mules jump right into CC play, opening with a doubleheader at Gettysburg, last year’s third-place team, on Saturday, March 20. That will give a good early indication if Muhlenberg will be around to play in May.