ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College softball team is eager to shake off the cold and hit the field for the 2018 campaign, the 30th for the Soaring Eagles under the helm of Head Coach Rhonda Faunce. EC opens the spring season on its home diamond at Eldridge Park Stadium on Friday, March 23, against the Hawks of Hilbert College at 3:00 p.m.

The Soaring Eagles are in for a much busier season this spring with a total of 36 games on the docket, this after suiting up for only 23 games in 2017. On the one hand, that leaves the team less time to rest between doubleheaders, but on the flip side, the squad has several addition non-conference contests to prepare for battle in the Empire 8 Conference.

Following the season-opening twin bill against the Hawks, Elmira returns to Eldridge Park just two days later to face the Wildcats of Cazenovia College on Sunday, March 25. Another two days pass before EC takes on the Panthers of the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, and only 24 hours separate that doubleheader from the following against Morrisville State. The meeting with the Mustangs marks the last non-conference series before the Soaring Eagles open E8 play in the Garden State against Stevens Institute of Technology on Saturday, March 31. In comparison, Elmira played only one non-league game before the 2017 Empire 8 opener against a St. John Fisher College team that reached the finals of the Division III Softball Championship.

"It's going to help us," Faunce noted. "The more that you can see live action and get that out of the system, it becomes more normal. The first couple of games you always struggle because of nerves and the live at-bats, and then with the cold. We're at a point where we've been practicing so much, let's just play. We do have four non-conference games before we play any conference matches so that should help us." 

Elmira returns the bulk of its roster from last season, having graduated only two starters: third baseman Chelsea Storch '17 and four-time E8 All-Conference utility player Emily Carlin '17. Without Carlin, who swung a powerful bat and was half of EC's pitching tandem, the Soaring Eagles will need a few key players to step up and carry the load.

Pitching
Entering her senior season, Katie McDougal '18 has a wealth of experience under her belt in the pitcher's circle. In each of the last two years, the 5-foot-6-inch hurler has logged no fewer than 71.1 innings of work. As a junior, she posted a 5-6 record with a 4.90 ERA while recording career highs in innings (74.1) and strikeouts (37). In perhaps the finest outing of her collegiate career, McDougal tossed a seven-inning shutout to guide the Soaring Eagles to a 3-0 win over Pitt-Bradford in the 2017 opener. She'll look to add to her résumé with similar results this spring.

"She's doing pretty well, but it's hard in practice because it's just so much different than a game," Faunce stated. "She's coming off of a good year, and she has the same catchers as last year, so their relationship is a little stronger. As a senior, she'll be able to correct her own mistakes if she throws a bad pitch. I expect her to do well and to come out strong in these first few games."

Filling out the other half of the starting duo is a first-year pitcher, McKenzie Slaven '20, a name that local fans may recognize from her time at Thomas A. Edison High School. The Horseheads, New York, native was a three-time all-state selection who pitched the Spartans to victory in the state title game as a sophomore. Although she did play for the EC women's volleyball team in the fall of her freshman season, injury forced her to miss action in the spring. Despite being a rookie on the field, Slaven's pitching performance will be a major factor in the team's success.

"Slaven's a gamer, and this will be her first live pitch coming up on Friday in more than a year," Faunce said. "But she's a competitive kid, a talented kid, and I see her settling in."

In addition to McDougal and Slaven, two freshmen – Bianca Palese '21 and Tia Peck '21 – may be in line to see time out of the bullpen. A former team captain at St. Petersburg High School in St. Petersburg, Florida, Palese is still adjusting to the bitter Southern Tier temperatures, but the all-conference and all-county honoree is quickly acclimating to the college game in the pitching circle.

Infield
Due to the aforementioned graduation of Storch, who started all but two games at third base in 2017, junior Emily Clark '19 has made a move across the diamond from first to the hot corner. And not only will Clark be tasked with filling the void defensively, but she'll also look to replicate the run-producing power of Carlin in the lineup. Clark, a 5-foot-11-inch right-handed bat, will once again hit either third or cleanup after slugging two home runs with 13 RBIs a year ago. Her average dipped slightly as a sophomore, but if that average climbs back to the .305 clip she posted as a freshman, be on the lookout for a big season from Clark.

"Sophomore year she had huge expectations, and I think that actually got in the way," said Faunce when asked about Clark. "As a junior, I feel like she's much more relaxed right now and she's really hitting the ball well. Last year we had high expectations for her, but we haven't spoken about those. She knows, and every time she's up at-bat the kids on the other team take notice and they back up."

After seeing limited time during her rookie season, Cassie Hill '20 has earned a prominent role as EC's starting first baseman. Last spring, Hill's 58 putouts and .967 fielding percentage both ranked second on the team, but as a sophomore, she'll need her bat to catch up to her defensive prowess to make an impact on the lineup. Hill received the praise of the coaching staff in the preseason and is a prime candidate for a breakout year.

"She's defensively very sound and aggressive, and that's why she won that first base position," Faunce said.

Depth at the corners will come from juniors Sam Chadbourne '19 and Hannah Vignone '19 and freshman Kristen Solar '21. Chadbourne provided some pop in her freshman season, as she doubled four times and slugged .417. Solar, who joined the Soaring Eagles after a standout prep career at Thousand Islands High School in Clayton, New York, has been described by Faunce as a "solid ballplayer" with an aggressive approach at the plate.

In the middle infield, several players have been competing for the right to pencil their name into the lineup on opening day. Carolyn Corcoran '19 and Samantha Jenkins '20 present two options for Faunce at second base. Corcoran is the more experienced of the two, having made a combined 28 starts at second across her first two seasons donning the Purple and Gold. Second-year infielder Jenkins performed well as a freshman, hitting .296 (8-of-27) and committing just one error in 33 chances in the field.

The situation is similar at shortstop, too. Olivia Harnois '19 is looking to make the leap from a platoon player to a full-time starter. If her performance continues to ascend the way it did between her first two collegiate seasons – Harnois raised her batting average from .125 to .333 – then it would be hard to leave the junior from Sandown, New Hampshire, off of the lineup card. 

The other contender at short is sophomore Sarah Garner '20, who made 19 starts in her debut season. The only rookie that made more starts in 2017 was Allie Krohn '20. While Garner could find herself at shortstop on Friday afternoon, she's also competing with Krohn for time behind the plate.

Faunce also complimented the efforts of first-year utility player Destiny Decker '21. According to her coach, Decker has made vast improvements between fall ball and spring practices. The Bradford, New York, native was a well-decorated student-athlete at Bradford High School with the tools to fill a variety of roles.

Outfield
The entire starting outfield is back for the Soaring Eagles in 2018. From left to right, that includes Hannah Lundgren '18, Maddy Johnson '19, and Rachel Katzenberger '19. In two seasons at EC, Johnson has ranked among the best in the Empire 8 and will resume her spot batting lead-off again this year. The Rome, Pennsylvania, native is a career .407 hitter with the wheels to be a major a threat to steal when she gets on base, something she's done at a rate of .447 in 47 games. Last season, she also used those wheels to leg out an inside-the-park homer in a win over Utica College.

Like Johnson, Katzenberger is also a lefty batter who produced career numbers at the dish in her first season as a starter in 2017. One of just two seniors on this year's roster, Lundgren, another local product from Horseheads, has appeared in 50 games with 46 starts in her first three seasons.

"They're above the rest just with their arms, ability to see the ball, and taking the right angle to the ball," Faunce said. "They're aggressive kids, they're athletic kids, and I am very confident in all three of them. They should have a great year."

Among those who will provide support to the outfield corps are juniors Amber Wallach '19 and Tiara John '19, freshmen Paige Cring '21, and the first-year Floridian, Palese.

"When you get a kid from Florida, they play at a different level," said EC's bench boss of Palese. "She's got so much game experience, and you can hear that in certain situations. For a freshman, she's the best communicator of probably all the outfielders. She voices what she sees, and she understands the game really well, and I think that comes from playing so many games in high school."

Season Opener
The Soaring Eagles will host the Hilbert College Hawks on Friday, March 23, in the first twin bill of the 2018 campaign. It's a non-conference rivalry that Elmira has controlled in recent years. Since 2007, EC has won 13 of the 14 meetings against its feathered foes, including a perfect 10-0 mark at Eldridge Park in the past eight seasons.