WILMINGTON, Ohio - The Wilmington College softball team opens its 2019 season with 10 games in its five-day spring trip to Florida that begins on Sunday, March 10 and concludes Thursday, March 14.
The Week: The Fightin' Quakers will play Martin Luther and Blackburn on Sunday, Nazareth and SUNY Canton on Monday, Kenyon and Curry on Tuesday, Lesley and Western Connecticut State on Wednesday and Knox and Rochester Institution of Technology on Thursday. The first game each day is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. with game two to follow at 11 a.m.
The Coach: Beth Floyd will begin her 12th season as Wilmington's softball head coach. She is the winningest softball coach in school history and is also the College's associate director of athletics. Floyd has led the Quakers to seven double-digit win campaigns as well as the program's first winning season with a 20-16 record in 2013.
The Outfield: Wilmington will need to replace four-year outfielder and lead-off hitter Savannah Hooper, but the Quakers do return Megan Crager, who led the team in RBIs with 15, as well as Micalah Hensley Je'Taysia Johns, Mariyah Burkhardt, Bailey Sweeney and Ali Dixon. Newcomers Kennedy Clifton, Makenna Montgomery, Hannah Hall and Shelby Raby will provide depth at the position.
The Infield: Wilmington returns its entire infield in Allison Pierce, Alecia Kemp, Kaylee Barber and KenDahl Bowles, who garnered Honorable Mention All-Ohio Athletic Conference last season. Pierce finished her junior season with a .304 batting average to go along with six RBIs while Barber and Bowles both have over .900 fielding percentages. Bailey Smith along with newcomers Mariah Huff, Morgan McKnight and Christine Ortman will provide depth in the infield.
The Catchers: Jillia Cook and Abigail Shinkle return as catchers for Wilmington this year while Sarah Monnier comes in and will also compete for time. Cook finished last season with a .294 batting average to go along with a team-high 14 walks drawn.
The Pitchers: Grace Shell, who shared the load with departing senior Beth Persicano last year, pitched 102 innings with a 5.01 ERA and 68 strikeouts last year. Sydney Harville and Hunter Salyers will bolster the staff by returning. Wilmington also added several young arms including Hayley Suchland, Shelby Raby, Hannah Hall, Alexis Stringfellow and Mikala Duncan-Wolf.
Coverage: Live statistics of all 10 games will be available – visit the schedule page above for those links.
Up Next: Wilmington opens OAC play at Muskingum University on March 23.
