With the 2016 season less than two weeks away, the Longwood softball team, defending Big South Conference champions, look to defend their title and add to what was a historic 2015 for the Lancers.
After winning the conference last year for the second time in three years, they were picked as the preseason favorite to win the conference again in the upcoming season.
“It’s exciting, but it’s also a lot of pressure because everybody is coming for you,” said returning Big South Pitcher of the Year and Preseason Pitcher of the Year, Elizabeth McCarthy.
McCarthy, a junior out of Dunnsville, Virginia received five of the eight possible votes made by head coaches from the Big South conference during the preseason poll.
“It’s just a prediction, you never know what can happen each year, and I think that it gives me something to strive toward, more than putting pressure on myself,” she said.
The Lancers will have to find production on both sides of the ball this season from some new sources after losing five influential seniors in Libby Morris, Chelsea Sciacca, Casey Lifsey, Katie Shinrock and Megan Baltzel. Baltzel, who was an All-American and last year’s Big South Player of the Year, played one of the largest roles of all the seniors after tallying a total of 27 home runs paired with 72 runs batted in.
Longwood softball head coach Kathy Riley said she is waiting to see who of the eight new additions to the Lancer roster will replace the powerhouse.
“That’s still something we’re looking for, I don’t think we have reached a point where I can sit here and say some of the new players have stepped in and have taken the place of what we lost, because we lost so much,” said Riley.
The 19-year head coach believes that the production will come, but is more focused on making sure the team stays away from becoming complacent in defending their title.
“I think the hardest part when you win a championship and come back the next year number one, is really keeping that hunger alive,” said Riley. “Once you’ve reached certain levels, it becomes harder to attain that again.”
Keeping the mindset of winning a championship is something that Riley sees as a key to success this season and emphasizes the mentality to her players.
“We talk about it a lot, making sure that we don’t let those things (complacency) effect us, but they do because its human nature. We want to make sure we are cognizant of exactly where we are, and exactly where we need to go,” she said.
The Lancers begin their title defense on the road in Columbia, South Carolina on Feb. 19 against Ohio University as part of a mini-tournament. The Lancers will return a week later for their home opener against Hartford.
Junior pitcher Elizabeth McCarthy was voted Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year as the season is set to begin with an away tournament starting Feb. 19.
