California Live Stats | 2011 Roster | 2011 Schedule
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The 2011 Lady Panther softball team kicks off their season today as they begin a 12-day trip that takes them from the Golden state of California to the Sunshine state of Florida. DU will meet some of the top teams in the NAIA over those 12 days and you can follow it live through online stats and video/audio.
The Lady Panthers will enter their third season of competition with high hopes after a record setting, 46-16, 2010 season. Head Coach Ronda Varnesdeel and her staff welcome back twelve players from their 2010 roster along with four new faces from the junior college and high school ranks. The 2011 Panthers will be looking to improve on their second place WHAC finish last year and continue to put Davenport softball on the map in only their third year of existence.
Pitchers & Catchers
The Panthers return their entire pitching staff from a year ago that had a combined ERA of 2.12. Sophomore captain Sam Cole (Belleville, Mich.) will look to improve on a impressive freshman showing in which she threw the first perfect game in DU history, was named First Team All-WHAC, earned WHAC Pitcher of the Week honors twice, and finished with a team high 22 wins and 1.89 ERA. Senior Brianna Carpenter (Irvine, Calif.) and junior Karlee Despres (Belmont, Mich.) will round out the Panther pitching rotation for the Panthers. Carpenter appeared in 28 games for DU last year and finished with an overall record of 13-3, while Despres, who missed the first twenty games of the season due to basketball, came on strong in conference play with a team leading nine WHAC victories.
The pitching staff will be dealing with a whole new set of catchers behind the plate due to graduation last year. Freshman Debra Burton (Cassopolis, Mich.) and sophomore Chelsey Dow (Lake Odessa, Mich.) will be pegged to fill the void from last year.
Infielders
After scoring an average of 6.5 runs and belting 1.01 homeruns per game in 2010, the Panther offense will continue to bring power and consistency from a veteran team. 1st Team All-WHAC shortstop Heather Brusokas (Glendale, Calif.) will lead the charge after hitting .405 with 77 hits, 14 homeruns and a .737 slugging percentage. Joining her in the infield will be transfer third baseman Liz Veltman (Grand Rapids, Mich.), junior second baseman Morgan Greenfield (Wyoming, Mich.), and senior captain first baseman Cirina Jones (Middleton, Mich.). 2011 will be the only year for Jones in a Panther uniform after having to red-shirt last year due to injury. The Panther infield will also be given much needed depth from Dow, Carpenter, and freshman Lindsey Allen (Midland, Mich.).
Outfielders
The outfield will have much more experience than it has had in the previous years for DU softball. Senior Kelsey Egyhazi (Mishawaka, Ind.) will take the reins in centerfield with junior Katie Cornman (Eastpointe, Mich.) and sophomore Ashlee Olsen (Rockford, Mich.) assisting her in the grass. New additions to the outfield will include previous infielders Ali Dawson (Galesburg, Mich.) and Molly Ketelaar (Allegan, Mich.), along with freshman Amber Getty (Wayland, Mich.).
The Schedule
The Panther coaching staff has put together a grueling non-conference schedule including facing off against pre-season NAIA #1 California Baptist in their Ringor So Cal Smash Tournament in Riverside, CA. With six games in California, DU will then head to Florida and face Warner University and Webber International on their home fields before finishing in the sunshine state with three games at the NTC Spring Games.
DU will also travel to Tennessee for the Union University Tournament and then south again to Kentucky to participate in the Campbellsville/Lindsey Wilson Classic. The Panthers will then play four games in Ohio before heading back to Michigan to face NCAA DII Ferris State University. DU's non-conference schedule will see them face eight teams that are currently ranked or receiving votes in the pre-season NAIA Top-25 poll and four teams that reached the national tournament last year.
Conference play will kick off the first weekend in April with key match-ups falling against defending WHAC Champion Madonna, April 2nd on the road and then home on April 15th.
