The Southwest Mississippi Community Lady Bears open their 39-game softball campaign Monday at Mississippi Delta Community College.
Southwest is coming off the school’s first ever 20-win season (22-20), and will lean heavily on seven returning players as the Lady Bears look not only for a third straight winning season, but also their first ever postseason appearance.
The pitching duo of Ashlyn Grisaffe (Donaldsonville, La.) and Whitney Moore (West Monroe, La) will lead the charge for fifth-year head coach Patsy Sandifer.
Grisaffe turned in a 12-12 season in 2010 with 89 strikeouts and a 2.95 ERA, while Moore posted a 10-8 mark with 78 strikeouts and only 17 walks. Both were named to the All-Division and Second Team All-State teams.
Sophomore co-captain Lindsay Clark (Parklane Academy), whom Sandifer calls “an excellent defensive player,” returns to anchor the infield at first base, while newcomer Brooke Szigeti (Ocean Springs) gets the nod at third.
Look for freshman Kolbi Lewis (Enterprise Attendance Center, Brookhaven) to also see playing time at the “hot corner.”
Sandifer said Shelbi Conerly (Vicksburg) was “the most consistent player at second base in the fall” and looks to have the edge going into the season.
As she did in 2010, Moore will hold down the shortstop position when not pitching. She hit .284 with 33 hits while doing double duty last season.
Two-year starter Maggie Dunaway was lost to graduation, leaving the catching chores to sophomore Erin Stuckey (Walker, La.). Stuckey saw limited playing time as a freshman due to a season-ending leg injury.
Szigeti and Lewis will back her up.
Sophomore Brittani Roy (Oak Forest Academy) takes over in left field for Christina Hollins-Campbell, an Alcorn State-signee. Replacing All-State and All-Region honoree Maggie Jackson, now at Delta State, in center is Ponchatoula High School product Tipheri Grimes, while co-captain Hali Sasser (North Pike) moves into right for Roxanne Lock, now at Mississippi Valley State.
Fellow freshmen Aseye Attipoe (Long Beach) and Purvis High graduate Karlee Clinton could also see a good deal of playing time in the outfield. Sandifer said Grimes could also see time on the infield at shortstop and second base.
Playing in the always tough Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges South Division, the Lady Bears will have no chance for an easy game as they seek to reach the playoffs.
“We’ve got to be focused on every division game,” said Sandifer. “Every (division) game is just as important as the next. The season is a marathon, not a sprint, and we’ve got to take care of business every time we step on the field.”
Sandifer has all the confidence that her squad will put things together to be in the thick of the playoff hunt at the end of the season along, with East Central, Gulf Coast and Jones County.
Sandifer, however, also knows that Pearl River, Copiah-Lincoln and Hinds will be close behind and that her team cannot afford to overlook anyone.
Gulf Coast is ranked 12th in the NJCAA’s preseason poll, while Co-Lin is 10th.
After Monday’s games, the Lady Bears will play at Hinds (against Hinds and Bossier Parish) on Friday, before playing the first of eight home dates on Feb, 22 against Delta.
