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2012 Outlook
Making it Count
For the past four years, the Geneva College softball has proven to be quite successful against its common opponents in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference. For the past four years, none of those victories amounted to much as the Golden Tornadoes were waiting out their NCAA provisional status and were not eligible for any type of NCAA or PAC post-season. Despite the waiting, Geneva managed to put together quite a run in 2011 as a member of the NCCAA. The Golden Tornadoes finished the 2011 campaign with a record of 27-13 including a fourth place finish at the NCCAA national tournament. Highlighted by a first round upset victory of top-seeded and defending national champion Central Baptist, the Golden Tornadoes handled themselves quite well against some of the top competition across the country.
As is the case in any year, the Geneva softball team will have to fill some voids left by graduation and injury. In fact, the Golden Tornadoes will be without 56% of their run production from a year ago with the departure of five starters from the regular line-up. How will Geneva overcome such a void in 2012? The answer to that question lies in the ability of several new faces to step up and make offensive contributions. “We aren’t faced with anything that we haven’t seen before,” says ten year head coach Van Zanic. “We have some very talented young ladies in our program and I fully expect several of them to have break-out seasons for our program.”
One important offensive contributor that is still hanging around Geneva’s program is senior outfielder Martha Adams. Adams led Geneva with her .356 batting average. She will get the call to patrol centerfield in 2012 alongside some newcomers to the Geneva line-up. A pair of sophomores who enjoyed rookie debuts a year ago will be back to handle the middle infield. Ashley Davis will make the move to shortstop while Christina Fuqua will once again handle second base duties. Davis hit .325 in her first year at the collegiate level while Fuqua hit a solid .279.
While the offense will be relying on some new faces to contribute, the pitching outlook for 2012 seems to be in pretty good hands. Julie DiLonardo, who will most likely finish her career with just about every pitching record in school history, returns for her senior season after compiling her second straight 21-win season. DiLonardo posted a 1.67 ERA with 118 strikeouts last year in nearly 190 innings of work. Incoming freshman Andrea Hinds will take over the number spot pitching spot while also seeing significant time in the outfield.
“We will have to scratch and claw for some runs this year,” says Zanic. “The one thing we are pretty sure about is the effort we will get in the circle. I believe Julie has established herself as the best pitcher in this conference and we believe our program will go as far as she takes us in 2012.”
Returning to the fold in 2012 with the hopes of contributing in a big way will be sophomore infielder Mackenzie Kemerer along with juniors Lori Deem and Toni D’Urzo. Returning outfielders Rachel Lee, Dana Schnitzel and Ashley Ritchey could also help provide depth to a remade Geneva outfield.
Geneva has a returning starter behind the plate but red shirt junior Samantha Michetti hasn’t seen game action since the spring of 2010. Sitting out last year with injuries, Michetti returns to the team and will tag team with sophomore Brittany Clark to handle Geneva’s catching duties. “We rely on our catching position for a lot,” says Zanic. “We give our catchers a lot of responsibility for handling the game and I am confident that the duo we have in place this year will do a solid job both offensively and defensively.”
The Golden Tornadoes will have a big task in front of them to continue the success that has been shown in years past. With a bulls-eye on their back as the new kid on the block, the Golden Tornadoes will take their first shot at a conference title. “We acknowledge the fact that we lost a lot of talent and that we have a lot of work to do,” says Zanic. “We also expect and demand excellence from every one of our ladies. Our goal is simple and that is to win a conference title this year. Anything less than a championship will be a disappointment.”