Princeton University Athletics
2004 Princeton Softball Outlook
February 10, 2004 | Softball
Feb. 10, 2004
The Princeton softball team has back-to-back league titles and NCAA Tournament appearances, and all signs are pointing towards a third straight conference ring in 2004.
The Tigers return ten letterwinners, eight starters and all three pitchers from last year's Ivy League championship team but even more telling for this season is the quality of those returnees. Ivy League Player of the Year and All-Region honoree Melissa Finley will lead the offense while Rookie of the Year and unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection Erin Snyder is back for her second year on the mound.
Yet despite Finley and Snyder's sheer dominance in and out of the league, the Tigers are far from two-dimensional. Six other Tigers earned league honors last year and five are back in 2004. Princeton also adds seven freshmen to make the roster one of the deepest and most talented in the program's 22-year history. Princeton graduated three players but only one who was a major contributor in 2003. Erin Valocsik played in 41 games, started in 33 and scored 15 runs for the Tigers while Jen Neil missed the year due to injury and Kelly Baril was a first-year player whose main sport was field hockey, where she was a three-time All-America.
On the Mound
Princeton returns all three pitchers from last season and gains two highly touted freshmen who will challenge the returnees for playing time. Snyder is back as the Tigers' ace on the mound after striking out 199 batters in 170 innings to move past Class of 02's Brianne Galicinao (176) and head coach Maureen (Davies) Barron (181) and into second place in the Princeton record book for strikeouts in a season. She was just 13 strikeouts shy of the all-time record that is held by Lisa Moore (C '92). Opponents batted just .196 against Snyder, who finished with 13 wins, four shutouts and a 2.63 ERA.
Although mainly an outfielder, Finley appeared in 15 games on the mound where she struck out 45 batters and earned seven wins. Senior co-captain Wendy Bingham, the only left-handed pitcher, earned second-team All-Ivy honors last season when she pitched in 72 innings and recorded 41 strikeouts but will retire as a pitcher this year to concentrate on her fielding.
Freshman Calli Varner (Chesapeake, Va./Great Bridge) is expected to contribute immediately on the mound with her strength and velocity while Amelia Runyan (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) will add depth. Varner was the Virginia player of the year and the MVP of her high school team that won the state championships in 2000. Runyan was a three-year all-league selection for Rancho Cucamonga, which was league champion in 2001 and 2003 and CIF champion in 2001.
Behind the Plate
Junior co-captain Ty Ries returns to the catcher position for her third year after earning honorable mention All-Ivy honors in both her freshman and sophomore seasons. She was one of just three Tigers to play in all 45 games last year and had 248 putouts in 313 chances. Sophomore Amanda Erickson will once again back up Ries behind the plate.
Infield
Princeton brings back its entire infield beginning with senior Kristin Del Calvo at first base. Del Calvo, who was a unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection in 2002, started at first base in all 41 games that she played in, missing four games due to a hand injury. Freshmen Runyan, Varner and Betsy Allaway (Tuscaloosa, Ala./Central High) also have experience at first.
Junior Kristin Lueke, a second-team All-Ivy and NCAA Regional All-Tournament selection, returns to second base and sophomores Cristina Cobb-Adams and Erickson, who were both named honorable mention All-Ivy, are back at short stop and third base.
Sophomore Lindsay Motal saw time in 22 games last season, mostly at second base while freshmen Allaway, Tiffany Andras (Scottsdale, Ariz./Desert Mountain) and Allison Nemeth (Langhorne, Pa./Neshaminy) will challenge for time and provide depth in the infield. Nemeth already proved herself succesful on the Princeton field hockey team last fall when she earned Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors.
Outfield
Bingham and Finley are the key returnees in the outfield and both look to secure positions after alternating between leftfield, centerfield and pitcher last year. Although Princeton lost its other starting outfielders, it brings in three freshmen that are expected to immediately step in.
Tiffany Wilson (Raritan, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan Regional) and Stephanie Steel (Vista, Calif./Vista) were both top players on their respective high school squads. Wilson was second-team all-conference and all-area as a senior and Steel was named her team's most improved and most valuable defensive player. Lueke and Andras will also see time in the outfield as well.
Offense
The 2003 Ivy League champion didn't struggle on offense within the league but learned that to be a nationally competitive team, it would need improved strength at the plate. This year's team returns its most powerful and able hitters and adds seven more options with the freshmen.
Finley led Princeton in almost every offensive category including batting average (.414), hits (58), home runs (14) and RBIs (44) and finished tied for the team-lead in doubles (10) and runs (30). She was walked 24 times and accumulated 112 total bases, over twice as many as any of her teammates. Finley finished the season with a .503 on-base percentage, .800 slugging percentage and .944 fielding percentage. Her 14 home runs set a new single-season school record, which was previously held by Del Calvo (12).
Lueke and Del Calvo had Princeton's second and third best batting averages at .304 and .294. Lueke, the lead-off batter, led the team with 158 at-bats, was second in hits (48) and total bases (57) and finished tied with Finley for runs (30). A left-handed slap-hitter, Lueke returns for her junior season with the same quickness that helped her steal a team-high 10 bases in 12 attempts.
Del Calvo, who slammed 12 homers in her sophomore year, added to her all-time numbers with four more home runs last season and is expected to be a force at the plate once again in 2004. Snyder also showed great potential on offense with three homers and Princeton's only grand slam of the season.
The Schedule
Coach Barron beefed up the competition once again in 2004, epecially during the early pre-Ivy League portion of the sesaon. Of Princeton's first 10 scheduled opponents, excluding tournament bracket play, seven teams are preseason Top 25 or received votes for the field.
The Tigers' first games take place in Columbus, Ga. at the Leadoff Classic, which is an invitational tournament that predicts the field of the NCAA Regionals. Princeton has games scheduled against Arizona State, South Carolina and Fresno State before bracket play of the Leadoff Classic. In just its second game of the season, Princeton faces the team that handed it its first loss at the 2003 NCAA Regional Tournament. South Carolina, the No. 2 seed in the regionals, rallied from a 7-2 deficit in the seventh inning to beat the Tigers 8-7 and put them one loss away from ending their season in the double elimination tournament.
The loss was heartbreaking for Princeton, which realized an upset of the No. 2 seed would gain them much respect in the softball world. The Gamecocks certainly won't take Princeton lightly this season, knowing the Tigers return Lueke and Finley who each went 3 for 4 with two runs in the NCAA matchup.
South Carolina finished the 2003 season at No. 24 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Poll and received votes for the Top 25 in the 2004 preseason poll. Princeton's next two opponents were both ranked in this preseason with Arizona State at No. 19 and Fresno State at No. 21.
Princeton then spends its Spring Break at the UC Riverside Invitational and Kia Klassic, but the trip to Riverside and Fullerton, Calif. will be anything but a relaxing break. The Kia Klassic is the premier tournament for collegiate softball, featuring the top teams in the nation such as preseason No. 3 Arizona and the U.S. Olympic Team. In seven days, the Tigers play Canisius, San Diego, UC Riverside, Cal State Fullerton (No. 16), Pacific (votes), Texas A&M (No. 17) and Washington (No.5).
When they return, the Tigers host three of their next four games including their home-opener against local rival Rutgers, who swept Princeton 3-2 and 5-4 last year. Every opponent on the Tigers' agenda after Spring Break is familiar and just two schools, Towson and Temple, were not on last year's schedule.
Princeton looks to repeat its success in the Ivy League and avenge last season's losses to Harvard and Columbia. Atop the Ivy standings for 2004 will be Princeton, Yale and Cornell who all add talented freshmen to their already impressive squads.
"This year I am expecting nothing less than a brilliant season," Finley said. "With an exceptionally talented freshman class and a strong return ing core, we are aiming to take control of the Ivy League and win our third straight Ivy League Championship."