Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Blue Raider softball’s new-look lineup aims to compete for Conference title in 2022
2/7/2022 11:15:00 AM | Softball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn.—When the Blue Raider softball team takes the field this Thursday in San Diego, fans will notice a few big changes in head coach Jeff Breeden's lineup.
No longer can you look at the lineup card and see names such as: Lexi Cushing, Summer Burgess, Claire Smith, Ryan King and Jocelynn De La Cruz, players who had become household names in their time as Blue Raiders. Although the Blue Raiders will look very different when Middle Tennessee hits the field against Stanford on Thursday, one thing that the Blue Raiders have to their advantage is that the lineup will not be an inexperienced one.
Leading the team in 2022 is a pair of Breeden's more experienced players in Kelci Hill and Lani Rodriguez. Hill, now a junior, returns for her third season as a starter in the outfield and Rodriguez will now start at second base for her fourth season in blue and white.
"Both Kelci (Hill) and Lani (Rodriguez) are leaders on our team," Breeden said. "(Hill) does a lot on offense and is a true centerfielder. (Rodriguez) may be the best defensive player we have and one of the best defensive players we've ever had here. We're going to lean on them to help the young players grow. We expect big things out of both (Hill) and (Rodriguez)."
The dynamic Hill started in a team-high 48 games last season in the outfield, primarily in center, and led the team in a plethora of offensive categories. Hitting primarily in the three-hole, the California native's .368 average, three triples, 28 runs, 57 hits, 77 total bases, .497 slugging percentage and .394 on-base percentage led the team. Hill's 21 RBIs were second on the team to slugger Lexi Cushing and perhaps the most impressive statistic of hers' from last season: she struck out just 13 times in 155 at-bats. In the outfield, her range is second-to-none, as she recorded 95 putouts, a team-high for outfielders last year and made just two errors, good for a .980 fielding percentage.
"Everyone wants to have a great season and create a championship culture," Hill said of her teammates heading into the season. "I don't have to think about trying to lead. I just do my best to work hard and everyone else follows that. I've been telling everyone that we have nothing to lose. People are writing us off. Being a young team is a benefit in our case. Nobody knows who we are and what we have and I think we can surprise a lot of people this season."
While Hill anchored the outfield, Lani Rodriguez's steady presence in the middle infield has been a welcome sight for fans over the past three seasons. The second baseman looks primed to have a career-year as a senior. Over the past three seasons, she has only missed just over a handful of games and has started a team-high 121 games in her career thus far. Situationally, she is one of the better defensive players in the country, helping direct Middle Tennessee to 17 double plays last season, many coming in key situations late in games. Offensively, she looks to anchor the bottom third of the Middle Tennessee lineup.
Aside from veterans Kelci Hill and Lani Rodriguez, Middle Tennessee will be looking to seven new players to fill the void from last-year's lineup. The names that Breeden will pen to the lineup card are names that aren't unfamiliar to Blue Raider fans, however, as many of them got meaningful experience last season.
"We've got some holes to fill, but we've got some talented players that can fill those holes for us," Breeden said. "Laura Mealer at shortstop is going to be a very good player. We think she is very capable and will be excellent in the next few years. I think everyone is going to see that Amaya Harris moving to the outfield will have a distinct role with what she does. She is a big part of our offense and what we do to score runs. As our young pitchers (Keri) Munn and (Claire) Woods mature, it'll go a long way toward seeing if we can win a lot early. Danielle Taitt will be a frontline player at first base, at the plate and we will have her pitch some, too."
In the circle, Middle Tennessee returns a bulk of its production from a season ago, with Corrina Dodd and Kailey Ahlstrom returning to headline the group. Dodd started 16 games a year ago and led the team with 58 strikeouts. She had an impressive 2.64 ERA with five complete games and two shutouts as a starting pitcher. As arguably the team's most improved player from a season ago, the Alabama native will take over as the ace of the staff with the departure of Amber Baldwin.
Out of the bullpen, Kailey Ahlstrom was the Blue Raiders most-used pitcher, as the left-hander tossed 71.2 innings over 22 appearances. Her 2.05 ERA was the lowest on the team and opponents hit just .226 against her. The left-hander ranks second all-time in school history for saves, and is likely to continue to be used as the team's primary back-end reliever.
That begs the question; who is likely to fill the other spots in the starting rotation? While Ahlstrom is also capable of starting in addition to her relief work, with five starts in 2021, and with senior Mia Marinakis being a two-way player, and one that is used often as a pinch-hitter, it is likely that Gretchen Mead will likely step into the rotation alongside Dodd.
Over the span of her career, Mead has made a steady improvement in nearly every single statistical category. Last year, she had career-best marks in ERA (3.29), strikeouts (17), appearances (nine), innings pitched (27.2), complete games (two) and starts with three. She tossed her first complete-game shutout last year against Western Illinois, notching a career-high seven punch-outs and allowing just three hits in the win.
"(Moving into the rotation) is what I've been working for since I tied my cleats for the first time," Mead said. "It's exciting. I know that everything I've done when nobody's watching is really going to show when I get my opportunity. In my eyes, I've never stepped onto the field without a chip on my shoulder. It feels good to be an underdog."
Schedule-wise, Middle Tennessee once again opens the season in California at the San Diego State tournament, where it will take on Stanford, San Diego State, Boise State twice, Cal Poly and the University of Illinois-Chicago to open the year. Following the season-opening tournament in California, Middle Tennessee will play three more tournaments on the road before returning to Murfreesboro on March 11 for its home opener against Northern Iowa. A week later, Middle Tennessee opens conference play at home against Southern Mississippi. This year's conference tournament is hosted by North Texas and will take place from May 11 through May 14.
"We think that we'll definitely be seasoned by the time we get into conference play," Breeden said. "We put a schedule together that makes it to where by the time we get to conference play, our young kids will be seasoned and have 20-plus games under their belts. Our goal is to always win the conference tournament and go to the NCAA Tournament. I think we have a good mixture of older kids that can help bring the younger kids along and have a really successful season."
No longer can you look at the lineup card and see names such as: Lexi Cushing, Summer Burgess, Claire Smith, Ryan King and Jocelynn De La Cruz, players who had become household names in their time as Blue Raiders. Although the Blue Raiders will look very different when Middle Tennessee hits the field against Stanford on Thursday, one thing that the Blue Raiders have to their advantage is that the lineup will not be an inexperienced one.
Leading the team in 2022 is a pair of Breeden's more experienced players in Kelci Hill and Lani Rodriguez. Hill, now a junior, returns for her third season as a starter in the outfield and Rodriguez will now start at second base for her fourth season in blue and white.
"Both Kelci (Hill) and Lani (Rodriguez) are leaders on our team," Breeden said. "(Hill) does a lot on offense and is a true centerfielder. (Rodriguez) may be the best defensive player we have and one of the best defensive players we've ever had here. We're going to lean on them to help the young players grow. We expect big things out of both (Hill) and (Rodriguez)."
The dynamic Hill started in a team-high 48 games last season in the outfield, primarily in center, and led the team in a plethora of offensive categories. Hitting primarily in the three-hole, the California native's .368 average, three triples, 28 runs, 57 hits, 77 total bases, .497 slugging percentage and .394 on-base percentage led the team. Hill's 21 RBIs were second on the team to slugger Lexi Cushing and perhaps the most impressive statistic of hers' from last season: she struck out just 13 times in 155 at-bats. In the outfield, her range is second-to-none, as she recorded 95 putouts, a team-high for outfielders last year and made just two errors, good for a .980 fielding percentage.
"Everyone wants to have a great season and create a championship culture," Hill said of her teammates heading into the season. "I don't have to think about trying to lead. I just do my best to work hard and everyone else follows that. I've been telling everyone that we have nothing to lose. People are writing us off. Being a young team is a benefit in our case. Nobody knows who we are and what we have and I think we can surprise a lot of people this season."
While Hill anchored the outfield, Lani Rodriguez's steady presence in the middle infield has been a welcome sight for fans over the past three seasons. The second baseman looks primed to have a career-year as a senior. Over the past three seasons, she has only missed just over a handful of games and has started a team-high 121 games in her career thus far. Situationally, she is one of the better defensive players in the country, helping direct Middle Tennessee to 17 double plays last season, many coming in key situations late in games. Offensively, she looks to anchor the bottom third of the Middle Tennessee lineup.
Aside from veterans Kelci Hill and Lani Rodriguez, Middle Tennessee will be looking to seven new players to fill the void from last-year's lineup. The names that Breeden will pen to the lineup card are names that aren't unfamiliar to Blue Raider fans, however, as many of them got meaningful experience last season.
"We've got some holes to fill, but we've got some talented players that can fill those holes for us," Breeden said. "Laura Mealer at shortstop is going to be a very good player. We think she is very capable and will be excellent in the next few years. I think everyone is going to see that Amaya Harris moving to the outfield will have a distinct role with what she does. She is a big part of our offense and what we do to score runs. As our young pitchers (Keri) Munn and (Claire) Woods mature, it'll go a long way toward seeing if we can win a lot early. Danielle Taitt will be a frontline player at first base, at the plate and we will have her pitch some, too."
In the circle, Middle Tennessee returns a bulk of its production from a season ago, with Corrina Dodd and Kailey Ahlstrom returning to headline the group. Dodd started 16 games a year ago and led the team with 58 strikeouts. She had an impressive 2.64 ERA with five complete games and two shutouts as a starting pitcher. As arguably the team's most improved player from a season ago, the Alabama native will take over as the ace of the staff with the departure of Amber Baldwin.
Out of the bullpen, Kailey Ahlstrom was the Blue Raiders most-used pitcher, as the left-hander tossed 71.2 innings over 22 appearances. Her 2.05 ERA was the lowest on the team and opponents hit just .226 against her. The left-hander ranks second all-time in school history for saves, and is likely to continue to be used as the team's primary back-end reliever.
That begs the question; who is likely to fill the other spots in the starting rotation? While Ahlstrom is also capable of starting in addition to her relief work, with five starts in 2021, and with senior Mia Marinakis being a two-way player, and one that is used often as a pinch-hitter, it is likely that Gretchen Mead will likely step into the rotation alongside Dodd.
Over the span of her career, Mead has made a steady improvement in nearly every single statistical category. Last year, she had career-best marks in ERA (3.29), strikeouts (17), appearances (nine), innings pitched (27.2), complete games (two) and starts with three. She tossed her first complete-game shutout last year against Western Illinois, notching a career-high seven punch-outs and allowing just three hits in the win.
"(Moving into the rotation) is what I've been working for since I tied my cleats for the first time," Mead said. "It's exciting. I know that everything I've done when nobody's watching is really going to show when I get my opportunity. In my eyes, I've never stepped onto the field without a chip on my shoulder. It feels good to be an underdog."
Schedule-wise, Middle Tennessee once again opens the season in California at the San Diego State tournament, where it will take on Stanford, San Diego State, Boise State twice, Cal Poly and the University of Illinois-Chicago to open the year. Following the season-opening tournament in California, Middle Tennessee will play three more tournaments on the road before returning to Murfreesboro on March 11 for its home opener against Northern Iowa. A week later, Middle Tennessee opens conference play at home against Southern Mississippi. This year's conference tournament is hosted by North Texas and will take place from May 11 through May 14.
"We think that we'll definitely be seasoned by the time we get into conference play," Breeden said. "We put a schedule together that makes it to where by the time we get to conference play, our young kids will be seasoned and have 20-plus games under their belts. Our goal is to always win the conference tournament and go to the NCAA Tournament. I think we have a good mixture of older kids that can help bring the younger kids along and have a really successful season."
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