Kevin Sethre, Staff Writer

The Augsburg women’s softball team has a new season just around the corner, and they hope to improve on last year’s 22–18 finish. They went 13–9 in the MIAC, making them the fourth seed in the playoffs. Unfortunately, they were upset by St. Olaf 1–0 in the first round, ending the seven-game win streak they went on to close out the regular season.

The Auggies lost two seniors from last year’s team: catcher/infielder Taylor Mattice and outfielder Katie Parker. Mattice started in 40 games last season, finishing with a .304 batting average, 35 hits, 22 RBI and only 10 strikeouts. Behind the plate, she caught ten runners stealing—fourth in the conference in the statistic. Parker hit .370 and was second on the team with 26 RBI; she had a .952 fielding percentage. Both players made the MIAC All-Conference team.

While Mattice and Parker were both key pieces on last year’s team, most of the top players will return this year. Anesia King, who led the team in many offensive statistical categories last year and made the All-MIAC team, is now a junior. While she primarily played infield last year, she is also a catcher who could fill in for Mattice. Hollywood Hermanson was the backup catcher last year and is another possible replacement. Another important returner is Samantha Anderson, who was the best pitcher on the team last year and also hit well, leading the team in RBI and doubles. She recorded 131 strikeouts, putting her second in the MIAC and earning her a spot on the All-MIAC team.

With a talented returning cast, the Auggies have a good chance at making the newly formatted four-team double elimination playoffs again this season. They open up on March 8 with a double header against Northland College under the dome at Edor Nelson Field.  Conference play starts on March 30 when Augsburg hosts Concordia for another double header.

This article was originally published in the Feb. 22, 2019 issue.