Jacob Willis, staff writer

Springtime is officially here, and that means a lot of beloved traditions are returning once again. Spring break, shorts, sunny days, and of course baseball and softball. This year brings many questions for both the Auggie baseball and softball programs. Both are looking to see massive improvements from last year in the win-loss column. But exactly what is each program doing to make that a reality? An inside look on both programs will help answer that question in full.

Auggie Softball started their season off with a bang, going 4-0 in their first four games of the season against Crown and Minnesota Morris. “All four wins were team efforts,” said softball coach Melissa Lee when asked about how the weekend went from her perspective. “After Friday, we felt we played well offensively in the first game and played well defensively the second game. On Saturday, we talked about putting them both together and that result was the 7-0 game one!” 

With four convincing wins over the weekend, it is looking very likely that softball will improve upon the win-loss total from 2022 in a big way. Next up for the team is a spring break trip to Florida, where they are set to play 10 non-conference games. The Auggies have a challenging slate of teams ahead in Florida, but if opening weekend was any indication, it should only provide nothing but another opportunity to grab some more wins before conference play opens up. 

Baseball also had an overall successful opening week against UW Superior and Minnesota Morris at U.S. Bank Stadium. After a rough first game of the year against UW Superior, the Auggies would bounce back in the next couple of games, even securing a sweep of Minnesota Morris. After the successful weekend, head coach Keith Bateman had a lot of good things to say about the way his squad played. “There were times where we could’ve folded, but we continued to compete, that’s at the heart of this team.” He also added some insight on how the mood in the locker room is developing, saying “There’s a confidence there. The challenge we have is continuing with it.” Next up for the baseball team is a trip to Arizona, where the team is slated to play eight games against non-conference opponents. 

For Augsburg Baseball and Softball, it seems as if expectations and confidence are high for both teams. Both these squads feel they have a lot to prove and are hungry for the opportunity to do so. These spring break trips should be a huge test for the programs, but judging on how the first couple games of the season have gone, it looks like they are up for the challenge.