This spring, DePauw University's softball team will look to add consistency and improve on their season from a year ago.
The Tigers' 2013 campaign can be broken up into two distinct halves. In the Tigers first 16 games, the women went 4-12, including a demoralizing eight game losing streak. Following that skid, however, they railed off 12 straight wins and closed out the season with an overall record of 22-17.
Things turned around for the Tigers when they opened up conference play. DePauw was 13-3 when facing North Coast Athletic Conference opponents. All of the losses came on the road, with two from the hand of Wittenberg University and one from Kenyon College.
The Tigers survived a loss in the first round of the NCAC tournament to Allegheny College when they trumped Kenyon in the second game of the tournament. However, a heartbreaking 6-5 loss to Wittenberg ultimately ended DePauw's season and a chance at a NCAC championship.
It was a lack of consistent hitting last season that gave the Tigers the most trouble during their rough start. Through the first 16 games of the season, Tiger batters only crossed home 44 times compared to 80 runs scored by their opponents over that stretch.
Yet when the calendar turned from March to April and the Tigers opened up conference play, the hitting made a complete recovery. Over the final 23 games of the season, DePauw touched home 111 times while only allowing 60 runs.
This season's roster will look radically different than the one the Tigers took the field with last season. Losing seven seniors from last year will force DePauw to play with a young lineup. With five first-years and only two seniors, young players are certain to play a large role in the team's season.
"All of us have goals," said head coach Erica Hanrahan. "For me, however, it's injury prevention. If we stay healthy, we can do anything."
The new-look Tigers opened their new season this weekend in Memphis, Tenn. when they played two games each against Rhodes College and Maryville College.
For the second straight season, DePauw opened the year playing a game on the road against the Rhodes Lynx. However, unlike last year's 4-3 loss that the Tigers suffered, the Tigers came out hot in an 8-3 win.
DePauw followed up their solid performance later that day, when sophomore Haleigh Chasteen hurled a four-hit complete game against the Maryville Scots. DePauw would win easily by a score of 9-1 in only five innings thanks to the mercy rule.
The following day, the Tigers kept their hot start going when Chasteen tossed her second complete game of weekend, as DePauw would go on to beat Maryville again, this time by a much closer margin of 3-1.
The final game of the weekend proved to be too much for the Tigers as they fell 3-0 to the host, Rhodes. However, players did not blame fatigue as the reason for the loss.
"All in all, most softball players have had days during travel ball seasons where they play six games in one day," Chasteen said. "It really isn't that tiring, and after how hard we work at practice and in the weight room, we have been conditioned to play a lot more than that."
Despite losing the opportunity to come home with a weekend sweep, players were pleased and optimistic about the start to the season.
"I feel like it was important for us to start the season strong," said junior infielder, Taylor Golden. "We have worked hard throughout the offseason so we knew that it would pay off. We also have a young team so it was important for us to gain some confidence."
Hanrahan was pleased with the way her squad performed over the weekend.
"It gives us confidence knowing that we prepared well enough," Hanrahan said. "And the loss gave us some early season adversity which I think is good for us too."
The Tigers will take the next two weeks off as they prepare for a trip to Atlanta to take on Messiah College and Emory University.
"I am looking forward to this two week layoff so that as individuals and as a team we are able to work on the small adjustments that we need to make before we take on some of the best competition in the country," Golden said.
Tiger fans won't have the chance to see DePauw play at home until March 15, when they face Aurora University.