Photo courtesy of Ramapo Athletics
With only 10 days until the season starts, the Ramapo College softball team has been working hard during preseason in preparation of their first game.
The Lady Roadrunners will travel to the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Florida facing Gustavus Adolphus for their 2017 season opener.
“Coach Yauw has been a very big asset for us during preseason. We’ve been working with him since the beginning of the school year and we have noticed great results in our strength and endurance, which will definitely help us come the season,” said junior pitcher Christina Brizek. Brizek was a 2016 All-Conference recipient, along with teammates Harper Patsko and Ally Spellman.
“One thing our softball program is very good at is taking advantage of our resources,” continued Brizek. “We’ve been using the weather to our advantage to see some dirt and feel how the wind comes into play before going to Florida for Spring Training.”
Along with her NJAC All-Conference Honors, Brizek also posted a 2.38 ERA with a record of 12-5. She recorded 40 strikeouts over 100 innings pitched and threw a total of four shutouts. Her bat also went to work as she batted .253, had an on base percentage of .306 and finished the 2016 season with a .343 slugging percentage.
The softball team ended the 2016 season with an overall record of 21-15. The Lady Roadrunners were picked to finish fourth in the 2017 NJAC Softball Preseason Poll following Stockton, The College of New Jersey and Rowan, who was also seeded #1 last year.
Rowan went 42-11 overall in 2016. The team shutout the Ramapo 12-0 ending the Roadrunners run in the 2016 NJAC Softball Tournament. The Profs later won the NJAC Championship and went on to the NCAA Tournament.
The Ramapo softball team was victorious themselves when they were named 2015 NJAC Champions, a title they hope to regain this coming season.
Coach Bridgette Quimpo will enter her fourth year as the head coach of the team with an overall record of 67-46-1 with Ramapo’s softball program.
The Roadrunners return 12 to this year’s roster and welcome eight newcomers. With plenty of returning starters and fresh new faces to replace the players that graduated, combined with the effort that the team has put in both mentally and physically in the off season, it should be another successful season for Ramapo’s softball team, and a great one to watch.
khueston@ramapo.edu
