After a series of cancellations due to inclement weather, the EMU softball team kicked off their season against Messiah University on Tuesday, Feb. 25. The Royals split the doubleheader losing the first game 5-13 before taking the second game 7-2. EMU’s young squad is coming off of a 11-22 season a year ago, the Royals are slated to play 40 games with 20 of them at home.
The team consists of just four seniors this year while the majority of the roster is made up of “talented underclassmen,” one of the four seniors, Grace Fravel said. “Our team’s energy has been great so far, and I’m excited for us to get on the field together and compete this spring. My hope is that we can all have fun and support one another,” she added.
Since the end of their fall season, the Royals have been strength training to prepare for this spring. They haven’t been able to get on the softball field yet due to recent weather conditions, however they have made good use of their time in the batting cages and on the turf.
Despite the early season weather disruption and inability to use the field, softball coach JD McCurdy expresses his love for the team’s “energy, chemistry and competitiveness going into the season.”
Coach McCurdy noted the return of several key pieces from last year, including several underclassmen as Fravel mentioned. In the circle, senior Natalye Graham will be back where she pitched in 18 games with 14 starts a season ago. She struck out 56 batters with a 4.49 earned run average (ERA). Offensively, they return their RBI leader, senior Grace Fravel. Fravel played in all 33 games last season with 27 hits including 6 doubles and 2 home runs. Sophomore Destiny Jones returns after starting in 31 games as a first-year. She was tied for fourth on the team in hits with 20 including three home runs and 12 RBI. Sophomore Sydney Orndorff also finished last season with 20 hits, playing in 26 games. Orndorff batted in 10 runners and finished second on the team in slugging with a .455 percentage. Sophomore Braxten Jones returns after finishing fourth on the team with a .304 batting average and second in on-base percentage (.437) in her first season. She started in 23 games for the Royals.
The Royals hope to get back in the ODAC conference tournament for the second year in a row while staying “healthy with a competitive spirit,” Coach McCurdy said. Additionally, Fravel said, “our goal is to make it to ODACs this year and compete for the championship. We plan to take each game one at a time.” She added, “we will all need to give our best efforts, remain positive, and pick each other up in times of struggle on the field. If we are all accountable for ourselves and one another, I believe our talents can take us far.”
