The Ashland University Softball team is ready to kick off their regular season. The squad will travel south to Owensboro, KY. for a five-game road trip in the Blue Bridge Battle this weekend. Ashland’s opponents include Lindenwood, Wheeling, Quincy, Illinois-Springfield and Southern Indiana. 

With the long Ohio winter, the team is ready to finally get outside and on the field. Junior Second Baseman Cat Lohse emphasized the excitement of getting on the field and competing. 

“I think we’re all at the point where we’re ready to go,” Lohse said. “It’s kind of been a drag these last few weeks, but we’re pushing through. We’re all excited to get going and play finally.”

This year more than ever, the team says they feel like a family. They have many different goals for the year but the biggest one is just enjoying themselves and having fun. 

“A lot of times we get wrapped up in stats and personal achievements,” Lohse said. “But [the goal is] playing for each other and loving the game.” 

Head Coach Emlyn Knerem also added in some other goals that the team has been trying to hone in on this off-season. 

“Quality at bats, attacking good pitches, knowing what we can hit well, and just being really strong defensively, I think that’s our strong suit this year,” Knerem said. “Keeping everything clean, being really smart out there, not allowing baserunners to take extra bases, and keeping the errors to a minimum so we can keep our pitchers fresh and not keep them out there too long.”

The Eagles ended last season with a 13-29 overall record. They begin this season entering the Great Midwest Athletic Conference as a first year team. 

“Going into the new conference, it’s kind of a fresh start for us,” sophomore catcher Jordyn Severns said. “It’s going to be a clean slate. As a team we’re all wanting to have a winning season.”

Entering the new conference, there is no anxiety or worries. Instead it will be a nice change of pace from the former Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. 

“It will be a breath of fresh air for everybody,” Knerem said. “Just being able to manage their recovery better and being able to feel better when they’re out [on the field] and not feeling like they’re trying to play catch-up all the time.”

In the pre-season GMAC coaches poll, Ashland was placed as the number nine team in the conference, receiving 48 votes.