Softball swinging into action
Utah State’s softball team begins the 2012 season this weekend. The team travels to Georgia to play four different teams over the weekend.
“I think that Georgia is going to push us the hardest,” said head coach Carissa Millsap-Kalaba. “We’re very excited. I’m excited to see them push each other — excited to see them go out and play.”
Millsap-Kalaba is in her third season coaching USU’s softball team and said her philosophy is that the opposing team is not a player’s biggest worry.
“You are your own worst enemy,” Millsap-Kalaba said. “You play the game against yourself more than you do against your opponents.”
Last year, the Aggies’ 15-42 record included a 4-10 record at home. Millsap-Kalaba is feeling “really positive” about this season and said she thinks the team will perform well.
Allison Lenzora led the 2011 team with the highest batting average of .356, and Kelley Kaneshiro led with most runs batted in, doubles, homeruns and total bases. Mandy Harmon led with games started and finished with pitching, innings pitched and the number of batters struck out.
Millsap-Kalaba said there are a lot of good freshman this season who are making their way into the starting rotation and will “keep us competitive on all levels.”.
“There’s a good healthiness to the team,” Millsap-Kalaba said. “A lot of the new girls add that to the situation.”
Millsap-Kalaba sees the team as being ready to play as a team because they “balance each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” she said. The team has the talent it needs to beat anybody, she added.
“We have a really good mix of athleticism and maturity,” Millsap-Kalaba said.
With this, she believes the team is ready to take on anything.
“From top to bottom, with all 22 players, we have the potential to be strong,” she said. “It’s the girls’ choice what they do between the lines.”
Millsap-Kalaba said the biggest goal for the team this year is to bring pride back to the Utah State softball field.
“They’ve said plenty of times that it’s not about them, it’s about what they represent,” Millsap-Kalaba said. “The name on the front is more important than the name on the back.”
USU will face North Carolina State and Army on Friday, in Athens, Georgia, and St. John’s and Georgia on Saturday and Campbell on Sunday.
– mandy.m.morgan@aggiemail.usu.edu