Brad Sparks
Assistant Sports Editor
Winter is coming to an end, which means that spring is on its way. Spring brings showers and flowers, but even more importantly, it brings softball. The Wheaton softball team started off its season down in Florida. The team traveled to Cape Coral and Fort Myers and won seven of eight games in a span of four days to get its season started on the right note.
The Thunder women downed schools from all over the country that had flocked to Florida to kick off their seasons. The team’s 7-0 start included wins over Albright College, Bridgewater State University, Saint Joseph’s College of Maine, Franklin & Marshall College, Nazareth College, Salem State University and University of Wisconsin-Superior. The Thunder lost their final game of the road trip to Delaware Valley College.
The Thunder showed off their prowess by having a combined score of 53-8 in their first eight games. They hit an average of .353 while posting a dominating ERA of 0.96.
The team was led by junior Jessica Goeke, who hit .526 while slugging .684, which included the team’s only triple. Goeke also drove in six runs, only trailing juniors Stacey Cladis and Shannah Morris, who both drove in seven runs in Florida. Freshman Katie Yergler led the team in runs (10) and stolen bases (eight) while in Florida.
Not only can the Wheaton softball team hit, but they also dominated on the mound. Freshmen Katie Thornton and Lyndsey Pritchard as well as senior Danielle Schmidt posted a 7-1 record while allowing just seven earned runs and four shutouts. They struck out 56 while only walking six over the whole Florida trip.
Wheaton is picked to finish seventh in the CCIW after last year’s performance (22-18, 4-10). However, the Thunder team has seen some offseason changes, which include the resignation of former Head Coach Chris Houston. Katie East replaced Houston on July 25.
Katie East, whose maiden name is Katie Iser, may seem like a familiar name. Iser graduated from Wheaton in 2011 after a storied softball career. She was a four-year letter winner as a centerfielder for the Thunder softball team. She was also named to the First Team All-Great Lakes Region by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and CCIW First-Team All-Conference her senior year. As a senior, East led the team in batting average (.437) and set the Wheaton single season record in hits (62) and stolen bases (26). She owns the stolen base record for a career at Wheaton (52).
The Thunder softball team’s game on Wednesday, March 20, was postponed due to weather, but the team’s next game is set for this afternoon, March 22, at 3 p.m. at Notre Dame (Ind.) against Saint Mary’s College.
File Photo Credit: Allison Freet