The Aftermath of Temple's Decision to Cut Softball: Recruits

Temple recruits are put in a terrible situation as well particularly the recruits who had signed their letters of intent just days earlier. Now Shelby Stracher, Isabel Hansbury, Jessica Hallett, Michele Sykora, and Devon Steiner are forced to reopen their recruiting process very late in the game, when the vast majority of scholarship money has been spoken for already. Each of these players deserves a shot from another school if Temple is not able to salvage its program. In a perfect world, the program would be saved, but the Temple administration seems to have made up its mind.

Shelby Stracher was the first commit in this class for Joe DiPietro and she hails from Massachusetts. Stracher plays travel ball for the East Coast Firecrackers, which are one of the top, up-and-coming travel teams in the country. Stracher swings a powerful bat and is a great catcher behind the plate. For her high school last year, Stracher hit .508 with 5 HR and 32 RBI. She showed off her power on the big stage by hitting a homerun at the Premier Nationals.

Isabel Hansbury was a real steal for Coach DiPietro. Hansbury is a talented third baseman and shortstop from Tuff-N-Tuffer Gold, known as TNT. Hansbury's athleticism will make her a real asset to any team at any of the infield spots. Hansbury picked Temple over Wagner and Haverford originally, hopefully she will get wonderful options again this time around.

Devon Steiner

Devon Steiner is a talented third baseman and shortstop from Delaware who swings a powerful bat. Steiner plays for the Delco Chaos, which is one of the top travel programs in the Mid-Atlantic Region. For her high school, Steiner put up gaudy numbers in 2012, hitting .484 with 4 HR and 35 RBI. Needless to say, she would have been a natural fit for Temple's high octane offense.

Jessica Hallett was a Temple signee from Arizona, who comes from the storied Lil Saints travel ball team in Arizona. Hallett is another very powerful infielder who would have fit in nicely with Temple's powerful offense. She hit .363 with 33 hits, 6 HR, and 29 RBI for her high school team. In travel ball she really shined, hitting 15 HR this past season for the Lil Saints. Temple was counting on Hallett for power and defense at the hot corner.

Michele Sykora is a legacy at Temple with her sister Christina, having played for four years under Joe DiPietro from 2009-2012. Christina Sykora also went on to become Temple's first ever player in the National Pro Fastpitch League this summer. Sykora is a second baseman and outfielder from the Jersey Fusion. Sykora's tenacity and athleticism were tailor made for the Owls.

The Owls also had a verbal commitment from Amanda Kulp, a 2015 recruit. Kulp will have a little more time to recover, but she must also deal with the fact that a lot of the recruiting money is off the table. Kulp is a speedy, left handed hitting second baseman and outfielder who figures to be a solid top of the order hitter at the next level.

A10 Players Getting it Done Outside of the Field and the Classroom

While sometimes it seems as though there is no time for softball players other than school and softball, two Atlantic 10 players have been productive in that remaining free time.

Jocelyn Mattison

Rhode Island senior Jocelyn Mattison coordinated a community service project for URI softball with Operation Santa. Read more about Mattison and URI softball's involvement with the project here.

Kayla Lombardo (Photo by Tom Wasiczko)

Fordham junior Kayla Lombardo is not only a force on the field, where she hit .289 with 50 hits, 7 HR, and 39 RBI, while holding down the fort at the hot corner for the Rams. Lombardo is also an excellent sports writer and has written a number of pieces this fall for Laker Nation. In addition, she wrote an excellent piece in December on how the success over Fordham female athletes has been overshadowed recently. Lombardo has a bright future in sports journalism and hopefully soon she will be writing for ESPN or Sports Illustrated and who knows, perhaps even the Atlantic 10 Softball Blog.

Atlantic 10 Verbal Commitments

Dayton
2015 Aspyn Novak OF Beverly Bandits

Fordham
2015 Jessica Hughes IF NJ Gators
2016 Skylar Johnston 1B/3B Virginia Legends

George Mason
2015 Marina Vitalich RHP Firecrackers-Clarke
2015 Victoria Webster 1B/UT So Cal Breakers

George Washington
2015 Riley Tejcek 3B Indiana Magic
2015 Chloe Braun RHP Gold Coast Hurricanes
2015 Ashley Schnarrs UT Vienna Stars

La Salle
2015 Marlo Roadcap LHP Rock 18 Gold
2015 Emma Schweigert  OF East Coast Elite

UMass
2015 Erin Stacevicz OF Delco Chaos

Rhode Island

St. Bonaventure

St. Joseph's
2015 Taryn Grober 3B Rock 18 Gold
2015 Stacey Mayer 2B/SS East Coast Firecrackers
2015 Abby Stroud P/IF NJ Cheetahs

St. Louis
2015 Mackenzie Lawson 2B St. Louis Espirit

2014 Roster Analysis

2014 Atlantic 10
207 Players
20.7 Average
43 Pitchers
4.3 Average
168 Right handed hitters
39 Left handed hitters
199 Right handed throwers
8 Left handed throwers
61 Freshmen
59 Sophomores
47 Juniors
40 Seniors
23 States: Arizona (2), California (15), Connecticut (3), Delaware (1), Florida (4), Georgia (1), Illinois (12), Indiana (4), Kansas (2), Kentucky (1), Maine (1), Maryland (1), Massachusetts (17), Missouri (8), New Hampshire (3), New Jersey (32), New York (34), Ohio (8), Pennsylvania (27), Rhode Island (2), Texas (8), Virginia (18), Washington (2)
8 Teams have a player from New York.
8 Teams have a player from New Jersey.
8 Teams have a player from Pennsylvania.
7 Teams have a player from California.
5 Teams have a player from Texas.
4 Teams have a player from Massachusetts.
4 Teams have a player from Illinois.
3 Teams have a player from Florida.
3 Teams have a player from Connecticut.
3 Teams have a player from New Hampshire.
2 Teams have a player from Virginia.
2 Teams have a player from Ohio.
2 Teams have a player from Arizona.
George Mason has the largest roster with 24 players.
St. Louis has the smallest roster with 16 players.
La Salle has the most pitchers on the roster with 6.
George Washington and St. Louis have the fewest pitchers with 3.
La Salle has the most freshmen with 9.
Fordham and St. Bonaventure have the fewest freshmen with 4 each.
George Washington has players from 11 different states.
St. Louis has players from 3 different states.

Dayton
22 Players
5 Pitchers
17 Right handed hitters
5 Left handed hitters
21 Right handed throwers
1 Left handed thrower
5 Freshmen
7 Sophomores
5 Juniors
5 Seniors
8 States: California (1), Georgia (1), Illinois(3), Indiana (4), Kentucky (1), New York (1), Ohio (7), Texas (4)

Fordham
19 Players
4 Pitchers
14 Right handed hitters
4 Left handed hitters
1 Switch hitter
18 Right handed throwers
1 Left handed thrower
4 Freshmen
4 Sophomores
7 Juniors
4 Seniors
9 States: California (1), Connecticut (1), Delaware (1), Maryland (1), New Jersey (6), New York (6), Pennsylvania (1), Rhode Island (1), Texas (1)

George Mason
24 Players
4 Pitchers
20 Right handed hitters
4 Left handed hitters
24 Right handed throwers
0 Left handed throwers
6 Freshmen
9 Sophomores
6 Juniors
3 Seniors
6 States: California (2), Florida (1), Illinois (1), New Jersey (2), Pennsylvania (1), Virginia (17)

George Washington
18 Players
3 Pitchers
12 Right handed hitters
6 Left handed hitters
15 Right handed throwers
3 Left handed throwers
8 Freshmen
4 Sophomores
3 Juniors
3 Seniors
11 States: Arizona (1), California (4), Connecticut (1), Florida (2), Illinois (1), Massachusetts (1), New Jersey (3), New York (1), Pennsylvania (1), Texas (1), Washington (1)

La Salle
23 Players
6 Pitchers
19 Right handed hitters
4 Left handed hitters
23 Right handed throwers
0 Left handed throwers
9 Freshmen
5 Sophomores
5 Juniors
4 Seniors
6 States: California (1), New Jersey (6), New York (2), Pennsylvania (12), Texas (1), Washington (1)

UMass
20 Players
5 Pitchers
16 Right handed hitters
4 Left handed hitters
20 Right handed throwers
0 Left handed throwers
6 Freshmen
5 Sophomores
4 Juniors
5 Seniors
9 States: Arizona (1), California (3), Illinois (1), Massachusetts (8), New Hampshire (1), New Jersey (1), New York (2), Pennsylvania (2), Virginia (1)

Rhode Island
22 Players
4 Pitchers
20 Right handed hitters
2 Left handed hitters
22 Right handed throwers
0 Left handed throwers
5 Freshmen
6 Sophomores
4 Juniors
7 Seniors
9 States: Connecticut (1), Maine (1), Massachusetts (7), New Hampshire (1), New Jersey (3), New York (5), Pennsylvania (1), Rhode Island (1), Texas (1)

St. Bonaventure
21 Players
4 Pitchers
16 Right handed hitters
5 Left handed hitters
20 Right handed throwers
1 Left handed thrower
4 Freshmen
6 Sophomores
7 Juniors
4 Seniors
4 States: New York (15), New Jersey (2), Ohio (1), Pennsylvania (3)

St. Joseph's
22 Players
5 Pitchers
21 Right handed hitters
1 Left handed hitters
21 Right handed throwers
1 Left handed thrower
8 Freshmen
8 Sophomores
4 Juniors
2 Seniors
7 States: California (2), Florida (1), Massachusetts (1), New Hampshire (1), New York (2), New Jersey (9), Pennsylvania (6)

St. Louis
16 Players
3 Pitchers
12 Right handed hitters
4 Left handed hitters
15 Right handed throwers
1 Left handed thrower
6 Freshmen
5 Sophomores
2 Juniors
3 Seniors
3 States: Illinois (6), Kansas (2), Missouri (8)

Class of 2014 Signees

If you know of anymore please email atlantic10softball@gmail.com

Dayton
Kailee Budicin IF/C New Lenox Lightning
Manda Cash P Ohio Nightmare
Kayla Haberstich SS New Lenox Lightning
Jaclyn Kweder OF Indiana Shockwaves

Fordham
Madison Shaw IF/C RI Thunder
Morgan Figueroa OF WA Ladyhawks

George Mason
Jade Fleming IF Dallas Tigers
Katie Holehouse 1B/3B Vienna Stars
Lizzie Seymour IF Beverly Bandits
Brooke Sullivan 2B/C Tri-State Thunder

George Washington
Sarah Costlow P So Cal Athletics-Sota
Alana Anderson OF Arizona Storm
Aiyana Leal-Robles C So Cal Athletics-Sota
Rochelle Draper 2B Jets Gold
Morgan Rinehart OF Vienna Stars

La Salle
Valerie Pineiro 3B NJ Gators
Taylor Rohrbaugh P Krunch Gold
Angelina Refice OF Lower South Liberty
McKenzie Peace P Georgia Knockouts

UMass
Meg Colleran P East Coast Firecrackers
Gianna Hathaway SS RI Thunder
Emily Neal OF Pennsbury Gems

URI
Jessica Proia IF Concord Raiders
Madison Housel C NJ Pride

St. Bonaventure
Hailey Blencoe 2B TC Tremors
Josie Borysevicz P East Coast Firecrackers
Morgan Phillips C Battery Lightning
Courtney Rogers UT East Coast Firecrackers

St. Joseph's
Shannon Puthe 2B NJ Gators
Nikki Alden 2B/P Newtown Rock
Erica Nugent SS NJ Cheetahs
Madison Clarke P Alberta, Canada

St. Louis
Maddie Baalman P/IF
Miranda Cotton IF St. Louis Academy Gold
Josie Knesel OF St. Louis Chaos
Allie Macfarlane IF Mac N Seitz

Travel teams with more than one signee
East Coast Firecrackers 3
RI Thunder 2
Vienna Stars 2
NJ Gators 2
So Cal Athletics-Sota 2
New Lenox Lightning 2

Coaching News: UMass hired Staci Ramsey

A long overdue posting.

Staci Ramsey

UMass hired former Alabama All-American Staci Ramsey as an assistant coach. Ramsey won three SEC titles and played in three WCWS for the Crimson Tide. She was a mainstay at the hot corner for Alabama and she was a feared hitter in the lineup. In 2006, Ramsey hit .304 with 11 HR and 57 RBI and was named an All-American. She is going to work primarily with the UMass offense and infield, which should be much improved in 2014.

Ramsey joins Kristi Stefanoni and Danielle Henderson on the UMass staff.

Quick Hits

If you have any newsworthy items please email atlantic10softball@gmail.com

Coaching news

Karla Powell

George Washington hired former Wisconsin standout Karla Powell as its volunteer assistant coach. With Powell and Stephanie Call as assistant coaches, Colonial hitters will learn a lot from these two powerful sluggers.

Jim McGowan

Fordham hired legendary Long Island high school coach Jim McGowan as its pitching coach. McGowan was head coach at Bay Shore HS from 1983-2011 and recorded a record of 661-89. McGowan and his players earned countless awards and he is sure to be a positive influence for Fordham's pitchers this year.

Recruiting news
2015 3B Taryn Grober of the Rock 18 Gold has verballed to St. Joseph's.

2014 1B/OF Courtney Rogers of the Polar Crush has verballed to St. Bonaventure.

Remembering a legend
UMass had a celebration of life ceremony for Elaine Sortino this Sunday. A beautiful ceremony for an amazing woman and coach! You can watch the ceremony here.

Scheduling news
UMass will attend the NFCA Leadoff Classic on Feebruary 21-23 in Clearwater, FL at the Eddie C. Moore complex. The Minutewomen will face DePaul, College of Charleston, Rutgers, UConn, and Hofstra. A special highlight of the weekend is that the two most successful Northeast softball programs will face off for the first time since 2003.

Raising High on the Recruiting Trail

Stacey Schramm

When Stacey Schramm and Dan Sperl came to George Washington the program was coming off of one of the worst seasons in program history, which has made the program's subsequent turn around all the more impressive. One of the keys to the Colonials resurgence has been recruiting, as Sperl and Schramm have shown a fearless attitude in targeting and landing players from around the nation. George Washington aggressive recruiting helped lead to a 2012 Atlantic 10 Runner Up and could lead to a title in the near future. The latest big pickups came this fall when the Colonials landed Chloe Braun and Ashley Schnarrs.

Chloe Braun is a 2015 pitcher from the Gold Coast Hurricanes. Braun is a huge pickup for George Washington, as she was highly recruited by a number of top programs. Braun will see quality time right away for the Colonials and she will bolster a pitching staff that is already quite strong.

Ashley Schnarrs is a 2015 infielder from the Vienna Stars. Schnarrs is an athletic player that can play in either the infield or outfield for the Colonials. Schnarrs will be a strong right-handed bat in the middle of George Washington's order. Schnarrs is also a DC area recruit for the Colonials as they look to establish themselves as the best program in the beltway.

Braun and Schnarrs join Riley Tejcek in George Washington's 2015 recruiting class.

With an incredible freshmen class on campus now and another stellar class on the way next year, George Washington will be a fixture at the top of the conference for a long time to come.

A look at George Washington's outstanding 2013 and 2014 classes:
2013
Bradleigh Breland OF Houston Power
Jillian Galich 1B Louisville Lady Sluggers
Paige Kovalsky P/IF Florida Select
Megan Linn IF Cal Lite
Monica Macchiarulo OF Connecticut Wicked
Marissa Mangini OF Gators Gold
Madi Myers-Cook C The Next Level
Mary Wiley 1B Hudson Valley Hurricanes

2014
Sarah Costlow P So Cal Athletics-Sota
Alana Anderson OF Arizona Storm
Rochelle Draper 2B Jets Gold
Aiyana Leal-Robles C So Cal Athletics-Sota
Morgan Rinehart OF Vienna Stars

Scheduling Update!

Scheduling
2/6-2/8 Beach Invitational-Long Beach State, George Washington, Cal State Fullerton, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Loyola, Pittsburgh, Kent State
2/7-2/9 Central Florida Tournament-UCF, Fordham, Chattanooga, Long Island
2/7-2/9 Stetson Tournament-Stetson, Rhode Island, Michigan State
2/14-2/16 Charleston Southern Tournament-Charleston Southern, St. Bonaventure
2/14-2/16 FAU Strikeout Cancer Tournament-FAU, UMass, Mississippi State, Maryland, Long Island, Providence
2/14-2/16 Kickin' Chicken Classic-Coastal Carolina, La Salle, Towson, Syracuse, Purdue
2/14-2/16 LSU Tournament-LSU, George Washington, Northwestern, Penn State
2/15-2/16 Longwood Tournament-Longwood, St. Joseph's, Bucknell, Georgetown
2/20-2/23 Mary Nutter Classic-Arizona, Baylor, Boise State, BYU, California, Fordham, Fresno State, Cal State Fullerton, Kentucky, Long Beach State, Long Island, LSU, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Northwestern, Cal State Northridge, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Oregon State, Pacific, San Diego State, Southern Miss, Stanford, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, UC Davis, UCLA, Virginia, Washington
2/21-2/23 Charlotte Tournament-Charlotte, St. Bonaventure
2/22-2/23 Norfolk State Tournament-Norfolk State, La Salle, Yale, Fairleigh Dickinson, Delaware State
2/25 St. Bonaventure at NC State
2/28-3/2 USF Tournament-USF, St. Bonaventure, Georgia State, Oakland, Quinnipiac, Central Connecticut, Mount St. Mary's, Central Arkansas, Campbell, FAU, Georgia State, Kennesaw State, Quinnipiac, Toledo, Southern Illinois, Villanova, Western Michigan, Yale
2/28-3/2 George Washington Tournament-George Washington, Akron, Drexel, Providence
2/28-3/2 Towson Tournament-Towson, URI, Manhattan, Delaware State
3/3-3/7 Rebel Games-La Salle, Bucknell, Creighton, Howard, Indiana State, Niagara, Sacred Heart, St. Francis, Buffalo, Akron, UMass-Lowell, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Utah Valley
3/7-3/9 Louisville Tournament-Louisville, UMass, Ohio, Ohio State, Illinois State
3/7-3/9 USF Tournament-USF, Fordham, St. Joseph's, Boston College, Boston University, Cleveland State, Central Michigan, Long Island, Loyola Marymount, Northwestern, Penn State, Providence, Quinnipiac, St. John's, Seton Hall, Southern Illinois, Buffalo, Kansas, Maine, Chattanooga, Utah, Villanova, Wagner, Western Michigan, Yale
3/7-3/9 George Washington Tournament-George Washington, Binghamton, Howard
3/7-3/9 Hampton Tournament-Hampton, St. Bonaventure
3/11 St. Louis at UT Martin
3/14-3/16 USF Tournament-USF, St. Joseph's, Miami, UConn, Boston University, Seton Hall, Maine, Wisconsin-Green Bay,
3/14-3/16 Dayton Tournament-Dayton, Oakland, IUPUI, Eastern Michigan
3/14-3/16 Dawg Pound Invitational-UMBC, Rhode Island, Drexel, Niagara, Hampton
3/14-3/16 George Washington Tournament-George Washington, Brown, Manhattan, St. Francis
3/15-3/16 Coppin State Tournament-Coppin State, La Salle, UMass Lowell, Youngstown State, Mount St. Mary's
3/19 St. Joseph's at Delaware (DH)
3/19 La Salle at Temple (DH)
3/22 St. Bonaventure at La Salle (DH)
3/26 La Salle at Penn (DH)
3/29 La Salle at Dayton (DH)
4/5 La Salle at George Washington (DH)
4/9 La Salle at Villanova
4/12 George Mason at La Salle (DH)
4/15 La Salle at Drexel
4/17 UMass at La Salle
4/18 UMass at La Salle
4/19 URI at La Salle (DH)
4/22 La Salle at UMBC (DH)
4/22 George Washington at Georgetown
4/23 La Salle at St. Joseph's (DH)
4/26 Fordham at La Salle (DH)
4/30 La Salle at Rider
5/1 St. Joseph's at Villanova
5/3 La Salle at St. Louis
5/7-5/10 Atlantic !0 Tournament at Fordham

Highlights from the 1st weekend of Fall Ball

Lauren Quense (Tom Wasiczko)

Fordham
The Rams went 2-2 up in Binghamton to open up fall play, defeating Cornell 8-4 and Binghamton 8-5, while falling to Syracuse 2-1 and Colgate 1-0. The Rams finished the first weekend with a .960 fielding percentage and 2.38 ERA. In the circle, Patti Maloney led the way as she finished with a 0.00 ERA in 10 innings, allowing just two hits. Lauren Quense and Michele Daubman also saw action in the circle for Fordham. At the plate, Paige Ortiz led the way with a .538 BA, including 7 hits, 1 HR, and 5 RBI without recording a strikeout. Other Rams that stood out at the plate include Brianna Turgeon who hit .400 with 3 RBI, Gabby Luety hit .357, and Rachel Gillen and Michele Daubman each hit .333. Freshman Sydney Canessa showed some great potential at the plate and figures to be a key player for the Rams this year.

Kayla Lombardo connecting on a HR (Tom Wasiczko)

The Rams will be back in action this weekend at home against Dominican and Fairleigh Dickinson.

St. Bonaventure
The Bonnies went 2-2 on the weekend, as they beat Colgate 5-1 and LeMoyne, while falling to Syracuse 4-0 and Cornell in extra innings.

More info to come

Dayton
No information yet on Dayton's first games of the fall.

If you have any information please email atlantic10softball@gmail.com

2013 Fall Softball Schedule/Results

This page will be continually updated as results come in. Please send any scores or game details to atlantic10softball@gmail.com

9/14 St. Bonaventure 5 Colgate 1
9/14 Syracuse 4 St. Bonaventure 0
9/14 Syracuse 2 Fordham 1
9/14 Fordham 8 Cornell 4
9/14 Northern Kentucky at Dayton
9/14 Cedarville at Dayton

9/15 St. Bonaventure beat LeMoyne
9/15 St. Bonaventure lost to Cornell
9/15 Fordham 8 Binghamton 5
9/15 Colgate 1 Fordham 0

9/21 UMass 3 Bryant 0
9/21 UMass 3 Bryant 0 (3)
9/21 Concordia at George Mason (DH)
9/21 St. Louis vs. Southern Illinois
9/21 St. Louis vs. Murray State
9/21 St. Bonaventure vs. Nan Harvey Classic
9/21 St. Bonaventure vs. Nan Harvey Classic
9/21 Urbana at Dayton
9/21 Otterbein at Dayton

9/22 Dominican at Fordham
9/22 Fairleigh Dickinson at Fordham
9/22 UMBC at George Washington (DH)
9/22 St. Joseph's at Lehigh (DH)
9/22 St. Bonaventure vs. Nan Harvey Classic
9/22 St. Bonaventure vs. Nan Harvey Classic

9/28 St. Joseph's vs. Princeton
9/28 St. Joseph's vs. Rider
9/28 La Salle vs. Drexel
9/28 La Salle vs. Holy Family
9/28 La Salle at Penn
9/28 URI at Maine (DH)
9/28 Washington (STL) at St. Louis
9/28 Central Methodist at St. Louis
9/28 Dayton at Wright State
9/28 Dayton vs. Kentucky

9/29 Quinnipiac at UMass (DH)
9/29 St. Joseph's vs. Lafayette
9/29 Georgetown at George Washington
9/29 Mount St. Mary's at George Washington
9/29 SIU Edwardsville at St. Louis
9/29 William Woods at St. Louis

10/5 Fordham vs. Hofstra
10/5 Fordham vs. Seton Hall
10/5 Sacred Heart at UMass (DH)
10/5 URI at Bryant (DH)
10/5 St. Joseph's vs. Penn
10/5 La Salle vs. Villanova
10/5 George Washington vs. Bowie State
10/5 George Washington vs. Howard
10/5 Dayton vs. Toledo
10/5 Dayton vs. Miami

10/6 Boston College at UMass
10/6 La Salle vs. St. Joseph's
10/6 St. Joseph's vs. Drexel
10/6 La Salle vs. Drexel
10/6 George Washington vs. Howard
10/6 George Washington vs. Maryland
10/6 St. Louis at SEMO (DH)

10/12 Towson at George Mason (DH)
10/12 La Salle at Lafayette (DH)

10/13 URI at Brown (DH)

10/14 Georgetown at George Mason (DH)

10/19 George Mason at UMBC (DH)

Quick hits

If you have any news please email atlantic10softball@gmail.com

Quick Hits:

Coaching News
-Ona Halladay has left St. Bonaventure to become the new head coach and SWA at D'Youville College.
-Fordham alum Chelsea Plimpton is now an assistant coach at Towson.
-UMass alum Kristi Stefanoni has been named the interim head coach at UMass and fellow alum and former All-American Danielle Henderson has returned as the associate head coach.
-UMass alum KJ Kelley is the new head coach at the University of Mary in North Dakota. Kelley had previously been in an assistant/co-head coach role at Toledo.
-UMass alum Sara Plourde is now an assistant at Lafayette College.
-UMass alum Katie Bettencourt is joining fellow alum Whitney Mollica-Goldstein's staff at WPI.
-UMass-Boston alum Kara Willis was hired as the pitching coach at URI.
-Mizzou alums Ashley Fleming and Chelsea Thomas have been hired as assistant coaches at St. Louis.

Roster notes
-Jessica Van Nostrand is no longer listed on the St. Louis roster.

Transfers
-Outfielder Katelyn Gibson has transferred to Dayton from Emory University.
-Pitcher Taylor Pirone has transferred to Hofstra from Fordham.

Recruiting
-2015 outfielder Erin Stacevicz of the Delco Chaos has verballed to UMass. Stacevicz has had two older sisters play D1 college softball for Delaware.
-2014 catcher Madison Housel of the NJ Pride Gold has verballed to Rhode Island. She is the first reported 2014 verbal for the Rams.

Scheduling
2/6-2/8 Beach Invitational-Long Beach State, George Washington, Cal State Fullerton, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Loyola, Pittsburgh, Kent State
2/14-2/16 Charleston Southern Tournament-Charleston Southern, St. Bonaventure
2/14-2/16 FAU Strikeout Cancer Tournament-FAU, UMass, Mississippi State, Maryland, Long Island, Providence
2/14-2/16 LSU Tournament-LSU, George Washington, Northwestern
2/15-2/16 Longwood Tournament-Longwood, St. Joseph's, Bucknell, Georgetown
2/20-2/23 Mary Nutter Classic-Arizona, Baylor, Boise State, BYU, California, Fordham, Fresno State, Cal State Fullerton, Kentucky, Long Beach State, Long Island, LSU, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Northwestern, Cal State Northridge, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Oregon State, Pacific, San Diego State, Southern Miss, Stanford, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, UC Davis, UCLA, Virginia, Washington
2/21-2/23 Charlotte Tournament-Charlotte, St. Bonaventure
2/25 St. Bonaventure at NC State
2/28-3/2 USF Tournament-USF, St. Bonaventure, Georgia State, Oakland, Quinnipiac, Central Connecticut, Mount St. Mary's, Central Arkansas, Campbell, FAU, Georgia State, Kennesaw State, Quinnipiac, Toledo, Southern Illinois, Villanova, Western Michigan, Yale
2/28-3/2 George Washington Tournament-George Washington, Akron, Drexel, Providence
3/3-3/7 Rebel Games-La Salle, Bucknell, Creighton, Howard, Indiana State, Niagara, Sacred Heart, St. Francis, Buffalo, Akron, UMass-Lowell, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Utah Valley
3/7-3/9 USF Tournament-USF
3/7-3/9 George Washington Tournament-George Washington, Binghamton, Howard
3/7-3/9 Hampton Tournament-Hampton, St. Bonaventure
3/11 St. Louis at UT Martin
3/14-3/16 USF Tournament-USF, St. Joseph's, Miami, UConn, Boston University, Seton Hall, Maine, Wisconsin-Green Bay,
3/14-3/16 Dayton Tournament-Dayton, Oakland, IUPUI, Eastern Michigan
3/14-3/16 Dawg Pound Invitational-UMBC, Rhode Island, Drexel, Niagara, Hampton
3/14-3/16 George Washington Tournament-George Washington, Brown, Manhattan, St. Francis
3/19 St. Joseph's at Delaware (DH)
4/9 La Salle at Villanova
4/22 George Washington at Georgetown
5/1 St. Joseph's at Villanova