EDWARDSVILLE – A bright outlook has the SIUE softball team cast in a sunny mood this season.
The Cougars are operating in an optimistic mode and that’s no wonder since they are accustomed to savoring success. SIUE finished second to Jacksonville State in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament last year and has high hopes again. The Cougars appear to be poised for a run at the OVC championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
“You always plan for big things and I feel good about this team,” said 29th-year head coach Sandy Montgomery, sporting a glittering record of 985-506-2 at SIUE. “Last year, we had some injuries, but this year, it looks like all of the pieces are in place. We have pitching, team speed and team power. We just need to execute effectively and you need to have some breaks and make your own breaks to win games.”
SIUE battled through plenty of adversity to finish 28-26 in 2016 and take second to Jacksonville State in the OVC Tournament. The Cougars, rated second to Jacksonville State in this year’s OVC poll, debut Feb. 10 in the Louisiana-Monroe Tournament. The Cougars are scheduled to play five nonconference games during three days in Northern Louisiana.
Then it’s on to tournament at Auburn, Baylor and South Florida before the Cougars return home to welcome their own tourney March 17-19, featuring Toledo, Ball State and Northern Kentucky. A 6-0 record during the fall season provided Montgomery and assistant coaches Jessica Jones, Valerie McCoy and Cathy Weatherred with a possible glimpse of the future. Kim Isenberg serves as the SIUE’s director of operations.
“Our goal is to win the conference tournament and make it to the NCAA Tournament,” Montgomery said. The Cougars did that in 2014, then compiled a 43-16 record a year later.
What’s stoking the Cougars high-flying aspirations is the return of senior pitcher Haley Chambers-Book. The 5-foot, 7-inch senior left-hander from Cascade High in Coatesville, Ind., sat out the 2016 season after tearing apart the OVC in 2015. She posted a 25-7-1 record with a 1.45 ERA and logged 315 strikeouts in 231.1 innings.
Chambers-Book, the OVC Pitcher of the Year, also batted a team-best .368 with 9 home runs and 40 RBIs. So when she doesn’t pitch, Chambers-Book will log ample time at first base.
“She’s one of the top pitchers in the country and definitely one of the best players in the conference,” Montgomery said. “Having her come back this season is huge for us.”
In addition, Chambers-Book needs just 15 strikeouts to set the SIUE career record. She has notched 723 of them. Erika Taylor owns the school mark with 737 from 2008-2011.
The Cougars boast depth in the circle with junior Ashley Koziol (Willow Springs, Ill. and Youngstown State), plus freshmen Emily Ingles (Arcadia High in Scottsdale, Ariz.) and Abby Marlow (New Athens) also in the mix of things. It appears Koziol and Ingles will battle for the No. 2 spot in the rotation behind Chambers-Book. Koziol registered a 10-14 record with a 3.32 ERA in 2016.
“Koziol is a hard thrower and continues to get better,” Montgomery said. “Ingles loves to compete and Marlow is a good athlete.”
Holdover Tess Eby (Colleyville Heritage High in Grapevine, Texas), a senior, figures to do the bulk of the catching. She joins Chambers-Book, sophomore senior infielder Allison Smiley (Johnston City) and senior outfielder Whitney Lanphier (Plainfield South High in Plainfield) as the Cougars’ captains.
“Tess is very passionate about the game and she will hit in the middle of the lineup,” Montgomery said. Eby batted .263 last year and started every game behind the plate. She hit 5 home runs and collected a team-best 29 RBIs.
Freshman Sydney Bina (Peoria Notre Dame High and Washington, Ill.) and Amy Hunt (Triad) also fit in as catchers. So does freshman Kalei Kaneshiro (Kamehameha Schools in Pearl City, Hawaii). However, Kaneshiro likely will start at third base.
“She’s fun to be around and she loves to play the game,” Montgomery said of Kaneshiro.
Junior Hayley Adrian (Auburn, Ala.) also figures to log some time at third base.
Sarah Lopesilvero (Simpsonville, Ky., and University of Louisville transfer) is set to help anchor the infield defense at shortstop and Montgomery foresees good things from the senior.
“She’s a gamer and very focused and driven,” Montgomery said. “She loves competition.”
Four-year starter Allison Smiley returns to man second base and Montgomery is just as effusive about her. Smiley hit .279 with 3 home runs and 19 RBIs last season.
“She’s probably the most game-savvy player I’ve ever coached,” Montgomery said. “She understands the game, is steady and plays with a lot of poise.”
It’s Chambers working at first base or possibly even the outfield when she isn’t pitching. Montgomery can also count on redshirt freshman Zoe Schafer (Noblesville, Ind.) to play first base.
“She (Schafer) is one of our better hitters. She can hit for average and has lots of power,” Montgomery said.
Maria Prate (Westmont, Ill.), a junior, can fill in for infield work, as can senior Paige Clinton (Ina, Ill. and Rend Lake Community College), junior Talisa Morton (Fenton, Mo. and Indiana State transfer), and sophomore Jane Smith (Wheaton, Ill. and St. Francis Prep).
Alyssa Heren (Saline, Mich.), a sophomore speedster, will patrol center field and oversee the outfield defense. The left-handed hitting Heren batted .282 with 27 RBIs and a team-high 7 home runs last year. Her stellar play earned Heren honors on the all-OVC Newcomer Team.
“She has speed and power and could be our leadoff hitter, with Chambers hitting second,” Montgomery said.
Reagan Curtis (Helena, Ala.) will take over in left field for Heren, who shifts to center. “She (Curtis) has tremendous power, and maybe as much power as anybody on the team,” Montgomery said.
Whitney Lanphier looks to take charge in right field and give the Cougars’ a top-flight outfield. “She has been injury-riddled, but she has a lot of experience and a lot of power.”
Freshman Conner Cutright (Casey-Westfield in Casey, Ill.), sophomore Savannah Fisher (Hallsville, Mo.), JUCO transfer Clinton and Smith will boost the Cougars’ outfield depth.
“This team is fun to be around and a special group,” Montgomery said.
What’ll make things more special is when the coach records her 1,000th career victory sometime this season. She 15 wins away from the milestone, which will put her in a special category.
There are fewer than three dozen of them in that Grand Club.
“It means that we’ve put together a winning program and done a good job,” said Montgomery, a former standout pitcher at SIUE. She became head coach in 1989 and achieved her first of 20 seasons with 30 or more wins. The 2007 team won the NCAA Division II championship.
“What I’m most proud of is that we have a long-standing tradition of winning,” Montgomery said. “But you are only as good as the people around you.”