Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
Albany
Softball Opens Up 2009 at USF "The Game" Tournament
2/18/2009 2:46:47 PM | Softball
Eagles take on South Florida, Albany, Florida A&M and Louisville
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Click Here for USF Tournament Central.
EAGLES KICK OFF 2009 WITH USF “THE GAME” TOURNAMENT: The Eastern Michigan University softball team kicks off the 2009 season with a 10-day trip to the Sunshine State. First up for EMU is the USF “The Game” Tournament, hosted by the University of South Florida. The Eagles will start the tournament and the season with first-time opponent Albany, Feb. 20, at 9:30 a.m. The Eagles will then take on the host Bulls at 4 p.m. The following day, Feb. 21, the Green and White square off against Florida A&M with the concluding game Feb. 22, against Louisville.
A LOOK AT THE OPPONENTS: The Eagles will face Albany for the first time in school history when the two teams face each other at the start of the 2009 season. While it is the beginning of the season for EMU, it will mark the ninth game of the year for the Great Danes, who went 34-17 in 2008. EMU has a 4-8 record against South Florida, with the last game between the two teams occurring Feb. 27, 2007, when the Bulls came away with a 7-6 victory. USF is coming off a 44-20 season in 2008. The Eagles have a 2-1 all-time mark versus FAMU, last defeating the Rattlers, 8-4, March, 12, 1998. EMU also boasts a winning record against the Cardinals of Louisville (31-23 in 2008) at 2-1. The last game between the two schools was a U of L victory, 3-2, March, 17, 2007. The Eagles will travel to Louisville, Ky. for another tournament this season, set for March 13-15.
ESCAPING THE NORTH: The Eagles' annual spring trip takes the team to Florida for the beginning of the 2009 campaign. EMU will be in the Sunshine State for a stretch of 13 games in 10 days. The Eagles will participate in two tournaments, USF “The Game” Tournament and the UCF Invitational. In between the two tournaments, Eastern Michigan will play a doubleheader at Florida Gulf Coast, as well as a three-team round robin at UCF with the Knights and Bethune-Cookman.
NEW LOOK EAGLES: The Eagles will feature quite a different look in 2009 than the 2008 season. EMU returns seven letterwinners from last year's 15-30 team while welcoming seven newcomers to the team. In addition to the new faces on the field, the dugout now features Nikki Denman, a former EMU great who has joined the coaching staff. Denman replaced Jennifer Teague, who is now the University at Buffalo head coach.
MAC POLL: The Eastern Michigan University softball team was picked to finish sixth in the Mid-American Conference West Division, according to the annual coaches' poll. Kent State was picked to repeat as both East Division and Tournament champions while Central Michigan was tabbed to win the West. Following Central on the West side was Ball State, Western Michigan, Northern Illinois, Toledo and EMU. In the East, Bowling Green was picked second, followed by Miami, Ohio, Akron and Buffalo.
CAREER MILESTONE IN SIGHT: Junior outfielder Jenny Scherer is only two home runs away from tying the career mark for home runs of 24 set by Lauren Clark. Just a junior, Scherer has belted 11 home runs during each of her first two seasons as an Eagle, giving her 22 entering her junior year.
LONE SENIOR: To say that the 2009 team is a young squad would be an understatement. Heather Han is the team's only senior, with freshmen and sophomores accounting for 10 of the 14 members of the team.
SISTER, SISTER: This year's squad will be a family affair, with sisters Jenny and Allison Scherer on the roster. The Scherer's are only the second set of sisters to play for the Eagles and the first pair to play at the same time. The other sisterly duo was the twosome of Cari and Heidi Russell.
CONFERENCE TOUR: The Eagles will definitely get their share of different conferences this season, taking on opponents from 13 different conferences. EMU will square off against teams from America East (Albany, Maine, Stony Brook), Big East (South Florida, Louisville, Villanova, Syracuse), Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (FAMU, Bethune-Cookman), Atlantic Sun (Florida Gulf Coast), Conference USA (UCF), Ohio Valley (Tennessee State), Ivy League (Harvard), Big South (Radford), Horizon (Illinois-Chicago, Wright State, Detroit), Summitt (IPFW, Oakland) and the Big Ten (Minnesota, Ohio State, Michigan). The Eagles will also play an entire slate of MAC foes.
IT'S A CELEBRATION: Four members of the EMU softball team will celebrate their birthdays during the 2009 season. Jessica Patterson (2-27-88) and Jessica Richards (5-2-90) will turn a year older during the season, while Jenny Scherer and Stacie Skodinski (3-31-88) will celebrate on the same day. If the Eagles make it to the NCAA Tournament, Heather Han (5-17-87) will celebrate her birthday during the season as well.
PLAYING THE BEST: As of Feb. 17, the Eagles will face several ranked foes during the 2009 season. The University of Michigan is currently the highest ranked opponent, coming in at No. 4 in both the ESPN.com/USA Softball and USA Today/NFCA polls. The University of Louisville is ranked 22nd in the ESPN poll, while coming in at No. 25 in the USA Today poll. Ohio State is 23rd in the ESPN poll and receiving votes in the USA Today survey.
