Bradenton, Fla - The SCF softball team have put 2021 on the back burner and now set their sights on the 2022 season as they open with a scrimmage at the SCF Softball Complex. The Manatees will welcome Webber International University (NAIA) for a doubleheader Wednesday night, January 19 at 4 and 6 pm. It will be their last scrimmage before the season starts.
Last Time Out:
The Manatees came off finishing last season 17-18-1 overall with a 10-10 record in the Suncoast Conference. It was the first time in a long history that they had more losses than wins on their and the first time they had a tie on their record.
The Manatees are lead by head coach Mandy Schuerman. Schuerman enters her eighth season as head softball coach for the Manatees. While the 2021 season was the first bad season for Schuerman, the former Florida Gator did manage to reach a recent milestone of getting 200 wins as head coach. Currently, she is 214-129-1 in her career. The next win milestone for Schuerman is 300.
As far as from the rest of the coaching staff, longtime assistant coach Michelle Puls has moved up in the the ranks as she was named the head athletic director after Matt Ennis accepted a different role after 11.5 years with the Manatees. Tony Cummins will return as the associate head coach as well as DJ Bennett being a volunteer assistant coach.
Additionally, Schuerman was able to add a former alum to her coaching staff: Cheyenne "Shy" Nunez. Nunez played for Schuerman for two seasons (2018-19) where she broke and set the record for most stolen bases in a single season (38), while ending with 61 in her career. After transferring to USC Upstate before the pandemic ended the season, Nunez decided to part ways and transfer to USF in Tampa where she received her bachelor's degree in sociology before taking the position as an assistant coach.
Out With the Old, In With the New:
The team will be without 10 players as they have graduated and/or transferred: Lauren Hutcherson, Emily Hughes, Lilly Salazar, Ally Hulme, Kristin Kopp, Maddie Koczersut, Madi Schaefer, Kiersten Adams, Carly Bogart and Ciarra Morales. Hutcherson, Hughes, Hulme, Kopp Koczersut and Bogart were the only transfers that will be continuing playing softball.
Hutcherson was the main power hitter for the team after finishing her sophomore campaign batting .345 with six home runs and 36 RBI while maintaining a .895 fielding percentage. She will be transferring to Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina with three years of eligibility remaining.
A primary contact hitter, Hughes finished batting .258 with two home runs and 14 RBI. She will be joining Hutcherson in South Carolina as she will be attending Newberry College (NCAA DII) in neighboring Newberry, South Carolina with three years of eligibility remaining. Hughes is the second player in program history to transfer to Newberry since Devon Morrison (2016-17)
Hulme, the lead ace pitcher, finished her sophomore campaign 10-6 with a 2.78 ERA and 117 strikeouts. She will be attending Florida Gulf Coast University in Estero, Florida with three years of eligibility. Additionally, Hulme is the second Manatee to join FGCU softball since Erica Ward (2017-18).
Kopp will join fellow SCF alum Ashlee Zientek (2019-20) as she transfers to Ursuline College (NCAA DII) in Pepper Pike, Ohio with three years of eligibility remaining. Kopp finished her sophomore campaign batting .207 with two home runs and 10 RBI, while going 2-0 with a 5.17 ERA and eight strikeouts on the mound.
Koczersut will be transferring to Cumberland University (NAIA) with three years of eligibility. She finished her sophomore campaign batting .268 with three home runs and eight RBI.
Schaefer has transferred to Louisiana State University (LSU) on an academic scholarship. She finished her sophomore campaign batting .158 with a home run and four RBI.
Bogart has decided to remain in the NJCAA as she will transfer to St. John's River State in Palatka with one year of eligibility remaining. Bogart finished her sophomore campaign with the Manatees as she batted .221 with two home runs and seven RBI.
Key Returners:
Schuerman was able to bring back six returners to her squad: Gracie Mullet, Remi Hebert, Mya Achenbach, Allie Bloski, Hannah Murray and Samantha Hampton.
Mullet, an outfielder/pitcher, finished her freshman year batting .253 with 10 RBI, while going 0-1 with an 11.38 ERA and five strikeouts on the mound.
Hebert, another outfielder/pitcher, finished batting .241 with two home runs and eight RBI while going 2-3 with a 4.38 ERA and 33 strikeouts on the mound.
Achenbach, an outfielder who also serves in the United States Air Force, is the only returner that made it on an all-conference team last season. After not starting the season until Suncoast Conference play, the Tower City, Pennsylvania native finished her freshman campaign batting .380 with two home runs, 13 RBI and 18 stolen bases while being named on the All-Suncoast Second Team.
Bloski was limited to two games and went 0-for-2.
Murray finished her freshman campaign batting .250 with two home runs and six RBI, while maintaining a .881 fielding percentage.
Hampton, a pitcher/designated player, is the only Manatee to return for a third year after finishing her redshirt year going 3-7 with a 4.89 ERA, one save and 25 strikeouts.
New Bloods:
To help the returners, Schuerman was able to land 13 new players on the squad: Jordan O'Brien, Presley O'Kimosh, Olivia "Liv" Seibert, Tori Copeland, Stephanie Snyder, Renee Dixon, Mikayla Desantis, Molly Starinsky, Gabi Nicholson, Rylee Trice, Chantel Schurr and Sam Carlin. O'Brien, Siebert, Snyder, Desantis, Carlin and Poole are all local products, while Copeland, Starinsky and Schurr joined the team as transfers. Additionally, freshman Haylie Poole joins the team as a pinch runner/utility player after redshirting with the indoor volleyball team.
Jordan O'Brien:
O'Brien is an infielder and local product that graduated from Venice High School. As a member of the Indians' varsity squad, she helped lead them to two strong seasons. While her junior season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, O'Brien's senior year proved to be the strongest as she finished with a .386 batting average with four home runs and 29 RBI, while helping the Indians to a 24-5 overall record with a 1-0 record in the FHSAA 6A District and to the regional finals of the FHSAA 6A State Softball Tournament.
Presley O'Kimosh:
A catcher/utility player, O'Kimosh joins the team from East Bay High School in Gibsonton, Florida. For the last two seasons on Varsity, O'Kimosh helped lead the Indians to the FHSAA 6A District 11 tournament her senior year while batting .333 with a home run and 16 RBI.
Olivia "Liv" Seibert:
Seibert, an outfielder, joins her teammate, O'Brien, after graduating from Venice High School while playing the last two seasons on varsity. Like O'Brien, Seibert also helped the Indians to the FHSAA 6A State Softball Tournament with her senior year being her most productive as she batted .286 with a home run, 11 RBI and 12 stolen bases.
Tori Copeland:
Copeland, an infielder from Lakeland, joins the Manatees as a transfer from Warner University (NAIA) with one year of eligibility remaining.
As a member of the Lions, Copeland played in five games (two starts) while batting .250 with one RBI. Additionally she helped the Lions to a 30-18 record with a trip to the Sun Conference Tournament.
Prior to Warner, she played all four years at the varsity level for Lakeland High School. There she was team captain for three years and a one-time team offensive MVP for the Dreadnaughts. Her junior year was her most productive as she lead the Dreadnaughts in four categories: hits (31), runs (25), RBI (25) and triples (3) while maintaining a .914 fielding percentage.
Stephanie Snyder:
Snyder, another local product and utility player, joins the Manatees from Sarasota High School. As a member of the Sailors, she helped the them to a 12-10 overall record with a 5-1 record in the FHSAA 6A District while leading them to the regional semifinals of the FHSAA 6A State Softball Tournament.
Renee Dixon:
Dixon, a first baseman, joins after graduating from St. Cloud High School. As a two-year member of varsity for the Bulldogs, she finished her senior year batting .250 with two home runs and 12 RBI, while leading them to the semifinals of the FHSAA 6A District 7 Tournament.
Mikayla Desantis:
Another local product, Desantis, a catcher/utility player, joins after graduating from Riverview Sarasota High School. As a three-year member on the varsity squad, Desantis' senior season was her best productive year as she batted .281 with a 25 hits, a home run, 12 RBI and 12 stolen bases, while helping the Rams them to the semifinals of the FHSAA 7A District 12 Tournament.
Molly Starinsky:
An outfielder from Ohio, Starinsky joins the Manatees as a sophomore transfer from Suncoast Conference rival Polk State with one to two years of eligibility remaining. While being a member of the Eagles, she played in four games where she produced two stolen bases.
Prior to Polk State, Starinsky was a member of the softball team at Hillard Bradley High School in Hillard, Ohio. There, she helped the Jaguars her junior year to the playoffs of the OHSAA Conference Tournament.
Gabi Nicholson:
Nicholson, a catcher/utility player, joins the Manatees after graduating from Clarksville Academy in Clarksville, Tennessee. She helped the Cougars to the TSSAA District Tournament.
Rylee Trice:
Trice is an outfielder that joins the Manatees from Durant High School in Plant City. In her lone season on varsity, she finished her senior year batting .404 with 21 hits, a home run and 16 RBI, while leading the Hawks to the regional finals of the FHSAA 6A State Softball Tournament.
Chantel Schurr:
Schurr, a native of New Orleans, joins the Manatees as a transfer from Jones County CC (NJCAA DII Region 23) with two years of eligibility remaining. while her first season was cut short due to COVID-19, her second season proved no boundaries as she played in 15 games (two starts) batting .333 with three RBI. Schurr also helped the Bobcats to a 47-9 overall record with a 22-6 record in the MACCC, while being ranked #2 in the nation in the NJCAA DII National Polls. Additionally, the Bobcats won the MACCC Tournament and NJCAA Region 23 State Tournament before finishing runner-up in the 2021 DII JUCO Softball World Series.
Prior to Jones County CC, Schurr played for Fontainebleu High School in Mandeville, Louisiana under head coach Darryl Tassin where she won all-districts and team MVP.
Sam Carlin:
Carlin, a pitcher/outfielder, joins her fellow teammate Desantis from Riverview High School. Carlin played all four years with the Rams with her sophomore year being on JV before being called back up to the varsity roster for her junior and senior year. In three seasons on varsity, she batted .298 with 34 hits, four home runs and 23 RBI, while leading them to the semifinals of the FHSAA 7A District 12 Tournament.
Fun Fact(s) (2012-Present):
The Manatees are 8-2 when opening the season and 8-2 in their home openers.
Personal Opinon:
When it was found out that we would open the season at home, I was thinking that it is very unusual that we open the season at home because in the past we would always open the season with the JUCO Kickoff Classic, but then I came to realize that it made sense so they can get their jitters out of the way
Scouting Webber International:
Webber International represent the NAIA Sun Conference and are lead by head coach Kristy Burton, who enters her fourth season as head coach for the team and was the 2021 Sun Conference Softball Coach of the Year.
The Lady Warriors are coming off of finishing last season 30-24 overall with a 15-9 record in the Sun Conference and finish 2-2 in the Sun Conference Tournament.
Key returners for the Lady Warriors include senior Mary-Margaret "MiMi" Maggard (.382, 55 hits, four home runs and 25 RBI) and sophomore Kayla Swinson (13-6, 2.47 ERA, 35 walks and 67 strikeouts).
Series History:
The Manatees are 1-0-1 against the Lady Warriors. The first time both teams met was last season at Webber where the Manatees won the first game 5-1 before ending the second game in a 6-6 tie. Coincidentally, the win over Webber was Schuerman's 200th win as a head coach.
It is not clear whether GameChanger will provide livestats, but the game will air livestream on the SCF Sports Network.
Link: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/scf/
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