Mike's Minute: Terps Start Season With B1G Perspective
2/4/2015 10:30:00 AM | Softball
By: Michael Errigo, UMTerps.com Contributing Reporter
“You know, we only graduated two but this is a completely new team. They're going to be gritty, they're going to fight and just leave it all out there and that's all we ask of them.”
“New” is the operative word in the aforementioned quote from Maryland softball coach Courtney Scott Deifel. The 2015 season will be both her first at the helm of the Terps and the program's inaugural season in the Big Ten. There will be new opponents, new challenges, new triumphs and, if everything goes as planned, a new feeling around the sport.
“Our first priority was just to change the culture and get a new energy flowing through Maryland softball,” said Coach Scott Deifel. “We tried to establish that early and the team did a great job of embracing absolutely everything we threw at them.”
Upon arrival, Scott-Deifel needed only get comfortable with her new title as head coach, as everything else was familiar. The Cal alum had been an assistant coach for the Terps in 2009 and 2010 before spending the last four seasons in a similar position at Louisville. After helping the Cardinals to a conference championship in 2014, Scott-Deifel couldn't turn down an offer to take the reins in College Park.
“It was a great opportunity and in my time here before I absolutely loved it,” she said. “Maryland is great athletics, great academics and it's a great location to recruit to. So that's basically everything you're looking for in a coaching job.”
Scott-Deifel also said that Maryland's move to the Big Ten appealed to her as she had long admired the softball conference's mindset.
“Big Ten teams play the game the right way,” she said. “It's really refreshing to know that on the field you're going to battle it out with the other team but off the field everyone's priority is pushing the sport forward and pushing the conference forward. In that sense it's unlike any conference I've ever been a part of.”
In order to engage in that on-field battle, Scott-Defiel will need to get the most out of a roster that is dealing with injuries and a number of players still looking to cement a role.
Scott-Deifel was particularly praised at Louisville for her work with the pitchers and catchers, helping the Cardinals maintain a 2.38 ERA on the season. Injuries to two starters and an overall lack of depth in the circle, means the Terps will need that kind of magic this season to reach full potential. Junior Madison Martin and sophomore Brenna Nation are both facing injuries as the Terps start the year. Scott-Deifel said that Martin will redshirt this season and that the team expects Nation to be back at 100% by the end of February or the middle of March. Those injuries mean that the staff will rely on good outings from senior Kaitlyn Schmeiser and contributions from senior Jaymi Bautista-Geiger and sophomore Hannah Dewey. Even first baseman Amanda Gardiner will get in the mix despite not having pitched in four years. Gardiner approached Coach Scott-Deifel at the beginning of the year and offered to contribute in the circle if the team needed. Coach happily accepted.
“We're going to have to piece it together and use the whole staff,” said Scott-Deifel. “Most importantly they're just going to have to give us a chance to win.”
The infield, a strength for this team, gas three of the four spots occupied by juniors with some chemistry. Corey Schwartz will play second, Lindsey Schmeiser will be at short and Juli Strange will handle the hot corner.
“Tommy [Santiago, assistant coach] has been working with them and they're looking really smooth,” said Scott-Deifel of the trio. “At first base we'll use a rotation but I expect big things from this infield. Especially for the three juniors, they have two years of experience under their belt, but at the same time they get kind of a fresh start in this new era.”
The outfield will not have the assured experience of upperclassmen, as it features a handful of freshmen and sophomores, but the rotating cast of characters can all swing the bat.
“Outfield's up for grabs right now, which is exciting,” said Coach Scott-Deifel. “It's really going to come down to who is producing in the lineup and I think there are a lot of candidates to do that.”
Questions about who will claim those outfield spots and who will emerge as a viable option in the circle will soon be answered as the team heads south to Myrtle Beach, S.C. on February 6 to kick off the season. For the first month-and-a-half, the Terps will turn in the chilly winds of College Park for tournaments in California, Florida and Virginia.
“It's huge in those first five weeks on the road to get games under your belt, get any kind of jitters out and feeling that confidence they've worked to build to this point,” said Coach Scott-Deifel
The team will have their first home game on March 14 against Lafayette. At that point, the team will be hoping that something new will be turning into something familiar.
