South Carolina softball opens season Friday with an eye toward bouncing back
The South Carolina softball team will need to learn quickly.
After missing the NCAA tournament last season for the first time since 2012, head coach Beverly Smith’s Gamecocks (26-26, 4-20 SEC in 2021) come into the 2022 season with a retooled roster.
They’ll open the season Friday at home with the first game of the Gamecock Invitational against Virginia at 6 p.m., then will play a Saturday doubleheader against Lipscomb and George Washington before wrapping up the weekend against North Carolina. All four games will stream on SEC Network Plus.
With 12 underclassmen out of 21 players, these Gamecocks are young, and they were picked to finish last in the SEC preseason poll. However, the 12-year head coach Smith said not to mistake a lack of experience for a lack of talent.
“I think we’re young and talented,” Smith said this week. “We had some freshmen get significant minutes last year, which was important. And then I think, too, with adding this freshman class that we’ve got some depth at the positions and the talent that we’re looking for.”
Speedy sophomore Aaliyah White, who hit .304 and stole 10-of-11 bases last season, is one of the young players who has taken a leap, with Smith saying White is a threat for a triple any time she hits the ball in the air. And freshman Emma Sellers is one of the early standouts at practice. She’ll likely start at shortstop in place of long-time, celebrated Gamecock Kenzi Maguire.
Overall, Smith said she was pleased with what she saw from her hitters in spring scrimmages, saying strike-zone discipline was a major emphasis with this group, and the lineup should boasts patient hitters with two-strike hitting ability.
Returning veteran outfielder Katie Prebble and infielder Kassidy Krupit are expected to be key cogs in the USC lineup, although Smith raved the most about senior Jordan Fabian and her growth at the plate this offseason. The Gamecock players voted Fabian team captain.
“Keep your eyes out for Jordan Fabian this year,” Smith said. “She’s somebody who really put in the time in the offseason. She’ll be behind the plate for us or at first base. But to me, she’s a bat that we’re gonna have to have in the lineup.”
The Gamecocks should have fewer questions in the circle, as USC returns six of last year’s seven pitchers. Smith has tabbed junior Karsen Ochs as her No. 1 pitcher after she posted a 4.60 ERA a year ago, and she has high hopes for sophomore Leah Powell, who had a 2.76 ERA and made 15 starts as a freshman. She also said graduate student Kelsey Oh is the healthiest she’s been in years after injuries ravaged the pitching staff a year ago.
Smith knows questions abound with this Gamecocks team, but she’s confident in the talent in place.
“We’ve got a good group of seasoned veterans, and I think they’re doing a great job bringing along the younger group,” Smith said. “But the freshmen and sophomores have proven they can play. So I think it’s just about getting in more innings and at-bats and getting them ready to roll into conference play.”
USC softball weekend schedule
Feb. 11: USC vs. Virginia, 6 p.m.
Feb. 12: USC vs. Lipscomb, 1 p.m.; USC vs. George Washington 3:30 p.m.
Feb. 13: USC vs. North Carolina, 3:30 p.m.
Where: Carolina Softball Stadium in Columbia
Watch: All games streaming on SEC Network Plus
