Small ball over long ball? Shocker softball hopes new identity brings same results

During the Wichita State softball program’s rise to power the past few seasons, head coach Kristi Bredbenner could probably count on one hand how many times she drilled her team on the art of bunting in practice.

Home runs and high-scoring offenses have been the trademarks for the Shockers as they’ve piled up American Athletic Conference championships and NCAA Regional berths. But Sydney McKinney, Lauren Mills and Zoe Jones have graduated and Lauren Lucas, a returning All-American slugger, is a redshirt candidate this spring due to injury.

That means the long ball will likely be replaced by small ball this season. The Shockers still believe they have the makings of a championship team with a new style that, yes, includes bunting.

“It’s going to be different,” Bredbenner said. “We’re going to have to move runners somehow. If we’re not able to drive the ball to the wall, we might have to use the short game. We’ve practiced that stuff the last couple of years, so it’s not like it’s totally new to the team. But did we have to use it all of the time? Not really. So it’s going to be a challenge and it’s fun as a coach to go to the drawing board and try to figure out how do we make this team successful.”

The thought of prevailing regularly in pitcher’s duels is now on the table, as WSU might have its most talented and deepest staff in the Bredbenner era.

All three arms from last season return, led by staff ace Lauren Howell, who finished with an 18-4 record and 2.68 earned run average. Alex Aguilar (15-4, 1.88 ERA) was superb in her first year in college and Alison Cooper (11-4, 3.04 ERA) gives WSU a left-handed option to throw at hitters. Bredbenner is also excited about the future with a pair of incoming freshmen, Erica Schertz and Chloe Barber, potentially helping in relief at times this season.

“We’re pretty deep on the mound and we added some hungry freshman,” Howell said. “I’m looking forward to it. We’re definitely going to be prepared in the circle. We’re working hard and it’s going to be fun to have some of those pitcher’s duels this year.”

Bredbenner also hired a new pitching coach, Courtney Oliver-Elkins, for this season.

“We’re going to rely on (pitching) in a big way,” Bredbenner said. “We’re going to have to figure out how to win 3-2, 2-1, 1-0 ball games this year and I think we’ve got the pitching staff that can keep the number low. So we’ve got to find a way to manufacture runs.”

While WSU lost one All-American hitter to injury, it returns another in Addison Barnard who is now fully recovered from one. The senior outfielder played essentially all of last season with a shoulder injury, which significantly limited the power of WSU’s all-time leading home run hitter. Following off-season surgery, Barnard says she is back to 100% ahead of WSU’s season-opening tournament in Huntsville, Texas on Feb. 9-11.

The recruiting addition of CC Wong, a graduate transfer who was the 2022 NJCAA Division I Co-Player of the Year with 91 RBIs and 27 home runs, should help replenish some of the power that exited the lineup. Returning starters Lainie Brown, Sami Hood and Taylor Sedlacek had strong winters, while Bailey Urban is finally healthy and poised to contribute in her senior year. Krystin Nelson, Camryn Compton, Caroline Tallent, Siera Hoekstra and Jessica Garcia all return with at least some experience.

Throw in a strong freshman class, which features Avery Barnard, Sophie Johnson, Mila Seaton and Sydney Zenon, and WSU has several options who could contribute this season with so many holes to fill from last year’s lineup.

“We know we’re not as powerful this year, but we have a lot of speed and other tools we’re going to use,” Barnard said. “We’re definitely really deep on the mound, which is going to be really good for us. We’re going to have to figure it out on offense, maybe bunt a little bit more, use a little bit more of small ball.”

Despite the turnover, coaches around the AAC still view the Shockers as the team to beat. WSU garnered eight of nine first-place votes in the preseason coaches poll, which was more than enough to make WSU the favorite to win the conference for the third time in the last four years.

WSU will be seeking its fourth straight bid to an NCAA Regional this season, aided by hosting the AAC tournament at Wilkins Stadium at the end of the season.

“We’re going to get sent to Arkansas or Oklahoma or Oklahoma State or maybe now Nebraska,” Bredbenner said. “It is what it is, but we’ve got to put ourselves in a position to get sent somewhere. That never changes. We’ve got the schedule to do it, so we need to win some of these big games early in the season and give ourselves a chance.”