And given the changes that will take place in the league following this season, it could be the last time in a long while we'll be saying that.
Sure, Fresno State won a national championship in 1998 as a WAC softball member. And that's an amazing feat in itself. But the WAC has rarely, if ever, gone into a season with as much promise overall as it does this year.
As many as four different WAC teams head into the 2012 season with not only a legitimate shot at a conference championship, but all with a real shot at Top 25 national rankings and deep runs in the NCAA Tournament. Simply put, no other sport in the WAC (men's or women's) can match the overall depth and strength the conference's softball teams will feature this season.
With the one-year addition of Brigham Young in the WAC softball fold this season, the league will feature eight teams, a whopping six of whom have reached the NCAA Tournament in just the past four years. Since 2008, BYU, Fresno State, Hawai'i, Louisiana Tech, Nevada and New Mexico State have all reached the NCAA tourney.
Fresno State and BYU, in particular, will play their usual tough, national-caliber schedules again this season. New Mexico State will be facing its toughest schedule in school history, and Hawai'i is looking at a slightly stronger slate than last season when a weak RPI (despite an impressive record) kept it out of the NCAA Tournament.
The Bulldogs, Cougars, Aggies and Wahine have positioned themselves for high RPIs even before the season begins. New Mexico State, Fresno State and Hawai'i each return key standouts and have added strong newcomers. BYU may be in a bit of a rebuilding mode but the Cougars are adding a slew of top talent too.
And that's not to say the other four teams in the WAC can be overlooked, either. Louisiana Tech, Nevada, San Jose State and Utah State should each be improved as well, creating a stronger conference top to bottom than we've probably ever seen.
Of course, we all should relish the 2012 season because things will change drastically after this year. With Fresno State, Hawai'i, Nevada and BYU all departing the conference next year, much of the strength will be gone in the 2013 season. For those keeping count, those four programs have combined for 13 Women's College World Series (12 by Fresno State) and 49 all-time NCAA Tournament appearances, including Fresno State's current national record of 30 in a row. BYU enters the season on a streak of its own, having reached seven straight NCAA tourneys.
We'll have full previews of each team as the season gets closer. But here's an early --and brief -- look at why this should be season of highs in WAC softball:New Mexico State -- The Aggies return 13 players from their 2011 WAC championship team, including all-WAC honorees Tiare Jennings, Alex Newman, Teresa Conrad and Valerie Swedberg. But Coach Kathy Rodolph has to find some key replacements. New Mexico State lost major talent with the departures of Hoku Nohara, Kandis Jones, Kylie Randall and Ashley Maroda, all 4-year starters and key cogs in a potent lineup. Pitcher Carissa Theis, who led the Aggies with 24 starts as a freshman in 2010, has transferred to Santa Clara, but the Aggies should be strong again in the circle. In fact, perhaps the most buzz in the conference surrounds highly-touted freshman pitcher Karysta Donisthorpe, a strikeout specialist who earned second-team high school All-American honors and led her team to five straight New Mexico state titles. Donisthorpe, Newman (who's coming off an impressive sophomore campaign), and Celisha Walker should anchor what looks to be -- by far -- the best pitching staff in school history. If there's an area of concern, it might be centered around finding enough playing time for five different pitchers and nine freshmen.
Fresno State -- The Bulldogs return 11 players from their 2011 team that advanced to a national-record 30th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Included in that list are a pair of all-WAC senior pitchers in Michelle Moses and Mackenzie Oakes, who combined for 34 wins and 309 strikeouts a season ago. Adding freshman Destinee Levesque (first-team all-state in Nevada) to the pitching staff should give the Bulldogs a boost and add an important third pitching element that was missing last season. Down the stretch last year, Fresno State's offense fell flat and the Bulldogs relied almost entirely on strong pitching. Four-year starter Haley Gilleland, the school's career stolen base leader, is gone, but the team's top two hitters -- all-WAC honorees Brooke Ortiz and Andrea Ortega -- return. And if New Mexico State's Donisthorpe is the most talked about pitcher entering the league this season, Fresno State may have the most talked about freshman hitter in Brenna Moss. The speedy Moss is California's all-time leader in hits and runs after batting .644 and finishing a perfect 50-for-50 in stolen bases to earn first-team all-CIF honors at North Bakersfield. In what appears to be one of Margie Wright's strongest recruiting classes ever, other standouts include potential starters and freshmen all-CIF picks Michelle Solomon and Maria Sio. The Bulldogs also picked up a key transfer in sophomore catcher Stesha Brazil, who made 56 starts as a freshman last year for nationally-ranked Houston, which won the Conference USA co-regular season championship.Hawai'i -- The Rainbow Wahine return 17 players from their 2011 team, which finished a surprising fourth in the WAC after entering the year ranked in the nation's Top 10 and being predicted to win the conference championship. Hawai'i will again be led by two-time WAC Pitcher of the Year Stephanie Ricketts and two-time conference Player of the Year Jessica Iwata. Ricketts went 22-11 with a 1.58 ERA last season and Iwata hit a team-leading .355. Also back are second-team all-WAC honorees in Kelly Majam and Alex Aguirre, who, ironically, each hit .290 a year ago. Big losses come in the form of all-WAC stars Jenna Rodriguez and Melissa Gonzalez, two keys in Hawai'i's shocking run to the WCWS in 2010. Rodriguez will forever be remembered for the iconic, walk-off home run to beat Alabama in Super Regional action, while Gonzalez earned first-team All-American honors as a junior before seeing her average drop to a respectable .282 last year as a senior. Hawai'i's strong, one-two pitching punch of Ricketts and effective junior lefty Kaia Parnaby returns intact, giving UH a chance to win nearly every time. Highly-touted freshman Leisha Liilii, who stands nearly six feet tall, has people talking and could be used both in the infield and as a third pitcher for the Wahine, who have seven newcomers along with six returning starters. The newcomers could play a role in helping Hawai'i overcome a big power drop-off that occurred between the 2010 and 2011 seasons.
BYU -- The Cougars advanced to their seventh straight NCAA Tournament last season and their eighth overall. This could be a strange year for BYU, which is not only in a mini-rebuilding mode, but also playing its lone season as a WAC member after transitioning from the Mountain West. The Cougars have won three straight MW regular season titles, but enter 2012 without their reigning league Pitcher of the Year Paige Affleck, who will be difficult to replace. Affleck won 91 games over a 4-year career, finished with a 1.18 ERA in conference play in 2011, and was the starting pitcher in 40 of BYU's 58 games last season. Of the Cougars' six all-league honorees last year, four have graduated. And along with losing their top pitcher, the Cougars have lost their top two home run hitters and RBI producers as well. But the cupboard isn't completely bare. JC Clayton, who had 60 singles among her 66 hits a season ago, returns along with outfielder Carly Duckworth, who earned all-MW honors as a freshman last season when she hit .281. Senior Jessica Dugas (.345) is the other returning all-conference pick. Sophomore Tori Almond (10-4, 3.13 ERA) returns to lead the pitching staff, while Hannah Howell (4-2 in 52 innings pitched) should be relied on more this year. Caroline Umphlett, a former all-state pitcher in North Carolina, and Shelbi Everett, an all-state pick in Utah, should see time in the circle.Louisiana Tech -- The Lady Techsters enter 2012 facing a myriad of questions. First and foremost will be be the task of replacing former all-WAC pitcher Meghan Krieg, a mainstay in the circle for Tech over the past few years. The bottom line is this: Krieg gave the Lady Techsters a chance to win nearly every time she was penciled in the starting lineup. She started 101 games in her career, including 97 over the last three seasons, and pitched in virtually every big game for Tech the past two years. With the Techsters' three other pitchers combining for just five wins last season, coach Sarah Dawson has added Grossmont College transfer Melanie Goff, a two-time, all-state JC pitcher, and Savannah Dollar, who led her high school to a pair of Louisiana district titles. Tech didn't have a lot of offensive firepower and hit just .229 as a team in 2011, but returns its top four hitters this time around. Eight newcomers, including three JC transfers all from the state of California, are on this year's squad.
Utah State -- The Aggies surprised a lot of people with a late-season surge that turned a potentially disastrous season into one where Utah State qualified for the WAC postseason tournament. After losing a conference record 19 straight games midway through the year, the Aggies went 10-8 down the stretch to qualify for the league tourney after a 3-year absence. Utah State in 2012 could have a completely look from 2011 though with a lot of new faces, including two new assistant coaches. The names missing on this year's roster are big ones, with as many as six expected returnees gone (or at least not listed on the current roster). Gone are Tina Ferguson, Krista Bava and Ashley Ventura, among others. Ferguson was an all-WAC pick at catcher after starting 41 games and batting .407 in league play last year as a sophomore. Bava made 47 starts as a freshman last season, hitting .300 in WAC play and ranking second on the team with 21 RBI. Ventura made 43 starts as a junior last year and hit .240. Allison Lenzora and Kassy Uchida, the top two hitters from a season ago in terms of batting average, do return, however. Lenzora and Uchida were both second-team, all-WAC picks along with Ferguson last year. The entire pitching staff from a season ago returns, but none had an ERA lower than 4.75. Freshman Mariah Peterson will likely see time in the circle.
San Jose State -- The Spartans took a step backwards last season when top pitcher Amanda Pridmore was sidelined with an injury. Virtually the entire team is back this time around, and the Spartans should be vastly improved if for no other reason than Pridmore seems ready to go. She went 18-12 to lead San Jose State in 2010 and was named to last year's preseason all-WAC team before the extent of her injury was known. Pitcher Elyssa Fox (a team-high 28 appearances and 4.48 ERA) must be replaced, but Pridmore and Jennifer Ames seem capable of easing that burden. The Spartans look to have a lot of experience returning, but will need to be more consistent both offensively and defensively in order to move up in an improved WAC. Annica Wolfe (.309) is the only returning player that hit over .300 a season ago, but there's no reason to believe this team won't be in the thick of the hunt for a WAC title and postseason berth provided Pridmore is fully recovered from her injury.
Nevada -- The Wolf Pack do not have a listed 2012 roster or schedule available as of today.
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