First in an 8-part series of WAC team previews.Nevada Wolf Pack
2011 overall record: 13-34
2011 WAC record: 4-17 (eighth place)
Returning starters: 7
There's no denying that Nevada's softball fortunes have taken a drastic turn over the past two years.
The Wolf Pack reached four consecutive WAC Tournament championship games from 2006 to 2009, advancing to the NCAA Tournament three times in the process. The past two seasons, though, have been far different.
Nevada was expected to challenge for the WAC title in 2010 after tying for the regular season championship in 2009. Instead, the Pack finished last in the league and failed to qualify for the conference postseason tourney for the first time that season. Last year, things were no better.
For the second straight year, Nevada finished last in the WAC and was stopped short of qualifying for the league postseason tourney. The Pack, who have won just eight of their last 41 WAC games spanning two seasons, desperately want to turn things around in their final season in the conference before joining the Mountain West next year.
Like last season, a great deal of the workload will fall upon the shoulders of pitcher Mallary Darby. The senior right-hander was asked to do a lot last year when injuries created a limited pitching staff. Darby led the team in virtually every pitching category and was the winning pitcher in 12 of the team's 13 victories.
As the season wore on, Darby's number of innings pitched continued to increase and she appeared to wear down. She was the pitcher of record in a staggering 19 of Nevada's 21 WAC contests, finishing league play with a 3-16 mark.
Pitcher Bailey Brewer is expected back from a 2011 injury to help Darby this time around, along with sophomore Ariel Craig and freshman Emily Seidel. The team ERA of 6.20 must improve dramatically if the Pack has a legitimate chance to contend for the WAC title.
A pair of sophomores --Caylin Campbell and Karley Hopkins -- return and should lead the way offensively. Hopkins started all 47 games as a freshman and led the team in a host of offensive categories, including runs (30), hits (60) and doubles (16) while batting mostly in the leadoff spot. She hit .353 overall (.316 in WAC play) and was a second-team all-region pick after being inexplicably left off the all-WAC teams by conference coaches.
Campbell returns after splitting time between second base and designated hitter as a freshman. She hit .311 overall and improved that to .347 in conference play. The return of Hopkins and Campbell, along with the bulk of the team overall, should help offset the loss of two valuable seniors, Danielle Patrick and Britton Murdock.
Murdock and Patrick, the No. 2 and No. 3 hitters on the team last season, both ranked in the top three of numerous offensive categories and could be tough to replace. Patrick was the team's RBI leader (37) and ranked second in home runs, doubles and walks. Murdock was second in hits, runs and batting average (.321), and was the runaway stolen bases leader on the team, going a perfect 19-for-19 as a senior.
Junior Erin Jones is back after earning second-team all-WAC honors last year. The Sacramento State transfer started 31 games and hit .362 with 10 extra-base hits and 21 RBI. Junior first baseman Lauren Lastrapes, who led the team with seven homers, returns along with two more juniors (Megan Fincher and Chelsea Venable) who combined to start all but four of the Pack's games a season ago.
Though Nevada still has yet to update its 2012 roster, newcomers were expected to include catcher/infielder Ashley Butera and infielder Molly McWilliams, along with Pittsburgh transfer pitcher Karlyn Jones. A sophomore, Jones was 8-5 with a 1.57 ERA at Pitt before suffering a season-ending jury last season. If she can regain her pre-injury form, she may supplant Darby as Nevada's No. 1 pitcher in 2012. A lot of question marks remain, however, as two of the Pack's top three pitchers are coming off injuries a year ago.
The schedule is the lightest in the WAC, making it manageable for a team looking to rise above last place for the first time in three seasons. Nevada will make its final trips to Utah State, Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State this year before moving on to the Mountain West.
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