Colorado State University Athletics
Softball preview: Rams open season at Hotel Encanto Invitational
2/10/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 10, 2011
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Game 1 - Hotel Encanto Invitational
Colorado State at New Mexico State
Feb. 11, 2011 | Las Cruces, N.M. | 6 p.m. MT
Game 2 - Hotel Encanto Invitational
Colorado State vs. Northern Colorado
Feb. 12, 2011 | Las Cruces, N.M. | 10 a.m. MT
Game 3 - Hotel Encanto Invitational
Colorado State vs. Minnesota
Feb. 12, 2010 | Las Cruces, N.M. | 5 p.m. MT
Game 4 - Hotel Encanto Invitational
Colorado State at New Mexico State
Feb. 13, 2010 | Las Cruces, N.M. | 2 p.m. MT
Hotel Encanto Invitational…
Colorado State heads south to Las Cruces, N.M., for the Hotel Encanto Invitational this weekend. The Rams will face host New Mexico State Friday at 6 p.m. MT. Saturday, Colorado State faces Northern Colorado at 10 a.m. MT, followed by a matchup with Minnesota at 5 p.m. MT. The Rams will conclude the tournament on Sunday, once again facing host New Mexico State at 2 p.m. MT.
New Mexico State...
Host school New Mexico State finished the 2010 season with a record of 27-28 (7-14 WAC), placing sixth in the WAC. Four returners garnered all-conference honors in 2010. Last season, the Aggies’ offense exploded in a 28-7 rout of UTSA on Feb. 10. They set school records for runs scored (28), hits (26) and doubles (6) in a game. Head coach Kathy Rodolph, who is the winningest coach in program history, returns for her eighth season with an overall winning percentage of .464.
Northern Colorado ...
Northern Colorado finished the 2010 season with a 19-33 record (10-10 PCSC). This is the Bears’ second season in the Pacific Coast Softball Conference Mountain Division, where they were picked to finish second. The 2011 season will be the first under head coach Mark Montgomery. Montgomery comes to the program from Centenary, where he coached for eight seasons and was the school’s all-time winningest coach.
Minnesota...
Last season, the Golden Gophers compiled a 16-37 overall record (2-17 Big Ten). Sophomore Alex Davis was the only team member named to the Big Ten team, leading the Gophers in home runs and batting a .290 average. Minnesota also introduced a new head coach after the 2010 season. Jessica Allister served as an assistant at Oregon in 2010, when the Ducks received their first-ever Super Regional berth.
Preseason Poll...
Colorado State was picked to finish the 2011 season fourth in the MWC. The Rams were picked to finish fifth in 2010, but finished fourth. A voting panel of the six Mountain West Conference head coaches chose defending softball league champion BYU as the favorite to win the 2011 MWC regular-season title.
Key Losses...
The Rams lost six seniors from the 2010 squad: Kayla Kreutzman, Allison Majam, Robyn Mask, Ashley Munoz, Rebecca Penland and Sarah Sullivan. The six played in a combined 249 games in 2010, with the seven returners playing a combined 233.
Ram Returners...
Colorado State returns seven players from the 2010 squad, including two repeat all-MWC selections, senior Caitlan Stem and junior Kelli Eubanks. Stem and Eubanks return alongside senior Ivory Allen, juniors Ashley MacQueen and Lyssa Roberts and sophomores Kelsey Jo O’Brien, Brittany Palish and Kelli Groy. The squad includes ten freshman, including Alexa Cash, Desiree Laswell, Emily Pohl, Chelsea Biglow, Julie Lewis, Jessica Barrett, Cassandra Mosser, Alysa Greckel, Morghan Doughty and Kendal Butterfield.
Senior Success...
The Rams have only two seniors on the roster for 2011, Caitlan Stem and Ivory Allen. Last season, the two played in a combined 86 games. Stem was a candidate for MWC Player of the Year and recorded a .400 batting average with 11 home runs, while Allen notched a .949 fielding percentage in the outfield.
Fresh Faces...
The Rams have ten freshmen on the 2011 squad, the most since 2007 (also 10). Julie Lewis, Jessica Barrett, Cassandra Mosser and Kendal Butterfield all come to CSU from California, while Desiree Laswell, Chelsea Biglow and Alysa Greckel come from Nevada, Oregon and Nebraska, respectively. Three of the new players come from the same high school; Alexa Cash, Emily Pohl and Morghan Doughty all played for Cienega High School in Arizona. CSU will welcome two new pitchers, one catcher, four infielders and one outfielder, while two were signed as utility players to fit in where needed.
All-MWC...
Senior Caitlan Stem and junior Kelli Eubanks were both selected to the 2010 all-MWC team. Both received the honor in 2009 as well. Stem boasted an impressive .400 overall batting average with nine doubles, 11 home runs and 38 RBI during her junior season. On the mound, Eubanks recorded a 3.55 ERA in 219.0 innings with 184 strikeouts while keeping opposing batters to a .291 average during her sophomore season.
New Beginnings...
The 2011 season will be the first under Head Coach Jen Fisher, who was announced as the 12th Head Coach in the history of the program on August 20, 2010. Fisher is a Fort Collins native and a 1997 graduate of Colorado State. Her collegiate coaching career includes stops at Otero Junior College (eight seasons) and Metropolitan State College of Denver, where she led the team to a .776 winning percentage in three seasons. She is the reigning NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year.
