Season Opener: Friday vs. Delaware (DH), 5 p.m., NSU Softball Field

NORFOLK, Va. - Several upperclassmen and an emerging sophomore class will be relied upon to carry the Norfolk State softball team though the 2019 season. How much improvement those sophomores can show after their rookie years, and how far three experienced players can take NSU, are two important questions as the season inches closer.
 
The Spartans must replace their starting middle infield of Jaylene Pryor and Seana Moriarty and find a third full time outfielder in right. NSU was also expected to have the services of third baseman Meaghan Barfield, who started last season strong before missing the rest of the year due to injury. But with Barfield not back, some of the younger players, including seven freshmen and the sophomore class, must play a bigger role throughout the lineup.
 
Last season saw the Spartans make a jump in James Inzana's first year with the program, going 10-8 in the MEAC and 21-29 overall, a nine-win improvement from the year before. NSU finished in a three-way tie for third in the Northern Division but lost out on the tiebreaker and stayed home for the MEAC Tournament. But after Hampton left for the Big South Conference, the competition got a little lighter as NSU looks to finish near the top of the division and advance to the conference championship for the first time in three years. The Spartans were picked to finish second in the league's preseason poll this year.
 
Infield
The anchor of the infield resides behind the plate. Senior catcher Kylee Lopez returns as the leader on offense after hitting .355 last year and earning second-team all-conference honors. She hit a school record 14 home runs and finished with 15 doubles, 33 runs and 44 RBI. One of the biggest offensive threats in the league, Lopez made a big jump from her sophomore to her junior year under the guidance of Inzana. In year two, can the MEAC preseason first-team catcher take it even further?
 
NSU will have protection in the lineup for Lopez. First baseman Hunter Halford, also a preseason all-MEAC honoree, split time between there and in the circle and hit .301 with 29 runs, 22 walks, eight homers and 20 RBI. A solid 1-2 punch along with Lopez, Halford made big strides in her junior year and is looking to take it one step further this year. One under-the-radar position battle for the Spartans will be the starting first base position when Halford is pitching. She started 18 games in the circle as a junior.
 
Once Barfield went down 11 games into the season, sophomore Tuli Iosefa took over third base. She too showed some pop in the bat with three homers and 19 RBI as NSU finished the year with a school fastpitch record of 38 home runs. She is one of several players who will need to take a step forward at the plate after hitting .213 in her freshman season. She is one of those younger players who could serve as the future of the program.
 
Sophomore Jade Dixon started 17 games in the outfield a year ago and made a few spot starts at second base. With the senior middle infield duo of Pryor and Moriarty gone, Dixon will be counted on to play a much bigger role no matter if she ends up at short or second. After a slow start at the plate, she finished her freshman season strong while hitting .220 in just 59 at bats.
 
Also back is junior Keira Randolph, who made a few spots starts over the course of 28 total games played but was used more as a pinch hitter/runner. Randolph has seen time in the outfield and at shortstop, but this year she finds herself in a battle to earn playing time at first base when Halford is in the circle.
 
But even with Dixon around, NSU still needs someone else to start at one of the two middle infield spots. Several freshmen are vying for the spot, including Denisha Megginson and high school teammates Lily Potter and Makenna Heimann.
 
Megginson was an all-state player as a senior at Appomattox County High School, where she played shortstop. She could also see time at third base, as Iosefa has the ability to go from third to catcher if need be. Potter was a .400 hitter as a senior and is also in a battle for time at second base. Heimann, meanwhile, hit close to .400 as a junior at Tallwood High School. She is also in a battle for time at shortstop and has been working on her game behind the plate.
 
Freshman Gabby Vaughan, who joined the Spartans in the spring semester, has arrived to find herself in a battle with Randolph for the first base position. Vaughan was a second-team all-region player at utility during her senior year in 2018 at Western Branch High School (Potter, coincidentally, was first-team at utility). A season ago, Halford started 29 times at first base, leaving 21 other games up for grabs. With a similar ratio this year, Vaughan and Randolph will have plenty of opportunity to see time at first.
 
NSU also has the DP position to play around with in a variety of ways should several of the newcomers show live bats.
 
Outfield
The third member of the upperclassmen trio resides in left field (with a few starts in center a year ago). Redshirt junior Shelby DesChamps hit .408 last year with 32 runs scored and 20 stolen bases despite missing some time due to injury. It was enough time that she fell short of qualifying for All-MEAC, a status she most certainly would have gained as one of just two players in the league above .400 and after earning preseason all-conference honors this year. A very important table setter, DesChamps gives the Spartans much needed experience both in the outfield and at the top of the lineup.
 
Sophomore Jazzmaine Hammond is another player who showed promise as a freshman but must continue to put it together a year later. She hit .226 in 2018 with 15 runs, two homers, 10 RBI and 12 stolen bases while playing mostly in center field with some time in left. Hammond enters the season as a key X-factor due to her ability to drive in runs but also provide some speed in the lineup along with DesChamps.
 
Departed senior Julianne Gillo spent most of last year in right field but did miss some time due to injury. With Dixon set to start somewhere in the infield, that leaves several newcomers battling it out for the starting right field spot.
 
Vaughan is one name in the mix, depending on how the first base position sorts itself out. Three other freshman in Mia Holmes, Kiiya Favors and Alison Guckin, all left-handed hitters, are also looking to earn playing time in right.
 
Favors, an all-region player as a senior in Northern Virginia, could bring some pop to a lineup whose power is all from the right side. Holmes also has some power, but speed in the lineup and range in right field are her bigger strengths. Guckin is no stranger to success from her time at Kempsville High, and she also provides speed from the left side of the plate. Similar to Dixon a year ago, Guckin is a true utility player who could see time in the outfield and infield.
 
Pitching
Halford went a misleading 6-12 last year despite a 2.82 ERA, as 35 of the 78 runs she surrendered were unearned. She started 18 times and had three shutouts along with a combined shutout. Following the losses of Megan Przeslawski and Kayla Porter from the pitching staff, Halford will again be the anchor in the circle.
 
But the potential emergence of sophomore Skylar Swain could give NSU a very strong 1-2 punch. She was another of the rookies who had a solid debut season, finishing 8-7 last year with a 3.39 ERA in 82.2 innings of work. Swain started 13 games, becoming the No. 2 starter behind Halford. Like her other classmates, Swain can be a key factor for the Spartans as she looks to make the jump in her sophomore year while also laying a foundation for the next several years.
 
One last player back is senior Shannon Buffington, who joined the Spartan staff last year from junior college. She started five games but also made relief appearances in 13 others, finishing with a 4.82 ERA in 40.2 innings of work. Much like the sophomore class, Buffington too is looking to better her numbers from a year ago, albeit with just one year of eligibility left.
 
Schedule
NSU will twice host games on its field as part of the Spartan/Pirate Classic in conjunction with Hampton. Norfolk State will welcome teams to its home field from Feb. 22-24 and then again from March 8-10 as part of the tournament. The Spartans also play in tournaments at Longwood and Virginia in the early part of the season.
 
Other non-conference home games include doubleheaders against Delaware on Feb. 10 to open the season and against North Carolina A&T on March 15. NSU also has road twinbills at North Carolina Central, Radford, UMBC and Hampton throughout the year.
 
In MEAC play, the Spartans get Maryland Eastern Shore (March 30-31), Coppin State (April 13-14) and Howard (April 27-28) all at the NSU Softball Field this year. Trips to Morgan State (March 23-24) and Delaware State (April 19-20) also round out conference play this season.