Pittsburg State Softball
2007 Season Outlook

By Tina Lancaster
Assistant Sports Information Director
    The Pittsburg State University softball team enters the 2007 campaign with several new faces who will impact the Gorillas lineup after graduating a senior-dominated squad a year ago.
    Head coach Brad Horky, who lost the interim tag to his title last July, returns one position starter and a pair of pitchers from last year’s squad. Overall, five returning letterwinners and nine newcomers – eight freshmen and one junior – comprise the Gorillas’ 2007 roster.
    Horky guided Pitt State to a 22-22 overall record as interim head coach in 2006. He previously served as the Gorillas’ skipper from 1991-95, leading Pitt State to the program’s only three appearances in the NCAA Division II National Tournament while compiling the program’s all-time best record. He posted a 183-83 record during his initial stint and now has a 205-105 (.661) record at Pitt State. A 14-year coaching veteran, Horky has a 470-267-1 (.637) all-time record.
    “The number one goal for this season is to install a winning attitude into the young players’ minds,” Horky said. “I feel like that is the first step in reestablishing the winning tradition back at Pitt State.”
    While Horky is eager to rebuild Pitt State’s winning tradition, he will not necessarily count wins and losses as his primary evaluation of his young 2007 squad.
    “We certainly want to win as many games as possible this spring and represent Pitt State as best as we can, but I want to see the development of our young talent and improvement from game to game as much anything. We’re trying to rebuild for the next several years, and do it the right way.”

All-MIAA Performer Returns
    A central figure to Pitt State’s rebuilding process should be two-time All-MIAA performer Tera Swartslander, the Gorillas’ lone returning position starter.
Swartslander, a native of Broken Arrow, Okla., batted .369 with 29 runs scored and 16 RBIs in 2006, earning second-team All-MIAA honors. She garnered MIAA Freshman of the Year accolades as a freshman in 2005 when she batted .395 with 41 runs scored and 31 RBIs.
    Swartslander, who primarily has played in the outfield for Pitt State the past two seasons, also should see some action on the mound and at first base for the Gorillas this spring.
    “Tera is a gifted athlete who needs to have a good year for us to succeed,” said Horky. “She is a dual threat at the plate as a slapper and as a hitter. Tera has tremendous range in the outfield and she’s developed into a pitching threat as well.”

The Pitchers
    Horky welcomes back two-thirds of his pitching staff from a year ago in senior JoAnna Brozovich and junior Stephanie Moore. The duo figure to shoulder the majority of the pitching load for the Gorillas again this season.
    Brozovich, from Erie, Colo., has pitched in 55 games for the Gorillas over the past three seasons, compiling a 20-17 (.540) career record with a 2.78 ERA and three saves in 365.3 innings of work.
    She posted a 7-6 record with a 3.08 ERA and one save as a junior in 2006.
    “JoAnna has been a steady performer, and the bigger the game, the better she usually pitches,” Horky said. “We’ll hope that remains the case again this spring.”
    Moore, a Pawhuska, Okla., native, has appeared in 43 games during her two-year career. She’s compiled a 13-18 record with one save and a 3.13 ERA in 212.7 innings of work. The lefthander has battled tough luck on the mound in each of the last two years as she’s been victimized by 46 unearned runs over the course of her action.
    Last year, she posted a 5-12 record with a 3.58 ERA and one save in 99.7 innings of work.
    “Stephanie is a very capable pitcher and her career numbers don’t tell the story of her potential at all,” Horky said. “We made several defensive mistakes behind her last year. She’s always handled adversity well and we’re looking for a big year from her this spring.”
    Swartslander also could see time on the mound for Pitt State this spring. She made a pair of starts as a freshman in 2005, posting an 0-1 record with a 0.88 ERA in 8.0 innings of work.
    Freshman Melissa Slayden rounds out Pitt State’s pitching cast. The Claremore, Okla., native posted a 17-7 record (.708) and a 0.41 ERA as a senior at Oologah High School in the fall of 2005.
    “Melissa is someone who we expect can give us some quality innings this spring,” Horky said. “She adjusted well to the college game during fall camp and she’s definitely help us.”

The Infielders
    Junior Eileen Treff will look to provide leadership to the Gorillas’ infield cast.
    Treff, a native of Kansas City, Kan., saw action in 25 games as a sophomore in 2006, including 20 starts in the middle infield. She batted .186 with two doubles and a homer in limited plate appearances. Treff will look to contend for PSU’s starting role at second base as well as see action at shortstop this spring.
    “Eileen has evolved into a frontline player for us,” Horky said. “She’s a product of hard work paying off. She’s done what we’ve asked of her and continued to improve with experience. We’ll look for her to help play a leadership role in the infield for our squad.”
    In addition to Treff, Swartslander saw action in 21 games at first base for the Gorillas last spring and figures to see some action at the position again this spring.
    A strong contingent of freshmen – led by Kaitlin Coleman and Lori Lockhart – will see action in the infield as well.
    Coleman, who comes to PSU from Oologah (Okla.) High School, figures to contend for the starting role at third base for the Gorillas this spring. She earned All-Conference honors three times and garnered All-District accolades her final two prep years for the Mustangs.
    Lockhart, from Skiatook (Okla.) High School, will look to grab the starting role at shortstop for the Gorillas. She earned first-team Oklahoma Class 5A All-State honors as a senior in the fall of 2005, batting .393 with 21 RBIs.
    “Kaitlin and Lori both had excellent fall camps,” Horky said. “They’re talented young players who will see a great deal of action for us. Lori has really matured into a leadership role within our team.”
    Additionally, freshmen Jessica Jones, Slayden and Annie Thurber should see action in the Pitt State infield.
    Jones comes to Pitt State from Osawatomie High School. She figures to see some action at first base as well as behind the plate. Slayden also could see some action at first base, while Thurber, from Bixby (Okla.) High School, could see action at multiple positions for Pitt State.

The Outfielders
    Swartslander and sophomore Jill Havens return to the Gorillas outfield for 2007.
    Swartslander started 22 games in right field for Pitt State in 2006, but she figures to move to center field this spring. Havens saw action in 31 games in a reserve role for the Gorillas in 2006, primarily as a pinch runner. The Wamego, Kan., native played a handful of games in the outfield last year, but figures to have a more significant impact to Pitt State’s outfield cast this spring.
    “Jill is probably the most improved players on the squad,” Horky said. “She’s really worked hard to improve in all aspects of the game and I expect her to be on the field quite a bit for us this spring.”
    Junior transfer Abby Buche and freshman Jamie Roeber also figure to see significant action in the Pitt State outfield.
    Buche, a Frontenac, Kan., native, joins the Gorillas after two seasons at Allen County Community College. She batted .424 as a sophomore for the Red Devils in 2006, earning honorable mention All-Jayhawk Conference honors.
    “We expect Abby to be an impact player for us,” Horky said. “She has a good lefthanded bat and could help the top of our lineup with her ability to get on base and set the table.”
    Roeber, from Owasso (Okla.) High School, earned honorable mention Oklahoma Class 6A All-State honors as a senior in the fall of 2005. She batted .343 with two HRs and a .580 on-base percentage for the Rams.
    “Jamie is a very gifted freshman with a great deal of upside,” Horky said. “She’ll have a chance to be a big asset for our team this spring.”

The Catchers
    Horky will look to a trio of freshmen – Lindsay Birchfield, Jenny Hulings and Jones – to handle the Gorillas chores behind the plate.
    Birchfield comes to Pitt State from Raymore-Peculiar (Mo.) High School, where she was a second-team Missouri Class 4A All-State performer as a senior in the fall of 2005. She batted .473 for the Panthers.
    “Lindsay knows the game extremely well, and she has a work ethic that should help her excel,” Horky said.
Hulings joins the Gorillas from Santa Fe Trail High School. The Overbrook, Kan., native was a two-time first-team All-League performer during her prep years.
    “Jenny is a strong player who had a good fall camp,” Horky said. “She has a lively bat and should see action at DP when she’s not behind the plate.”
    Jones garnered Kansas Class 4A All-State honors as a junior at Osawatomie High in 2005. She recorded a .435 career batting average with 26 doubles and 46 RBIs.
    “Jessica has a very potent bat and we expect that she can be an offensive threat for us,” Horky said. “She’ll also see DP duty when she’s not playing the field.”

The Schedule
    Pitt State will face an aggressive schedule in 2007. The Gorillas open the campaign at the St. Cloud State Husky Dome Classic Feb. 17-18. The four-game slate will feature a match-up against Northern Sun Conference and NCAA-II Regional Finalist Concordia-St. Paul.
    The Gorillas also will face perennial powers and NCAA-II North Central Region foes Augustana (S.D.), Minnesota State, Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota and Winona State during pre-conference action, while the MIAA slate features its own share of national caliber competition, including 2006 NCAA-II national runner-up Emporia State.
    “We were very aggressive with our scheduling this spring,” Horky said. “Our young players need to face the heightened competition. It will only make our team better – as this season progresses and in the years to come as well.”