Dover, Del. (Feb. 14, 2019) --- The 2019 Delaware State softball season gets underway with two scheduled games at the weather-shortened Lancer Launch Tournament hosted by Longwood University on Friday. The Hornets are scheduled to face Robert Morris on Friday at 2:30 p.m., followed by a 5:30 p.m. contest against Norfolk State.
DSU was scheduled to play four tournament games, but the scheduled Saturday and Sunday contests were cancelled due to the forecast for inclement weather in the Farmville, Va., area.
The Hornets are looking to improve on a 12-36 overall record and 10-8 mark in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference North Division in 2018.
DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY 2019 SOFTBALL OUTLOOK
Delaware State has been picked to finish third in the six-team 2019 MEAC Softball Northern Division race. The Hornets collected four first place votes and 96 total points in the poll. Morgan State is the voters' choice to capture the Northern Division crown this season.
A rash of injuries is a key storyline to the start of the new season for the Hornets. Four players, outfielders Kaleigh Berry (jr.) and Sia Hornbuckle (so.), along with infielders Jade King (fr.) and Yanique Spencer (fr.) will miss this weekend's games due to injury. Another player, outfielder Sabrina Quarles (sr.), will also miss the opening trip.
“We are a little thin to start the season, so the healthy players will have to carry the load until we get to full strength,” said DSU fifth-year head coach Amber Jackson.
PITCHING
Newcomer Briana Baker (so.), a transfer from UMBC, is slated to be the opening-game starter. Baker appeared in 26 games as a pitcher, including eight starts, for the Retrievers in 2018. She posted a 3-3 won-loss record with one complete game, allowing 97 hits and 57 runs (49 earned) in 77.1 innings pitched a year ago. She struck out 23 and walked 14, and had a 4.44 earned run average in her only season at UMBC.
Veteran Alexis Goldsby (sr.) returns to the starting rotation after finishing second on the Hornets with five wins (5-14) in 2018. Among the highlights of Goldsby's junior season was a two-inning, five strikeout performance vs. Mount St. Mary's and a complete-game victory over Furman.
First-year pitcher Tiffany Diao (fr.) is expected to see significant playing time this season. Daio was a standout player at Notre Dame Catholic in Connecticut before enrolling at Delaware State.
CATCHER
Jaelyn Baker (fr.), Briana's sister, is expected to start the season behind the plate. Jaelyn was a four-year standout at North Point HS in Waldorf, Md., where she was an all-conference performer and batted .441 to help lead her team to a league championship as a junior.
Taylor Leydig (fr.) will also see action at catcher. Leydig was an all-conference performer and No. 3 district recruit as a senior at Stonewall Jackson HS in Virginia.
INFIELD
Second baseman Jasmine Melgoza (jr.) enters her third season as an anchor of the Hornet infield. Melgoza was named to the 2019 Preseason All-MEAC First Team, in voting by league head coaches and sports information representatives. A 2018 All-MEAC First Team selection, started all 48 games for the Hornets as a sophomore, batting .253 (37-for-146) with one home run and 14 RBI. She was third on the team in hits, while ranking fourth in runs scored (20) and doubles (7) last season.
A healthy Jordan Casey (jr.) returns at shortstop. Casey missed 17 games last season due to injury. She batted .184 in her shortened 2018 season after hitting .216 as a true freshman the year before.
Third baseman Vanessa Barron (so.) is I her second season with the Hornets. Barron proved to be a reliable defender in her rookie season, committing just three errors on 182 chances for a .984 fielding percentage in 2018. At the plate, she batted .221 with a team-high three triples and 12 RBI in 40 games.
The versatile Leydig is expected to start the season at first base, although Spencer is likely the regular at the position once she returns from the injured list.
OUTFIELD
Three freshmen- Jonah Cunnigan, Alexis Roberson and Carissa Thorne- are expected to make up the starting outfield to begin the season.
SCHEDULE
In addition to the season-opening Longwood Tournament, the Hornets will compete in tourneys at Liberty University and Hampton, and in the HBCU Classic in Atlanta, Ga.
The MEAC opening series in Mar. 23-24 at home against Coppin State. The 2019 MEAC Tournament is May 8-12 in Ormond Beach, Fla.
