Season Preview: Lineup
02/07/18 | Softball, @GoDucksMoseley
With speed at the top of the order and power anchoring the middle, Oregon should be able to score runs in bunches this spring.
The third-ranked Oregon softball team opens the 2018 season on Thursday against Georgia at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz., plays its home opener March 8 against Toledo and begins Pac-12 play on March 16 against UCLA. GoDucks.com will break down the Ducks' pitchers, infield, outfield and lineup in the coming days, to prepare fans for another run to OKC.
LINEUP
Who's back: C Gwen Svekis, Sr.; 3B Jenna Lilley, Sr.; 2B Lauren Lindvall, Sr.; OF Alexis Mack, Jr.; OF Cherish Burks, Jr.; UT Darya Kaboli-Nejad, Jr.; UT April Utecht, Jr.; 1B Mia Camuso, So.; OF Shannon Rhodes, So.; OF Haley Cruse, So.
Breakdown: Gone are the days of just two short years ago when, with the likes of Nikki Udria, Janelle Lindvall and Koral Costa, the Ducks bashed 95 home runs and needed to steal just 48 bases to manufacture 7.6 runs per game. Not only is that trio of power hitters all gone after Udria's senior season last spring, but the Ducks' move to spacious Jane Sanders Stadium and adoption of the less lively Rawlings ball have helped changed the profile of Oregon's offense. In 2017, the UO softball team averaged 6.4 runs per game, fueled by 106 stolen bases and just 46 home runs. Entering the 2018 season, Oregon figures to have a similar offensive profile, featuring gap-to-gap slugging and extreme aggression on the base paths.
Returning to the top of the lineup is outfielder Alexis Mack, who led the Ducks with a .424 average and 28 stolen bases last spring. Behind her, the Ducks would like to feature senior Jenna Lilley, a former first-team all-conference player coming off a season in which she hit .258. UO coach Mike White prefers to feature one of his top hitters in the No. 2 hole, and Lilley has the potential to be that, with the added value of being a capable bunter when Mack reaches base. "I like her mental approach right now," White said of Lilley. "Her issues in the past have been pressing too much; she cares a lot, and wants to impress everyone. That's hurt her in the past, but I think she's learning to manage failure better. She's always a kid that, at the end of the season, she steps up. Now we just need that end-of-season approach from the beginning."
In the run-producing No. 4 spot, senior catcher Gwen Svekis is a natural fit. She tied for the team lead with 10 home runs last spring, and hit three in Oregon's first game of the December foreign tour to New Zealand. "You talk about someone who's been impressive with the bat, it's been Gwen," White said. "She's going to be there to drive runs in." The Ducks will feature two more veteran run-producing bats in sophomores Shannon Rhodes and Mia Camuso. As a freshman, Camuso hit .341 with 47 RBIs, most among Oregon's returners; opposing pitchers always know Camuso is going to grind out a competitive at-bat, even if she gets in a hole. Rhodes was right on Camuso's heels with 46 RBIs, and led all UO returners with a .552 slugging average last spring. White said Rhodes has the potential to be one of the most dangerous hitters in the entire country, with improved consistency. "I still think the best is ahead for her," White said. "Hopefully this year she starts a little quicker, and possibly makes a push for all-America type numbers."
Finishing out the order figures to be senior second baseman Lauren Lindvall, and the to-be-identified starting right fielder, whether that's Haley Cruse, Cherish Burks, Darya Kaboli-Nejad or someone else. That will be a platoon situation to open the season, White has said. Off the bench, April Utecht provides a power bat as a pinch hitter, and Kaboli-Nejad may have earned herself some at-bats with an encouraging fall. Burks will help provide the mayhem White wants to see on the bases with her speed as a pinch-runner, while also factoring into the right-field competition.
Who's new: SS DJ Sanders, Sr.; C Mary Iakopo, Fr.; UT Shaye Bowden, Fr.; UT Lauren Burke, Fr.
Breakdown: Helping Svekis anchor the middle of the lineup will be a couple of newcomers with booming bats. Shortstop DJ Sanders led the nation with 29 home runs last season at Louisiana. The last thing White wants to see is Sanders putting pressure on herself to repeat those numbers; he'd be happy with 10 homers from Sanders this spring, if it means maintaining her lofty on-base and slugging averages. "She has to be that presence, but without forcing the issue and trying to do too much," White said. Freshman Mary Iakopo also could be a regular presence in the middle of the order. She's Oregon's catcher of the future, but could share first base and designated player duties with Camuso in order to get her bat in the lineup every day. "Obviously we don't have too many kids with that kind of power in the lineup," White said. "You can get all the kids you want on base; you've got to drive them in. She's that type of kid."
Off the bench, freshmen Shaye Bowden and Lauren Burke will look to contribute in utility roles. Burke is another name to watch in the competition at right field. And Bowden's competitiveness makes her an asset defensively all around the infield as well as the outfield, and with a bat in her hands. "Her grittiness at the plate is something else," White said. "She'll battle, battle, battle. Every at-bat is a battle with her, and that's what I like."
