HAMMOND, La. – The Southeastern Louisiana softball team opens up its fall schedule this week, hosting Baton Rouge Community College for a 10-inning exhibition at North Oak Park on Friday at 6 p.m.
 
The Lady Lions return 18 letter winners from a squad that finished 34-23 overall and set a new single-season Southland Conference and school record with 227 stolen bases. Joining the experienced nucleus will be nine newcomers to give Southeastern a deep, talented roster.
 
All four of the returning positional starters have earned All-Southland Conference honors during their time in the green and gold. Junior catcher Ella Manzer (.341, 13 2B, 3 HR, 31 RBI in 2019), sophomore shortstop Lindsey Rizzo (.322, 27 SB), junior outfielder Madisen Blackford (.315, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 11 2B, 19 SB) and senior outfielder Ali McCoy (.287, 10 2B) all return for the Lady Lions.
 
All-Southland and All-Louisiana senior Alley McDonald (13-7, 2.34 ERA, 1 save) is the top returning pitcher for the SLU staff. Karlee Kraft (5-1, 1.75 ERA), Tanner Wright (6-5, 2.81 ERA) and Sophie Hannabas (7-7, 3.22 ERA, 1 save) also return in the circle for the Lady Lions.
 
Southeastern fourth-year head coach Rick Fremin has been pleased with the start of fall.
 
"The weather's been a challenge and we're having to prepare quickly with such an early fall game," Fremin commented. "We've had three scrimmages and the competitiveness is definitely where we want it to be. We've also been very pleased with the communication and team chemistry. Alley, Ella, Ali and Cameron Beal have all done a nice job stepping up into leadership roles for us."
 
All the Lady Lions will have the chance to show what they can do during the fall schedule.
 
"We're going to let all 10 pitchers throw an inning," Fremin said. "We're going to give everybody a chance to play and make the most of their opportunity. We've improved our overall speed and athleticism, but we need to work towards seeing where everyone fits defensively."
 
Up Next
Southeastern's eight-game fall exhibition schedule continues with visits to UL Lafayette (Sept. 27, 6 p.m.) and LSU Eunice (Sept. 28, 12 p.m.). The Lady Lions then return home to host Copiah-Lincoln Community College (Oct. 2, 5 p.m.), Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (Oct. 12, 1 p.m.), Coastal Alabama Community College (Oct. 17, 4 p.m.), LSU Alexandria (Oct. 18, 4 p.m.) and Jones County Junior College (Oct. 18, 6 p.m.).
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Softball, follow @LionUpSoftball on Twitter and Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
 
HOME RUN CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the softball program are encouraged to join the Home Run Club. Lady Lion softball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Home Run Club and S Club (softball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern softball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events (softball, baseball, football and basketball), effective with the start of the 2018 football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.