HAMMOND, La. – With the season opener just a month away, the Southeastern Louisiana softball team will officially open preseason practice on Wednesday.
 
SLU returns 17 letter winners from the 2020 team, which had a 15-8 overall record and 2-1 mark in Southland play when it saw its season halted by the COVID-19 pandemic last March. The Lady Lions also add six talented true freshmen to the roster this spring.
 
Instead of playing a full fall schedule as per usual, the Lady Lions participated in a intersquad Fall World Series. Sixth-year SLU head coach Rick Fremin observed many positives during the fall action to increase his optimism heading into the upcoming spring campaign.
 
"We're expecting to be productive offensively throughout our lineup," Fremin commented. "Early in the season, we might be figuring things out pitching-wise as players settle in to their roles. But, we saw enough bright spots in the circle this fall to feel good about our pitching staff heading into the preseason."
 
Though hopes are high for Southeastern in 2021, Fremin says his team still has work to do before real competition begins in February.
 
"We still have to figure out where everyone is going to fit in defensively," Fremin said. "We're just excited to get back to practicing and playing."
 
Veterans Madisen Blackford (.379, 19 RBI in 2020), Lindsey Rizzo (.369, 15 SB), Karlee Kraft (.313, 2 HR, 13 RBI) and Ella Manzer (.305, 3 HR, 16 RBI) are all returning starters for SLU, while the quartet of Aeriyl Mass (.364, 17 SB), Kelci Bodin (.362), Audrey Greely (.327, 13 RBI) and Cameron Goodman (.288, 12 SB) all are back after earning starting spots in their debut springs in Hammond.
 
Briahna Bennett also is back and made a huge impact at the plate in the fall, leading the team with a .571 batting average, three home runs and 13 RBI. True freshman Lexi Johnson also had a productive fall offensively and is expected to add extra firepower to the SLU attack.
In the circle, MC Comeaux (5-1, 0.93 ERA in 2020) is expected to be a top arm for Southeastern, which also returns Kraft (1-1, 3.50 ERA), Heather Zumo (2-2, 3.55 ERA), Sophie Hannabas (2-1, 3.92 ERA) and Shelby Sitzman (0-1, 14.54 ERA).
 
SLU is scheduled to open the 2021 season on Feb. 12, hosting Southern Illinois-Edwardsville at 5 p.m. at North Oak Park on the opening day of the Lion Classic. Southeastern will also play non-conference tournaments at UAB, Florida State and Auburn before opening Southland Conference play on March 12 at home versus Lamar.
 
"We'll definitely be tested throughout non-conference play," Fremin said. "But it will be good preparation for what we expect to be a challenging Southland Conference schedule."
 
TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2020-21 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail and text message in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
 
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.