Matador softball team ready to take next step in ACCAC
When the Arizona Western College softball team qualified for the ACCAC playoffs last season, freshmen and sophomores alike entered the postseason as rookies — and were treated accordingly with twoquick losses.
“The sophomores, this year, are going to be ready for this," said center fielder Ashley M
Davis. “The freshmen are pretty mature, m a competition sense. Last year (in the playoffs), we didn't really step it up. We played it just like another game. This year, we’re going to play every game as if it were regionals."
The Matadors begin the 1996 campaign at 2 p.m. today with an Arizona Community College Athletic Conference doubleheader at Phoenix College. Coach Pam Stone, entering her fourth season with the Matadors, sees each game as a simple chore of holding the opposition to about two runs, and scoring more.
“We have the ability defensively and with our pitching to be able to hold teams down,” she said. “It’s a matter of our offense doing the rest of the work.”
Last season, the Matadors improved IO games in the conference standings, finishing with a 3118 record, 1913 in the ACCAC. They jumped out to an 181 record to start the season and would like to repeat that success. But the
JUCO
softball
schedule makers were not as kind this time around.
“We have four games before our (Great Western) Shootout against teams which should be in the top four in our league — Phoenix and Eastern Arizona,” Stone said. “It will be interesting to see how we fare early.”
Stiff competition in the conference is also expected from Central Arizona College, the defending NJCAA champs.
AWC is armed and ready with two of the state’s top returning pitchers — Michelle Larson and Brenda Espinoza.
Larson, the former Cibola standout, went 137 in 1995 with a stellar 1.73 earned run average, striking out 106 batters in 14114 innings. She also hit .325 with two homers and 33 RBIS in splitting time between the circle and first base.
Exyuma High star Espinoza went 98 last season, with eight of her victories coming in ACCAC play. She compiled a 2.25 ERA with 58 strikeouts in 90 innings.
“Those two can dominate the conference,” Stone said. “I’d put (Espinoza) against any No. 2 in the league. We’re going to do as well as Michelle and Brenda do.
“They’re more seasoned now. I think both pitchers didn’t reach the same level of success they were accustomed to in high school, and that worked to their benefit. Brenda is head over heels better now than where she was last year.” Espinoza will have a familiar target behind the