WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University Colonels softball program opens up their 2022 season after a short 2021 that saw them go 5-17 overall and 5-11 in Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom play under the guidance of head coach Jackie Klahold.
 
"We have one class, our senior class, that has actual experience going down and what a spring trip means and how it sets the tone for the season," said Klahold.
 
The Colonels field a sizable class of 10 graduates and seniors alongside a trio of juniors.  Rachel Pritchard (Wilmington, DE/Concord), Rhia Aurand (Avondale, PA/Avon Grove), and Hope Mullins (Midland, VA/Liberty) make up the pitching staff, while Aurand and Mullins join Haley Boyd (Escalon, CA/Escalon) and Cheyenne Jenner (Montrose, PA/Elk Lake) as outfielders.  Pritchard forms a sizable infielder group with Jaime Martin (Bridgeton, NJ/Cumberland Regional), Erin Cabry (York, PA/Central York), Jessie Smith (Millersville, MD/Severna Park), Emma Stauffer (Media, PA/Penncrest), AJ Bryfogle (Easton, PA/Easton Area), Baylee Guedes (Palmerton, PA/Palmerton), and Carly Endres (Vineland, NJ/Arthur P. Schalick). Caylee-Mae Williams (Yuba City, CA/River Valley) plays catcher and also in the infield.
 
"We have a strong sernior class that really is going to take charge and lead the way," said Klahold.
 
Pritchard posted a 4.61 earned-run average (ERA) in her 2021 season, starting seven games and throwing 23 strikeouts.  She had a .351 batting average at the plate, leading all qualifying Colonels from last year's squad, with 57 at-bats in 17 starts, hitting six doubles and batting in eight runs.  Mullins led the three upperclassmen pitchers with a 2.81 ERA, earning a 3-3 record as a pitcher with 18 strikeouts.  Aurand led the team with 24 strikeouts and had a 3.89 ERA, while hitting .250 at the plate.
 
Cabry pairs with Pritchard as one of the better returning bats for the Colonels.  She averaged a .348 batting average in 2021, with 66 at-bats and a team-leading eight doubles and one triple to her name.  Williams is second among all returning Colonels with eight runs, having 11 hits and a .256 average in her 2021 campaign.  Boyd has a .242 career batting average with Wilkes, including 19 RBIs.  Smith started 21 games mostly as a catcher for the Colonels, batting .217 with three runs, while Stauffer started six games with six RBIs in 2021.  Martin, Guedes, and Bryfogle started five games last season for Wilkes, while Jenner started one.  Endres looks to contribute in her first season with the Navy and Gold. 
 
"These young ladies have really stepped up and have taken the reins and displayed those leadership qualities."
 
The Colonels have an 11-strong sophomore class that made an immediate impact last season looking to continue to do so in their second year.  Sami Hendershott (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Valley) and Tinsley Sarnak (Exeter, PA/Wyoming Area) make up the pitchers, and join Hayden Calaman (Elizabethtown, PA/Elizabethtown Area) and Hannah Boyd (Escalon, CA/Escalon) as infielders.  Haylee Calaman (Elizabethtown, PA/Elizabethtown Area) plays utility for the Colonels.  Han. Boyd joins Nicole O'Rourke (Staten Island, NY/Susan E Wagner) and Kaylie Capriotti (Levittown, PA/Pennsbury) as catchers, while Capriotti and O'Rourke play with Marissa Pick (Watsontown, PA/Warrior Run), Megan Marshall (Bel Air, MD/C. Milton Wright), and Taylor Douple (Fredericksburg, PA/Northern Lebanon) in the outfield. 
 
The Calamans combined for 18 starts last season, with Hayden hitting .208 with a pair of RBIs and Haylee playing in 14 games total last season.  O'Rourke hit .222 in 14 starts last season with a stolen base and Pick had a .259 average with seven RBIs and a .704 slugging percentage, including three home runs.  Douple started seven games for the Colonels last season, while Capriotti and Marshall contributed in seven and 11 games respectively.    Silva made eight appearances as a batter and one as a pitcher last year.  Hendershott started a pair of games as a pitcher, while Sarnak made a single appearance on the mound for the Colonels.  Hann. Boyd looks to make more contributions in her sophomore year.
 
"We're trusting in the process and what we're doing, we might take our lumps there and there, but we're hoping to come out of this tournament with a stronger sense of who we're going to be," said Klahold.
 
The Colonels bring in six first years this season.  Emily Murphy (Philadelphia, PA/St. Hubert Catholic), Bella Peters (Lancaster, PA/Penn Manor), and Kayla Burleson (West Chester, PA/B. Reed Henderson) are new additions to the pitching staff, while Nicole Howell (Tunkhannock, PA/Tunkhannock Area) and Evan Sherrick (Lancaster, PA/Hempfield) join them in the infield as well.  Allison Radicchi (Binghamton, NY/Windsor Central) rounds out the class as a catcher and an outfielder.
 
"They bring a lot of depth to be honest," said Klahold about the incoming class.  "They are competing with those returners, they are learning from those returners, when we take the field on Monday we could see a few of them out there and we told them that everyone's going to get their opportunity."
 
The Navy and Gold face tough competition this season, with Misericordia and defending champion Stevens looking as tough as ever.  The Colonels start the season in Myrtle Beach, S.C. with the FastPitch Dreams Spring Classic, starting with Cairn at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, March 7. 
 
"We're trusting in the process and what we're doing, we might take our lumps there and there, but we're hoping to come out of this tournament with a stronger sense of who we're going to be," said Klahold.
 
The Colonels open MAC Freedom play with a road doubleheader at DeSales on Saturday, March 19, before opening home play with a Keystone College doubleheader at the Ralston Athletic Complex on Wednesday, March 23.