KINGSVILLE, Texas – The Texas A&M-Kingsville softball team spent the 2019 season rewriting almost every mark in the program's record book and piling up a list of accomplishments that included a pair of Lone Star Conference Championships, an NCAA Regional crown and an appearance in the College World Series for first time ever. One year later, after being placed in the top spot in the LSC's Preseason Poll and handed a No. 2 national ranking by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, the Javelinas are preparing to defend their well-earned titles.
"This team's going to be ready to go." said coach Craig Nicholson. "We had a really good camp and got six days of practice in before school started. It's been one of the best camps I've seen any of my teams have. The girls came back ready and I think we're in a good spot right now."
The first pitch of this new year will be thrown at the Arkansas Tech Winter Invitational in Conroe, Texas, where the Blue and Gold will play six games in three days starting on Friday, when they're schedule to take on No. 7 Central Oklahoma at 10 a.m. and Pittsburg State at 12:30 p.m. On Saturday, No. 14 Southern Arkansas and TAMUK will square off at 10 a.m. followed by a matchup with No. 21 Arkansas Tech at 12:30 p.m. Sunday will begin with a 10 a.m. tilt against No. 21 Tarleton and conclude against Minnesota-Duluth at 3 p.m.
While the Javelinas graduated a 2019 senior class that included two of the program's most accomplished players in Roxy Chapa and Victoria Schoonard-Saborio, they retained the services of four members of the 2019 All-LSC First-Team. Two of those student-athletes are outfielder Loren Kelly (Rockport, Texas) and shortstop Anastasia Leibas (Del Valle, Texas), both of whom are coming off record-setting sophomore years.
Kelly spent 2019 obliterating the school's single-season record for stolen bases with 41, which topped LSC leaderboard and was third in the nation. She enters her junior year just 19 swipes away from Cassie Anderson's career record of 90 stolen bases. Kelly's sophomore stat line also included 72 hits and 57 runs scored, both of which put her in the top three in the conference. During her team's postseason run, the Rockport native scored at least once in nine consecutive contests and was not thrown in six steal attempts. For those efforts, she was honored with a spot on the CWS All-Tournament Team.
Leibas etched her name into the top spot in the Javelina record book in both RBIs and total bases in a season, piling up 59 and 129, respectively. She collected 10 of those RBIs in a single series against Eastern New Mexico, when Leibas homered in all three games as the Javs swept the Greyhounds. Her list of accomplishments also included team-bests in hitting, hits, slugging and OPS, as well as a 20-game hit streak that stretched from Feb. 23rd – April 5th. In addition to the conference recognition she received, Leibas was named to the NFCA's All-South Central Region Second-Team in 2019.
The two players who joined Leibas and Kelly on the LSC First-Team were pitchers Breanna Smith (San Antonio, Texas) and Saidi Castillo (Kingsville, Texas). These two hurlers combined for a 49-9 record and their individual winning percentages put them 1-2 in TAMUK history for a single-season. Castillo's 226 strikeouts were the most the LSC and her 27 wins put her ninth in the nation. Not far behind was Smith with 22 victories and that total was complemented by a 1.97 ERA, second-best in the conference. These numbers helped each pitcher collect multiple LSC Pitcher of the Week awards, as well as spots alongside Leibas on the all-region roster.
TAMUK's task of repeating their success for 2019 will have to come against one of the toughest slates in the nation. The Javs are scheduled to face 11 teams who are either ranked or receiving votes in the NFCA's preseason poll. The UCO Bronchos concluded the previous regular season ranked No. 1 in Division II before falling in their Super Regional. In addition to the other three ranked opponents on the docket in Conroe, TAMUK's non-conference schedule includes meetings with No. 16 North Georgia and Dixie State, Mississippi College and Western Oregon, all of whom are receiving votes. The LSC slate pits the Blue and Gold against No. 10 A&M-Commerce, No. 15 Cameron and Tarleton. In matchups with ranked squads in 2019, the Javs posted a mark of 15-4.
To keep with Javelina softball all season long, follow @TAMUKSB on Twitter, @JavelinaSports on Twitter and Instagram, like Javelina Sports on Facebook and subscribe to the Javelina Athletics YouTube Channel. Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network sponsored by Mendoza's Pharmacy.
