Badgers Open Fall Season Friday Night
September 16, 2004 | Softball
The boys of summer may be pointing toward the postseason, but for the Wisconsin softball team its season is just getting started. The Badgers open up their fall campaign Friday night when they open play at the Chicagoland Classic in Orland Park, Ill.
UW will take on Bradley at 7 p.m. Friday night in its opening game at Centennial Park. Tournament play continues through Sunday. Wisconsin will face Loyola-Chicago at 3 p.m. Saturday prior to going up against Western Illinois at 7 p.m. The Badgers wrap up play Sunday by challenging Northern Iowa at 10 a.m. and Valparaiso at noon.
For UW coach Karen Gallagher, the fall season is a good chance to set the tone for the regular season in the spring while getting the Badgers' eight freshmen acclimated to the program.
"It's a great opportunity for some of our younger players to step up, bring their game to the table and see where they're going fit in to our program," Gallagher said. "It's also a chance for us to see where people are in regards to new roles that they may be playing or situations where we can look at how much depth we have on the team. I think that's going to be one of the strengths of ours is the depth that we do have. It's exciting to know that we have a lot of people that can play a lot of different positions."
Coming off a 29-28 record during the 2004 regular season, Gallagher is excited about what will be one of her most experienced teams in recent history. A number of sophomores got considerable playing time as freshmen and the Badgers have seven seniors on the 2004-05 roster after having just one a year ago.
"The group has had good energy," Gallagher said of the two weeks of practice the team has under its belt. "They come out here every day and work hard, want to learn and want to get better. There's people vying for positions so I think that they know that and they're very serious about the approach they take. People are getting down to business and are trying to make a statement early, and I like that. We need more of that."
Following up on its five games this weekend, the team will host a doubleheader at Goodman Diamond against UW-Green Bay at 11 a.m. next Saturday. The Badgers will then wrap up fall competition by welcoming Winona State and UW-Parkside for a triangular beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 9.
