MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The defending Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) champion Alabama State University softball team opens the 2017 season at the Sand Dollar Classic, hosted by the University of South Alabama this weekend.
 
The tournament features two other in-state teams in Jacksonville State and South Alabama, as well as Houston Baptist and Central Arkansas; with the Lady Hornets facing Houston Baptist (10 am) and Jacksonville State (12:30 pm) on the opening day of the tournament.
 
They will follow that up with a single game against Houston Baptist at 10 am on Saturday, followed by a pair of games on Sunday against Central Arkansas (10 am) and South Alabama (3 pm).
 
Live stats for every game of the Sand Dollar Classic can be accessed at USAJaguars.com, while games featuring South Alabama will be streamed on JagNation TV. Fans can purchase tickets Friday-Sunday, and that ticket will cover all games played on that particular day. Tournament seating is $15 for reserved seating and $10 for general admission.
 
Alabama State enters the 2017 season fresh off their first conference championship, and advancing to the NCAA Regionals for the first time in school history. The Lady Hornets finished 28-27 overall in 2016 (including 15-3 in conference play), and were picked to win the East Division of the SWAC in the preseason poll.
 
The Lady Hornets return several key components from last year's team that led the SWAC in offense, including Preseason Player of the Year Kendall Core. The senior third baseman returns after hitting .348, pounding out 23 extra base hits which included 10 home runs. She also scored 24 runs and knocked in another 43.
 
Alabama State returns six other starters including infielders Carly Evans (first base), Laura Aguilar (second base) and Alexia Boggess (shortstop). The trio combined for 174 total hits last season, including Aguilar collection a school record 70. They also combined for 74 runs, and 71 runs batted in during the championship season. The Lady Hornets also return outfielder Valerie Centeno and Charlene Castro from a season ago, with both seeing action on the mound in double duty. Centeno finished the season hitting .269 with 14 extra base hits, while Castro hit .390 with eight home runs and 43 runs batted in.
 
The Lady Hornets had four players selected all-conference during the preseason voting including Core and Aguilar on the first team, while Centeno and Castro were named second team performers.
 
The big key for the Lady Hornets this season will be to find a replacement for all-conference pitchers Maddie Phelps and Melissa Christmann. The duo combined for 27 of the team's 28 victories from a season ago. The Lady Hornets will look to Castro for experience on this year's team as she appeared in 26 games a season ago, with a win and a save. She logged 65.2 innings on the mound for the Lady Hornets, striking out 27. Alabama State will also turn to a pair of freshmen on the mound in Justine Jean and Vanessa Bradford to provide depth for the staff.
 
The Lady Hornets will face perennial powers South Alabama (a four-time regional participant) and Jacksonville State (regional finalist last season) in the tournament, along with Houston Baptist and Central Arkansas.
The opening opponent for Alabama State Friday morning, Houston Baptist looks to bounce back after going 15-29. The Huskies return five starters, including Libby Brown who finished the year hitting .313 with 42 hits and 20 runs scored. Fellow infielder Demi Janak returns after leading the team with eight home runs and 27 runs batted in.
 
Senior right-hander Emily Mueller is the lone returner with any experience in the circle for Houston Baptist.  In 11 appearances, Mueller made four starts, and allowed 29 runs – 19 earned – in 25 innings of work.  Mueller also saw two games of action in the outfield for HBU last season.
 
The Lady Hornets will then face the most-experienced team in the tournament, Jacksonville State to close out the opening day of the tournament. The Gamecocks finished 43-17 overall (26-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference) and were picked to win the conference this season. The team advanced to the finals of the Auburn regional, where they lost to eventual national runner-up Auburn.
 
The Gamecocks' leading returning hitter this season is Stephanie Lewis, who finished last season hitting .337 with 60 hits (including 11 doubles). Emily Woodruff (.331) and Ana Chisolm (.327) combined to record 82 hits last season, while Emily Church returns with 20 extra-base hits which included 10 home runs.
 
Jacksonville State also returns its top two pitchers in the circle from last season's NCAA Regional team.  Junior right-hander Whitney Gillespie was named OVC Pitcher of the Year, all-OVC First Team and to the OVC all-tournament team while also being selected to the NFCA All-Region Third Team.

Gillespie compiled a 16-4 record and a 1.13 ERA in 155.0 innings of work, while recording a team-high 127 strikeouts.  She also tossed 18 complete games and nine shutouts and finished with a 14-0 record and a 0.85 ERA in OVC action. Meanwhile, West appeared in 28 games in the circle for the Gamecocks as a junior and threw 122.2 innings en route to a 17-5 record and a 2.85 ERA
 
Central Arkansas finished last season 35-22 and 16-11 in the Southland Conference, and they return six starters and three pitchers from last season. Briana Whisenhunt returns after leading the team in hitting at .312 with 54 hits, 40 runs scored and 25 stolen bases – where she ranks fourth at the school and had the six-best total in a single season.
Kayla Gomness returns to the circle for Central Arkansas, where she finished 11-5 with a 2.29 earned run average a season ago. She pitched 10 completes games and has four shutouts.
 
South Alabama finished second in the Sun Belt Conference last season, and were picked to finish third this season. The Lady Jags return three starters who played in 40 or more games last season, including a trio of all-conference players in Kaleigh Todd, Haleigh Lane and Haleigh Lowe.
 
Todd, an honorable mention preseason All-American, ranked third in the conference in hitting at .415 during the 2016 season. She also finished near the top in stolen bases (22), on-base percentage (.495) and hits (68). Both Lowe and Lane each hit about .300 last season, combining for 94 hits and 54 runs batted in. Devin Brown returns to the circle for South Alabama after going 20-12 last season, with 324 strikeout sin 206.2 innings of work and was second in the country in shutouts.
 
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