What’s next for Wichita State softball? A look at who’s coming back for the Shockers
The Wichita State softball team captivated Shocker fans this past spring with their home runs, championships and run in the NCAA Regionals against top-ranked Oklahoma.
Gone are the “Butters” bombs from Madison Perrigan, the dependability of Bailey Lange in the circle, the timely hitting of Ryleigh Buck and the highlight-reel defensive plays of Kaylee Huecker and Bailee Nickerson.
There’s no denying WSU lost a significant amount of production and leadership from arguably its best team in program history, which won 41 games, swept the American Athletic Conference titles and advanced to an NCAA Regional championship game.
But in the process, the standard for the program was set and WSU coach Kristi Bredbenner is confident that the 2021 season was the start of something — not the end.
“I think the motivation for the girls is going to be a big part of this,” Bredbenner said. “We want to keep moving forward and keep participating in the NCAA Tournament and keep progressing and hopefully get to a Super Regional and get to a World Series. That’s going to take a commitment to getting better from everyone and I think this is a group that we can really continue to keep building around.”
It all starts for the Shockers with junior shortstop Sydney McKinney, the reigning AAC Player of the Year, and sophomore outfielder Addison Barnard, the reigning Most Outstanding Player of the AAC tournament. Both garnered third team All-American honors, as McKinney led WSU with a .439 batting average and Barnard broke the single-season program record in home runs (22) and runs batted in (61).
Also back from WSU’s historic power-hitting lineup are senior first baseman Neleigh Herring (10 home runs, 35 RBIs), junior designated player Lauren Mills (11 home runs, 36 RBIs) and sophomore outfielder Bailey Urban.
With starters graduating at second and third base, Bredbenner injected WSU’s roster with talent and experience through the transfer portal. WSU landed Houston senior transfer Arielle James, a three-time all-conference selection at second base who is a career .364 hitter, as well as Texas Tech junior transfer Zoe Jones, who earned all-Big 12 Freshman Team honors in 2019 and is expected to challenge for the starting spot at third base.
“Both of those girls were looking for something different to finish out their careers and I think they are going to help make us a better team,” Bredbenner said. “We’re going to use both of them in a really positive way for our program.”
But the biggest question marks on the team for next season rests in WSU’s battery. Who replaces Perrigan at catcher and Lange in the circle?
At catcher, a battle is shaping up between a pair of sophomores in Jessica Garcia and Lainee Brown.
“Offense is going to be a big part of it, but at the same time we’re going to look at who can fit in the best in that battery spot working well with our pitchers, framing and making them better,” Bredbenner said. “We have two really good candidates and I’m excited to see that battle. Offensively, Jess probably has the edge and defensively, Lainee probably has the advantage. They’re both working hard this summer on the things they need to do and they both know they’ve got some big shoes to fill.”
After relying on Lange to be a workhorse in the circle last season, WSU is more than likely to rely on a committee this upcoming season. The rotation will begin with a pair of seniors in Caitlin Bingham and Erin McDonald, who both have big-game experience over their careers at WSU.
When Lange missed almost the entire 2019 season, McDonald became WSU’s ace and finished the season with a 15-12 record with a 2.90 earned run average. Last season, Bingham was WSU’s No. 2 starter behind Lange and finished with a 10-3 record and a team-best 3.00 ERA.
“It’s wide open (to be the team’s ace),” Bredbenner said. “Caitlin had some great outings for us last year and she proved that she can compete. Erin is doing everything she can to make sure this last hurrah the best possible season for her. We feel great about having two fifth-year seniors leading the way with their maturity and experience and then we’ve got three freshmen we’re really going to count on as well. We’re looking at having a really good five-person rotation that’s going to allow us to mix things up quite a bit.”
The three freshmen pitchers for the Shockers are Jordyn Pipkin, who redshirted last season, Alison Cooper, a top prospect and left-hander from Texas, and Kenzie Schopfer. All three figure to see time in the circle, whether it’s starting games or in relief.
“Alison is someone who throws it from the left side and moves the ball well, keeps it down and can really spin it,” Bredbenner said. “You’re going to see the polar opposite when it comes to Kenzie. She’s more power, more up than down. They’re going to be a great complement together. With Jordyn, I think the last year of experience is going to be a crucial factor for her. She showed in practice she can get some big swings and misses against some really great hitters.
“We’re going to count on them and give all three of them some experience right off the bat this fall. They’re going to be a big part of the potential success that we have in this program next year because we’re going to be counting on them in the circle quite a bit.”
After being behind so many successful seniors, Bredbenner is also looking forward to seeing how the sophomore class — players like Camryn Compton, Lauren Johnson and Lauren Lucas — competes for playing time now with more opportunity.
“Maybe people didn’t get as many opportunities in the lineup because of the seniors ahead of them,” Bredbenner said. “Cam, Lauren Lucas have both been working really hard this summer and getting the reps in. Lauren Johnson wants to be an impact player in our program. We have a ton of depth and potential.
“The bottom line is I’m pretty excited about what we’ve got and you can look 1 through 23 on our roster and we’ve got kids who are going to continue to keep getting better and build Shocker softball into an every-year postseason team.”
This story was originally published August 3, 2021 at 2:06 PM.
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