For the first time since 2002, the Lady Colonels softball team will begin its season with a new head coach as Jenny Parsons leads this year’s squad. Parsons was promoted to head coach on Sept. 7, replacing former head coach Phyllis Guedry after Guedry resigned to pursue another career away from coaching. She is no stranger to the Lady Colonels softball program, having served as pitching coach for the last two years. She also served as pitching coach at East Carolina University for seven seasons before coming to Nicholls.

Compiling what she has learned from other coaches and on her own, Parsons has come up with her own philosophy that she put to use in the fall to prepare the softball team for the season.

“We work extremely hard in practice and (are) demanding in practice, and then I just try to let them play when they get on the field,” Parsons said. “We played some good competition in the fall season, and they played really relaxed. We actually hit the ball better in the fall than I’ve seen them hit the two years that I’ve been here.”

Over the last couple of years, Parsons said the offense has been the weakest aspect of the Lady Colonels’ game, but she believes she’s helped solve the problem. During fall practice, the players were hitting more. She changed their “mental” approach to hitting by better preparing them to bat and swing on the first pitch.

Junior second baseman Brandy Hahn says the time spent in the fall hitting will help the team score more runs. It will eliminate some of the pressure that was on the defense last year.

“I think hitting everyday and the practice and dedication that we all have is going make us come out with a little more confidence during games like in the beginning of the season,” Hahn said. “Last year we depended a lot more on our defense to keep us in games. This year I think we’re going to have a lot more high-scoring games.”

As far as who will man the nine positions on the field, Parsons said the determining factor would be who is hitting.

This year Parsons faces the challenge of trying to fill the void left by last year’s pitcher Dione Meier. She said she will use senior Nichole Wagner and freshmen Ali May and Jessica Barksdale whom she hopes will give her the same effort Meier exhibited.

In the infield, junior Lindsay Coleman returns to first base for her third season. Freshman Amy Thibodaux and possibly senior Jamee Henry will also be vying for playing time at first base.

Hahn, a second team all-conference selection, returns to second base while junior Lindsey Yelverton, an all-conference selection her freshman year who did not play last year, is the shortstop as of now. Freshman Kathryn Harrell will also be in the mix for playing time at shortstop and second base positions. Parsons said sophomore Leah Peterson and senior Alaina Vardell are back at third base.

Parsons will play junior Teri Clouatre, an all-state centerfielder in high school and a shortstop/second baseman her first two years as a Lady Colonel, in the outfield. Joining her will be Briarcliffe Junior College transfer Andrea Ground, a junior, in centerfield. Sophomore Jennifer Campbell, Henry and freshmen Rachel Pugh and Harrell will also see action in the outfield.

Parsons said Megan Mulcahy, a junior transfer from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and senior Janelle Sick will share catching duties.

In speaking about her coach and the fall workouts, Wagner said everybody’s relaxed and excited this year.

“It’s been awesome,” Wagner said. “I think as a whole the team’s more relaxed, just ready to play. Everybody’s very excited to play this year. I think she (coach Parsons) put the fun back into playing softball.”

The Lady Colonels’ non-conference schedule features four top 10 teams. They will play Florida State in the Florida State Tournament, University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the ULL Tournament and the University of Oklahoma in the Oklahoma Tournament. Additionally, they will play a home and home series with Louisiana State University and a home doubleheader against ULL on April 6.

Parsons said she scheduled LSU and ULL because they are near Nicholls and will bring large crowds to games. She said playing these two squads, along with the tournaments the team will be participating in, will help boost their ratings percentage index, enabling them the chance to go to the postseason if they are successful in conference play. She also said playing that type of competition will prepare her team for conference play.

As far as Southland Conference play, Parsons said every team is talented and anybody can be beaten on any given day.

“There’s such a parity throughout the whole conference that on any given day anybody’s going to beat anybody,” Parsons said. “It all depends on who pitches well and who scores runs, to tell you the truth. I think if we improve on how we played this fall, then we’ll be in there again. We’ll be fighting to go into the tournament and hopefully fighting for the championship.”

The Lady Colonels open the season on Feb. 11-12 at the Florida State Tournament in Tallahassee, Fla.