Softball team to play its openers in California

Friday, February 10

Riverside, Calif.

10 AM (MT)

Montana

Middle Tennessee

2/8/2023 4:37:00 PM | Softball

PDF Game Notes

By: Montana Sports Information

The Montana softball team will make its season debut this weekend when the Grizzlies play five games in three days at the Lynn Russell Miller Classic in Riverside, Calif.

Montana will play two games against Middle Tennessee, two against Fresno State and one against host UC Riverside.

The schedule:
Friday, 10 a.m. (MT) – Montana vs. Middle Tennessee
Friday, 12:30 p.m. (MT) – Montana vs. Fresno State
Saturday, 10 a.m. (MT) – Montana vs. Fresno State
Saturday, 3 p.m. (MT) – Montana at UC Riverside
Sunday, 10 a.m. (MT) – Montana vs. Middle Tennessee

Coverage: All nine games of the Lynn Russell Miller Classic can be monitored through live stats.

At a glance (Montana): The Grizzlies went 20-27 a year ago and finished sixth in the then seven-team Big Sky Conference with a 6-11 league record. Montana returns its full pitching staff from 2022 but just three primary position starters.

The Grizzlies were picked fourth out of six teams in the Big Sky preseason coaches' poll, trailing Weber State, Sacramento State and Portland State. The Wildcats picked up three first-place votes, the Hornets two, the Vikings one. Idaho State was picked fifth, Northern Colorado sixth.

At a glance (Middle Tennessee): The Blue Raiders went 19-34 last season and finished fifth out of six teams in the East in the two-division Conference USA standings at 6-18. Middle Tennessee tied for eighth out of 10 teams in this year's preseason poll, which North Texas topped.

At a glance (Fresno State): The Bulldogs, who advanced to the NCAA tournament in 2021, went 19-36 last season under a first-year coach and finished fifth in the Mountain West at 10-14. Fresno State tied for fifth in this year's preseason poll, behind Boise State, San Diego State, UNLV and Colorado State.

At a glance (UC Riverside): The Highlanders went 25-24 last season, which ended with a five-game winning streak, and finished fourth in the Big West at 16-11 in league. UC Riverside was picked seventh in the Big West preseason poll, which was topped by Cal State Fullerton.

Summary: Montana will play upcoming tournaments in Nevada, Arizona, California and Washington, but there is only one opening weekend.

"Really excited," said sixth-year coach Melanie Meuchel, whose team's last game was back on May 12, a loss to Northern Colorado in the Big Sky tournament. The Grizzlies played an eight-game exhibition schedule in the fall.

"You prepare throughout the fall to get to this point, then you relay on the preparation, you rely on the process. There is just pure excitement from every athlete, every coach to get to this point in the year."

Montana lost six primary starters at non-pitching positions. Nowhere was that turnover greater than in the infield, where the Grizzlies lost longtime starters at first base, third base and shortstop. Each of them was an All-Big Sky performer in her career.

The only returning infield starter from the team's end-of-year lineup is senior Jaxie Klucewich, and she was playing second base. She has since switched over to shortstop, becoming just the third player in program history to hold that spot down, behind Delene Colburn and Maygen McGrath.

That opened second base back up for senior Kendall Curtis, whose midseason injury last year prompted Klucewich to make the switch from left field to the infield.

In the fall, sophomore Hannah Jablonski started at first base, sophomore Grace Hardy at third base.

The infield group is backed up by freshmen Breiana Bonkavich, Chloe Saxton and Makena Strong, and junior Kelly Sweyer.

"We had a loss to graduation, so in the fall it was trying to find the best fit for our team," said Meuchel. "People are playing really hard at their positions and starting to take some ownership.

"We have some depth, we have some athleticism, we have the ability to move some people. We will try to find the best matchups we can find."

The outfield will be an area of strength, with senior Julie Phelps, who has made just two errors in her career, holding down center, junior Elise Ontiveros positioned in left and sophomore Presley Jantzi in right.

Ontiveros got the opportunity in March to take over the position in left field, and she never looked back. She batted .457 in 17 league games and came out of nowhere to earn honorable mention All-Big Sky honors.

Jantzi made 35 starts last season as a freshman at designated player. She batted .353 and ranked fourth on the team with 13 extra-base hits.

"They have had the opportunity to get very familiar with each other. Our outfield has a veteran aspect to it that pushes the way for our defense," said Meuchel.

"They have the work ethic and a grind to them that they are not going to settle. They really push the team in that direction as well. They have really gelled together. They give everything they've got for every single ball that is put in play."

Sophomore Jessica Stanfield arrives after playing one season at Yakima Valley (Wash.) College. Bonkavich also has been getting practice time in the outfield.

McKenna Tjaden made most of the starts at catcher last season, with now junior Riley Stockton getting the other 20.

With Tjaden lost to graduation and Kynzie Mohl unable to play in the fall, that left Stockton to play all eight exhibition games. She batted .474 and led the team with six extra-base hits.

But no coach feels comfortable with only one option behind the plate, not with the position's inherent risks and its wear and tear. Now Meuchel has Stockton and Mohl to choose from.

"It is a position that is physical in every single pitch of the game, so there are times you want to be able to incorporate some rest and recovery for the body," said Meuchel.

"Then you also want to put together the battery that works the best for our pitchers as well. I love to see the growth in each of our catchers. They have both worked so hard. Both will find some time."

Maggie Joseph, now a senior pitcher, transferred to Montana from California. She was only able to throw 4 1/3 innings last season, her first as a Grizzly, and didn't pitch after Feb. 18, the sixth game of the season.

That left the weight of the staff on Allie Brock, now a junior, and Dana Butterfield, now a sophomore. Brock threw more than 158 innings, Butterfield more than 146. They picked up the win or the loss in all 47 games in 2022 and were the only options available after Joseph was sidelined.

Both had 10 wins, the first time in program history two pitchers have both won 10 or more games in a single season.

And Meuchel hopes she never has to go through that experience again.

She finally has her depth. Joseph is back, and Meuchel has two freshman pitchers, Grace Haegele, of Redmond, Wash., and Evelyn O'Brien, of Cokato, Minn.

"We have a depth in our staff, so I'm really excited," said Meuchel, the team's pitching coach. "They are uniquely different from each other but all share a competitive drive.

"Really excited for each of them to show their competitive drive but also their personality and their ability to excel and hone in on the game."

The Grizzlies will be tested for the first time this season in California, beginning with Middle Tennessee and Fresno State on opening day.

"It will be a good weekend to get out and play another team, other competition besides intra-squad scrimmage," said Meuchel.

"We'll have scouted who our opponents were last year and what some of their tendencies were, but it is opening week. We'll be prepared for them, but we will also work on our game and do what we're good at and continue to have growth within who we are as a team."

Historical notes: Montana will be playing Middle Tennessee for the first time. … The Grizzlies have never defeated Fresno State, going 0-4 and getting outscored by the Bulldogs 26-1. … Montana has gone 2-1 against UC Riverside, with all three matchups on UCR's home field. The Grizzlies have wins of 3-2 and 5-3, the Highlanders a 3-1 victory.

Upcoming: Montana will travel to Nevada next week for the UNLV Desert Classic. The Grizzlies will get two games against Hawaii, two against CSU Bakersfield and one against the host Rebels.

Hawaii was picked third in the Big West preseason poll, CSU Bakersfield last out of 10 teams. UNLV was picked third in the Mountain West preseason poll.