LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - After a full offseason with second-year head coach Kristie Fox, the UNLV softball team is ready to roll for the 2019 season, which kicks off this weekend with the Marucci Desert Classic February 8-10 at Eller Media Stadium. The Rebels will begin their 35th season in program history by hosting a home tournament for the 15th straight year. The three-day tournament begins Friday, February 8 at 8 a.m. and features, along with UNLV, No. 25 Long Beach State, North Dakota, Seton Hall, Southern Utah and Utah Valley.

The Scarlet and Gray will play five games on opening weekend, beginning Friday with a doubleheader - a 1 p.m. matchup against Seton Hall followed by a 3:30 game with Utah Valley. Saturday will see another doubleheader with the Rebels facing No. 25 Long Beach State at 3:30 p.m. before capping the evening with its first-ever meeting against North Dakota at 6 p.m. The weekend concludes with a Sunday showdown with Southern Utah at 1 p.m.

UNLV will be looking to build off an outstanding first year under Fox in 2018 that saw the Rebels win their most games since 2011 and enjoy their first winning season in eight years. The Scarlet and Gray return six position starters from that squad, including all three starting outfielders and three of four starting infielders. In the circle, UNLV will have two of three starters back from last year, but will have to replace the now graduated Janine Petmecky, who won 21 games for the Rebels and was one of their top performers at the plate. Fox has also added 10 newcomers, including freshman pitcher Jenny Bressler, who was the 2018 Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Michigan, and sophomore transfer CC Caccamise, who saw action in 17 games with nine starts at LSU in 2018.

Fox has been happy what she's seen through the fall and up until this point and is looking forward to seeing her team compete against outside competition.

"This team really came together and meshed well in the fall and they have good chemistry," said Fox. "I'm ready to see us play against some competition and see what we need to work on and what we need to develop. This team has a lot of talent and I hope they play with a little chip on their shoulders and continue that grit they had last year."

QUICK HITTERS
• Kristie Fox enters her second season after a 33-20 overall record in 2018
• The 33 wins were the most for a first-year head coach in program history
• UNLV went 13-11 in conference play and finished in fourth after being picked to finish in eighth at the beginning of the season
• UNLV advanced to the National Invitational Softball Championship (NISC) for their first postseason appearance since 2009 and reached the regional finals while hosting as the overall No. 1 seed
• Defense has been a point of emphasis for Fox and her staff and it showed in 2018 as the team's .973 field percentage was the best mark in program history and the 43 errors were lowest committed all-time.
• UNLV was picked fourth in the 2019 Mountain West Preseason Coaches poll, its highest predicted finish since 2014
• UNLV has two new members on its staff - pitching coach Emily Vincent, who was a standout at McNeese State and graduate asssitant Jacquelyn Sertic, who was also a standout pitcher for North Dakota State
• The three teams picked ahead of the Rebels - defending champion Boise State, Fresno State and San Jose State - will all travel to Las Vegas this year for conference series
• Among the eight returning starters (six positions, two pitchers), sophomore Mia Trejo and junior Reina Bondi are all conference performers, with Mia earning first team honors in 2018 and Bondi earning second team honors

RETURNING STAT LEADERS
• Batting average: So., 1B, Mia Trejo .353; Jr., OF, Reina Bondi .283; Sr., OF, Myranda Bueno .261
• Hits: So., 1B, Mia Trejo 54; Jr., 2B, Justine Federe 41; So, SS, Samantha Diaz 37
• Doubles: Jr., 2B, Justine Federe 12; So., 1B, Mia Trejo 10; Jr., ; So, SS, Samantha Diaz 10
• Home runs: So, SS, Samantha Diaz 4; So., 1B, Mia Trejo 3; Jr., 2B, Justine Federe 3
• RBI: Jr., 2B, Justine Federe 33; So., 1B, Mia Trejo 28; So, SS, Samantha Diaz 20
• Runs scored: Jr., 2B, Justine Federe 32; Sr., OF, Myranda Bueno 23; So, 1B, Mia Trejo 20
• ERA: Jr., Breana Burke 3.17; Jr., Charlie Masterson 3.47
• Strikeouts: Jr., Charlie Masterson 56; Jr., Breana Burke 38
• Fielding percentage: So., 1B, Mia Trejo .988; Fr., OF; Jaclyn Candela .980; Sr., OF, Myranda Bueno .977

POSITION GROUP PREVIEW WITH COACH FOX
• Outfield (Returners: SR/LF Myranda Bueno, SO/CF Jaclyn Candelas, JR/RF Reina Bondi; Newcomers: FR Statia Cermak, JR Lauren Tycksen)
"We have maturity in the outfield and we've gained some speed out there too. They've been working really hard. The addition of the padded fences is really exciting for the program and will benefit our group out there. The main expectation is for them to catch everything that comes their way. Heading into the season we are looking for a little more offensive production from that group and we've seen that so far, so it's encouraging and we're excited about them."

• Infield (Returners: SO/1B Mia Trejo, JR/2B Justine Federe; SO/SS Samantha Diaz; SR/C Abby Howard; SR/C Kiley Harrison; SO/C Vivian Quiroz-Montano; Newcomers: FR/INF Paxton Scheurer; FR/C Julia Vollmer; SO/INF Genesis Zamora; FR/INF Denise Armendariz; SO/C CC Caccamise; FR/INF Lauryn Barker)
"I like what I see with our infield. The young players are really starting to take leadership roles and the group looks really solid overall. We've added a freshman newcomer at third base and the returners have done a really good job helping with that transition. Defense is a very big part of what we believe in, so making sure we take care of the ball and we continue to take care of the ball for our pitching staff is a big point of emphasis for us this year."

• Pitchers (Returners: JR Charlie Masterson; JR Breana Burke; Newcomers: FR Jenny Bressler; FR Paxton Scheurer)
"We have two returners in Charlie and Bre that pitched really well for us last year. We've just got to make sure we put them in situations to compete and be successful. Early on, Charlie is looking really sharp and Bre has been pitching really well all the way since the fall - I think her relationship with [new pitching coach] Emily [Vincent] has really helped Bre push herself. Jenny [Bressler] is very talented, came here after winning Michigan's Gatorate Player of the Year, and has high expectations for herself, but she's a freshman so we really want to put her in situations where she can be successful early on to build her confidence and make sure she is mentally in a good place heading into conference."

LIVE STATS/UPDATES
Live stats for all five games are available at www.UNLVRebels.com. Live updates can also be found by following @UNLVSoftball on twitter. Links to watch single-camera streams of all five games are available at UNLVRebels.com as well.